Monitoring Threatened Species and Ecological Communities

264 Monitoring Threatened Species and Ecological Communities

ranging from 0 to 24% but rarely reached above 20%. Mean recruitment rate was

10%. The proportion of breeding burrows (identified by the presence of juvenile

scats in latrines) ranged from 17 to 73% with a mean of 47%. (Fig. 19.3). There was

no significant correlation between rainfall in the previous 6 months and burrow

activity. Thirty active burrows were burnt in a wildfire in August 2012 and by the

2013 surveys only 13 active burrows remained in the area. Two years after the fire,

17 burrows were active but this dropped substantially to only seven burrows in

2017. After 5 years, the number of active burrows dropped by 23% (Fig. 19.4).

2001

250 ActiveInactive New

200

150

100

50

0

Number of burrows

Year

(^2002) 2003 2004 20052006 2007 20082009 2010 2011 (^2012) 2013 2014 20152016 2017
2001
0.9 Turnover RecruitmentBreeding
0.8
0.7
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
Proporon
Year
2002200320042005200620072008200920102011201220132014201520162017
(a)
(b)
Fig. 19.3. Burrow occupancy status (active and inactive): (a) number of new burrows;
and (b) rates of turnover, breeding and recruitment from 2001 to 2017.