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Carnivore concerns: problems, issues and solutions for conserving Australasias marsupial carnivores
Book chapter   Peer reviewed

Carnivore concerns: problems, issues and solutions for conserving Australasias marsupial carnivores

Menna E. Jones, Meri Oakwood, Chris A Belcher, Keith Morris, Andrew J Murray, Patricia A Woolley, Karen B. Firestone, Brent Johnson and Scott Burnett
Predators with Pouches: the Biology of Carnivorous Marsupials, pp.422-434
CSIRO Publishing
2003

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Abstract

quoll biodiversity mammals dasyurids threatened species Conservation and biodiversity
Anthropogenic declines have been reported in all of Australasia's eight larger marsupial carnivores (genera Dosyurus, Sarcophilus, and Thylacinus), One species is now extinct (T. cynocephalis), one subspecies is Endangered (D. moculatus grao7is), one species and one subspecies are classified as VuInerable to extinction (D. geoffroii and D. m. maculatus, respectively), two species are Lower Risk-Near Threatened (D. hallucatus, D viverrinus), two are of unknown conservation status (the New Guinea quolls, D. olbopunctatus and D. sportacus), and only one species is classified as Lower Risk-Least Concern (S. lanianus), A successful recovery program has been executed for one species (D. geoffroii-formerly Endangered), which will shortly be removed from threatened fauna lists. While the causes of decline are multiple and complex, the overriding factor is probably habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation, and the associated factors: loss of protective cover from predators, reduced food availability, and increased contact with humans. Introduced predators, cats (Fefe catus), foxes (Vulpes vulpes) and dingoes (Canis lupus dingo), play a not well understood role. Other important mortality factors include persecution, non-target poisoning and road mortality. In this chapter, we conduct a critical review and summary of I) the causes and correlates of decline, 2) the issues related to trophic level and life history that predispose marsupial carnivores to anthropogenic decline, 3) a range of solutions, some of which are being implemented, and 4) future directions for the large amount of work still to be done.

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