APY lands. Image credit: Naomi Indigo
The Arid Zone Monitoring project supports people and groups who are using track-based survey methods to monitor Australia’s desert fauna. The project aims to:
The project is a collaboration between the Australian Government’s National Environmental Science Program (through the Threatened Species Recovery Hub) and over 40 partners. The partners are Indigenous ranger groups and Indigenous organisations, NGOs and NRM groups, government agencies and institutions, and individual researchers and consultants.
Karajarri ranger. Image credit: Nicolas Rakotopare
Image credit: Nicolas Rakotopare
Kiwirrkurra rangers. Image credit: Nicolas Rakotopare
Image credit: Jaana Dielenberg
Monitoring animal populations in Australia’s sandy deserts is challenging. Many animal populations are at low density, have patchy distributions, and boom-bust population cycles, making it hard to understand patterns when working at single site, or for short periods of time.
Many individuals and groups across Australia’s deserts have collected data using track-based methods (i.e. searching an area to record animal presence based on their tracks, scats, diggings, or other signs). Surveys have mainly been carried out to describe the species present in an area. Track-based surveys are also excellent opportunities for people to get out on Country, share skills and pass knowledge between generations. Some of the information from past track-based surveys had been collated, but most was still dispersed across the many groups that gathered the data, and therefore inaccessible for national-scale analyses.
If the local-scale data collected by many independent groups were collated into a single dataset, the combined dataset could be used to describe species distributions and changes over time, across Australia’s deserts. Collaborative track-based monitoring could contribute to regional or national monitoring of native and feral species, improve our understanding of environmental processes, and allow us to monitor the outcome of fire and feral animal management, and other actions.
The full acknowledgments are available in the “More Information” tab.
Antara-Sandy Bore Indigenous Protected Area. Image credit: Naomi Indigo
Ngururrpa IPA rangers
Jacko Shovellor, Karajarri ranger. Image credit: Nicolas Rakotopare
APY lands. Image credit: Naomi Indigo
Martu child pointing at Mankarr tracks. Image credit: KJ
Punmu Rangers. Image credit: KJ
APY lands. Image credit: Naomi Indigo
Image credit: Naomi Indigo
Image credit: Nicolas Rakotopare
Ngurrara rangers. Image credit: Hamsini Biljani
Image credit: Jaana Dielenberg
Image credit: Nicolas Rakotopare
Umuwa, APY Lands, May 2021. Image credit: Sarah Legge
Tracking near Umuwa. Image credit: Naomi Indigo
The map shows the average animal detection rate across all surveys carried out in each bioregion, since the 1980s. Detection rates for the animal have been highest in bioregions with the darkest blue shading.
The habitat suitability model can tell us about where the animal is most likely to be found. The analysis considered climate factors like annual, seasonal and daily temperature and rainfall; landform factors like elevation and slope; soil factors; and habitat factors like the amount of green vegetation (NDVI) and fire frequency.
Caveats: The map only shows habitat suitability inside the Arid Zone Monitoring project boundary, but some desert species are also found outside this area, and may even be more common away from the deserts. The habitat suitability model does not predict well in areas where there has not been any sampling, for example in parts of the Great Sandy Desert and the Great Victoria Desert; getting more survey data from these areas would improve the models.
Karajarri. Image credit: Ann Jones
Yukultji Napangati. Image credit: Jaana Dielenberg
Martu kids with Marita. Image credit: KJ
Karajarri rangers. Image credit: Nicolas Rakotopare
Punmu Rangers. Image credit: KJ
• Timed searches – trackers wander through an area in any direction for a set amount of time. E.g. click here.
To download the standard data recording sheet with instruction, click here.
To read the full report that details tracking experts’ perspectives on data collection template, click here.
To read an example of a survey done used timed searches, click here.
To download the preferred data entry templates to store your data, click here.
Looking for tracks near Uluru. Image credit: Jaana Dielenberg
The resources available on the National Environmental Science Programme (NESP) Threatened Species Recovery (TSR) hub website are:
Reports:• AZM Project Report
• AZM Project Summary
• APY Lands field trip report
• For 44 species or groups
• AZM Monitoring design for track-based surveys
• AZM Summary-Designing a monitoring program for South Australia
• Detailed example of how to design a regional monitoring program (coming soon)
• Detailed example of the design of a national monitoring program (coming soon)
• Detailed analysis of features that affect detectability (coming soon)
• AZM Report on perspectives on tracking data
• AZM Data recording sheet and instructions
• AZM Data entry templates
Skroblin, A., Carboon, T., Bidu, G., Chapman, N., Miller, M., Taylor, K., Taylor, W., Game, E.T. and Wintle, B.A., (2021). Including indigenous knowledge in species distribution modeling for increased ecological insights. Conservation Biology, 35(2), 587-597.
Moseby, K.E., Nano, T. and Southgate, R. (2009). Tales in the Sand: A guide to identifying arid zone fauna using spoor and other signs. Ecological Horizons, South Australia.
Legge, S., Lindenmayer, D. B., Robinson, N., Scheele, B., Southwell, D., and Wintle, B. (2018). 'Monitoring Threatened Species and Ecological Communities.' CSIRO Publishing: Melbourne, Australia.
Leiper, I., Zander, K. K., Robinson, C. J., Carwadine, J., Moggridge, B. J., and Garnett, S. T. (2018). Quantifying current and potential contributions of Australian indigenous peoples to threatened species management. Conservation Biology 32, 1038-1047.
For more information or enquiries, please contact Sarah Legge on AridZoneMonitoring@gmail.com
Antara-Sandy Bore Indigenous Protected Area. Image credit: Naomi Indigo