Declining populations in one of the last refuges for threatened mammal species in northern Australia

A recent study reveals alarming declines in populations of threatened mammal species on Melville Island, one of Australia's last strongholds for intact mammal assemblages. Over the period from 2000 to 2015, researchers documented a 62% reduction in small mammal trap success and a 36% decrease in site-level species richness. Notable declines included a 90% drop in the northern brown bandicoot (Isoodon macrourus), 64% for the brush-tailed rabbit-rat (Conilurus penicillatus), and 63% for the black-foot tree-rat (Mesembriomys gouldii). These declines mirror patterns observed two decades earlier in Kakadu National Park and across northern Australia, suggesting widespread threats driven by feral cat predation and altered fire regimes. Without effective management interventions, these species risk extinction from one of their last remaining refuges, further exacerbating Australia's significant contribution to global mammal extinctions.

Davies, H. F., McCarthy, M. A., Firth, R. S. C., Woinarski, J. C. Z., Gillespie, G. R., Andersen, A. N., Rioli, W., Puruntatameri, J., Roberts, W., Kerinaiua, C., Kerinauia, V., Womatakimi, K. B., & Murphy, B. P. (2018). Declining populations in one of the last refuges for threatened mammal species in northern Australia. Austral Ecology, 43(5), 602–612. Portico. https://doi.org/10.1111/aec.12596