The Rufous Bettong of NE NSW, Australia is considered vulnerable under NSW Threatened Species Legislation. The Rufous Bettong is a threatened species in the Northern Rivers and across areas of NSW. I share some mutual habitat with a Rufous Bettong that lives nearby, in Upper Burringbar, NE NSW. The Burringbar area is part of the Mt Warning Caldera’s Ranges and Catchments that were once deeply forested, with rich biodiversity. To see a picture of the Rufous Bettong – Click HERE
Next to my place is the small beginnings of a wide gully. This gully has been transformed by road building and other building near it.
It travels via a number of waterholes , then feeder creek eventually to Burringbar Creek.
The land is surrounded by forested areas, agricultural land and small localised rural settlement.
At least one Rufous Bettong visits & lives in this area for a number of weeks each year.
Thickets of vegetation, old fallen tree logs, a variety of niches to set up a nesting spot and stay for a while to live could definitely be appealing to a Rufous Bettong.
The gully and surrounding land is part of this Rufous Bettong’s territory. Its home and backyard.
Rufous Bettongs live in and eat from these backyards. These yards are rather extensive – over kilometres in range, with more than one nesting site, contained within that area, depending on what the Rufous Bettong is doing, or what environmental changes are occurring.
I share some of the Rufous Bettongs’ yard, here near Burringbar .
My vegies are shared with Rufous B. The sweet potato growing here is often found dug up. I hear it digging and foraging about in my little organic garden, bush and nearby grasses in the evenings.
However, the grassed area next door is not mine. It belongs to someone else. Someone sprayed glyphosate across it. Also at the top of the sloping catchment is a road. The council and contractors herbicide and mow the roadside at least twice a year.
The area of tall introduced grasses, that afforded the Rufous Bettong extra protection became yellow and died quickly after the gully was sprayed.
The pathways and resting spots of other small animals that lived there were more apparent for a short while, until they re-adapted their travel and lifestyles. The changing of the landscape can have many consequences.
This little open gully leads through a range of small landscapes and vegetation communities:-
regenerating, resting forest habitat;
many camphor laurels;
cleared areas;
tall exotic grasses;
creek rainforest communities in a high state of disturbance;
and areas of strong shady canopy from tall treed areas with little understorey. This understorey area is full of leaves, native and the more prolific weed tree seedlings, branches, rocks, weeds.
You can hear the Rufous Bettong moving about outside, when it is living here.
One day, last spring, I had gone into the sprayed area to plant several trees. At this time, the tall grass was a rough blanket of dead yellow, falling in death to expose the deep thatched nature of the grasses’ understory.
The thatched layer was quite high, and opened up in places.
The Rufous Betong had nested in one such thatched area when I walked next to it. I disturbed it, gave it a fright.
Extracting itself from the undergrowth, it thumped away very quickly. Poor dear Rufous Bettong!
Lessons learnt?
Lesson 1 : Aepyprymnus rufescens – RUFOUS BETTONG * = beautiful!!!
lesson 2 : sudden change and human traffic can cause stress to a vulnerable animal… a threatened species listed animal – marsupial… one of 25 listed little darlings
lesson 3 : Rufous Betong , one of 25 threatened Marsupials in NSW RUFOUS BETTONG – vulnerable marsupial species listing in NSW
“The rufous bettong (Aepyprymnus rufescens) is listed as VULNERABLE on the schedules of the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act. The species was listed because:
* Its population and distribution have been severely reduced
* It faces severe threatening processes
* It is an ecological specialist (it depends on particular types of diet or habitat)” from http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/determinations/RufousBettongVulSpListing.htm
Australian Government Biodiversity homepage
Threatened Species and Ecological Communities – Australian Govt
EPBC ACT listing of Threatened Fauna in Australia here you will find Nominations, Recovery Plans, Quick Links searches, and EPBC Act Lists for Threatened Flora, Fauna, Recovery Plans, Critical habitat, Key Threatening Processes, Threatened Ecological Communities, Threat Abatement Plans
Australian Macropodoidea: conservation status, likely change since white settlement, suggested reasons for the change. (From Calaby and Grigg, 1989) : Family Potoroidae – Potorros, Bettongs, Rat-Kangaroos
Species, Populations, Ecological Communities – Threatened Species Profile Search : at the NSW Government Environment : Threatened Species in NSW Listings
Threatened Species - NSW Government
there are 25 threatened marsupials in NSW – NSW Government Threatened Species
bluecray Regional Environmental News – Mt Warning Caldera SEARCH :Rufous Bettong
Rufous Bettong distribution and vegetation association – Northern Rivers, New South Wales
Rufous Bettong at Australian Museum Online – unfortunately, today I was looking at this link, and there is no longer any mention of the Rufous Bettong there (June 2009)
Mammals of Lamington National Park Rufous Bettong
Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves of Australia: A Monitoring Strategy 2005 ISBN 0 86443 746 3 from archived Rainforest CRC (no longer operating but archives available still)
Some Wildlife of the Scenic Rim – 2007 : talks for From a Series of wildlife workshops hosted by Wildlife Tourism Australia and the Logan and Albert Conservation Association , sponsored by Beaudesert Shire Council through the Community Environmental Assistance Grants Program and Community Events Program
Rufous Bettong at the Marsupial Society of Australia
Australian Terrestrial Biodiversity Assessment 2002 at Australian Natural Reousrces Atlas
Hortico Weed Killer 360 Concentrate Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS SHEET) = GLYPHOSATE MSDS
Related Content
- Why Goanna left the Glyphosate Bank
- Koala Conservation and Queensland Government Draft SE QLD Regional Plan 2009 to 2031
- Kings Forest Project Development in Tweed Shire by the Leda Group has Public Submissions extended by NSW Department of Planning
- Weeds, Biodiversity and Australia’s Land and Water Stewardship Practices
- Environment Links
