2025-07-03 EMU-AUSTRAL ORNITHOLOGY 2025 125(卷), 3(期), (277-282页)
A cryptic and endangered species, the Plains-wanderer (Pedionomus torquatus) is rarely observed outside its core range in southern New South Wales and northern Victoria. Rarer still are observations of its nests, especially in the arid zone. We conducted thermal imaging surveys across Astrebla Downs National Park in July and August of 2024 and found five Plains-wanderers across three sites. These observations include the first known record of a Plains-wanderer nest in the state of Queensland. Plains-wanderers were found to occupy herblands with markedly lower grass cover (mean: 4.5% +/- 2.6%) and cryptogamic crust cover (mean: 0.2% +/- 0.3%) than elsewhere in their range. However, high cover of forb and subshrub species (mean: 25.5% +/- 6.2%) meant that overall habitat structure was only slightly barer than typically reported values (60.6% +/- 2.9% mean bare ground cover, 10.1 cm +/- 1.7 cm mean vegetation height). Our observations provide important insights into the persistence of Plains-wanderers in western Queensland and the conditions that may be essential for the species to breed there.