Night time monitoring of ecosystems
Mount Isa Mines Environmental team monitors the health of local ecosystem through the Environmental Impact Monitoring Program (EIMP) to understand the impact of sulphur dioxide and assess potential effects on areas surrounding mining activities.
As part of the EIMP, a range of surveys are conducted, including birds and gecko surveys. These surveys as carried out across 55 locations within a 15-kilometre radius of Mount Isa Mines including Rifle Creek, Haslingden and May Downs Stations.
The survey is conducted every two years to assess the numbers and gauge the diversity of birds and geckos. The MIM Environment team carried out the most recent birds and gecko surveys during October and November 2025.
Birds are often used as bio-indicators as they are highly detectable, ubiquitous and occupy positions high in the food chain, making them sensitive to change.
EIMP site located West of MIM visited early in the morning for bird’s survey.
Bird surveys are carried out within four hours of dawn, when birds are most active. MIM Environment team records the number of each species seen or heard calling, helping track the diversity and abundance of local birdlife.
Geckos are studied as they are one of the most abundant and diverse groups of reptiles in the Mount Isa region.
Gecko surveys are conducted at night, focusing on habitats where geckos are most likely to be found, such as fallen timber, boulders, hollow trees, and dense clumps of spinifex. The Environment team records the species spotted and count the number of individuals to monitor the health of the gecko population.
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Ecologist identifying Kristin’s Spiny-tailed Gecko (Strophurus krisalys).
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Gulf Fat-Tailed Gecko (Diplodactylus barraganae).
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Juvenile Bynoe’s Gecko (Heteronotia binoei).
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Eastern Beak Gecko (Rhynchoedura ormsbyi).
Both birds and geckos are observed and identified during the survey but are not removed from their natural habitats.
Tegan Johns, Environmental Advisor and the coordinator for the EIMP says the survey identified birds typical to the region, but also a few rare sightings of some species.
“An exciting highlight for the team was the potential spotting of the Carpentarian Grasswren during the recent survey which is an endangered species under the Nature Conservation Act 1992 (NC Act) and Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) threatened (endangered) species. These ground-dwelling birds predominantly rely on spinifex for food and shelter, thankfully their numbers are remaining stable even after the major bushfire in 2023 and 2024,” says Tegan.
Mount Isa Mines is proud to support Southern Gulf Natural Resource Management (NRM) in its efforts to conserve the endangered Carpentarian Grasswren in north west Queensland.
The Carpentarian Grasswren is a brown and white ground-dwelling bird that lives amongst the spinifex and rocky outcrops north of Mount Isa.
(Photo credit Steve Murphy)
Other less frequently sighted bird species observed throughout the survey include the Varied Sittella, Black-Shouldered Kite and Nankeen Kestrel, with the abundance of Mount Isa icons recorded such as the Budgerigar, Little Corella and Emus.
During the night-time gecko surveys, the team sighted Gulf Fat-Tailed geckos which are an uncommon species found in rocky habitats. A large portion of the gecko sightings were of the Gehyra genus which lives in a wide range of habitats around Mount Isa such as trees, rocky outcrops, and grasslands.
“This data helps inform our long-term environmental strategies and is included in a comprehensive report submitted every four years to the Department of Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation (DETSI),” says Tegan.
The data will be reviewed and compared against previous baseline studies.