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Shared Environments

Born into a captive breeding program, Stoney has fathered at least two offspring and lives with his mate in the wild. It sounds like heart-warming success story, except that mahogany gliders live naturally in a small area between Ingham and Tully in lowland forests, and there’s not much of that forest left. As a nocturnal flying or gliding species, they are also particularly susceptible to the devastating consequences of barbed wire entanglement.

Our theme of ‘shared environments’ is a good lead into an eclectic array of topics: marine rubbish, barbed wire fencing, climate change, black-breasted buttonquail. Not surprising when you consider the many criteria by which we judge good or bad neighbours.

By Kay Montgomery and Saren Starbridge

From canopy to leaf litter, the arthropods of Lamington National Park inspire a global gathering.

Climate change is part of our planet’s history, but how well do we understand it? How does it affect biodiversity and our natural environments? Can we identify, measure and monitor the impacts? As awareness rises and reports begin rolling in, a group of scientists are working to develop useful tools and data bases to help us explore these questions.

By Katrin Holmsten

Birds live in the footprints of their ancestors as tourists explore an ancient story. In the heart of outback Queensland’s dinosaur country, Lark Quarry tells a story bones alone could never convey.

Scientists had been investigating dinosaur footprints already, at Ipswich and Mt Morgan. The discovery wasn’t followed up until 1971, when a group of palaeontologists followed the sediment layer further west. Countless small tracks all headed the same direction. Then they found the first giant dinosaur footprint amongst the small tracks...

By Inger Vandyke

Not just natural predators, but pigs, dogs and marine rubbish challenge these hopeful hatchlings in the remote Gulf of Carpentaria.

Few sea turtles survive the arduous natural process of growing to adulthood. In the remote Gulf of Carpentaria, they have to survive feral pigs, wild dogs and mountains of marine rubbish as well. A cooperative program lends a hand.

By Carol Booth

Especially on hot summer evenings, flying foxes skim over water, drinking directly or drenching their belly fur and licking it later. This natural behaviour means barbed wire strung over watercourses is particularly dangerous. If their wing membranes catch on the hooks, there is little chance for escape.

It’s time to change our fencing technology. How do we do it?

By Dan Harley

Not only is Leadbeater’s Possum endangered, it is also very cryptic, making it a challenge to study. Leadbeater’s possums are extremely rare and restricted to Victoria’s montane ash forests – so what are they doing in sub-alpine snow gums?

Discoveries and alleged sightings over the last two decades suggest there are still a few surprises in store concerning Victoria’s rarest possum.

By Mike West

Australia’s best square kilometre of birdwatching benefits from an informal good neighbour policy.

In an area 300m wide by 3km long, from only one week of observations per year during the camp, Birds Queensland recorded 138 bird species. It is now firmly on the international list of important birdwatching sites and it has been declared the best square kilometre of birdwatching in Australia.

• Mahogany Gliders
• Lake Quarry
• Leadbeater's Possum

Editorial, City Animal, NatureWatch, Books Reviews, Winter Skies, Young and Wild, Scratchings and Rustlings, Comment, WPSQ in Action, Swamp Cartoon and our regular environmental crossword.

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