Tiger Quoll or Spotted-tailed Quoll Dasyurus maculatus

Tiger Quoll or Spotted-tailed Quoll asyurus maculatus

At the size of a large cat, the Spotted-tailed Quoll is mainland Australia’s largest marsupial predator. Both the species range and total numbers are believed to have declined dramatically since European settlement.

Being nocturnal and extremely shy, the Spotted-tailed Quoll makes himself as scarce as he possibly can. This threatened hunter avoids human encounters, which makes the monitoring of this endangered species particularly difficult.

Due to the immense effort required to detect them in the wild using standard field survey techniques such as a cage trapping and hair tube sampling, there have been few surveys of Spotted-tailed Quolls in NSW.

Their unique appearance however makes them an ideal species to include in community based surveys. Reports of sightings from local communities are crucial in defining the distribution of the so-called native cat.

Protecting Quoll Habitat

The Foundation for National Parks & Wildlife has committed funds to several scientific projects involving volunteers to help save this charismatic, endangered marsupial.

A study proved that foxes are partly responsible for the species’ dramatic decline over the past decades. Foxes and wild dogs impose both competitive and predatory pressure on quolls as they utilise similar prey and habitat and den in similar locations.

Over a period of two years the survey investigated diet, home ranges and habitat use of foxes and tiger quolls living in close proximity. It also looked at the reproductive success and causes of mortality in fox and quoll populations and finally population genetics of quolls.

In an earlier project NPWS scientist Dan Lunney received Foundation funding to review the contribution of community based wildlife surveys and their importance for research and conservation. Previously overlooked sightings especially on private land can now be included in local species monitoring conducted by NPWS. Moreover, future use of these surveys has the potential to contribute significantly to conservation programs of Spotted-tailed Quolls that involve private lands.

Dan Lunney’s report appeared in the journal Wildlife Research. The referees for this publication rated it as having “high impact”, the highest recognition one can achieve.

NSW distribution of the threatened spotted-tailed quoll

The current state-wide distribution in NSW is not known but is essential to the effective management of this species. The foundation has funded a Vertebrate Ecology team to undertake a huge, map-based, community survey through rural NSW of 10 easily recognised species, including the spotted-tailed quoll, that mapped their distribution. The data collected will be used to estimate the likelihood of occurrence of quolls throughout the state and produce a map of the distribution of the spotted-tailed quoll in NSW. This will assist that state and national efforts to minimise the decline of this species.