Survey guidelines for Australia’s threatened non-flying mammals

Red-tailed phascogale

Phascogale calura

States and territories: Current Western Australia; historic: Western Australia, Northern Territory, South Australia and Victoria.

Regions: Currently this species is confined to parts of south-western Western Australia that receive an annual rainfall of 300–600 mm. Formerly the species ranged patchily across the southern interior of Australia, including much of southern and central Western Australia, to the southern Northern Territory and across to south-eastern South Australia and the north-west of Victoria (Bradley et al. 2008).

Habitat: Its preferred habitat is climatic vegetation communities dominated by wandoo Eucalyptus wandoo and rock oak Casuarina huegeliana alliances, with Gastrolobium and Oxylobium species present (Kitchener 1981; Bradley et al. 2008).

Habit: Mostly arboreal but also feeds extensively on the ground (Bradley et al. 2008).

Avg. body weight: 60 g (males) and 43 g (females) (Bradley et al. 2008).

Activity pattern: Mainly nocturnal but has been seen to emerge during the day (Bradley et al. 2008).

Diet: Opportunistic carnivore that feeds on a variety of small insects and spiders, in addition to small birds and mammals, particularly the house mouse Mus musculus and carrion (Kitchener 1981; Bradley et al. 2008).

Breeding: Mating usually takes place in July with males reproductively senescent after the first year. After a 28–30 day gestation females give birth to up to 13 young, with an average litter size of 7. Young are weaned before the end of October (Kitchener 1981; Bradley et al. 2008).

Description

The red-tailed phascogale is a small dasyurid with characteristic rusty red coloured fur at the base of the tail. The species was formerly widespread across south-western Western Australia (its present-day distribution) central Australia (through Western Australia, Northern Territory to South Australia) and two disjunct populations in the Lake Torrens region of central eastern South Australia and in the vicinity of the Murray River in north-western Victoria/south-western NSW (Kitchener 1981). Within its restricted present-day range the species is largely confined to isolated reserves that exceed 450 hectares, but also occurs in some small, privately tenure woodland remnants that have not been disturbed by farming activities (Bradley et al. 2008).

The preferred habitat of the red-tailed phascogale appears to be climax vegetation communities dominated by wandoo and rock oak. Dense stands of rock oak in association with senescent wandoo (important for nest sites) provide suitable habitat for the species (Bradley et al. 2008). Occurring as a shrub layer within this floral community are monosodium fluoroacetate producing plant species (Gastrolobium and Oxylobium spp.), which are poisonous to domestic stock and introduced carnivores (Kitchener 1981; Bradley et al. 2008).

The persistence of the red-tailed phascogale in some Western Australian Wheatbelt nature reserves is likely to be due to a combination of factors, including the protection afforded to them from agriculture by plants toxic to domestic stock, introduced predators and infrequent fires. The reserves have been protected from frequent burning regimes, which means they have largely retained the rich floristic and structural climax conditions that provide habitat for red-tailed phascogale (Kitchener 1981).

Survey methods

On the basis of previous surveys, the following survey techniques are recommended to detect the presence of the red-tailed phascogale in areas up to 5 hectares in size:

• 
  daytime searches for potential nest sites in hollow-bearing trees or hollow logs (description of the survey technique and recommended effort is outlined in Section 3.1)
  
• 
  daytime searches for signs of activity, such scratches on tree trunks tracks or scats on the ground in the vicinity of potential nesting sites (description of the survey technique and recommended effort is outlined in Section 3.2)
  
• 
  stagwatching surveys at potential nest sites (description of the survey technique and recommended effort is described in Section 3.3.4)
  
• 
  spotlight surveys along transects, tracks or roads, depending on the nature of the site should be conducted according to the method described in Section 3.3.3. (additional surveys from a vehicle may also be made)
  
• 
  an arboreal hair sampling survey conducted according to the method described in Section 3.3.7
  
• 
  if the species is not detected through the above methods, then an arboreal trapping program comprising modified arboreal Elliott A traps according to the method recommended in Section 3.3.9 is recommended, if permission and licensing is approved by relevant Western Australian government authorities. A standard bait of a peanut butter honey and rolled oats mixture is recommended, but including chopped bacon or sardines may also be effective
  
• 
  Camera traps with baited stations (both arboreal and terrestrial) (description of the survey technique and recommended effort is outlined in section 3.3.6)
  
• 
  Community liaison to detect in the location of additional populations of the species.
  

Similar species in range

Both the red-tailed phascogale and the brush-tailed phascogale occur in south-western Western Australia, but their ranges are largely discrete. The red-tailed phascogale can be distinguished by the red coloured fur at the base of its tail (Bradley et al. 2008).

References

Bradley, A. J. 2008. Red-tailed Phascogale Phascogale calura. In ‘The Mammals of Australia’ (Ed. S. Van Dyck and R. Strahan) pp. 101-102 (Reed New Holland: Sydney).

DEC 2009. www.dec.wa.gov.au/our-environment/avon-natural-diversity-program/about-back-from-the-edge.html. Western Australian Department of Environment and Conservation.
Kitchener, D. J. 1981. Breeding, diet and habitat preference of Phascogale calura (Gould 1844) (Marsupialia: Dasyuridae) in the southern wheatbelt, Western Australia. Rec. West. Aust. Mus. 9: 173-186.
Kitchener, D. J. and Chapman, A. 1975. Mammals. A biological survey of Cape La Grand National Park’. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 1: 6-19.
Kitchener, D. J. and Chapman, A. 1976. Mammals of Tarin Rock and North Taren Rock Reserves. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement No. 2, 61-67.
Kitchener, D. J. and Chapman, A. 1977. Mammals of Bendering and West Bendering Nature Reserves. Rec. West. Aust. Mus. Suppl. No. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 5: 17-30.
Kitchener, D. J. and Chapman, A. 1978. Mammals of Dongolocking Nature Reserves. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 6: 53-58.
Morris, K. and Kitchener, D. J. 1979. Mammals of Yornaning Nature Reserves. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 8: 29-34.
Orell, P. 2004. Fauna monitoring and staff training: Western Shield Review- February 2003. Conservation Science Western Australia 5(2): 51-95
Rhind, S. G. and Bradley, J. S. 2002. The effect of drought on body size, growth and abundance of wild brush-tailed Phascogale (Phascogale tapoatafa) in south-western Australia. Wildlife Research 29: 235-245.
Soderquist, T. R., Traill, B. J., Faris, F. and Beasley, K. 1996. Using nest boxes to survey brush-tailed Phascogale Phascogale tapoatafa. The Victorian Naturalist 113 (5): 257-261.
Traill B. J. and Coates, T. D. 1993. Field observations on the Brush-tailed Phascogale Phascogale tapoatafa (Marsupialia: Dasyuridae). Australian Mammalogy 16 (1): 61-65.