Dragons of Sydney Harbour UPDATE: April 2016
About the Project Dragons of Sydney Harbour aims to give our urban Eastern Water Dragons a helping hand by highlighting their role in the ecosystem and threats to their survival at a series of events for school and community groups. At the Dragons of Sydney Harbour events, participants assisted Water Dragon conservation by getting their hands dirty doing some bush regeneration work and contributing to the understanding of Water Dragons in a citizen science survey of their behaviour. Project Partners The Eastern Water Dragon (Intellagama lesueurii lesueurii) is found in patches of bush around Sydney. These Water Dragons are an ancient species and have been part of Australia s ecosystem for more than 20 million years. However, their survival in urban habitat is affected by littering, predation by domestic dogs, poor water quality and weed invasion. The Dragons of Sydney Harbour program is supported by the National Parks Association of NSW, Taronga Zoo Sydney, Conservation Volunteers Australia, Macquarie University and the Greater Sydney Local Land Services through funding from the Australian Government s National Landcare Programme.
The Dragons of Sydney Harbour The Dragons event was officially kick-started on 21 January 2016 with a group of 22 enthusiastic young individuals from Youth At The Zoo (YATZ). A total of nine groups have participated in this program to date. Participants came out for a day to Bradleys Head in Mosman and assisted the Water Dragons by undertaking citizen science surveys and bush regeneration work. Their valuable participation made a direct contribution to our understanding of the species. I enjoyed learning about the Water Dragons and being part of a project. I also enjoyed seeing our actions making an immediate and positive change to the environment. - Stephanie Liang, Member (YATZ) A lovely start to the Dragons of Sydney Harbour with YATZ group
Who Was Involved? The groups who participated include: Youth At The Zoo (YATZ), Northern Beaches Secondary College MacKellar Girls Campus, Sydney Colleges Leichhardt Campus, Centennial Park School, Queenwood School for Girls, Park Hyatt Sydney, NPA NSW Interns and one group comprising members from the local community. Participants braved hot and sticky weather conditions to do their part for the Water Dragons and the other native wildlife present in that area. Almost everyone took their tasks seriously and demonstrated a high level of keenness to do the best they could to contribute to the project. Throughout the program, we consistently received positive feedbacks from teachers, members from the community and students. I enjoyed watching how engaged our students were with both parts of the day, even when asked to weed as part of bush regeneration. The pace of the day was very cruisy and relaxed and the event facilitators were friendly, interested and enthusiastic. They were very supportive of the girls efforts and contributions. Sarah Jones, Teacher from Queenwood School for Girls Learning about the Dragons We have observed that Water Dragons generally bask in the sun where there are gaps in the canopy along or at the edge of the walking track. When people walk along the track, often the Dragons react by escaping to safety in a more sheltered and shady position (retreat site) away from their basking site. We hypothesised that the Eastern Water Dragon retreat sites will be cooler and shadier compared to the basking sites when disturbed by human foot traffic. The impact of being driven from the Dragons chosen location to a retreat site may have impacts on their metabolic rate; as these are ectothermic creatures that rely on basking to raise their body temperature. To test this hypothesis, we collected a range of data: 1. Ground temperature of basking and retreat sites 2. Percentage of canopy cover between basking and retreating sites 3. Record their sex and distance retreated from basking sites A bit of nature chit chat with the YATZ group
What Did We Find? To date, we have sighted a total of 120 Eastern Water Dragons during the nine events. The number of dragons sighted on each day varied greatly. This could be attributed to weather, seasonality, and daily variation in the intensity of human traffic along the path. physiological or behavioural changes in this species. For example, does constantly having to retreat due to human trail use stress the Dragons? There are several studies that have demonstrated that human trail use can have negative effects on the stress levels of numerous bird species (e.g., disrupting feeding, calling, and nesting), however whether similar effects are seen in lizards remains unknown. Other important factors such as littering or habitat destruction and their impact on the dragons have also not been considered in our study. The community group who spotted 21 dragons! Differences in ground temperature and canopy cover Upon analysis, we found no differences in the temperature or the canopy cover of basking and retreat sites. It appears that the dragons may not be retreating to a cooler and shadier spot when disturbed by human foot traffic. However, it is unlikely that this outcome is sufficient enough to conclude that human foot traffic has no impact on the Eastern Water Dragons, but it does inform us that the retreat site the Dragons are using are not putting them at a thermal disadvantage. Eastern Water Dragons have thrived alongside humans in the area for a long time. It is possible that they had sufficient time to adapt to human traffic. Although the data analysis shows that the dragons are not selecting a shadier or cooler spot when forced to retreat, further studies may need to be done to investigate if the process of retreating (on land) results in any We hope by continuing this program, there will be opportunities to address a number of the existing knowledge gaps addressed above. In our further studies, we hope to survey the Eastern Water Dragons extant in different locations around the Sydney urban areas with varying intensities of human foot traffic. A lovely day at a unique location. The opportunity to contribute to legitimate research was a valuable experience. I hope the students enjoyed it as much as I did! Andrew Russo, Teacher from Centennial Park School
Distance to retreat site During the surveys, participants also recorded the distance that each dragon retreated from its basking spot. This information would provide a baseline that could be used to compare between other populations with different levels of human-use in the future, as well as to determine if there were differences in how far individuals retreat between adult males, adult females and juveniles. The results from the data analysis suggest that adult males, adult females and juveniles retreat at a similar distance when they encounter humans. This suggests that the anti-predator response that a trail user s presence elicits is not significantly different between different demographics in the population. If there was to be a differences between juveniles and adults, this could infer learned response. And if there were differences between genders then this would suggest that there may be impacts or variations due to territorial behaviours or reproductive role. Bush Regeneration Activities Beyond the direct Dragon surveys, together we have made valuable contribution with the bush regeneration to the quality of wildlife habitat along the foreshore. By removing weeds, we make way for our native vegetation to thrive. Other native wildlife such as the endangered Red-crowned Toadlet (Pseudophryne australis) also benefit greatly from improved habitat. The work that is conducted by the Dragons of Sydney Harbour project and its volunteers strive to safeguard Sydney s natural greenspace for flora, fauna, and people alike. Keep an eye out for other bush regeneration and citizen science opportunities (which may be offered through your Local Councils or Bushcare groups) and give a helping hand together with your family and friends. A talk on weed species by Craig Sadlier from Conservation Volunteers Australia (our partner).
What You Can do to Help the Dragons of Sydney Harbour? Say No to Litter Litter and illegal dumping significantly impact the quality of the dragons habitat. Bag your rubbish and dispose of it in bins. Deposit recyclable items into appropriate bins. This way, we keep our surroundings beautiful and minimise impacts on native wildlife habitat. Responsible pet ownership Domestic animals are known to predate on the Eastern Water Dragons. Walk your dogs on a lead and stick to dog-friendly areas around your neighbourhood. You can contact your local council or hop onto their website to get a list of places where your dogs can enjoy a nice walk and get some exercise. If you are a cat owner, consider keeping your cat in at night which can further reduce the risk of predation. The Future of Sydney s Dragons is in Our Hands Eastern Water Dragon. Photo taken by one of the project participants, Kelly Andersen Together, we have made an important first step to survey and better understand the Eastern Water Dragons living in Sydney s urban areas. Every small step counts towards building a more informed bigger picture to increase our knowledge about this creature which has been around for almost 20 million years. We hope to continue building on this knowledge with future events and surveys and your continued participation really matters.