Use of highway underpasses by bandicoots over a 7-year period that encompassed road widening

2014 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 178 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brendan D. Taylor ◽  
Ross L. Goldingay
Keyword(s):  
Animal Movement ◽  
New South ◽  
New South Wales ◽  
Highway Construction ◽  
Habitat Patches ◽  
The Road ◽  
Barrier Effects ◽  
South Wales ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Road Widening

Roads may create filters or barriers to animal movement and adversely affect population processes. Underpasses are now commonly installed during highway construction to mitigate barrier effects and link habitat patches. We used sand-tracking to investigate use of six underpasses by bandicoots along a section of the Pacific Highway in northern New South Wales before, during and after road duplication (i.e. expansion from two to four lanes). Trapping revealed that the northern brown bandicoot (Isoodon macrourus) and the long-nosed bandicoot (Perameles nasuta) were equally abundant prior to highway expansion. Five years before highway widening, bandicoots frequently used 18-m-long underpasses (>1 traverses per day). Twelve months before road widening, underpass use by bandicoots declined to ~0.5 traverses per day and continued near this level during construction. This declined to 0.03 traverses per day after duplication with underpasses extended to ≥49 m in length. Few crossings were recorded after expansion of the road corridor, which may indicate a shift from regular foraging traverses before duplication to infrequent dispersal movements after duplication.

Cutting the carnage: wildlife usage of road culverts in north-eastern New South Wales

2003 ◽  
Vol 30 (5) ◽  
pp. 529 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brendan D. Taylor ◽  
Ross L. Goldingay
Keyword(s):  
New South ◽  
New South Wales ◽  
Road Mortality ◽  
The Road ◽  
North East ◽  
Road Section ◽  
South Wales ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
North Eastern ◽  
The Usa

Culverts have been used for a number of decades in Europe and the USA to reduce wildlife road-kills. In Australia, culverts have been employed by road authorities only relatively recently. This study used sand-strip surveys to investigate wildlife usage of nine purpose-built culverts along a 1.4-km section of the Pacific Highway at Brunswick Heads, north-east New South Wales. Surveys during two eight-day periods in spring and summer 2000 found 1202 traverses by wildlife through the culverts. Frequent culvert users were bandicoots (25% of traverses), rats (25%), wallabies (13%) and cane toads (14%). All culverts were used by these species, suggesting that at least several individuals of each species were involved. Infrequent users (each <2% of crossings) were possums, echidnas, lizards, birds and introduced carnivores. A koala was recorded crossing on two occasions. The long-nosed potoroo was observed in the surrounding habitat but was not confirmed traversing the culverts. Surveys for road-kills on this road section suggest that the exclusion fence bordering the highway prevented mammal road-kills and channeled mammals to the culverts. A single survey on a wet night found many frogs crossing the road surface and many were killed. This study confirms that culverts and exclusion fencing facilitate safe passage across a road for a range of wildlife species. This suggests that this form of management response to extensive road mortality of wildlife is appropriate and should be adopted more widely. However, this form of mitigation is not effective for frogs.

An Aerial Survey of 3 Game Species of Waterfowl (Family Anatidae) Populations in Eastern Australia

1986 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 213 ◽  
Author(s):  
LW Braithwaite ◽  
M Maher ◽  
SV Briggs ◽  
BS Parker
Keyword(s):  
Surface Waters ◽  
New South ◽  
New South Wales ◽  
Aerial Survey ◽  
Game Species ◽  
South Wales ◽  
Black Duck ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
Central Eastern

Populations of waterfowl of three game species, the Pacific black duck Anus superciliosa, grey teal A. gibberifrons, and maned duck Chenonetta jubata, were assessed by aerial survey in October 1983 within a survey region of 2 697 000 km2 of eastern Australia. The numbers of each species were assessed on all surface waters of over 1 ha, and on a sample of smaller surface waters within 10 survey bands each 30 km wide and spaced at intervals of 2� latitude from 20�30' to 38�30'S. The area within the survey bands was 324 120 km2, which gave a sampling intensity of 12.0% of the land surface area. The area of features shown as wetlands or water impoundments within the survey bands on 1 : 2 500 000 topographic maps was 19 200 km2 or 11.2% of the total area of these features in the survey region. The area of surface waters surveyed was assessed at 465 300 ha. Assessments of populations of each species were tallied for wetlands by grid cells of 6 min of 1� longitude along the survey bands (258-309 km2 depending on latitude). Distributions were then mapped, with log*10 indices of populations in each cell. Distributions of the black duck and grey teal showed a pattern of intense aggregation in limited numbers of cells, that of the maned duck was more evenly distributed. The major concentrations of the Pacific black duck were recorded in northern New South Wales and the south-eastern, western, central eastern and central coastal regions of Queensland; those of the grey teal were in south-western, western and northern New South Wales and central-eastern Queensland; the maned duck was broadly distributed over inland New South Wales with the exception of the far west, inland southern Queensland, and central northern Victoria.

STRUCTURE and PRICE DETERMINATION IN THE ROAD HAULAGE INDUSTRY IN NEW SOUTH WALES

1956 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 291-304 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Kolsen
Keyword(s):  
New South ◽  
New South Wales ◽  
Price Determination ◽  
The Road ◽  
South Wales ◽  
Road Haulage

Evidence of a geographical variation in Mesochaetopterus (Polychaeta: Chaetopteridae) from the Pacific Ocean

2005 ◽  
Vol 85 (6) ◽  
pp. 1409-1423 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michel R. Bhaud
Keyword(s):  
Pacific Ocean ◽  
New South ◽  
Solomon Islands ◽  
New South Wales ◽  
Morphological Variations ◽  
Geographical Variations ◽  
South Wales ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
The Pacific Ocean ◽  
Hard Structures

Specimens of Mesochaetopterus (Chaetopteridae) from seven geographical sources in the Pacific Ocean are compared on the basis of their hard structures: specialized chaetae, uncinal plates and tubes. There geographical variations are investigated both locally (New South Wales and the Solomon Islands) and over the whole Pacific Ocean from Australia (New South Wales) through the Solomon Islands to Galapagos and Hawaii. The most interesting result is the existence of intra-regional morphological variations with the hard structures differing on specimens sampled in two areas from New South Wales or in two areas from the Solomon Islands out of a total of three areas. These newly described morphologies imply that M. minutus, isolated in a first step from M. sagittarius and confined to the Pacific, is a pseudo-sibling species complex. Each element of this complex is morphologically distinguishable. Consequently the generally accepted role of the long-lived planktonic larvae characteristic of Mesochaetopterus, as a source of geographical homogeneity must be re-examined.

Accumulation of Tributyltin by the Sydney Rock Oyster, Saccostrea commercialis

1989 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 49 ◽  
Author(s):  
GE Batley ◽  
C Fuhua ◽  
CI Brockbank ◽  
KJ Flegg
Keyword(s):  
Crassostrea Gigas ◽  
Pacific Oyster ◽  
New South ◽  
New South Wales ◽  
Tidal Flushing ◽  
Rock Oyster ◽  
South Wales ◽  
The Pacific

Tributyltin (TBT) concentrations have been measured in the tissue of the Sydney rock oyster Saccostrea commercialis sampled from estuaries in New South Wales, Australia. Background TBT levels of below 2 ng Sn g-1 contrasted with values between 80 and 130 ng Sn g-1 in oysters exposed to high boat densities or poor tidal flushing. Shell deformities and reduced tissue weights were associated with all samples displaying elevated TBT levels. Specimens of the Pacific oyster, Crassostrea gigas, growing on the same racks displayed 2-3 times the TBT concentrations of S. commercialis.

Use of fauna road-crossing structures in north-eastern New South Wales

2009 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian F. Hayes ◽  
Ross L. Goldingay
Keyword(s):  
New South ◽  
New South Wales ◽  
Road Mortality ◽  
Road Kill ◽  
South Wales ◽  
Crossing Structures ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Level Of Use ◽  
North Eastern ◽  
High Level

The vast network of roads around the world has had a significant effect on wildlife and ecosystems through habitat fragmentation, reduced dispersal and mortality by collision with vehicles. Road agencies worldwide now frequently install dedicated structures to facilitate the safe crossing of roads by wildlife. We conducted surveys to determine the use of dedicated wildlife overpasses and nearby underpasses at two locations on the Pacific Highway in north-eastern New South Wales. Road-kill surveys were conducted to provide some understanding of the species commonly killed and whether the rate of road-kill was lower at one location where crossing-structures were located. Use of the crossing-structures by wildlife was monitored with sand-transects. The most frequent users were macropods, bandicoots and rodents. Macropods made greater use of overpasses (n = 104 tracks) than underpasses (n = 36), whereas underpasses were used more by bandicoots (n = 87) and rodents (n = 82) than were overpasses (n = 28, n = 15, respectively). We identified 78 road-kills of 21 species on two sections of the Pacific Highway over a 7-week period. Bandicoots (n = 16) and macropods (n = 9) were the most frequently observed victims. The mortality of wildlife was lower along the highway section with the crossing-structures (0.04 road-kills km–1) than it was along the highway section without structures (0.15 road-kills km–1). The lack of replication precludes any firm conclusion that the crossing-structures reduced road mortality but the high level of use of the crossing-structures by species that were common victims of road-kill suggests an influence.

Samuel Stutchbury (1798-1859), naturalist and geologist

1983 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 189-200 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
New South ◽  
New South Wales ◽  
Science Literature ◽  
The Arts ◽  
South Wales ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Recent Attention

When Samuel Stutchbury applied for the post of curator of the museum of the Bristol Institution for the Advancement of Science, Literature and the Arts in 1831, the Reverend W . D. Conybeare, F.R.S. (1787—1857) wrote in a letter supporting his candidature: I know not where we should find so much scientific competency united to a perfectly modest unassuming accommodating disposition . . . (1) Stutchbury was indeed a competent naturalist. He published several noteworthy papers and, perhaps more significantly, played an important role in collecting and making available specimens and information. That his work was, initially at least, largely unknown can be attributed to that ‘modest unassuming . . . disposition’. Stutchbury s activities in the Pacific during the late-1820s and in New South Wales during the early-1850s have recently attracted a great deal of attention. The same has not, however, been true of his work in this country where, despite the recent attention to the antipodean aspects of his career, he remains little known (2).

Baseline trace metal concentrations in New South Wales coastal waters

1998 ◽  
Vol 49 (3) ◽  
pp. 203 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon C. Apte ◽  
Graeme E. Batley ◽  
Ronald Szymczak ◽  
Paul S. Rendell ◽  
Randall Lee ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pacific Ocean ◽  
Trace Metal ◽  
Surface Waters ◽  
Coastal Waters ◽  
New South ◽  
New South Wales ◽  
Metal Concentrations ◽  
South Wales ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
The Pacific Ocean

Concentrations of ten trace elements at five localities in New South Wales coastal waters were measured by ultratrace sampling and analysis. Mean concentrations of cadmium (2.4 ng L-1), copper (31 ng L-1), nickel (180 ng L-1), lead (9 ng L-1) and zinc (<22 ng L-1) are among the lowest reported in the Southern Hemisphere and are consistent with recent oceanographic data for the surface waters of the Pacific Ocean. Waters from the southernmost sampling locality (Eden) contained higher phosphate, silicate, cadmium and nickel, but lower chromium concentrations than waters from the other four localities, reflecting the inputs of water from the Tasman Sea in the south compared with the dominance of waters from the Coral Sea along the rest of the coast. Cadmium concentrations were positively correlated with both phosphate and silicate. Chromium and lead concentrations were also significantly correlated. It is likely that a major source of lead is atmospheric deposition. The trace metal concentrations were comparable to those in the surface waters of the Pacific Ocean, indicating that fluvial inputs or processes occurring in the coastal margin were of limited importance in determining trace metal concentrations.

The New South Wales Air Ambulance

1968 ◽  
Vol 72 (695) ◽  
pp. 956
Author(s):  
Nancy-Bird Walton
Keyword(s):  
New South ◽  
New South Wales ◽  
First Year ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Air Ambulance ◽  
Good Friday ◽  
The Road ◽  
South Wales ◽  
Specialist Treatment ◽  
On The Road

The Air Ambulance of New South Wales came into operation on Good Friday 1967. Less than sixteen months later as I write it has carried 2348 patients in 807 flights. Four hundred and eleven of these patients have been emergencies and it is highly probable that most of them would not have survived a long distance road journey. With few exceptions all patients have been sent in by country doctors for specialist treatment in the metropolitan area. Introduced as an Air Arm to the excellent road ambulance service it was intended to avoid the road journeys for distances of more than 175 miles. In the first year it saved that service 932 760 road miles. The time that patients would have spent on the road was 16 201 hours, this was reduced by air to 3 094 hours. It is hardly necessary to add what this means to a sick or injured person. Although deeply unconscious and in a state of shock patients have been transported without their condition deteriorating.

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