4 Management advice

4.1 Survey design

Early Sandhill dunnart specimens were collected in a variety of ways; one specimen was hit with a thrown boot (Spencer 1896); another was caught under a hat, and several were caught by hand as they fled from smouldering spinifex (Aitken 1971). Since then, pitfall traps and Elliott traps have most often been used for capturing Sandhill dunnarts, although baited motion sensing camera traps are now also proving a much more useful survey tool (Riley et al. 2021b).

Pitfall trap rates are low, and the species has been known to escape pitfall traps (Read et al. 2015). Recent survey work found that Sandhill dunnarts are more readily captured in wide, deep pitfall traps (600–700 mm deep) (Read et al. 2015; Riley and Turpin pers comms). Elliot traps are not recommended due to low capture rates (Read et al 2015). Biological surveys conducted within the range of the Sandhill dunnart in SA, up until about 2000, consistently used shallower pitfall traps (455 mm deep) (DEH 2000), which may explain low numbers of Sandhill dunnarts captured during those surveys. Most sites sampled on the Eyre Peninsula by the Biological Survey were done after 2000 and included larger deeper pits targeting deeper sand country with Triodia, specifically to include Sandhill dunnart in the sampling (Brandle 2010). However no new populations were detected during that survey (Brandle 2010). Sandhill dunnarts were trapped on what is now Iron Stone Hill Conservation Park in 2009 using these larger pits. More recent surveys using baited camera traps 2020 to 2022 have proved useful.

Specific survey guidelines have been developed for the GVDBT by WA Parks and Wildlife Department in 2016 and revised by GHD in 2020 (GHD 2020). From these guidelines it appears likely that a minimum depth is important, but diameter also appears to be highly significant for a multitude of species in recent studies, and it seems likely this also applies to Sandhill dunnarts.

Traditional trapping has low power regardless of method. The Great Victoria Desert Targeted Sandhill Dunnart and Malleefowl Survey 2018 (PDF: 3.8MB) (Greening Australia 2019) highlighted that trap success for the Sandhill dunnart was low, accounting for 0.5 % of all captures (3 out of 565 individuals) at only two survey sites, while its presence was detected by camera at four sites (10/64 cameras), revealing the relative effectiveness of the survey techniques employed. One camera installed at a pitfall trap location detected individuals moving along pitfall fence lines, indicating that the fence line height (30 cm) was adequate to influence the species’ movements. GHD (2020) have prepared updated Sandhill dunnart survey guidelines to include information on how to use camera traps in such surveys.

Searches for small mammal tracks as an indicator of the presence of Sandhill dunnarts relies heavily on personal skills and experience, as the quadruped gait of Sandhill dunnarts is similar to other dunnarts and hopping mice. Moseby et al. (2009) provide guidelines for undertaking mammal track searches in the Australian arid zone, which include two-hectare searches and recording the co-occurrence of all species. Suspected tracks should be confirmed with adequate camera or pitfall trapping.