The humble native Tasmanian hen, also known as the 'turbo chook', is a familiar creature on the southern island. New research suggests it's going to stay that way even in the face of a changing climate.
"In the past, they have been persecuted by agriculturalists, for example, because of thoughts of competition for grazing land," he said.
"So if we set up permanent waterhole pastures and irrigate those pastures, for example, that's just perfect for a native hen … and so they're thriving in areas adjacent to human activity." "They can run 50 kilometres an hour, faster than Usain Bolt," he said, "so they can run away from most threats, including cats and devils in the main," Professor Brook said.The research does, however, note that the results should be tempered by "unpredictable external factors" that were not accounted for, such as "malicious illegal introduction" of animals such as the red fox, or "extreme climatic events and low genetic diversity".
"But for other species, we just don't have enough information or analysis to really give that sense that we can be confident that the species will survive."He said for many Tasmanian seabirds, introduced species such as cats or rats posed a threat, while for woodland birds concerns were more centred around land clearing and loss of habitat.
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