Carnivores of Australia Past, Present and Future

About this book

The Australian continent provides a unique perspective on the evolution and ecology of carnivorous animals. In earlier ages, Australia provided the arena for a spectacular radiation of marsupial and reptilian predators. The causes of their extinctions are still the subject of debate. Since European settlement, Australia has seen the extinction of one large marsupial predator (the thylacine), another (the Tasmanian devil) is in danger of imminent extinction, and still others have suffered dramatic declines. By contrast, two recently-introduced predators, the fox and cat, have been spectacularly successful, with devastating impacts on the Australian fauna.

Carnivores of Australia: Past, Present and Future explores Australia's unique predator communities from pre-historic, historic and current perspectives. It covers mammalian, reptilian and avian carnivores, both native and introduced to Australia. It also examines the debate surrounding how best to manage predators to protect livestock and native biodiversity.

Readers will benefit from the most up-to-date synthesis by leading researchers and managers in the field of carnivore biology. By emphasising Australian carnivores as exemplars of flesh-eaters in other parts of the world, Carnivores of Australia: Past, Present and Future will be an important reference for researchers, wildlife managers and students worldwide.

Contents

Chapter 1. The importance of predators
Chapter 2. The rise and fall of large marsupial carnivores
Chapter 3. Giant terrestrial reptilian carnivores of Cenozoic Australia
Chapter 4. The arrival and impacts of the dingo
Chapter 5. The new guard: the arrival and impacts of cats and foxes
Chapter 6. Management of wild canids in Australia: free-ranging dogs and red foxes
Chapter 7. When is a dingo not a dingo? Hybridisation with domestic dogs
Chapter 8. Measuring and managing the impacts of cats
Chapter 9. Australia’s surviving marsupial carnivores: threats and conservation.
Chapter 10: Micro-carnivores: the ecological role of small dasyurid predators in Australia
Chapter 11. Reptilian predators: the forgotten majority?
Chapter 12. Fur, feathers and scales: interactions between mammalian, reptilian and avian predators
Chapter 13. Strongly interactive carnivore species: maintaining and restoring ecosystem function
Chapter 14. Protecting livestock while conserving ecosystem function: non-lethal management of wild predators
Chapter 15. The role of predator exclosures in the conservation of Australian fauna
Chapter 16. Concerns over management intensity: a framework for threatened species and predator management.
Chapter 17. Olfaction and predator-prey interactions amongst mammals in Australia
Chapter 18. Carnivore communities: challenges and opportunities for conservation

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Biography

Dr A.S. Glen has been researching carnivores for 15 years, producing over 50 scientific papers, book chapters, reports, popular press articles and species recovery plans. He has advised various Australian and international governments on management and conservation of carnivores, and received numerous awards including the Invasive Animals CRC Chairman’s Award for Scientific Excellence in 2007.

Professor C.R. Dickman has produced over 300 publications, and was awarded the prestigious Whitley Medal in 2008 for his book A Fragile Balance: The Extraordinary Story of Australian Marsupials. He has won numerous awards for his research, including the New South Wales Scientist of the Year in the Plant and Animal Sciences category in 2010.