54 Monitoring Threatened Species and Ecological Communities
controlled access. Such differences in funding model also apply to approaches to
modelling. Although bird atlassing can detect trends in relatively abundant species
that may be threatened because they are declining rapidly, most threatened species
require targeted approaches (fit-for-purpose) that ref lect their biology and the
behaviours of the people who might do the work (e.g. Tulloch and Szabo 2012).
Lessons learned
● (^) Although the incidence of monitoring of threatened birds, and the quality of
that monitoring, are probably better than for most other animal classes, major
gaps remain. Some of these are because sites are inaccessible but most arise
from a lack of commitment. Although volunteers can drive the monitoring of
relatively abundant species, serious investment is required to monitor those
that are very uncommon or difficult to reach.
● (^) The high quality of seabird monitoring, funded largely by government, and
shorebird monitoring, undertaken by volunteers, shows not only what can be
achieved but that there is no single model that can be applied to all birds –
monitoring of threatened birds needs to be tailored to their biology.
● (^) Recovery planning is closely connected to monitoring, either as a driver or as
an emergent property. Usually the monitoring appears to have come first,
driving conservation action of which recovery planning is part, but the
recovery plan then provides greater focus for the monitoring.
● (^) Recovery planning can also help ensure that results are translated into
management, a lack of which characterises most Australian threatened bird
monitoring, as well as help extend monitoring from simple numbers to
demographic variables that might explain trends.
References
Baker GB, Robertson G (2018) Management of seabird bycatch leads to sustainable
fisheries and seabird populations. In Recovery of Australian Threatened Species: A
Book of Hope. (Eds ST Garnett, P Latch, DB Lindenmayer and JCZ Woinarski)
pp. 23–31. CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne.
Barrett G, Silcocks A, Barry S, Cunningham R, Poulter R (2003) The New Atlas of
Australian Birds. Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union, Hawthorn East.
Blakers M, Reilly PN, Davies SJJF (1984) The Atlas of Australian Birds. Melbourne
University Press, Melbourne.
Bottrill MC, Walsh JC, Watson JE, Joseph LN, Ortega-Argueta A, Possingham BO
(2011) Does recovery planning improve the status of threatened species? Biological
Conservation 14 4, 1595 –1601. doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2011.02.008