Conservation biology of the endangered Blue Mountains Water Skink (Eulamprus leuraensis)

Abstract

The Blue Mountains Water Skink (Eulamprus leuraensis), restricted to the endangered habitat of highland peat-swamps, is known from fewer than 60 isolated sites in the Blue Mountains region of south-eastern Australia. The sole endemic vertebrate of the region, this scincid lizard is imperilled by many threats. From three years of field surveys, I show that E. leuraensis live almost exclusively within swamps, with very few inhabiting the swamp margins and none recorded in the surrounding woodland. Paradoxically, this endangered species appears to be the most abundant vertebrate in these swamps. My surveys show that urbanisation and frequent major fires both reduce the abundance of these skinks, but do not extirpate them. A longer period of time since a major fire, conversely, increases the abundance of this reptile. Groundwater loss and alterations in surface water chemistry extirpate populations of this species: its restriction to groundwater-dependent swamps renders it highly sensitive to habitat degradation through hydrological disturbance. To conserve E. leuraensis in the wild, we need to protect its swamp habitat from the impacts of urbanisation, intensified fire regimes, reduced groundwater, water pollution and longwall mining. The conservation message for management authorities is clear: ‘protect the habitat, protect the skink.’