WHAT IS A WOYLIE The woylie is a native Australian marsupial that bears a resemblance to a minature kangaroo and is about the

size of a rabbit. WHERE DOES IT LIVE It once occured across much of the southern and central Australia but land clearing and feral predators reduced its range to pockets in the south-west. RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER ORGANISMS The woylie lives in forest and woodland areas with sufficient undergrowth to provide cover and nesting sites, as well as some open areas for feeding. This nocternal animal is very importanto to forest and woodland ecosystems. By feeding on above-ground mushrooms but particularly below ground fungi (i.e native truffles) as well as seeds, the woylie plays an essentialriole in spreading plants and fungi throughout the ecosystems in which they live. While digging for its food, each woylie moves about 5 tonnes of soil a year. This helps in nutrient recycling, reducing fire risk and creating nutrient rich seed beds for plants tto germinate. It also influences the way water percolates into the soil. ABIOTIC AND BIOTIC FACTORS THAT MIGHT THREATEN THE SURVIVAL OF THE WOYLIE Water, air, soil, temperature,light,disease, space, waste disposal and natural disasters are all abitoic factors that could threaten the existance of Woylie. A high predator to prey ratio can have a negative influence on both the predator and prey by decreasing the availability of food and high death rate prior to sexual maturity which can decrease (or prevent the increase of) populations of both the predator and the prey populations and the influence of human interfeareance are both biotic factors that could prevent the further increase in the population and therefore lead the Woylie species into extinction. 2 CONSERVATION MEASURES TAKEN THAT HELPED TO INCREASE THE WOYLIE POPULATION FROM THE 1970S TO 1996. Successful conservation efforts in the 1980s and 90s concentrated on controlling the feral fox and reintroducing woylies from expanding populations to fox-free sites in its former range. Some translocations failed, but others succeeded in establishing populations in other southwest forest areas of Western Australia as well as Venus Bay, St Peter Island and Wedge Island in South Australia and Scotia Sanctuary in NSW. 3 MEASURES THAT HAVE BEEN TAKEN TO UNDERSTAND THE DECLINE OF THE WOYLIE POPULATION SINCE 1996 Firstly, it combined existing datasets into single database containing 25,479 woylie research and monitoring records spanning 33 years. This helped to characterise the patterns in population change, examine whether demographic changes were associated with woylie declines and thrash out any other circumstantial evidence or clues as to what was the cause.

Secondly, the project closely monitored Upper Warren fauna to build on, enhance and coordinate previously independant existing studies to provide information on population changes at the regional scale, while also collecting infpormation on demographics, health, disease, diet and genetics. Thirdly, the project established a population comparison study designed to wokr out which factors could be aassociated with the population crash. 2 POSSIBLE CAUSES FOR THE DECLINE OF THE WOYLIE SINCE 1996 Predators and scavengers, especiaslly cats, have been associated with almost all observed Woylie deaths in the Upper Warren. There has also been some evidence that disease may be the ,main culprit. While some evidence remains elusive at this stage, some key suspects have been identifiednamely two partasites called Toxoplasma and Trypanosoma. Together these parasites have priven particularly devestating mix for other species. WHY SHOULD WE HELP THE WOYLIE The Woylie is one of our Australian marsupials, we should help it because we cana nd we cant just let their whole species die out when we can do something to prevent it. The Woylie has an important role and responsibility with spreading plants and fungi throughout the ecosystems in which they live andhelping in nutrient recycling, reducing fire risk and creating nutrient rich seed beds for plants to germinate