Research Reports

Values and Knowledge of Wildlife among Members of the Field Naturalists Club of Victoria

Kelly K. Miller and Tara K. McGee

Abstract
This paper presents the findings from one aspect of a larger study (Miller 2000) which was prompted by a limited understanding of people’s values and knowledge of wildlife in Victoria. It focuses specifically on the values and knowledge of wildlife held by members of the Field Naturalists Club of Victoria (FNCV), and how wildlife managers and other wildlife management stakeholders perceive FNCV members. In-depth interviews (n = 15) were used to explore wildlife managers’ perceptions of FNCV members, while postal questionnaires (n = 145) were used to explore the values and knowledge of wildlife held by FNCV members. FNCV members expressed a very strong interest in learning about and interacting with wildlife, high levels of knowledge about wildlife and a relatively strong emotional attachment to individual animals. FNCV members displayed a very low interest in controlling wildlife for utilitarian purposes and a relatively low interest in the aesthetic value of wildlife. FNCV members also expressed a low fear of particular types of animals such as snakes and spiders. While the interviewed wildlife managers perceived FNCV members to have a strong interest in learning about wildlife, there was also a general perception that FNCV members would be less knowledgeable and have a weaker scientific perspective than the questionnaire findings suggested. Wildlife managers would benefit from remembering that community groups such as the FNCV often have a wealth of expert knowledge about wildlife and can make a significant contribution to wildlife management programs.
(The Victorian Naturalist, 117 (6), 2000, 200-206.)
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Stand Structure and Recruitment Patterns in Callitris-Eucalyptus Woodlands
in Terrick Terrick National Park, Victoria

David Parker and Ian D. Lunt

Abstract
Terrick Terrick National Park supports the largest stand of White Cypress-pine Callitris glaucophylla in Victoria. This project aimed to assess: (1) changes in Callitris distribution in Terrick Terrick National Park over the past 50 years using aerial photographs and girth analyses; (2) the amount of regeneration which has occurred since grazing was removed in the early 1990s, and; (3) the potential for future Callitris expansion by comparing soils in areas of dense Callitris and open woodland. Aerial photographs showed little change in Callitris distribution since the 1940s. Dense regeneration (92,500 saplings / ha) occurred in small plots that were fenced in 1958, indicating that regeneration was inhibited by rabbits and stock. Additional regeneration occurred after heavy rains in the 1970s, and recruitment appears to be ongoing in some areas. Contrary to expectations, stand class analysis showed that Eucalyptus species have recruited more abundantly than Callitris in recent years. Eucalypts are thought to have recruited after removal of stock grazing and cessation of eucalypt culling since transfer to a State Park in 1988. Callitris forest tended to occur on sandier soils than open woodlands, however there was considerable overlap between Callitris and non-Callitris soils, which suggests that some open areas may be suitable for Callitris recruitment in the future. Current levels of eucalypt and Callitris recruitment may play a valuable role in enhancing habitat complexity at Terrick Terrick National Park.
(The Victorian Naturalist, 117 (6), 2000, 207-213.)
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Small Mammal Activity on the Snow Surface

K. Green

Abstract
Small terrestrial mammals are forced to travel over the snow when the subnivean space is collapsed and the snow too dense for tunnelling. The period spent above the snow is one of high exposure to predators, and small mammals generally keep this time to a minimum. The length of small mammal trails above the snow in subalpine areas is significantly correlated with the mean distance between trees. Small mammal trails are longer in treeless areas (average 73.5 m) than woodland (17.8 m); longer where they cross man-made tracks than in adjacent woodland by a factor of one to three times the width of the track and longer in mid season than early season snow because of the changing availability of routes to the subnivean space.
(The Victorian Naturalist, 117 (6), 2000, 214-218.)
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Contributions

The Use of DNA in Natural History Studies

Janette A. Norman and Leslie Christidis

Abstract
Recent technical advances in molecular biology now make the analysis of DNA a fairly routine procedure. This has led to a significant increase in the use of DNA approaches for comparative evolutionary, ecological and behavioural studies. In this paper we briefly outline the nature of DNA and the techniques used in assessing its variation, such as sequencing and fingerprinting. The uses of DNA in natural history studies, ranging from taxonomy to conservation, are then reviewed focussing on examples dealing with the Australasian biota.
(The Victorian Naturalist, 117 (6), 2000, 219-225.)
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Records of the Giant Banjo Frog Limnodynastes interioris from
Gunbower Island and the Ovens Floodplain, Victoria

Lawrie Conole and Ralph Mac Nally

Abstract
Two new records of the critically endangered Giant Banjo Frog Limnodynastes interioris, one from the Lower Ovens Regional Park and one from Gunbower Island State Forest, extend the known range of the frog west by about 100 km. This brings the number of records of the Giant Banjo Frog in Victoria to eight.
(The Victorian Naturalist, 117 (6), 2000, 226-227.)
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