Habitat requirements of the yellow-footed antechinus (Antechinus flavipes) in box-ironbark forest, Victoria, Australia

Abstract

Understanding the habitat requirements of a species is critical for effective conservation-based management. In this study, we investigated the influence of forest structure on the distribution of the yellow-footed antechinus (Antechinus flavipes), a small dasyurid marsupial characteristic of dry forests on the inland side of the Great Dividing Range, Australia. Hair-sampling tubes were used to determine the occurrence of A. flavipes at 60 sites stratified across one of the largest remaining tracts of dry box-ironbark forest in south-eastern Australia. We considered the role of six potential explanatory variables: large trees, hollow-bearing trees, coppice hollows, logs, rock cover and litte..