GPS devices will be placed on emus in WA to examine their role in seed dispersal for certain plants. Source: AAP
GPS devices will be placed on six emus to track their habits in a jarrah forest in Western Australia and examine the animals' role in seed dispersal.
Murdoch University professor Neal Enright said researchers believed emus were the main long-distance dispersers of a small group of large-seeded plant species in WA's southern jarrah forests.
Researchers hope the two-year study at Avon National Park will assist in creating conservation models for plants to combat habitat loss, climate change and fires.
"In areas where emu abundance has declined due to human impacts, we expect to find that these plant species will have lower genetic diversity, be less productive and have fewer seedlings," he said.
"As well as establishing the importance of emus, we hope our findings can be used to develop models for plant species in preparation for climate change."
Professor Enright said the small GPS trackers would not harm the birds.
The trackers could be programmed remotely, so data could be collected at a high frequency for short periods to assess movement behaviour such as walking and eating, and at a low frequency to conserve battery power, he said.
Professor Enright said field research would involve sampling emu faeces, which would allow researchers to test how passage through the emu gut influenced subsequent seed germination.
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