Rare potoroo hops into cattle property spotlight
A wildlife camera on a southern Queensland cattle property has captured a picture of a rare long-nosed potoroo, which is listed as vulnerable under Queensland and federal law.
It's proof co-owner Tracy Finnegan has made some good decisions about her grazing business, which adjoins the Lamington National Park in the Kerry Valley.
"It's a potoroo that eats fungi as a major part of its diet and that in itself makes it quite exciting for us.
"Fungi is a really important part of soil biology and soil health, so for us as farmers and as graziers, the soils and the health of the soils are very, very important."
She says the remote camera image of one potoroo probably indicates a community of the small marsupials living on a ridge-top.
"It's actually persisting in an area that is quite well-developed for agriculture.
"Traditionally there's been a lot of land clearing, and the fact that we do have one of these animals in an area that is adjacent to a national park is great, because it just means that if we have them on our property ... the animals have got a much greater range and it's better for their long-term survival prospects.
"We're very lucky that we have the creek flats and that's essentially where we graze our cattle mostly.
"Previously, cattle had been grazed up in the high country, but it's fairly marginal up there so we tend to be quite strategic.
"We look at improving our soil health of our existing improved pastures in the creek valley and improving our carrying capacity in that regard."
Ms Finnegan says the photograph will prompt some changes to her management of the high country, including a change to the burning regime, as the fungus on which the potoroo depends needs a more frequent fire cycle.
The survey work on Ms Finnegan's property, along with some fencing and weed control work, has been partly funded by SEQ Catchments through the Caring for our Country program.