The conservation of arboreal marsupials in the Montane ash forests of the central highlands of Victoria, Southeast Australia: I. Factors influencing the occupancy of trees with hollows

A total of 1125 trees with hollows on 152 sites in the montane ash forests of the Central Highlands of Victoria was observed for the presence of arboreal marsupials. One of every 3 trees was occupied by an arboreal marsupial and < 1% of these were inhabited by more than 1 species. Occupancy of the trees was significantly influenced by their characteristics and spacing, and by the aspect of the site and other measures of the suitability of forest habitat surrounding the tree. Timber harvesting practices result in montane ash forests being clear-felled on an 80-120 year rotation. Our results indicate that such silvicultural practices will have a detrimental impact on arboreal marsupials inhabiting montane ash forests.