The use of call imitation to establish territory occupancy by Leadbeater’s possum (Gymnobelideus leadbeateri)
Dan Harley
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
Wildlife Conservation and Science Department, Zoos Victoria, PO Box 248, Healesville, Vic. 3777, Australia. Email: dharley@zoo.org.au
Australian Mammalogy 37(1) 116-119 https://doi.org/10.1071/AM14014
Submitted: 6 June 2014 Accepted: 4 February 2015 Published: 27 February 2015
Abstract
Leadbeater’s possum (Gymnobelideus leadbeateri) is a cryptic, endangered species that is notoriously difficult to detect using conventional mammal survey methods. However, the imitation of the species’ social contact and/or alarm calls has previously been found to attract resident animals. Call imitation was employed as a secondary survey method to confirm ongoing site occupancy by Leadbeater’s possum at Yellingbo Nature Conservation Reserve. All call imitation reported here was conducted at sites currently or previously known to be occupied by particular family groups. The results indicate that the method has considerable promise as a tool to facilitate broad-scale surveys targeting this species. However, ‘false negatives’ did occur during the surveys at Yellingbo, highlighting that additional testing is required to adequately characterise the species’ response patterns, in particular variation in the response rate in occupied territories and the distance over which animals will respond. A detailed understanding of these factors is essential to permit reliable interpretation of survey findings.
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