Mulgara - Conservation Efforts
The Mulgara is but one of many endangered species
within Australia, and although of low profile itself, is often found in
regions also inhabited by other more high profiles species that are
themselves endangered. Therefore efforts towards conserving those
species will often also be of benefit to the Mulgara. So much so in fact
that it is sometimes grouped within a "suite" of like endangered species
for a more central and more efficient conservation approach to the group
and for combined data collecting purposes.
One of the main threats to the Mulgara is the
reduction of habitat, either through the encroachment of pastoral
activities, mining, fire, weed infestation, and so on. As the Mulgara tends to maintain a
semi-permanent home within the Spinifex rather than be migratory, it is
important to ensure stability of available habitable grasses.
One
of the great reducers of the Spinifex grasslands is fire, both natural
and man-made. Aborigines have employed burning as one of their survival
tools for centuries, and the affects of this burning on the local
environment are wide and varied, sometimes threatening, sometimes
beneficial. However, with the added threat of modern activities, any
burning of the scrub needs to be carefully managed to ensure minimal
impact of native species.
Therefore steps are underway to control any burn-offs
or natural fires in the Spinifex and grasslands with the aim of
producing "patchy" burns leaving suitable corridors within the scrub and
tussock grasslands to allow for animals to move around. This needs to be
managed not only spatially, but also temporally.
Thankfully, many Mining and Major
Construction companies with operations in
areas inhabited by the Mulgara, and other Australian species, are also
becoming more mindful of the need to conserve these endangered animals
and are thus making efforts to either set aside vital habitat areas as wildlife
refuges or divert operations away from sensitive areas.
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Action Plan for Australian Marsupials and Monotremes
(Scroll down for Mulgara)
Australian Federal Government initiative through the Department of Environment
and Heritage to identify the distribution and habitat of the Mulgara and
limiting factor, and then instigate management and recovery programs.
