QLD

Fraser Island

Fraser Island is home to a diverse array of terrestrial and water fauna. It is not uncommon to see a dingo loping along the beach or a prehistoric-looking lizard climbing a tree. The diversity of the island's natural habitat supports a wide range of animals, many of which are at the northern or southern limit of their distribution or are considered to be rare or vulnerable.

Each animal has a place in nature's ecosystem, be it as a predator or pollinator, soil enricher or seed carrier. Even the smallest animal can cause an environmental imbalance if disturbed and it is for this reason that we should do our best to respect and conserve the native fauna of Fraser Island.

Swamp wallabies are seen only occasionally on Fraser Island because of the shortage of native grasses for grazing (associated with the simplified food chain of the sandy environment). 

The short-beaked echidna, identified by the long spines covering its back, is found on Fraser Island, though rarely seen.

The dingoes of Fraser Island are one of the purest strain of dingo surviving in Australia today. Dingoes are thought to have been introduced to Australia between 3 000 - 8 000 years ago. They are similar to the domestic dog and the two can interbreed, though dingoes have only one litter of 3 - 4 pups a year, usually around August/September. 
Dingoes feed on bandicoots and other small mammals and are not traditionally scavengers.
However, some visitors feed dingoes and this encourages them to depend on humans, which leads to scavenging and aggression.

• It is vital for the success and health of the dingo population, as well as personal safety, that these wild dogs are not fed. 

• It is also imperative that small children do not become separated from their parents as attack on lonely children have occured.

Extra vigilance is required as dingoes’ behaviour can be most unpredictable, especially from January to May when protecting their young and when young males are fighting for dominance and territory.

Dugong are large sea creatures which can travel at speeds of up to 22km per hour but generaly only cover distances of 25km a day. Calves ride on their mothers' backs. Dugong may live for up to 50 years. They are Australia’s only marine mammal herbivore and graze sea grass meadows in the warm, shallow waters of the Great Sandy Strait. 
During 1992 Fraser Island experienced two cyclones which caused heavy saltation. This caused the death of large areas of sea grass beds and a resultant reduction in the number of dugong in the area. These sea grass beds are beginning to re-establish and dugong numbers are increasing, though it may take many years for the population to fully recover.

The migrating humpback whales can be seen off the coast of Fraser Island between August and October. Once endangered, their numbers have continued to increase since the cessation of whaling. Daily whale watch trips are conducted from Fraser Island to see these magnificent creatures playing in the calm island waters.

Minke whales can often be seen off Fraser Island singularly or in small groups. 

The bottlenose dolphin, the common dolphin and the Indo-Pacific humpbacked dolphin are widespread in the area and the Risso's dolphin can also be seen.

There are nine species of native rodent found on Fraser Island. 
Among tem are; 

• the native bush rat

• the pale field-rat

• the water rat (makes its home near permanent bodies of water from which it feeds on aquatic insects, crustaceans, fish and an occasional water bird)

• webfooted water rat

• the fawn-footed melomys, is an excellent climber and is usually found in forest areas.

• The yellow-footed antechinus is a carnivorous marsupial that often turns its prey inside out, feasting on the insides. 
  The antechinus mates aggressively, biting, scratching and copulating for up to twelve hours. This aggressive mating behaviour causes extreme stress to the male antechinus, leading to a breakdown of the immune system and death. This protects the young from competition from adult males.

• The sugar glider, the squirrel glider and the feathertail glider are all marsupials that can sometimes be spotted at night gliding between branches among the tree tops in search of nectar and insects. A membrane attached from the fifth finger to the first toe on either side of the body of the glider is held out like a sail. 

Nineteen recorded species of bat regularly visit the island. 
Flying foxes feed on the blossoms and the fruit of trees and shrubs while insectivorous bats capture flying insects and generally consume half their body weight in insects nightly. 
Flying foxes commute nightly to Fraser Island from daytime roosts, called camps, at Hervey Bay and the mouth of the Mary River on the mainland. Some of the island's insectivorous bat species are cave dwellers and as Fraser Island has no caves they too must come from the mainland and it is believed that some may come from as far away as Gympie.

There is a variety of reptiles on Fraser Island some of which are large and frequently observed, like the lace monitor. The most commonly encountered lizards are skinks. The smaller species feed primarily on insects, with the larger species being omnivorous.

Fraser Island is host to a number of venomous and non-venomous snakes. Most visitors will never see a poisonous snake because most snakes are secretive and prefer to hide rather than be seen. Occasionally, a python can be seen slowly moving through the vegetation or sunning itself on a warm track.

Non-venomous snakes include the green tree snake, which varies in colour from olive green to grey along the back with a lemon-yellow belly, and the eastern small-blotched python. Even though these snakes are non-venomous they can still bite if provoked and are better not handled.

Venomous (yes deadly poisonous) snakes include the death adder, the taipan, the eastern brown snake and the red-bellied black snake, with its glossy black back and bright red sides and red underbelly.

Seventeen different species of frog are found on Fraser island. 
The frogs have adapted to living in areas which have a low pH and high acidity level as is found in most lakes and swamps of Fraser Island. 
Frogs are "bio-indicators", which means they are sensitive to environmental alterations and are generally one of the first groups of animals to disappear from a disrupted area. 
One of the frog, the wallum rocket frog is aptly named as it is able to jump distances of more than two metres. 

The lakes and creeks support a diverse range of freshwater fish with Lake Wabby being home to 12 species. 
It is believed that the eggs of fish species arrive at these isolated dune lakes on the feet of birds. 

The numerous freshwater lakes also provide a habitat for freshwater turtles such as Krefft's river turtle, which can be identified by a conspicuous pale yellow streak along the side of its head. The loggerhead turtle, a large marine turtle, is also present around the island and comes ashore to lay its eggs between October and May.

There are numerous species of invertebrates on Fraser Island and many feature special adaptations to the sandy environment and are native only to Fraser Island and the Cooloola region. Giant earthworms 80cm long(!) and a native cockroach, have both been found burrowing in the sand.

Text courtesy Kingfisher Bay Resort - Fraser Island, Queensland, Australia