Editing Fauna of Australia (section)

==Human impact and conservation==
{{Main|Conservation in Australia}}

For at least 40,000 years, Australia's fauna played an integral role in the traditional lifestyles of [[Indigenous Australians]], who relied upon many species as a source of food and skins. Vertebrates commonly harvested included macropods, possums, seals, fish and the [[short-tailed shearwater]], most commonly known as the muttonbird. Invertebrates used as food included insects such as the [[bogong moth]] and larvae collectively called [[witchetty grub]]s and molluscs. The use of [[fire-stick farming]], in which large swathes of bushland were burnt to facilitate hunting, modified both flora and fauna – and are thought to have contributed to the extinction of large herbivores with a specialised diet, such as the flightless birds from the genus ''[[Genyornis]]''.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Miller | first1 = G. H. | year = 2005 | title = Ecosystem Collapse in Pleistocene Australia and a Human Role in Megafaunal Extinction | journal = [[Science (journal)|Science]] | volume = 309 | issue = 5732| pages = 287–290 | pmid = 16002615 | doi=10.1126/science.1111288| bibcode = 2005Sci...309..287M | s2cid = 22761857 | url = http://doc.rero.ch/record/14709/files/PAL_E1537.pdf }}</ref> The role of hunting and landscape modification by aboriginal people in the extinction of the [[Australian megafauna]] is debated,<ref name = "Thompson">Thomson, J.M. et al. 1987. Human Exploitation of and Introductions to the Australian Fauna. In D.W. Walton Ed. ''Fauna of Australia'', Volume 1A. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra.</ref> but increasingly favours the idea humans were responsible for megafaunal extinction.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Robustness despite uncertainty: regional climate data reveal the dominant role of humans in explaining global extinctions of Late Quaternary megafauna|first1=Lewis J.|last1=Bartlett|first2=David R.|last2=Williams|first3=Graham W.|last3=Prescott|first4=Andrew|last4=Balmford|first5=Rhys E.|last5=Green|first6=Anders|last6=Eriksson|first7=Paul J.|last7=Valdes|first8=Joy S.|author8-link=Joy Singarayer|last8=Singarayer|first9=Andrea|last9=Manica|date=1 February 2016|journal=Ecography|volume=39|issue=2|pages = 152–161|doi=10.1111/ecog.01566|url=https://research-information.bristol.ac.uk/ws/files/80785540/Bartlett_et_al_2015.pdf|doi-access=free|bibcode=2016Ecogr..39..152B }}</ref>

[[Image:Grey Nurse Shark at Fish Rock Cave, NSW.jpg|thumb|The [[grey nurse shark]] is critically endangered on the Australian east coast.|left]]
Despite the major impact of Aboriginals on native species populations, this is considered to be less significant than that of the European settlers,<ref name="Thompson"/> whose impact on the landscape has been on a relatively large scale. Since European settlement, direct exploitation of native fauna, habitat destruction and the introduction of exotic predators and competitive herbivores has led to the extinction of some 27 mammal, 23 bird and 4 frog species. Much of Australia's fauna is protected by legislation.<ref name="Egerton, p. 44"/> The federal [[Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999]] was created to meet Australia's obligations as a signatory to the 1992 [[Convention on Biological Diversity]]. This act protects all native fauna and provides for the identification and protection of [[threatened species]]. In each state and territory, there is statutory listing of threatened species. At present, 380 animal species are classified as either endangered or threatened under the EPBC Act, and other species are protected under state and territory legislation.<ref>[[Department of the Environment and Heritage (Australia)|Department of the Environment and Heritage]]. [http://www.deh.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicthreatenedlist.pl?wanted=fauna EPBC Act List of Threatened Fauna] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060427012826/http://www.deh.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicthreatenedlist.pl?wanted=fauna |date=27 April 2006 }}</ref> More broadly, a complete cataloguing of all the species within Australia has been undertaken, a key step in the conservation of Australian fauna and biodiversity. In 1973, the federal government established the [[Australian Biological Resources Study]] (ABRS), which coordinates research in the taxonomy, identification, classification and distribution of flora and fauna. The ABRS maintains free online databases cataloguing much of the described Australian flora and fauna. Impacts such as the illegal setting of traps in rivers affect animals such as the Australian platypus, along with lack of awareness each year an average of 2–5 Australians lose their lives to what is presumed a safe creature. The key is understanding of Australia's diverse wildlife and fauna; what seems safe is often deadly.

The [[Australian Wildlife Conservancy]] is the largest private owner of land for conservation in the country which is dedicated to protecting endangered species across 4.8 million hectares of land in the most popular regions such as the Kimberley, Cape York, Lake Eyre and the Top End. This not-for-profit organisation is working hard to avoid extinction of the endangered native species in various wildlife sanctuaries.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.environment.gov.au/land/nrs/getting-involved/conservation-organisations/australian-wildlife-conservancy |title=Australian Wildlife Conservancy|website=Australian Government Department of the Environment And Energy }}</ref>

Australia is a member of the [[International Whaling Commission]] and is strongly opposed to commercial whaling — all cetacean species are protected in Australian waters.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.environment.gov.au/coasts/species/cetaceans/conservation/index.html |title=Whale Protection – How is Australia protecting whales? |publisher=Environment.gov.au |date=11 June 2010 |access-date=24 July 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110811091037/http://www.environment.gov.au/coasts/species/cetaceans/conservation/index.html |archive-date=11 August 2011 }}</ref> Australia is also a signatory to the [[Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna|CITES]] agreement and prohibits the export of endangered species. [[Protected areas of Australia|Protected areas]] have been created in every state and territory to protect and preserve the country's unique ecosystems. These protected areas include national parks and other reserves, as well as 64 wetlands registered under the [[Ramsar Convention]] and 16 [[World Heritage Site]]s. {{as of|2002}}, 10.8% (774,619.51&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>) of the total land area of Australia is within protected areas.<ref>Department of the Environment and Heritage. 2002. [http://www.environment.gov.au/parks/nrs/science/capad/2002/index.html Summary of Terrestrial Protected Areas in Australia by Type] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111115093748/http://environment.gov.au/parks/nrs/science/capad/2002/index.html |date=15 November 2011 }}</ref> Protected marine zones have been created in many areas to preserve marine biodiversity; {{as of|2002|lc=y}}, these areas cover about 7% (646,000&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>) of Australia's marine jurisdiction.<ref>Department of the Environment and Heritage. 2002. [http://www.environment.gov.au/coasts/mpa/nrsmpa/index.html#status About the National Representative System of Marine Protected Areas (NRSMPA)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070906213557/http://www.environment.gov.au/coasts/mpa/nrsmpa/index.html |date=6 September 2007 }}</ref> The [[Great Barrier Reef]] is managed by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority under specific federal and state legislation. Some of Australia's fisheries are already [[overexploited]],<ref>Newton, G and Boshier, J, eds. 2001. [http://www.environment.gov.au/soe/2001/publications/theme-reports/coasts/pubs/coasts.pdf ''Coasts and Oceans Theme Report, Australia State of the Environment Report 2001'' (Theme Report)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120112225809/http://www.environment.gov.au/soe/2001/publications/theme-reports/coasts/pubs/coasts.pdf |date=12 January 2012 }}, CSIRO Publishing on behalf of the Department of the Environment and Heritage, Canberra. {{ISBN|0-643-06749-3}}</ref> and quotas have been set for the sustainable harvest of many marine species.

The ''State of the Environment Report, 2001'', prepared by independent researchers for the federal government, concluded that the condition of the environment and environmental management in Australia had worsened since the previous report in 1996. Of particular relevance to wildlife conservation, the report indicated that many processes — such as [[Salinity in Australia|salinity]], changing hydrological conditions, land clearing, fragmentation of ecosystems, poor management of the coastal environment, and [[Invasive species in Australia|invasive species]] — pose major problems for protecting Australia's biodiversity.<ref>Australian State of the Environment Committee. 2001. [http://www.environment.gov.au/soe/2001/publications/report/index.html ''Australia State of the Environment 2001''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101101221045/http://environment.gov.au/soe/2001/publications/report/index.html |date=1 November 2010 }}, Independent Report to the Commonwealth Minister for the Environment and Heritage. CSIRO Publishing on behalf of the Department of the Environment and Heritage {{ISBN|0-643-06745-0}}</ref>