Karawatha Site, Mammal Captures Data, Karawatha Forest Park, South East Queensland, 2010 

The record contains information on mammal captures from the Karawatha forest park in South East Queensland, Karawatha in the year 2010. Data on the number of captures of mammal species and the type of trap used for captures are provided. 

We at TERN acknowledge the Traditional Owners and Custodians throughout Australia, New Zealand and all nations. We honour their profound connections to land, water, biodiversity and culture and pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging. 

The aims of the project were: [1] to investigate the distribution of small ground-dwelling mammals at Karawatha; [2] study the relationship between small ground-dwelling mammals and habitat features at the micro and macro scales; [3] determine the influence of trapping technique on the composition of captured mammals. 

Small Mammal Survey: Sampling of small mammals were conducted using Elliot traps, Pitfall traps and Hair funnels. Sampling occurred on 33 PPBio (Program for Planned Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research) plots (250 m long) between June and August 2010. Each plot was sampled for four nights, with three to four plots being surveyed simultaneously. Twenty-five Elliot traps, three pitfall traps and six hair funnels were used per plot. Elliot traps were placed 11 m perpendicular to the midline on each side and at 20 m intervals, starting at 20 m along the transect. A final Elliot trap was placed on the line at the 250 m mark. Elliot traps were baited with balls that consisted of a mixture of honey, peanut butter and rolled oats. One pitfall traps were placed 5 m from the midline at the 125 m mark on the left hand side. The pitfall traps consisted of a 20 L bucket and 10 m of drift fence. The hair funnel traps were placed every 35 m along the transect on alternate sides and 6 m from the midline.