Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2022L00677:reg:12:p2
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2022L00677
Segment Type: reg
Provision Reference: reg 12 (pt 2/33)
Character Range: 8434–11705

the species' ecology has increased, in particular knowledge of population size, breeding biology, movement patterns, food availability and foraging efficiency relative to colony success, habitat use including the interaction between marine and terrestrial habitat features, post-breeding dispersal and survival rates.

     •      There is increased participation by key Australian stakeholders and the public in recovery efforts and monitoring.

Recovery team:
   Recovery teams provide advice and assist in coordinating actions described in recovery plans. They include representatives from organisations with a direct interest in the recovery of the species, including those involved in funding and those participating in actions that support the recovery of the species. The national Australian Fairy Tern Recovery Team has the responsibility of providing advice, coordinating and directing the implementation of the recovery actions outlined in this recovery plan. The membership of the national Recovery Team includes individuals from relevant government agencies, non-government organisations and expertise from independent researchers and community groups.

               Chapter 1

Introduction

             This document constitutes the National Recovery Plan for the Australian Fairy Tern.
             The plan considers the conservation requirements of the species across its range and identifies the actions to be taken to ensure the long-term viability of the species, and the parties that will undertake those actions. The Recovery Plan is the first national plan to be developed for the Australian Fairy Tern.

             The Australian Fairy Tern was listed as Vulnerable under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cwlth) (EPBC Act) on 3 March 2011. At the time of listing there were fewer than 9,000 mature individuals remaining and the total
             population had undergone a substantial decrease of approximately 24 per cent over the past three generations, or 33 years (TSSC 2011). This decrease was expected to continue at a substantial rate over the next three generations, as there was no evidence that the threats affecting this species were abating (TSSC 2011). In 2020, the population was estimated to be 7,450 (range 6,800 – 8,100) mature individuals and was undergoing a continuing decrease, particularly in eastern Australia (Greenwell et al. 2021). There has been no change in the population trajectory since 2011 and the species continues to meet the Vulnerable category (Greenwell et al. 2021).

             The accompanying Species Profile and Threats Database (SPRAT) pages provide background information on the biology, population status and threats to the Australian Fairy Tern. The SPRAT pages are available from: http://www.environment.gov.au/ cgibin/sprat/public/sprat.pl.

                   1.1            Conservation status

             The Australian Fairy Tern is listed as threatened under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act), and under State legislation (Table 1) in all parts of its range, except New South Wales. This species was included in the Vulnerable category under the EPBC Act in 2011 due