Response to Info Request - Attachment 6a - Ecological Assessment Part 1 MCU18-0015 & RAL18-0015 · MCU18/0015

                           Ecological Assessment – Attunga Heights



The quality of habitat for reptiles is strongly determined by the structural characteristics
of vegetation (e.g. complexity of vegetation density and vertical strata) and ground cover
(e.g. woody debris and rocky outcrops) which influence micro-climate, solar irradiance and
the availability of suitable basking and shelter sites (Garden et al. 2007). The majority of
leaf litter and ground cover occurs in the lower slopes of the creek line, and therefore the
greatest diversity of reptiles can be expected in this area.


4.3.4 Birds
A total of twenty-one (21) species were recorded during the survey periods (TABLE 7). All
species are listed as ‘common’ under the under the NCWR 2006 and the EPBC Act 1999. No
threatened bird species were recorded.

                                        TABLE 7
                      BIRD SPECIES RECORDED AT THE STUDY SITE
            Scientific Name               Common Name        Year Recorded
      Aegotheles cristatus         Owlet nightjar                 2003
      Alectura lathami             Australian brush-turkey     2003, 2018
      Cracticus torquatus          Grey butcherbird            2003, 2018
      Dicrurus bracteatus          Spangled drongo             2003, 2018
      Eurystomus orientalis        Dollarbird                     2003
      Eudynamys scolopacea         Common koel                    2003
      Manorina melanocephala       Noisy miner                 2003, 2018
      Meliphaga Lewinii            Lewin's honeyeater          2003, 2018
      Oriolus sagittatus           Olive-backed oriole         2003, 2018
      Pachycephala pectoralis      Golden whistler             2003, 2018
      Podargus strigoides          Tawny frogmouth             2003, 2018
      Sericornis frontalis         White-browed scrubwren      2003, 2018
      Sphecotheres viridis         Figbird                     2003, 2018
      Strepera graculina           Pied currawong              2003, 2018
      Zosterops lateralis          Silvereye                   2003, 2018
      Dacelo novaeguineae          Laughing kookaburra            2018
      Trichoglossus moluccanus     Rainbow lorikeet               2018
      Anthochaera chrysoptera      Little wattlebird              2018
      Philemon corniculatus        Noisy friarbird                2018
      Eopsaltria australis         Eastern yellow robin           2018
      Colluricincla harmonica      Grey shrike-thrush             2018

Searches beneath Allocasuarina species present on the site did not reveal the presence of
any chewed cones, which are indicative of Glossy black cockatoo presence.

The significance of near coastal environments of the New South Wales Far North Coast and
South East Queensland as over-wintering habitat for migratory birds has been established
by many observers and bird banders, including Keast (1968), Robertson (1973), Gravatt
(1974), Porter (1982) and Robertson and Woodall (1983). These patterns may be
attributable to the relatively high winter temperatures and long growing season of this
region compared with the rest of south-eastern Australia (Fitzpatrick and Nix 1973;
Edwards 1979; Nix 1982; Specht et al 1981). Many insectivorous birds from higher latitudes
and elevation over-winter in the locality. These include species such as the Fantail cuckoo



Job No: Q12038/RW3                       JWA Pty Ltd                                     30