Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2023L01713:body:0:p18
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2023L01713
Segment Type: other
Provision Reference: 
Character Range: 121102–124114

of water mouse occurring in non-tidal areas up to 15 km inland in southern Queensland (Dwyer et al. 1979; Kaluza et al. 2016), 20-25 km inland in the Northern Territory (Redhead & McKean 1975; Magnusson et al. 1976) and 30 km inland in New Guinea (Hitchcock 1998; 2010).
In lieu of detailed knowledge about the occurrence of this elusive species, particularly in remote areas with potential habitat, the modelled distribution of the water mouse (i.e. known and likely to occur) is continuous along coastal areas of Queensland and the Northern Territory (Map 1). It may also occur along the Kimberley coast in Western Australia and in northern New South Wales.
Map 1: Modelled water mouse distribution in Australia and southern New Guinea.
Source: © Commonwealth Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. Atlas of Living Australia (ALA) occurrence records download from ALA Xeromys myoides Occurrence Records on 13 December 2021. Note the ALA Public Records do not include the confirmed record in southern New Guinea or the reports of water mouse in the Hinichinbrook Channel of far north Queensland.
As a primarily intertidal species, the water mouse is considered to occur on both terrestrial and marine Country. It occurs within, and on the boundary of, several protected and recognised biodiversity areas including national and marine parks, Indigenous protected areas, exclusive Native Title areas, Ramsar listed wetlands, key biodiversity areas and nationally important wetlands of Australia. It also occurs on Department of Defence land, forestry reserves and private property. Recorded water mouse locations, land tenure and abundance information are outlined in Appendix A.

3.4                  Habitat
Knowledge about water mouse habitat requirements varies from well understood in southeast Queensland to partially known along the central Queensland coast to very limited across coastal areas of north Queensland, the Northern Territory, and southern New Guinea.
General habitat attributes
The water mouse is known to inhabit intertidal and supratidal areas, and subcoastal brackish to freshwater wetlands and floodplains up to 30 km inland. It is recorded from:
    * Mangroves,
    * Marine couch (Sporobolus virginicus) grasslands,
    * Chenopod shrublands,
    * Sedgelands,
    * Reedy swamps,
    * Melaleuca swamps,
    * Seasonally inundated grassy floodplains, and
    * Coastal wet heathlands.
The water mouse does not occur in urban developments or agricultural fields (Kaluza 2013).
Although the composition of water mouse habitat appears to vary across its distribution (see below), the following environmental attributes are required for an area to be occupied:
    * Suitable – generally intact – hydrological flows (tidal and/or freshwater), and
    * Ample food resources on a damp substrate (see Section 3.6), and
    * Suitable mud substrate and/or scaffolding (e.g. mangrove roots or hollows, supralittoral bank) on – or slightly above – the high-water mark