REPORT ___________________________________________________________________________
Executive Summary
Ultrasound surveys of two Mt Morgan sites in late August/early September 2025 identified at least six bat species 1: Chaerephon jobensis, 2: Miniopterus australis,3: Miniopterus orianae oceanensis, 4: Ozimops ridei &/or Seterostri eleyri, 5: Rhinolophus megaphyllus and 6. Vespadelus troughtoni.
All species detected are listed as being of Least Concern within the Qld Government Threatened Species Listing.
None of these species are listed as being either Vulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered within the EPBC Act List of Threatened Fauna.
Scope of Study
To implement ultrasound bat surveys to report on the species of microchiropteran bats present at Mt Morgan during late August / early Septemner 2025.
Material & Methods
Data collection
Ultrasound (.wav) files were recorded over 22 nights (Aug 28 – Sept 12 2025) at two Mount Morgan sites (Site B1 & B2), using Titley Chorus bat detectors.
Identification of bat calls
Call analysis was conducted by Prof. Simon Robson who has over 30 years’ experience in the ecology, behaviour and identification of bats (Australia, Central, South and North America, Papua New Guinea, South East Asia) and over 20 years experience in the detection and analysis of bat calls from northern Queensland specifically. The majority of reference calls used in this analysis were obtained during a month-long survey of the bats of Cape York by Robson and colleagues (Reardon et al . 2010), which now forms the basis of many conservation decisions concerning the bats of this region. Sound files (.wav) containing bat calls were detected and analysed with Filters and a Decision Tree program written in Anabat Insight (Titley Electronic ®) in concert with a sound analysis program written in R®. Filters and Decision Trees were tailored to those microbat species bats that are likely to be found in North Queensland, based on personal records, published records (Churchill 2008, van Dyck et al . 2013), on-line records (Atlas of Living Australia) and discussion with other Australian bat researchers.
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