Western Queensland Research Articles

Who owns feral camels? Implications for managers of land and resources in central Australia

This paper reviews the legislation relating to ownership of feral camels in Australia. We find that, as a general proposition, a feral camel is owned by neither the landowner nor the Government (the Crown), unless State or Territory legislation provides otherwise. This occurs in two limited situations and only for New South Wales and South Australia. Relevant State and Territory legislation can prescribe that feral camels cannot be taken or used without a relevant licence or permit, but only Western Australia and Queensland appear to do this. Lack of legislative certainty about ownership of camels has resulted in a clear market failure whereby there is also little or no private incentive to exercise control. This should be corrected by identifying explicitly that ownership is vested in the Crown. Legal analogues exist with respect to disease control and water management that could form the basis of an appropriate legislative framework.

Erratum to: Who owns feral camels? Implications for managers of land and resources in central Australia

This paper reviews the legislation relating to ownership of feral camels in Australia. We find that, as a general proposition, a feral camel is owned by neither the landowner nor the Government (the Crown), unless State or Territory legislation provides otherwise. This occurs in two limited situations and only for New South Wales and South Australia. Relevant State and Territory legislation can prescribe that feral camels cannot be taken or used without a relevant licence or permit, but only Western Australia and Queensland appear to do this. Lack of legislative certainty about ownership of camels has resulted in a clear market failure whereby there is also little or no private incentive to exercise control. This should be corrected by identifying explicitly that ownership is vested in the Crown. Legal analogues exist with respect to disease control and water management that could form the basis of an appropriate legislative framework.

Timing of transfer for pregnant women from Queensland Cape York communities to Cairns for birthing

TO THE EDITOR: More than 30 years ago, I was employed by the Commonwealth Government’s Maternal Mortality Committee to identify and evaluate factors contributing to maternal and infant mortality among Aboriginal Queenslanders. At that time, government policy was to transfer all pregnant Aboriginal women from their rural communities or missions to Cairns Base Hospital at 32 weeks’ gestation until 7–10 days after birth. Findings I presented in a report to Queensland Health in 1977 and at the Australian College of Paediatrics Annual Meeting in 1979 included: • Babies of women who were compulsorily transferred at 32 weeks’ gestation to Cairns Hospital had lower neonatal death rates. It was assumed that — as Aboriginal women had unreliable gestational age assessments, antenatal care was irregular, and birthweights were lower than for other races — the risk of premature deliveries could be avoided by early transfer. • There was a lower rate of breastfeeding among mothers transferred to Cairns, largely because if they opted to bottle-feed they could return home after 3–4 days (rather than waiting 7–10 days in Cairns to ensure breastfeeding was established). • Growth failure was common in the month after weaning. • Bottle-fed babies experienced slower weight gain and higher rates of illness. • Suboptimal growth in bottle-fed babies during the early postnatal months predisposed babies to poor growth patterns during infancy and increased death rates. • Women returning to their communities took with them infections acquired during the hospital stay in Cairns. • Separation anxiety or maternal deprivation was common among children left in their communities. • There was decreased family bonding (eg, between the father and the new child) and sibling resentment at maternal separation. • There was unquantifiable resentment at having babies born away from the ancestral lands. • Women delayed admitting their pregnancies in an attempt to remain in their communities, resulting in fewer antenatal visits. The antenatal transfer policy has been in effect for 30 years, despite conflict between those who were predominantly concerned with maternal and perinatal mortality (who favoured compulsory delivery in Cairns Base Hospital), and those (myself included) who were concerned about the effects on children’s growth and development. During this time, I have observed weakening family and community bonds, increasing alcohol and substance misuse and sexual abuse, low school attendance, poor employment records and domestic violence. My studies of Aboriginal and nonAboriginal children born in Cunnamulla in western Queensland followed the same cohort of children from birth for 20 years. The presence of a father who was employed at the time of the child’s birth acted as a role model for the future and was more effective than all other social interventions with respect to the child’s successful education or employment 20 years later, irrespective of race or subsequent social support or interventions offered to the child during school years. Arnold and colleagues’ recent article in the Journal records a situation almost unchanged from 30 years ago, with the exception that antenatal ultrasounds have allowed transfer to occur at 36 weeks’ instead of 32 weeks’ gestation. Enormous resources of goodwill, effort and money have been spent in these communities over 30 years, yet the family disruption, unemployment and abuse statistics remain at variance with the Queensland norm. Perhaps the time has come to allow lowrisk births to occur in selected towns, where the mother can be surrounded by her friends and relations, and be in closer contact with her ancestral land. I endorse the article by Arnold et al and hope they are more successful in implementing change than I have been.

Another piece in an Australian ornithological puzzle—a second Night Parrot is found dead in Queensland

We report on a specimen of the Night Parrot (Pezoporus occidentalis) found dead in Diamantina National Park, in western Queensland. It was found on a low dissected tableland near the head of a small creek, in an area vegetated by sparse shrubland of Gidgee (Acacia cambagei), Crimson Turkey Bush (Eremophila latrobei) and Blunt-leaf Cassia (Senna artemisioides var. helmsii.) Conditions were dry and the vegetation was not flowering or seeding. It is the second such specimen to be found dead in the region since 1990. The two specimens were found less than 200 km apart. Molecular analysis showed that both specimens are female. The latest specimen appears to be an immature undergoing post-juvenile moult. The specimen confirms a breeding event by Night Parrots in the region less than two years before its discovery in September 2006. Together with the 1990 specimen and other recent reports, it can be inferred that a population of Night Parrots exists in the region and that this is an encouraging sign that the species is not simply senescing to extinction. Diamantina National Park likely provides excellent opportunities to further study the ecology and management requirements of this enigmatic species.

Macrobrachium rosenbergii nodavirus disease (white tail disease) in Australia

The index case of white tail disease (WTD) is presented in adult broodstock prawns Macrobrachium rosenbergii from the Flinders River in western Queensland, Australia, in mid-2007. Histological examination revealed extensive myonecrosis with massive infiltration of myonuclei and some haemocytes. Juveniles from the same broodstock but not from 3 other families displayed white muscle lesions. Low-grade chronic mortalities approaching 100% over 1 yr occurred. Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reactions (RT-PCR) were attempted for both M. rosenbergii nodavirus (MrNV) with 2 sets of primers and for the satellite virus, extrasmall virus (XSV). All 3 PCRs generated amplicons of the expected sizes. Basic local alignment search tool (BLAST) analyses of the 3 consensus sequences identified a 91% match with MrNV viral capsid protein gene, 96% match with MrNV RNA-directed RNA polymerase gene, and a 99% match with M. rosenbergii XSV capsid protein gene. The clinical signs, histopathological lesions and RT-PCR amplicons could be reproduced in M. rosenbergii inoculated with cell-free extracts fulfilling River's postulates. We conclude that this is an endemic strain of MrNV as the sequences are dissimilar to strains of MrNV circulating around Asia and the Americas. This case only poorly meets the Office International des Epizooties (OIE) case definition for WTD due to the age of the prawns involved and the nature of the inclusion bodies. Perhaps the OIE case definition needs broadening.

An outbreak of Salmonella enterica serotype Litchfield infection in Australia linked to consumption of contaminated papaya.

An outbreak of 26 cases of Salmonella Litchfield infection occurred in the states of Western Australia and Queensland between October 2006 and January 2007. A case-control study was conducted with 12 cases and 24 controls, and a significant association was found between illness and consumption of papaya (odds ratio, 32.8; 95% confidence interval, 2.71 to 883.5). Papaya samples were collected from 26 stores in Western Australia, and 9 of 38 samples were contaminated with Salmonella Litchfield. These samples had pulsed-field gel electrophoresis patterns and multilocus variable-number tandem-repeat analysis profiles indistinguishable from the outbreak strain. Three farms in Western Australia supplied the contaminated papaya, and two of these farms were inspected. Salmonella Litchfield was not detected in papaya samples, fungal sprays, or water samples from the farms; however, at one farm other serotypes of Salmonella were detected in untreated river water that was used for washing papaya. Only treated potable water should be used for washing fresh produce that is to be eaten raw.

Fourteen months of seed rain in three Australian semi‐arid communities

AbstractThe abundance and composition of seed rain was measured over 14 months (February 2004 to March 2005) in Currawinya National Park, western Queensland. The experimental design included four measurement periods, three vegetation communities and two grazing regimes. A total of 12 586 seeds from 104 species were captured. There were significantly more seeds and species captured during the measurement period with the least rainfall, although no significant correlation was found between the amount of rainfall and the number of seeds or species captured. More seeds and species were captured where native and feral grazing pressure was removed, but this was only significant for the number of species. The above‐ground vegetation showed no significant difference between grazing treatments over the study period and exhibited far fewer species than the seed rain. However, the majority of species found in the above‐ground vegetation were represented in the seed rain. Hypotheses are explored as an attempt to understand the apparent lack of a relationship between seed rain and rainfall. The effects of grazing and seed movement and storage are also discussed.

Revisions of Australian ground-hunting spiders: IV. The spider subfamily Diaprograptinae subfam. nov. (Araneomorphae: Miturgidae)

The newly recognised Diaprograptinae includes the Australian Diaprograpta Simon, 1909, Eupograpta gen. nov., Mituliodon Raven & Stumkat, 2003, Mitzoruga gen. nov., Nuliodon gen. nov., and the New Zealand Zealoctenus Forster & Wilton, 1973. All genera are unique in the Miturgidae s. strict. in the possession of claw tufts, and more equivocally, in the apical segment of the posterior lateral spinnerets, which in Diaprograptinae is not as strongly elongated as in Miturga. Diaprograpta includes the type species, D. striola Simon, 1909 from Western Australia, D. hirsti sp. nov. from South Australia, D. alfredgodfreyi sp. nov. from Victoria, D. peterandrewsi sp. nov. from western Queensland and D. abrahamsae sp. nov. from southeast Queensland. Eupograpta includes E. kottae sp. nov., sympatric with Diaprograpta striola and E. anhat sp. nov., from western Queensland. Mitzoruga gen. nov. is described to accommodate Uliodon marmoreus (Hogg, 1896), M. insularis sp. nov., and M. elapines sp. nov., from xeric regions of Australia. The genus presents a character combination which challenges the boundary between the Miturgidae Simon, 1886 and Zoridae F. O. P.-Cambridge, 1893. Nuliodon gen. nov. includes only N. fishburni sp. nov. from eastern Australia.

General Fraud Offences in Australia

In the last 20 years a number of Australian jurisdictions have introduced general fraud offenses which constitute a decisive break with traditional approaches to defining fraud. Instead of offenses based on obtaining of property by deception, or obtaining of pecuniary/financial advantage by deception, they are based around concepts of general dishonesty and gain or loss of any type - pecuniary or otherwise. This paper provides an overview of such offenses now in existence in the Western Australian, Queensland, Commonwealth and Australian Capital Territory jurisdictions, and also comments on the Northern Territory offense which uses deception, but not dishonesty, as a basis for liability. The paper argues that all these offenses are impermissibly broad and vague and rely on allegations of mental states of mind to criminalize actions otherwise lawful.

Visual assessment of the Australian Land Erodibility Model

There is a growing requirement for techniques to assess land susceptibility to wind erosion, i.e. land erodibility, over large geographic areas (>10 4 km 2). This requirement stems from a lack of wind erosion research between the field (10 1 km 2) and regional scales, and a need to evaluate the performance of spatially explicit wind erosion models across these scales. This paper addresses this issue by presenting a methodology for monitoring land erodibility at the landscape scale (10 3 km 2). First, we define criteria suitable for evaluating land erodibility based on empirical relationships between soil texture, vegetation cover, geomorphology, and wind erosion. The criteria were used to visually assess land erodibility over long distances (10 3 km) using vehicle-based transects run through the rangelands of western Queensland, Australia. Application of the data for testing the performance of a spatially explicit land erodibility model (AUSLEM) is then demonstrated by comparing the visual assessments of land erodibility with the model output. The model performed best in the west of the study area in the open rangelands. In regions with higher woody shrub and tree cover the model performance decreases. This highlights the need for research to better parameterise controls on erodibility in semi-arid landscapes consisting of forested and rangeland mosaics.

REVIEWS

MankindVolume 2, Issue 1 p. 21-23 REVIEWS First published: April 1936 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1835-9310.1936.tb00922.xAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Abstract Book reviewed in this article: More Recollections. By Mary Qilmore. We Europeans: A Survey of Racial Problems. By J. S. Huxley and A. C. Haddon. Südsee-Travels in the South Seas. By Hugo Adolf Bernatzik. Initiation Among the Pitjandjara Natives of the Mann and Tomkinson Ranges in South Australia. By Norman B. Tindale. Semi-Moieties in North- Western Queensland. By Laocriston Sharp. The Reaction of the Maori to the Impact of Civilization. By the Right Reverend the Bishop of Waiupu, Heriiert W. Williams. Volume2, Issue1April 1936Pages 21-23 RelatedInformation

Fencing artificial waterpoints failed to influence density and distribution of red kangaroos (Macropus rufus)

Provision of artificial waterpoints in Australian rangelands has resulted in an increase in the range and density of kangaroos. At high densities, kangaroos can inhibit vegetation regeneration, particularly in some protected areas where harvesting is prohibited. Fencing off waterpoints has been proposed to limit these impacts. Our aim was to determine whether fencing off waterpoints during a drought (when kangaroos would be especially water-limited) would influence the density and distribution of red kangaroos (Macropus rufus). Two waterpoints were fenced within the first 6 months of the 27-month study and a further two waterpoints were kept unfenced as controls in Idalia National Park, western Queensland. We estimated kangaroo densities around waterpoints from walked line-transect counts, and their grazing distribution from dung-pellet counts. Fencing off waterpoints failed to influence either the density or distribution up to 4 km from the waterpoints. Our results indicate that food availability, rather than the location of waterpoints, determines kangaroo distribution. Few areas in the rangelands are beyond kangaroos’ convenient reach from permanent waterpoints. Therefore, fencing off waterpoints without explicitly considering the spatial context in relation to other available water sources will fail to achieve vegetation regeneration.

Genetic variation within species of the nematode genus Cloacina (Strongyloidea:Cloacininae) parasitic in the stomachs of rock wallabies, Petrogale spp. (Marsupialia:Macropodidae) in Queensland

Four morphospecies of Cloacina, parasitic nematodes in the stomachs of rock wallabies (Petrogale spp.) from Queensland, were compared genetically using sequence data of the two internal transcribed spacers of nuclear ribosomal DNA (rDNA). The results suggest that two geographically isolated populations of C. ernabella from P. purpureicollis were genetically distinct. Based on the autapomorphic species concept, these two C. ernabella populations represented different species. For the three other nematode morphospecies, there were genetic differences among individuals of a morphospecies present in different species of host. The results suggest that each may represent a complex of sibling species, with a different species present in each species of rock wallaby examined for that morphospecies. In the C. caenis and C. pearsoni complexes, the lineage present in P. purpureicollis from western Queensland represents a sister taxon to those in the P. pencillata complex from the east coast. In the C. robertsi complex, the taxon parasitic in P. persephone represents the sister taxon to those in the P. pencillata complex and in P. purpureicollis. C. robertsi was found for the first time in P. purpureicollis from Winton in central Queensland, suggesting contact in the recent past between populations of P. purpureicollis and a member of the P. penicillata complex.

Art Therapy: Promoting Wellbeing in Rural and Remote Communities

Art therapy encompasses both preventative and curative activities and aims to improve ways of engaging those who might be reticent in seeking more traditional forms of psychological support offered through 'talking therapies'. The Longreach base of the Royal Flying Doctor Service in Queensland provides mental health support to people living in rural and remote locations in central western Queensland and has been complemented since 2006 by the addition of a full-time art therapist. This paper provides an overview of art therapy and a description of this innovative approach to addressing mental health needs in a rural and remote setting.

Faecal DNA analysis enables genetic monitoring of the species recovery program for an arid-dwelling marsupial

The greater bilby, Macrotis lagotis, is a species of conservation significance in the arid and semiarid zones of Australia. A species recovery program has been underway since the mid-1990s but the incorporation of molecular genetic data within the program has been difficult due to the problems of obtaining regular, population-wide samples of this trap-shy and sparsely distributed species. In this study, we demonstrate that faecal pellets collected from around burrows in the dry, arid habitat of western Queensland provide a viable source for DNA extraction and analysis. Faecal DNA was used to generate population-level estimates of microsatellite and mtDNA diversity for comparison with previous estimates for the natural population derived from tissue samples. Data were used to assess both the reliability of faecal-derived genotypes and the extent of any diversity loss since the previous study. Microsatellite diversity recorded from eight polymorphic markers for the natural population (A = 4.31 ± 0.30, HE = 0.76 ± 0.03) was comparable with the previous study, indicating little change in genetic diversity for the natural population in the 10-year interim. Faecal genotypes generated for the recently reintroduced population matched the known number of founders as well as a known genotype, providing support for the reliability of the faecal DNA approach. The captive and reintroduced populations had significantly lower diversity levels than the natural population (A = 3.59 ± 0.28, HE = 0.68 ± 0.03; A = 3.57 ± 0.20, HE = 0.65 ± 0.03 respectively). Mitochondrial control region analysis, incorporating nested clade phylogeographic analysis (NCPA), agrees with earlier findings that populations of bilbies across the arid zone in Australia have only recently become fragmented, but the case for Queensland bilbies being strongly differentiated from other regions is diminished. Implications from this study include the need to further supplement the captive and reintroduced populations with additional out-bred individuals and that faecal DNA can be used effectively for ongoing monitoring and management of this species.

Lovellea wintonensis gen. et sp. nov.- Early Cretaceous (late Albian), anatomically preserved, angiospermous flowers and fruits from the Winton Formation, western Queensland, Australia

A new anatomically preserved, permineralised fossil flower/fruit taxon, Lovellea wintonensis gen. et sp. nov., is described from upper Albian sediments of the Winton Formation, western Queensland. The flower/fruit has a cup-shaped receptacle with perianth and androecium borne on the rim of the cup and multiple carpels with inferior ovaries embedded in the receptacle wall, above which the styles are free. The long, tapering styles and spirally thickened, unicellular hairs that arise from the inner epidermis of the receptacle are directed towards the mouth of the cup ringed by stamens. The androecium comprises two whorls or series of stalked stamens with bisporangiate, valvate, introrse anthers; pollen is disulcate with a retitectate exine. Each carpel has a dorsal slit and one laterally attached seed with a bitegmic seed coat; the parenchymatous carpel wall is differentiated into exocarp, mesocarp and endocarp. The seed coat consists of a 2-layered testa, the inner layer composed of transfer cells with inclusions of tetragonal-shaped crystals, and a cuticular tegmen. The organisation and morphology of floral parts of the fossils is consistent with a relationship with the Laurales. Although familial relationships are uncertain, the character mosaic of the fossil flowers/fruits is more similar to Gomortega (Gomortegaceae) and, to a lesser extent, Tambourissa (Monimiaceae s.str.) than to other members of the order. The late Albian occurrence of Lovellea wintonensis predates oldest reported fossils of the Gomortegaceae. Cladistic analysis based on morphology indicates Lovellea as the sister group of all remaining Laurales excluding Calycanthaceae and Idiospermum.

Edgbastonia alanwillsin. gen amp; n. sp. (Tateinae: Hydrobiidae s.l.: Rissooidea: Caenogastropoda);<span style="font-weight: 400;" a snail from an artesian spring group in western Queensland, Australia,<span style="font-weight: 400;" convergent with some Asian Amnicolidae

Edgbastonia alanwillsi n. gen. n. sp. is restricted to a small group of springs on Edgbaston Station near Aramac in western Queensland where it is assumed to be relictual. It has close similarities in shell morphology to some species of Amnicolidae found in China and India and the female reproductive system has unique characters that separate it from any other described taxon attributed to the Hydrobiidae or any related family. Sequence data from COI, 16S and 18S indicate that this species is closely allied to taxa included in Jardinella Iredale Whitley, 1938, the only genus of Hydrobiidae (sensu lato) that has been previously recognised as inhabiting the Queensland artesian discharge springs. However, several important morphological characters separate this taxon from species included in the possibly para- or polyphyletic Jardinella. Based on our molecular results, the Australasian ‘hydrobiid’ taxa fall within a distinct clade (Tateinae) within a broad concept of Hydrobiidae.

A model to predict land susceptibility to wind erosion in western Queensland, Australia

This paper describes the development and validation of the Australian Land Erodibility Model (AUSLEM), designed to predict land susceptibility to wind erosion in western Queensland, Australia. The model operates at a 5 × 5 km spatial resolution on a daily time-step with inputs of grass and tree cover, soil moisture, soil texture and surficial stone cover. The system was implemented to predict land erodibility, i.e. susceptibility to wind erosion, for the period 1980–1990. Model performance was evaluated using cross-correlation analyses to compare trajectories of mean annual land erodibility at selected locations with trends in wind speed and observational records of dust events and a Dust Storm Index (DSI). The validation was conducted at four spatial length scales from 25 to 150 km using windows to represent potential dust source areas centered on and positioned around eight meteorological stations within the study area. The predicted land erodibility had strong correlations with dust-event frequencies at half of the stations. Poor correlations at the other stations were linked to the inability of the model to account for temporal changes in soil erodibility, and comparing trends in the land erodibility of regions with dust events whose source areas lie outside the regions of interest. The model agreement with dust-event frequency trends was found to vary across spatial scales and was highly dependent on land type characteristics around the stations and on the types of dust events used for validation.

Evaluation of key horticultural traits for Ptilotus nobilis in sub-tropical regions

Plants belonging to the genus Ptilotus have immense potential to be developed for the floricultural industry. Many of these plants flower profusely and have potential as cut focal flowers, cut fillers, potted colour or for use in landscape design. Ptilotus nobilis plants produce numerous fragrant cream to pink coloured inflorescences, which exhibit a long vase-life adding to their value as a cut-flower crop. As yet, there is no information published on the key horticultural traits for this species. This work undertook greenhouse trials to evaluate the floricultural attributes for P. nobilis collected from the Cunnamulla region in western Queensland, Australia. As a potted colour crop, P. nobilis may be marketed as a short lived perennial with plants flowering continuously for more than 2 years. From a cut-flower perspective, each plant produced an average of 11 flowering stems per month during December to April, and 8 flowering stems per month during May to August. Flowering stem length and inflorescence length averaged 35.4 and 7.2 cm, respectively for the period November to April, versus 39.2 and 6.3 cm stem and inflorescence lengths, respectively during May to August. As flowering stem lengths range from 17 to 79 cm, there is scope for selection of tall forms for cut flowers and compact forms for potted colour. Furthermore, the harvest duration of flowering stems averaged 43.5 days highlighting the durability of P. nobilis as a cut-flower product. A minimum thermal requirement of 623 growing degree days (GDD) were required to reach flowering after pruning with a predicted base temperature of 0.5 °C and maximum temperature of 18.2 °C when grown in a greenhouse at Gatton, Queensland, Australia. Further work needs to investigate the flowering physiology in response to temperature, photoperiod and light intensity to determine whether flowering can be predicted for different production regions. Also, vegetative propagation methods and field cultural requirements require further investigation to progress the commercial development of this new product.

Clinical Location and Student Learning: Outcomes From the LCAP Program in Queensland, Australia

Background: Three students in the 3rd year of a graduate entry medical program self-selected to participate in a 1-year clinical placement, each with a rural general practitioner in central western Queensland, Australia. Description: Students completed 32 weeks in a rural generalist community immersion medical program and were compared with matched students who completed their year in urban tertiary hospitals. Evaluations included teaching and learning opportunities, assessment of clinical competencies, and semistructured interviews. Views of preceptors, spouses, and community were also evaluated. Evaluation: All outcome measures were positive and many were greater for the rural immersion students than for the matched urban group. Students were able to achieve the requirements of their medical program in a nontraditional placement. Views of preceptors indicated satisfaction with long-term medical student placements including enjoyment, negligible time or financial impact, and beneficial professional and collegial support. Conclusions: Long-term immersion placements benefited student learning and had a favorable impact on the preceptors.