Brown treecreeper

Reintroduction biology

The brown treecreeper (Climacteris picumnus) disappeared from the Canberra region in 2005 following predation by feral cats and foxes, as well as the loss, fragmentation, and degradation of habitat.

Our first attempt to reintroduce it took place in 2009. Using a population sourced from Murrumbidgee in NSW, and with the help of volunteers from both the ACT and NSW (and partners listed at the bottom of this page), we released seven family groups of brown treecreepers into the Mulligans Flat and Goorooyarroo nature reserves.

Things the Brown treecreeper taught us

150 years of livestock grazing, which had only ceased a decade prior to the bird's’ release, had degraded the recipient reserves to the point of unsuitability. Not enough time had elapsed, or management intervention enacted, for the effects of the degradation to be reversed.

We hypothesise changes in vegetation resulted in raised exposure to predation risk. Whilst dense shrub cover offers refuge for many woodland birds, it obstructs escape for brown treecreepers. These birds need old growth trees and logs for refuge, which were in shorter-than-needed supply in the recipient sites. This emphasises the importance of habitat quality, especially the structure and composition of key features.

Every reintroduction attempt is a opportunity for knowledge gathering, including when they fail. Even a failure is not wasted effort so long as it contributes to researcher’s knowledge of which steps or conditions may increase the likelihood of successful future species reintroductions.

Project funding and support

ACT Government

  • Birding NSW

  • Birds Australia Stuart Leslie Bird Research Award

  • Canberra Ornithologist Group

  • Canberra Birds Conservation Fund

  • CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems

  • Gould League of NSW 2010 Cayley Memorial Scholarship

  • Foundation for National Parks and Wildlife

  • Mulligans Flat - Goorooyarroo Woodland Experiment (ARC Linkage Project LP0561817)

  • Norman Wettenhall Foundation

Publications

Bennett, V.A., Doerr, E.D., Manning, A.D., Lindenmayer, D.B., Yoon, H.J. (2013) Habitat Selection and Behaviour of a Reintroduced Passerine: Linking Experimental Restoration, Behaviour and Habitat Ecology, PLOS One, 8(1)

  • Bennett V. A., Doerr V. A. J., Doerr E. D., Manning A. D., Lindenmayer D. B. and Yoon H.-J. (2013) Causes of reintroduction failure of the brown treecreeper: Implications for ecosystem restoration. Austral Ecology 38, 700-712.

  • Bennett, V.A., Doerr, E.D., Manning, A.D., Lindenmayer, D.B., Yoon, H.J. (2012) Habitat Selection and Post-Release Movement of Reintroduced Brown Treecreeper Individuals in
    Restored Temperate Woodlandy, PLOS One, 7(12)

  • Sheean, V.A., Manning, A.D., Lindenmayer, D.B. (2012) An assessment of scientific approaches towards species relocations in Australia, Austral Ecology, 37, 204-215.

  • Bennett, V.A., Doerr, V.A.J, Doerr, E.D., Manning, A.D. and Lindenmayer, D.B. (2012) The anatomy of a failed reintroduction: a case study with the Brown Treecreeper, Austral Ecology, 37, 204-215.