Brushtail possum responses to changing resource conditions

The riparian zone and floodplains of the Murray-Darling basin have suffered major declines due to altered flow regimes.

Brushtail possum JJ Harrison [CC BY-SA 2.5]

JJ Harrison [CC BY-SA 2.5]

These floodplains, dominated by red gum and black box, have become severely degraded, subsequently changing the quantity and quality of resources available for the unique vertebrate fauna that inhabit these areas.

In recent years, brushtail possum numbers in certain areas along the Murray River have declined.

This project aims to investigate how brushtail possum abundance relates to resource availability along a land use gradient. Specifically:

How do brushtail possums (i.e. their abundance, movement, health) respond to changing resource conditions (e.g. tree condition and structure, foliar nutrition, understorey vegetation cover) across the Renmark/Calperum/Chowilla floodplain?

This project will be based at Calperum Station in the Murray Mallee region of South Australia (15km north of Renmark, SA) owned by Australian Landscape Trust. Calperum is 330,000 ha ex-sheep station now managed for ecological restoration and conservation. Accommodation is available on-site.


Supervisors

Tagged in Honours projects - Animal science, Honours projects - Ecology and environmental science, Honours projects - Anne-Lise Chaber