Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2024L00270:body:0:p9
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2024L00270
Segment Type: other
Provision Reference: 
Character Range: 24505–27443

of south, central and east Gippsland (Bilney et al. 2006; Bilney et al. 2010; Bilney 2014). The species has not been reported as living individuals from these areas, however further surveys are warranted.
Of its known distribution since European settlement, there is a single isolated record from 1909 in north-eastern Victoria ('Sunnyside', Mt Wills) (Brazenor 1932), a specimen held at Beechworth museum but without locality data (Lindenmayer and Dixon 1992), and four records from south-western Gippsland (including Bass River and Koo Wee Rup swamp area near Tynong) collected between 1867 and 1915 (Myroniuk and Seebeck 1992; Menkhorst and Lumsden 1995; Figure 1). Harley (2004c) collated several other historic and recent records unsupported by confirmed specimens, beyond its currently known range. Subsequent sampling at most of these sites has failed to corroborate these records (Harley 2004a).
A substantial decline from the past to the current range is evident from the fossil record and from more recent historic habitat loss (especially in its former lowland swamp forest range). Distributional decline is also inferred from bioclimatic modelling, which suggests a range reduction of 88% over the last 250 years (Burgman and Lindenmayer 1998), and from genetic analyses (Hansen et al. 2009).

Priority research needs to enhance management
    * A substantial survey effort incorporating new techniques should continue to be extended to more rigorously evaluate whether Leadbeater's possum occurs in potentially suitable areas (including sites of previous confirmed and plausible unconfirmed reports) outside the Central Highlands, and to evaluate the extent of current and future habitat availability across this larger range (see Section 3.2.6 Survey techniques and effort).
Figure 1: The distribution of Leadbeater's possum showing the historic records (prior to 1915) from Bass River, the edge of the Koo Wee Rup Swamp in the Western Port area, and Mt Wills in the north-east
Note: Subfossil records from owl deposits at Mitchell River that are considered to be approximately 100 years before present are also shown (R. Bilney, pers. comm.).

3.2.2             Current distribution
Since its 'rediscovery' in 1961, almost all records of Leadbeater's possum have been in an area of approximately 70 km (north-south) by 100 km (east-west), in the Central Highlands, roughly bounded by Toolangi in the west, Rubicon in the north, Mt Useful in the east and Beenak in the south (Figure 2). Recent discoveries have extended that range approximately 15 km eastwards, to the Mt Useful area and northwest of Licola (McBride et al. 2019; Eyre et al. 2020; ARI unpublished data). Although these new records are outside the Central Highlands Regional Forest Agreement (RFA) area, for simplicity in this Plan we continue to refer to the current distribution as occurring within the 'Central Highlands'. The exception to this core range