Pining for. 24 AUSTRALIAN birdlife

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1 Pining for Carnaby s 24 AUSTRALIAN birdlife

The results of BirdLife Australia s 2014 Great Cocky Count show that Carnaby s Black-Cockatoo is on the precipice of extinction in the Perth region.

2 The results of BirdLife Australia s 2014 Great Cocky Count show that Carnaby s Black-Cockatoo is on the precipice of extinction in the Perth region. Samantha Vine and Katherine Howard report on how unabated habitat destruction could lead to the disappearance of Western Australia s favourite bird from the city and its surrounds within the next 20 years. Out for the count For Perth locals, Carnaby s Black- Cockatoos are a familiar and well-loved sight as they wheel across the city skyline in their annual autumn movements towards the coast. Western Australians voted the charismatic cockatoo as their favourite bird in last year s BirdLife Australia poll, so it comes as no surprise that the Great Cocky Count has become one of the largest citizen science surveys of its kind in Australia, with almost 600 volunteers across the South West taking part in the most recent search for threatened black-cockatoos. The 2014 Cocky Count, coordinated by BirdLife Australia with significant support from the Western Australian Department of Parks and Wildlife, was the fifth consecutive and sixth overall since the initial Count in A record number of participants in 2014 covered 290 sites, following standardised survey protocols to count the cockies as flocks flew in to roost for the night. Many volunteer counters are motivated by a growing concern for the plight of Carnaby s. Yet while there has been a 50 per cent decline in the population across the entire range of the species over the last 50 years, the fact that they are so visible means that such concerns are too readily dismissed. After all, how could such a conspicuous bird in the midst of a city of around two million people be threatened? The data collected from the Great Cocky Counts has, however, provided us with strong and robust evidence that Carnaby s Black-Cockatoos are declining at an alarming rate and that the window of opportunity to save them is closing rapidly. Alarming results BirdLife Australia worked with WA Department of Parks and Wildlife scientists and statisticians to conduct a trend analysis of Great Cocky Count roost counts for Carnaby s Black-Cockatoos in the Swan Coastal District, which encompasses the Perth Metropolitan Region. This analysis found that in the last five years there have been declines in the number of roost sites that are occupied (i.e. have birds using them). There has also been a decline in the size of flocks. The combined effect of fewer occupied roosts and fewer birds in each roosting flock is an estimated decline in the total number of Carnaby s Black-Cockatoos in this region of 15 per cent per year. If this trend continues, the Carnaby s Black-Cockatoo population in the Swan Coastal District will be halved within five years, and after 15 years less than five per cent of the population would remain. This is in line with an independent population viability analysis (PVA) conducted in the Perth and Peel Regions by the global consulting firm, Parson Brinkerhoff. While this PVA is currently being reviewed, it should be setting off alarm bells that this Left: Carnaby s Black-cockatoos are a familiar sight around Perth but for how much longer? Photo by Keith Lightbody Right: The logging of pine plantations around Perth is contributing to the rapid decline in the numbers of this charismatic species. Photo by Henry Cook SEPTEMBER

Pining for Carnaby s analysis chimes so closely with the results of the Great Cocky Counts.

The population is also assumed to be functioning at close to the foraging and reproductive carrying capacity, that is, the remaining available habitat is barely sustaining current population levels.

A GIS assessment of the Perth Metropolitan Area conducted by the WA Local Government Association s Perth Biodiversity Project found that from 2002 to 2009, more than 10,000 hectares of native

3 Pining for Carnaby s analysis chimes so closely with the results of the Great Cocky Counts. Because Carnaby s are long-lived (up to 50 years) and few chicks survive to maturity, it is likely that the birds we see today reflect an ageing population. The population is also assumed to be functioning at close to the foraging and reproductive carrying capacity, that is, the remaining available habitat is barely sustaining current population levels. The clearing of important feeding and roosting habitat will therefore affect the already endangered population. A GIS assessment of the Perth Metropolitan Area conducted by the WA Local Government Association s Perth Biodiversity Project found that from 2002 to 2009, more than 10,000 hectares of native vegetation were cleared from the Perth Metropolitan Region alone. Much, if not most of this vegetation would have been Carnaby s Black-Cockatoo habitat. This is an average of around 1,250 hectares each year for eight years. It is unknown whether this rate has been maintained or increased since 2009, or even whether the clearing has all been legal, because the Western Australian Government doesn t actually keep records of vegetation clearing approvals for urban areas. This represents a massive gap in this state s environmental reporting. Habitat mapping by the WA Department of Parks and Wildlife indicates around 8,800 hectares of potential Carnaby s feeding habitat within the Perth and Peel regions is already zoned urban, urban deferred or industrial, and is therefore at risk of clearing. A further 4,400 hectares of Carnaby s Cockatoo habitat is within areas flagged by the WA Planning Commission for possible future rezoning to urban or industrial use; and between 2,000-5,000 hectares has been identified for potential Basic Raw Materials extraction. In response to dwindling natural food sources, the intelligent and adaptable Carnaby s Black-Cockatoos have been feeding on non-native pine plantations since the 1940s. These plantations have become even more important to the species as their native habitat has been drastically reduced. 26 AUSTRALIAN birdlife

The Gnangara, Pinjar and Yanchep plantations to the north of Perth (collectively known as the Gnangara plantations) provided 23,000 hectares of prime feeding and roosting habitat for Carnaby s

Research by Edith Cowan University and Murdoch University found that the Gnangara plantations support several thousand birds between January and June each year, and more than half (59 per cent) of

4 The Gnangara, Pinjar and Yanchep plantations to the north of Perth (collectively known as the Gnangara plantations) provided 23,000 hectares of prime feeding and roosting habitat for Carnaby s Black-Cockatoos at their peak. Research by Edith Cowan University and Murdoch University found that the Gnangara plantations support several thousand birds between January and June each year, and more than half (59 per cent) of the birds counted in the Swan Coastal region in 2014 were associated with the Gnangara plantations. However, since 2004 these plantations have been harvested without replacement. The plantations stand over an underground aquifer called the Gnangara Mound, one of Perth s most important water supplies. Removing the pines will allow greater recharge of water to the aquifer and so the WA Government has decided that the pines have to go. Approximately 1,000 hectares of pine habitat for Carnaby s is harvested every year, which will result in the complete removal of all pines by 2031 or earlier. While the future land use of the plantation area has yet to be determined, with 3,900 birds (or nearly ten per cent of the estimated total species population of 40,000) recorded at roosts within or associated with the Gnangara pine plantations, it s clear that the removal of 23,000 hectares of pine will have a significant species-level effect. The paradox of the pines It may seem counterintuitive to care about pine plantations they are not native vegetation and they were planted for the purpose of being harvested. It s not illegal to clear them, and surely it s better to harvest planted pines for timber than to log native forests. But the importance of pine as a food for Carnaby s Black-Cockatoos is well known (it is recognised in the current Recovery Plan for the species) and harvesting pines without replacement to adequately compensate for the loss of habitat has demonstrable consequences for this endangered species. Opposite from top: Perth is in danger of losing the sight of these magnificent aerial acrobats from its skyline. Photos by Keith Lightbody (top and middle) and Shelley Pearson (bottom) Above from top: Fewer feeding options are available for Carnaby s with the ongoing clearance of both native and introduced vegetation. Photos by Shelley Pearson (top) and Georgina Steytler (bottom) SEPTEMBER

Pining for Carnaby s Under national environmental law, any action that will have a significant impact on a Matter of National Environmental Significance must be referred to the Federal Minister for

5 Pining for Carnaby s Under national environmental law, any action that will have a significant impact on a Matter of National Environmental Significance must be referred to the Federal Minister for the Environment for assessment under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC Act). BirdLife Australia and WWF-Australia believe that the decision to change the land use from continuing pine plantations to harvesting without replacement constitutes an Action under the EPBC Act. The government of Western Australia has, however, failed to refer the action to the Commonwealth. This risks creating the impression that a state government can avoid its legal responsibilities and choose whether or not to comply with national environmental law and raises serious issues of transparency and accountability in short, it undermines the rule of law. What can be done? We need to stop the destruction of Carnaby s Black-Cockatoo habitat before it s too late. It is essential that native habitat be protected and that the harvested pines are replaced with habitat of equivalent value. Last year BirdLife Australia called on the Western Australian Government to put a moratorium on the clear-fell harvesting of the Gnangara pine plantations. BirdLife Australia and WWF have also called on the WA Government to refer this Action for EPBC assessment, and formally requested that the Federal Environment Minister exercise his power to call in the Action for assessment. After receiving the results of this year s Great Cocky Count, BirdLife Australia has written to the Commonwealth Environment Minister requesting that the Australian Government take urgent action to protect Carnaby s Black-Cockatoos in the Perth and Peel regions. Without action to immediately halt the destruction of Carnaby s habitat, the population of this magnificent cockatoo will continue to decline. We have been warning of this outcome for a number of years and the results of the latest Great Cocky Count only confirm that the situation is dire and approaching the point of no return for this beautiful bird. To join us in asking the state and Australian governments to step up and save Carnaby s Black-Cockatoo go to savethebirds.org before the window of opportunity is closed forever. Samantha Vine is BirdLife Australia s Head of Conservation. Katherine Howard is WWF- Australia s Species Conservation Manager for Southwest Australia. Acknowledgements Information regarding the 2014 Great Cocky Count was taken from the Great Cocky Count Report co-authored by Hugh Finn, Geoff Barrett, Christine Groom, Mark Blythman and Matt Williams. Funding for the 2014 Great Cocky Count came from the Perth Region NRM through the Australian Government s Caring For Our Country program with additional support from the Peel-Harvey Catchment Council (PHCC). Thanks also to the Perth Biodiversity Project and the Forest Products Commission for providing figures on native vegetation clearing and pine plantation harvesting. Above: The Gnangara Pine plantation has become a crucial feeding and roosting habitat for a significant number of Carnaby s. Photo by Henry Cook SEPTEMBER

Cocky Notes COCKIES IN CRISIS. Issue 22: Summer 2015

Cocky Notes COCKIES IN CRISIS. Issue 22: Summer 2015 Cocky Notes Issue 22: Summer 2015 COCKIES IN CRISIS BirdLife Western Australia has been working on conserving Carnaby s Black-Cockatoos for over 15 years. From this work, we know a lot about these birds