Range extension and additional habitat type for Planigale tenuirostris (Marsupialia: Dasyuridae) in Central Queensland

The range of Planigale tenuirostris is extended approximately 370km north to Mt Isa (20.4 degrees S, 139.2 degrees E) and 340km northeast to Newlands mine (21.2 degrees S, 147.9 degrees E) west of Mackay into the subhumid tropics. Habitat data from three fauna surveys and nine sites show P. tenuirostris associated with cracking clay soils, confirming the pattern found elsewhere. In central Queensland, P. tenuirostris was commonly found in association with woodlands on clay soils that had a denser groundcover than that reported for P. tenuirostris in other biomes such as semiarid landscapes. Populations of P. tenuirostris were found in association with both lightly grazed land and buffer zones adjacent to mined landscapes indicating potential for ecologically sustainable land use. However three of the four central Queensland Regional Ecosystem types in which P. tenuirostris was found are conservation-listed. It is, therefore, of concern that the Central Brigalow Belt had Queensland's greatest rate of clearing during 1997-1999.