Comparison of soils and plants on the active and relic parts of a recolonised burrowing bettong (Bettongia lesueur) warren
Tamra F. Chapman
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
Department of Parks and Wildlife, Locked Bag 104, Bentley Delivery Centre, Bentley, WA 6983, Australia. Email: tamra.chapman@dpaw.wa.gov.au
Pacific Conservation Biology 21(4) 298-306 https://doi.org/10.1071/PC15016
Submitted: 31 March 2015 Accepted: 8 November 2015 Published: 15 December 2015
Abstract
The burrowing bettong (Bettongia lesueur) is a rat-kangaroo that digs while foraging and is the only marsupial to construct warrens and live communally in them. It previously occurred over a large part of Australia, but was extinct on the mainland by the early 1960s, before its role in ecosystem function could be understood. Bettongs, sourced from island and captive populations, were reintroduced as part of a rangeland restoration program at Matuwa (Lorna Glen) in central Western Australia. This study compared soil properties and plant productivity on the active and relic parts of a single warren to determine whether the presence of the bettongs was likely to be of benefit at the patch scale. Soil rock content, hydraulic conductivity, mineral nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and sulfur were significantly higher for soils on the active part than on the relic part of the warren. Cotton bush (Ptilotus obovatus) shrubs were similar in size for the areas compared, but those growing on the active part of the warren had significantly more living tissue, greater leaf biomass and larger leaves, with higher moisture and nutrient content. These responses are indicative of access to additional mineral nutrients, probably derived from the urine and faeces of the bettongs. Only one warren was investigated in the present study and thus, this was a ‘patch’ level, unreplicated study. A broader, landscape-scale study is recommended, to compare relic warrens and active warrens with undisturbed sites, to confirm the hypotheses raised as a result of this study.
Additional keywords: digging mammals, mammal warrens, plant productivity, relict warrens, soil nutrient content, soil structure.
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