Editing Eungella National Park (section)

==Environmental threats==
Threats to the biodiversity of Eungella National Park include habitat fragmentation, the effects of introduced species, fire and human impacts.

===Pest plants and animals===
Many introduced animals have been recorded in the park including the [[cane toad]], [[red fox]], [[feral cat]], [[rabbit]] (''Oryctolagus cuniculus''), [[black rat]] (''Rattus rattus''), [[house mouse]] (''Mus musculus''), and feral pig.<ref name="q gov 2015" /> Pigs disturb the ground, promoting the spread of weeds, remove natural recruitment of flora and fauna and can be vectors for pathogens such as cinnamon fungus (''Phytopthera cinnamomi'').<ref>Folkers, A., and M. Field. 2011. Regional pest management strategy Isaac Mackay Whitsunday 2011-2014.
</ref><ref>Mitchell, J., W. Dorney, R. Mayer, and J. McIlroy. 2007. Ecological impacts of feral pig diggings in north Queensland rainforests. Wildlife Research 34:603-608.</ref> Cinnamon fungus has been found on the Clarke Range, including in one area of Dalrymple Heights, where approximately 20% of the rainforest has died.<ref>Gadek, P. 1999. Introduction and overview. Patch deaths in tropical Queensland rainforestes: association and impact of ''Phytophthora cinnamomi'' and other soil-bourne pathogens. Pages 1-8. Cooperative Research Centre for Tropical Rainforest Ecology and Management, Cairns.</ref>

Cats, foxes and feral dogs (''Canis familiaris'') can threaten native fauna through predation, competition for resources and transmission of disease.<ref name="may">May, S. A., and T. W. Norton. 1996. Influence of fragmentation and disturbance on the potential impact of feral [[predator]]s on native fauna in Australian forest ecosystems. Wildlife Research 23:387-400.</ref> In Australia, cats are known to prey on 186 native bird species, 64 mammal species, 87 species of reptile, 10 species of amphibians and numerous invertebrates.<ref>Paton, D. C. 1993. Impacts of domestic and feral cats on wildlife. in G. Siepen, and C. Owens, editors. Proceedings of cat management workshop. Queensland Department of Environment and Heritage, Brisbane.</ref> Foxes prey on possums, small dasyurids, native rats, and other mammals, birds and insects.<ref name=may /> Feral dogs hunt alone or in packs and can prey on larger mammals such as wallabies.<ref name=may /> Road construction and fragmentation of habitat can expose local populations of native animals to predation by exotic predators that may otherwise have difficulties penetrating dense forest environments.<ref name=may /> Much of Eungella National Park is accessible only by walking tracks, which may limit feral animal spread, but may make control more difficult.

Weeds including [[lantana]] (''Lantana camara''), [[blue morning glory]] (''Ipomoea indica'') and red Natal grass (''Melinis repens'') are common on the disturbed edges of the park and roadsides.  Lantana is a Class 3 Pest in the state of Queensland, and is recognised as a weed of national significance<ref>Mackay Regional Pest Management Group 2013. Weeds of the Mackay Whitsunday Region. Mackay Regional Pest Management Group., Mackay, QLD.</ref> (Mackay Regional Pest Management Group 2013).  Other highly-flammable weeds common in the park include [[guinea grass]] (''Megathyrsus maximus''), rat's tail grasses (''Sporobolus'' spp.), para grass (''Urochloa mutica'') and molasses grass (''Melinis minutiflora'').<ref name="ball">Ball, D. 2013. 3.1 Clarke Connors Range. State of the region report Mackay Whitsunday Issac. Reef Catchments, Mackay.</ref>

===Fire===
Fire is a key disturbing pressure on the rainforests of Eungella National Park, and can result in fragmentation of the rainforest into smaller areas less capable of maintaining the present complexity of plants and animals and increasing edge effects.<ref name=winter /> The rainforest, vine thicket, vine forest and riparian communities found in the park do not require fire for regeneration, and it may irreversibly alter the species composition and community structure, simplifying ecosystems and reducing floristic and structural diversity.<ref name=ball /> Fire can also reduce litter, fallen logs and hollow-bearing trees which provide critical habitat for some species.<ref name=ball />