Context and Purpose
Complete page 2 in the Student Pre-visit Booklet for this section.
Fox siting at Bobbin Head 2016
Southern Brown Bandicoots at Risk
The Southern Brown Bandicoot is a small native marsupial that is found in the Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park.
The introduced Red Fox is a major predator of the Southern Brown Bandicoot and one of the reasons why it is a threatened species.
To protect the Southern Brown Bandicoot from foxes, National Park Field Officers manage fox populations, for example, fox baiting programs.
Before they can do this, they must first prove that Southern Brown Bandicoots live in an area.
How to find out where Southern Brown Bandicoots live?
To determine the presence of Southern Brown Bandicoot populations in an area, random GPS points are generated on a computer. Wildlife cameras are then installed at those sites that have suitable habitat – the abiotic and biotic features most suitable for the animal.
If cameras detect the presence of the animal at the selected site, a fox control program may be developed.
Purpose of the Investigation
Your task is to collect and analyse data from two sites located at Bobbin Head to determine which is the more suitable habitat for the Southern Brown Bandicoot and to recommend to National Parks Field Officers which one they should place a monitoring camera at.
Good luck!!
Working Scientifically
During this program, you will be required to undertake activities that enable you to engage with several of the Working Scientifically skills.
In particular, there will be fieldwork tasks that require you to:
question and predict
plan investigations
conduct investigations
processing data and information
analysing data and information
Syllabus
The program supports Module 3 and 4 of the Year 11 EES syllabus: Module 4 - Human Impacts
Syllabus Inquiry Questions
1. How do introduced species affect the Australian environment and ecosystems