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RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 33(2)

The propensity of spotted-tailed quolls (Dasyurus maculatus) to encounter and consume non-toxic meat baits in a simulated canid-control program

Andrew W. Claridge A F , Andy J. Murray B , James Dawson C , Rob Poore B , Greg Mifsud D E and Michael J. Saxon C
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Department of Environment and Conservation, Parks and Wildlife Division, Reserve Conservation Unit, Southern Branch, PO Box 2115, Queanbeyan, NSW 2620, Australia.

B Department of Sustainability and Environment, PO Box 260, Orbost, Vic. 3888, Australia.

C Department of Environment and Conservation, Environmental Protection and Regulation Division, Southern Branch, PO Box 2115, Queanbeyan, NSW 2620, Australia.

D Department of Environment and Conservation, Parks and Wildlife Division, Snowy Mountains Region, PO Box 2228, Jindabyne, NSW 2627, Australia.

E Present Address: Environmental Protection Agency, 160 Anne Street, Brisbane, Qld 4002, Australia.

F Corresponding author. Email: andrew.claridge@environment.nsw.gov.au

Wildlife Research 33(2) 85-91 https://doi.org/10.1071/WR05039
Submitted: 20 April 2005  Accepted: 6 February 2006   Published: 12 April 2006

Abstract

Using a biomarker, we assessed the propensity of spotted-tailed quolls (Dasyurus maculatus) to encounter and consume non-toxic meat baits, ordinarily laced with the poison 1080 (sodium monofluoroacetate) and deployed for control of wild dogs (Canis lupus dingo, Canis familiaris and hybrids of the two) in southern Australia. In the first experiment, 60 unpoisoned meat baits injected with Rhodamine B were placed on the surface of the ground at 250-m intervals along two separate transects crossing an open woodland study area. One week after placement, a range of animals, including quolls, had removed all baits. Microscopic assay of whisker samples collected from live-captured quolls later revealed that 6 of 10 (60%) animals were positive for the biomarker, indicating that they had encountered and consumed baits. In the second experiment, conducted at the same site one year later, 150 similarly prepared meat baits were delivered aerially from a helicopter along the same transects, at a rate of one bait every 100 m. Eight of 17 quolls (47%) were found to have encountered and consumed at least one and up to five baits. Combined with previous studies, our results reaffirm that surface or aerial baiting operations for wild dogs may place local quoll populations at risk. However, further research is necessary to establish the relationship between this risk and actual mortality levels during such baiting operations since there are a number of factors that may influence the toxicity of baits for spotted-tailed quolls in a field situation as well as the danger those baits may pose.


Acknowledgments

Tim Seears of the Cooma Lands Protection Board prepared baits used in the experimental trials. Frank Gigliotti and Frank Busana of the Victorian Institute of Animal Science provided the Rhodamine B used in baits and assisted in whisker assays. Janice Cawthorn, Danny Corcoran, Dr Peter Fleming, Dr Karen Firestone, Pam O’Brien, Dr David Paull, Monica Ruibal and Professor James Trappe variously assisted in fieldwork. Dr Tony Fleming gave strong support to our overall research program. Drs Peter Fleming, Jim Hone and John McIlroy provided valuable comments on earlier versions of the text. Finally, our research was carried out under the auspices of a NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) Section 120 Scientific Investigation Licence (A3162) and NPWS Animal Ethics Committee Approval No. 020214/05.


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