The fixed-width strip transect method is increasingly becoming an important bird sampling
technique in Australia. In this survey, different sampling durations and strip widths were evaluated for
the sampling of birds in Yellow Box woodland remnants in the ACT.

The survey showed that the choice of sampling duration and strip width had a significant effect on
the estimation of bird abundance and species diversity using the fixed-width strip transect method in
Yellow Box woodland remnants. Different measures of bird abundance and species diversity were also
found to vary in sensitivity with changes in strip width. Use of the logarithm link function to analyse
bird counts further demonstrated that the appropriate strip width will depend upon the flocking
behaviour of the birds. It is evident from this survey that there is a need for more intensive surveys to
develop and validate the fixed-width strip transect method for the sampling of birds in savannah
eucalypt woodlands. Until that is done, it is inappropriate to compare results between studies which
employ the fixed-width strip transect method, but use different sampling durations and strip widths.

Bird species richness and abundance were recorded along 28 fixed-width strip transects located
within 10 study sites dominated by Yellow Box Eucalyptus melliodora and Blakely's Red Gum
E. blakelyi. This was conducted across four seasons in 1994. This paper reports the seasonal variation
in bird species composition and abundance observed in these study sites. The results suggest that
Yellow Box-Blakely's Red Gum woodland remnants serve as (1) important bird refuges within the
landscape matrix in the lowland of the Australian Capital Territory; (2) wintering sites critical to partial
migrants and some resident species; (3) breeding sites for both residents and summer migrants; and
(4) refuges for nomadic species during periods of extreme drought. In addition, they demonstrated that
birds respond differently to their habitats at different times of the year and the importance of basing
management decisions upon information from more than one season.

Nestboxes are commonly used as a research tool or for enhancing habitat quality for native hollow-dependent
wildlife, but these objectives can be compromised if boxes are occupied by feral species, such as Common Myna
Sturnus tristis and Common Starling S. vulgaris. Mynas and starlings exclude other potential nestbox users by actively
harassing them, and by accumulating large volumes of nesting material that preclude occupation by other users. Here,
we report a system using air-cooled carbon monoxide (CO) from a small 4-stroke petrol engine that enables in situ
euthanasia of pest sturnids, eggs and chicks in nestboxes. The activity was carried out after dark, when sitting females
were reluctant to fl y, and was monitored via closed circuit television, to ensure that non-target species were not affected.
Once the adults were euthanased, the entire contents of the box, including adults, chicks, eggs and nesting material,
were dumped, via a hinged base (drop fl oor), thereby freeing up the box for other potential occupants. We report results
from the 2009–2010 and 2010-2011 breeding seasons, during which a total of 48 adult female mynas was euthanased,
along with 115 eggs (33 clutches) and 119 chicks (35 clutches). Time to immobility of adults (n = 48) was 96.4 ± 29.4
seconds (mean ± s.d.). Young chicks were far more tolerant of carbon monoxide poisoning than adults and were
euthanased, once the box contents had been removed, by placing them in a cloth bag and striking them against a hard
object. No starlings were encountered in this trial, but earlier trials with carbon monoxide euthanasia indicate that the
method would also work for this (and perhaps other) pest species.