he Victorian Naturalist Volume 110 (1) 1993 February MUSEUM OF VICTORIA iii Box & Ironbark Woodland Conservation Proceedings of the Victorian National Parks Association Conference Published by The Field Naturalists Club of Victoria since 1884 March Tues 2 Sat 6-Mon 8 Sat 6-Mon 8 Tues 9 Thurs 11 Wed 17 Wed 24 Saturday 27 Sat 27-28 April Sun 4 Mon 5 Tues 6 Wed 7 Fri 9-Mon 12 Sat 17 Wed 21 Fri 23-Sun 25 Sat 24 Wed 28 We regret losing ( is enclosed. FNCV Calendar of Activities Fauna Survey Group Meeting. Rediscovery of the Broad-Toothed Rat in Dandenong Ranges National Park - Dr. Rob Wallis. Annual General Meeting. Herbarium Hall 8 p.m. VFNCA Camp. ‘Kangaroobie’, Princetown. Contact Dorothy Mahler, 435 8408. Fauna Survey Group Labour Day Camp. Central Highlands, Contact Ray Gibson, 874 4408. General FNCV Meeting. Preservation of Plants at the Zoo - John Arnott. Herbarium Hall 8 p.m, Please note date. Library open 7.15 to 7.55 p.m. Botany Group Meeting. An Unnatural Flora - Kim Robinson. Herbarium Hall 8 p.m. Microscopy Group Meeting. Imaging of Live Cells - Prof Pickett- Heaps. At Botany School, University of Melb 8 p.m. Geology Group Meeting. A General Introduction to the Geological Time Scale - Bob Dalgarno. Herbarium Hall 8 p.m. Botany Group Excursion. Courtenay Road, Lysterfield. Leader Margaret Corrick. Contact Joan Harry, 850 1347. Fauna Survey Group Field Survey. Final trip to Mt Cole. Contact Russell Thompson, 434 7046. General FNCV Excursion. Pond Life at Jells Park. Leader Ian Endersby with help from Microscopy Group. Private transport. Contact Dorothy Mahler, 435 8408. Annual General Meeting FNCV. Astronomer’s Residence 8 p.m. Library open 7.15 to 7.55 p.m. Fauna Survey Group Meeting. An Update on Leadbeater’s Possum Research - David Lindenmayer. Herbarium Hall 8 p.m. Geology Group Meeting. Herbarium Hall 8 p.m. Fauna Survey Group Easter Camp. Pallister Reserve near Port Fairy. Contact Felicity Garde, 808 2625. Fauna Survey Group Field Survey. Leadbeater’s Possum Survey. Contact Ray Gibson, 874 4408. Microscopy Group Meeting. Preparation of slides of insects and Insect parts - Dr. Malipatil. Astronomer’s Residence 8 p.m. Fauna Survey Group Field Survey. Wilson’s Promontory (post-fire ecology study). Contact Russell Thompson, 434 7046, Botany Group Excursion. Bone Seed Pulling at Sea Winds. Contact Joan Harry, 850 1347, Geology Group Meeting. Herbarium Hall 8 p.m. Erratum Cyanobacteria: A Problem in Perspective f) from Fig. 1 p. 226 Vol. 109 (6) 1992. A replacement page ‘The Victorian Naturalist Volume 110 (1) 1993 Conference Papers Case Studies Book Reviews ISSN 0042-5184 Cover Photo: The Regent Honeyeater (Xanthomyza phrygia), drawn by T. Coates. February Editor: Robyn Watson Assistant Editors: Ed and Pat Grey The Box and Ironbark Communities of the Northern Slopes of Victoria, by M. Calder ......ccccccceceeneceneeseeesees Lest We Forget to Forge, by D. RODINSON ...........20+2s0000 ’ Forestry, Birds, Mammals and Management in Box and Ironbark Forests, by BJ. Traill 02... 2.0. ccececeseeceeeeenenenenees Fauna Conservation in Box and Ironbark Forests: A Landscape Approach, by A.FL Bennett........c.ccceceeeeees Conservation of Remnant Vegetation in the Box and Ironbark Lands of New South Wales, by D. Sivertsen..... The Ecology and Genetics of Remnant Grassy White Box Woodlands in Relation to their Conservation, by S.M. Prober and K.R. Thiele......1.cccccccccceeeeeceeeeeeees Rural Dieback and Insect Damage in Remnants of Native Woodlands, by J. Landsberg.........cs.cccccesesecesees Apiculture in Box and Ironbark Forests, by L. Briggs..... Making it Happen: Strategies Needed to Conserve Box and Ironbark Forests, by M. BlaKers ........0cscssecesesveceves The Regent Honeyeater Project, by B. Willett............054. Conserving Remnant Habitat on Private Land, DY L. DQVidSOM ci sse cts scocereessvvedespatacanccisteenconssregsrassoes The Action Plan for Australian Birds, by Stephen Garnett, reviewer R. WatsON,........1ccereeerseees Grasses of Temperate Australia, by CA. Lamp, S.J. Forbes and JW. Cade, reviewer S.L. Duigan............ 11 15 24 30 37 38 45 49 51 53 Se Conference and proceedings partly funded by the Commonwealth Government Save the Bush Program and the Victorian Department of Conservation and Environment. The Box and Ironbark Communities of the Northern Slopes of Victoria Malcolm Calder* Introduction i é The Box and Ironbark communities of the northern slopes of Victoria are in deep decline as a result of land clearing, gold mining, timber utilisation, grazing, changed regional hydrology and the problems of salinity, and the impact of introduced plants and animals. In making this statement I am not ascribing blame to any individual or group, but simply identifying the ecological facts which have led us to the present situation. The original forest and woodland communities of the northern slopes of Victoria have been largely cleared and those which remain are under stress. If we want the residual Box- Ironbark forest and woodland communi- ties to survive it is essential that urgent action be taken to reverse the present decline. The conference is a major step towards achievement of the conservation objective; and it is important that all the interest groups get together and develop action strategies for the future. My role was to provide the background mural, painting the broad picture to support the papers which follow. We need to establish the particular qualities of these communities and identify the environ- mental and managerial pressures to which they are subject. As a botanist, my starting point is that the communities which make up the Box-Ironbark forests and woodlands of the northern slopes have declined {0 a point where active conser- vation of all remaining examples is an imperative; we must save these commun- ities as a part of our ecological heritage, we must save them also to protect rural landscapes and industries which are so important to the economic and social well being of Australia. deen tt Cie ae eanban , extends discontinuously along the northern foothills from east of * School of Botany, University of Parkville, 3052 y of Melbourne Chiltern to Stawell in the west. Some, eg Dexter (1978), take a more expanded view of the Alliance and include some of the communities which border the Mallee Alliance. The communities are dominated by Red Box (Eucalyptus polyanthemos) or Grey Box (£. microcarpa), both of which are fairly widespread. In some regions or habitats, White Box (E. albens) and Yellow Box (E. melliodora) are found and, in the higher rainfall sites, Long-leaved Box (EF. goniocalyx) grows. Red Ironbark (E. tricarpa and E. sideroxylon) are features of this Alliance, with E. sideroxylon only entering Victoria in the far north-east. Yel- low Gum or White Ironbark (E&. leuco- xylon) is also an important component of the Alliance in Victoria west of the Goulburn, but does not extend into these communities in New South Wales. Climate and soils Broad generalisations about soils and climate are only helpful to set the boundaries or limits of the distribution of different plant communities. Details of aspect, slope, exposure and the like, control the actual distribution, In Victoria there is a general understanding and agreement that the Box-Ironbark communities fall within the rainfall bands of 700 mm and 400 mm, Above 700 mm are the taller forests dominated by Peppermints, Stringy- barks and Gums, and below 400 mm we move into the Mallee communities. The Box-Ironbark Alliance is associated with Ordovician formations, which Patton describes as ‘the home of the Box- Ironbark’ but the Alliance is also found to a lesser extent on granites, newer basalts and recent sediments of the Murray floodplain. Soils derived from Ordovician sediments are shallow, well drained and contain reefs of quartz, At the other extreme are the deep clays of the Murray floodplain where drainage is poor and Where in the winter and spring, surface Victorian Nat. water may lie for several weeks at a time. Here Grey Box is the most common dominant. The vegetation The characteristic structure of the Box- Ironbark communities is of close to widely spaced trees with an open canopy. There is usually a light shrub layer from 1-3 m comprising a range of sclerophylous Acacias, epacrids and composites as well as other shrub genera. On more exposed or drier sites the shrubs open out to allow the growth of grasses and a number of bulbous geophytes (lilies and orchids) which emerge in the winter, flower in the spring and die down in the summer. The understorey varies floristically according to its locality and this variation leads to the observation that the Alliance as a whole is rather species rich, Trees associated with this Alliance include White Cypress Pine (Callitris glaucophylla) and Buloke (A/locasuarina lehmanii). In places Exocarpos cupressiformis and Acacia pycnantha can grow quite tall, but they do not reach the top of the canopy, Box mistletoe (Amyema miquelii) is common throughout, and in places reaches heavy levels of infestation. Values and threats The timber of the Box-Ironbark species is strong and durable, It has been used for pit props, fencing timbers, farm buildings and firewood. While market demand is now greatly diminished there is continuing pressure on timber supplies from these communities. Minor forest products such as honey have their own impact on the community. Hive bees compete with native nectar feeders for a resource which at times may be limited. Wild colonies of the honey bee generally occupy sites which would otherwise form the nesting hollows of native animals. The clearing of land for agriculture is an historic fact which has vastly reduced the extent of the Box-Ironbark Alliance; this land clearing is socially, economically and ecologically irreversible. Nevertheless, previous land clearing makes more valuable Vol. 110 (1) 1993 the remnants of the Alliance and all of these must be protected and managed to ensure their survival, In this context, continued grazing under licence on public land is ecologically unacceptable. Domestic stock are selective grazers and browsers and the damage they cause when introduced in relatively large numbers is considerable. Rabbits, foxes and cats are all alien to these communities and their presence is a threat to the survival of the balanced community. Management strategies must be put in place to control or eliminate them. Botanically, these communities have suffered invasion from a range of alien plants, Often called environmental weeds, these plants compete with the local flora, frequently establishing their annual growth cycle ahead of the natives and so crowding them out in the struggle for existence. These plants are difficult to control since there is a continuous and effectively inexhaustible supply of seed available from the surrounding country, especially within the vegetation of road verges. What needs to be done? First, there needs to be a recognition at the local and state level that the Box- Ironbark communities have value in the terms of conservation, in terms of land management (including the management of regional watertables), and in terms of the characteristic rural landscapes of Victoria. Secondly, there needs to be a commit- ment to environmental research, paying particular attention to the basic ecology of the plants and animals which make up these communities; the effects of grazing; and the development of strategies for the elimination of introduced plants and animals. Thirdly, landholders and _ local government should collaborate in the development of ‘Regional Vegetation Strategies’ (ReVS). Continuation of current practices can only lead to the eventual loss of trees in the landscape, apart from the small islands of public land which in any case are vulnerable. In my view, each shire in the region should undertake the development of a ReVS whch would have the purpose of maintaining visual amenity, assisting the processes of land care, providing for the shelter of stock, and the maintenance of regional identity by using only local plants as the source of seed for regeneration. Fourthly, all remnant communities of the Box-Ironbark Alliance must be identified and managed with the knowledge of the best ecological information available and with the objective of rebuilding them to typify the diversity of community types represented. Lest We Forget to Forge Doug Robinson* Two major land issues confront all Australians today. The first and most im- portant issue is that of aboriginal land rights. The second is that of land care. And knowing the tragic consequences caused by the failure of successive State and Federal governments to act on the issue of land rights, it is crucial that we do not likewise delay essential conservation actions in rural Australia and thereby abandon the land. Many speakers at the conference stressed the fact that conservation of Box-Ironbark ecosystems involves us all, it is not the responsibility of just one agency. In a similar vein and in contrast to the mem- orial plaque at Thoona (the host town for Day 2 of the conference), which now reads ‘Lest we forge’, I propose the motto - ‘lest we forget to forge’. As part of that process, this paper firstly reviews the major issues discussed at the conference. Secondly, it summarises the conservation actions prop- osed by participants, either during the conference or in subsequent communi- cations with the VNPA The Box-Ironbark environment What is Box-Ironbark woodland? While the title of the conference suggested one, broadly homegeneous vegetation commun- It¥, Various speakers clarified that the phrase ‘Box-Ironbark woodland’ is far too restrictive a term to describe the diversity of communities included therein, The Box- Ironbark lands of central-western NSW * 28 Bath St, Mornington, 3931 6 comprise at least eight different vegetation communities, including those of Poplar Box and Yellow Box, Brigalow, Carbeen, Myall, Belah and River Red Gum (Sivertsen). Elsewhere, there are commun- ities of Blakely’s Red Gum or White Box (Landsberg; Prober). In Victoria, Box- lronbark ecosystems range from grassy woodlands/grasslands to forests with a shrub understorey (Baker-Gabb; Calder; Traill), They occur across a broad geographical gradient in which annual rainfall varies from approximately 275mm to 750mm and in which many different communities intergrade (Bennett). Each of these communities may support a distinctive fauna and Bennett discussed how animal distributions vary in Victoria’s Box-lronbark lands, firstly at a broad geographic scale according to landform and rainfall and secondly at a local scale in response to soil type, vegetation and configuration. The local distribution of Red Ironbark and Yellow Box, for example, seems critical to the distribution of several species of mammal and bird (Trail; Davidson), Threatening processes Notwithstanding the array of commun- ities included within the notion of ‘Box- Ironbark woodlands’ speakers made it abundantly clear that all these ecosystems at least share a history of extensive loss. It Was estimated that less than 15% of the original Box-Ironbark lands remain in Victoria (less than 3% of which are in Victorian Nat. conservation reserves, Baker-Gabb; Traill) and less than 25% in the Murray-Darling Basin (Scott), with vegetation still being lost at a rapid rate (Woodgate and Black 1988; Sivertsen). The end result of this persistent clearing has been massive fragmentation of all Box- Ironbark communities and massive de- clines of wildlife. In an area of 65,000 square kilometres in central NSW, only 25% of the original woodland vegetation remains, scattered across the study area in 3,500 remnants, 90% of which are less than 5 sq km in area (Goldnay). And through- out the Box-lronbark lands of eastern Australia, communities no longer form a connected mosaic of different forest and woodland types but stand as isolated and modified patches, with the loss of every 100 ha denoting the loss of some thous- ands of birds, skinks, grasses and so forth (Bennett). Even those patches that do remain are not secure, due to degrading processes exacerbating the environmental conse- quences of fragmentation. Landsberg discussed the continuing and accelerating rate of rural dieback, often caused by nutrient enrichment of sites, either from sheep dung or fertilizer run-off. Traill noted how little fallen timber there is in Ironbark forest due to extensive collection of timber for firewood and showed slides of the Inglewood Flora Reserve being bulldozed for gold-mining. He also mentioned how Box-Ironbark production forests were extensively culled of large, old trees from 1930 to at least the 1960's to create a younger forest of ‘pole’ trees. As a result, those same forests are deficient in hollow-dependent fauna and populations of some nectarivores (Traill). Many speakers noted the impact of grazing by domestic stock, rabbits and even kangaroos on native vegetation commun- ities. It was made clear that any sustained grazing hy domestic stock will cause the disappearance of some native plant species from particular communities and that as grazing intensity increases, more and more species will disappear until the point where just a few unpalatable species remain Vol. 110 (1) 1993 (Sivertsen; Prober). In addition, grazing by stock and rabbits prevents the regeneration of young trees and shrubs, thereby hastening the demise of remnant patches of native vegetation (Sivertsen). None of these processes is unique to Box-lronbark systems - land degradation is occurring throughout Australia and the world and affects all taxa of plants and animals (Blakers; Sivertsen). The rate of loss of communities and taxa from Box- Ironbark systems, however, makes their nature conservation critical, For example: less than 0.01% of the White Box com- munity remains intact (Prober); many other plant communities are threatened (Sivertsen; Baker-Gabb); 21 of the 22 extinct species of mammal and 31% of now-threatened vertebrates in Victoria occur/occurred in the grassy woodland components of the Box-Ironbark lands (Baker-Gabb); and 46 species of landbird that are declining throughout their range, but which are not listed as threatened, occur in Box-lronbark (Robinson and Bennett in prep.). Given that so many threatened taxa and _ vegetation communities occur there, we need to act now to develop long-term conservation strategies for these lands. Equally, though, we must recall that the same processes of habitat loss, fragmentation, degradation and decline are occurring throughout rural Australia, for much the same reasons (Beale and Fray 1990). Any proposals for nature conservation in the Box-Ironbark lands therefore should be broad enough to encompass the conservation of ecosystems in other parts of rural Australia, Proposed conservation actions Nature conservation is especially complicated in rural Australia because we are dealing with fragments of native vege- tation on public and private land and the degrading process may be different on each. Thus a coherent regional strategy will require consultation and cooperation between government agencies, landholders, local shires, local fire authorities, local water boards and so forth, as opposed to the (relatively) simple process of nature reserve proclamation and management by a single public authority as 1s possible where large blocks of native vegetation remain. As In the past, conservation actions in rural lands have been ineffective because we have tended to develop strategies in terms of land ownership - one strategy for public lands, one strategy for private land (Blak- ers). If we want an adequate conservation system in Box-Ironbark, we need to pro- gress beyond this point and develop co- herent strategies that focus firstly on nature conservation, and only secondly on who owns the land (Blakers), thereby leading to ‘sustainable wildlife conservation’ throughout the region (Bennett), Similarly, rather than trying to assign responsibility for nature conservation to particular groups, we have to realise that everyone is responsible (Baker-Gabb; Bennett; Davidson). For example, government agencies have liked to argue that conservation on private lands is primarily the responsibility of the farmer. Tom Lee, though, recounted how his father, now in his seventies, chuckles as he helps Tom to plant trees. The reason? The government department that provides Tom with financial incentives to replant some trees is the same department that provided his father with incentives to clear the land. Likewise, among urban conservationists lamenting the clearing of native vegetation there are doubtless many who help to burn the 230,000 cubic metres of firewood consumed annually in Victoria and the 80,000 tonnes burnt each year in the ACT. We all are responsible for nature conservation in rural Australia, and all need to be involved in the restoration of the Box-Ironbark lands, What can be done then? In the long-term, there are going to be many changes in land use and ownership in rural Australia. There will be more people, more rural subdivision, less money from sheep and wheat and less government money directed into rural economies (Blakers). We need to think about the environmental consequences of those changes and begin planning now. For example, will changes from pastoral to other land uses increase the threats to nature conservation in the Box-Ironbark lands? If farmers are forced to leave their land because of global trade wars, will the loss of experienced land managers be a disadvantage to nature conservation? Might it be better to offer an annual salary to those farmers so that they continue to kill foxes and rabbits? Or, as proposed by Tom Lee, perhaps the Government should enter into covenant agreements with landholders to manage portions of their land for nature conservation. The landholder could then receive an annual payment for managing the land accordingly. What is the long-term future for timber- harvesting in Box-Ironbark forests? Although forest managers are now trying to increase the average size of the trees in production forests (Young), is it reasonable to continue harvesting when only 3% of the forest is protected in conservation reserves? Some regions are already encouraging firewood collection from plantations rather than from native forests (Young). Several companies now manufacture fence posts from materials such as concrete and recycled plastic rather than from hardwood. Given that there are alternative supplies of firewood, poles and posts, surely we should manage the remaining Box-Ironbark forests for nature conservation rather than for timber production. Irrigation was identified as a major threat to. Box-Ironbark systems. What is the ecological sustainability of irrigation farming? Of the 530,000 ha of irrigated pasture in Victoria, 89% is suffering severe soil structure damage. In the Kerang/North West Lakes area, 60% of the irrigated pasture lands (347,000 ha) are affected by soil salinity, 24% severely so (OCE 1991). At the same time, 21 of 40 sampled wet- lands in the area have declined in condition since 1975 and some wetlands listed as being of global significance for waterbirds have become so hypersaline that they Victorian Nat. support few birds (OCE 1991). Clearly, then, irrigation farming is not ecologically sustainable and conservation land managers need to develop long-term strategies for better land use in these districts. For example, in the Shepparton Irrigation District (280,000 ha), the cost of implementing a 30 year salinity management plan is estimated to be $295 million (OCE 1991). What if we suggested that irrigation farming will be discontinued after the next ten years and that farmers can either shift to dryland farming practices, be employed solely for habitat restoration works or leave the land. For the same $295 million, $40,000 could be offered to each of the 7300 landholders to make the transition, or the money could be used to compensate those landholders who decide to leave, the remainder being spent on broadscale nature conservation programs, Surely this would be a wiser use of money designated for land protection than its current use to support the continuation of an environmentally damaging practice. Obviously, such decisions will have major ramifications for everyone concern- ed and will take time to develop so that all groups concerned believe that their needs are met. In the meantime, though, many short-term actions were proposed at the conference. First, it is clear that we need to act immediately to establish better nature conservation reserve systems in every State in order to protect the remaining Box- Ironbark woodlands. These may comprise small, high-quality sites for populations of plants and invertebrates, and larger, perhaps more degraded sites for most species of vertebrates (Prober; Baker- Gabb). To identify those biologically significant sites we urgently need surveys throughout the Box-Ironbark lands. Several speakers also noted that we have to think in terms of networks of interlinked res- erves, rather than focus solely on the con- servation merits of individual reserves (Baker-Gabb; Prober; Bennett). Likewise we need to think about nature conservation priorities regardless of who Vol, 110 (1) 1993 owns the land. In Victoria, the Government is committed to conservation of representative samples of all vegetation communities. Accordingly, given that we have lost more than 85% of the Box- Ironbark lands, government agencies need to acknowledge the huge significance of the blocks of public land containing woodland and forest that do remain. These blocks should be considered as conservation reserves rather than as surplus land to be used for gravel dumps, timber cutting or whatever. Grazing should be excluded from them unless for specific biological reasons. Organisations such as the VNPA should lobby to have major streamside reserves declared as conservation reserves. Where particular vegetation commun- ities or wildlife populations occur only on private land it must be the responsibility of government agencies to provide materials and assistance for the protection of those sites. If our government agencies are serious about nature conservation in rural lands they could establish fencing crews for nature conservation projects to assist landholders to fence remnants or to fence parcels of public land, As discussed by Howell, Willett and Lee, there are many farmers keen and willing to donate land, labour and time to conservation projects, but they want some real support, not just brochures on when to plant trees. We therefore need more direct assistance from government agencies to assist with conservation projects on private land. Equally, the government agencies must more clearly determine how they will spend money. In 199] in the Goulburn Broken River catchment area (2.3 million ha), public money subsidised the planting or protection of 18 ha of native vegetation regeneration, 87 ha of lucerne, 1031 ha of improved pasture and 433 ha of trees on recharge sites. Further, one of the supposed achievements of the year was an increase in incentives to plant improved pastures on recharge sites — from $30/ha to $60/ha. The provision of such an incentive runs counter to any nature conservation ethic. Just as the Land Improvement Scheme and Phosphate Bounty encouraged landholders to clear their land and fertilise the pad- docks, so this incentive scheme is encour- aging landholders to plant an invasive weed, Conservation Departments should only provide grants to landholders willing to fence remnants of native vegetation, or should require that any grants for tree planting be matched by funding for fencing areas of native vegetation. Tree planting grants should specify that understorey species be included in the planting, Grants for corridor planting projects should require that corridors be at least 50m wide and give priority to corridor projects that aim to fence out or widen existing corridors, Overall, the removing of grazing from public land is the most effective action that conservation land managers can take to improve the long-term survival of remnants of native vegetation in the Box-Ironbark lands. In Victoria, 1.4 million hectares of public land (some 11% of all agricultural land) is grazed by domestic stock. And in some regions encompassing the Box- Ironbark communities, 30-35% of all public land is leased for grazing, with the consequence that most streamsides and roadside corridors have become degraded. If we removed grazing from these areas, we would gain an area of ungrazed public land slightly larger than the total area of land now contained in conservation reserves in Victoria - a vast gain for the public of Victoria. What would it cost to fence streamside sites, should we have the courage to do so? In the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) Benalla Region, as an example, there are c, 3500 ha of leased waterfront- age. To fence all those sites would cost about $3 million and would secure long- term conservation of the most important natural corridors that remain in northern Victoria, Bennett discussed the perils of small path size and habitat fragmentation for ocal populations of wildlife To increase the long-term chances of survival for these fbi at en sands o € rural landscape, increase 10 the size of remnants and improve connectivity between the remnants. What if we tried to fence against stock and restore, say, 5 ha of woodland blocks at the rate of one per 300 ha of land across the landscape. Within the DCNR Benalla Region (c. 1 million ha) there are some 200 such remnants on private land. To fence out those remnants would cost about $4 million in materials, with additional recurrent costs for their management by landholders, Another example: there are 154 Box-woodland reserves in the DCNR Benalla Region, the average size of which is 9 ha but many of them less than 2 ha in area. If, with permission, we fenced off 2 ha triangles on the private block corners adjoining all of those reserves it would cost just $87,000 and, in some cases, would double the size of existing reserves, Many of these suggestions may sound daunting in scale, In truth, we simply need agreement that nature conservation is a priority in the Box-Ironbark lands and that landholders and government agencies must work together to find solutions, regardless of who owns the land. Note, for example, the two wonderful cases of local land- holders giving time, labour and care to habitat protection works for Regent Honeyeaters and Superb Parrots (Willett; Davidson), Nature conservation in rural Australia can be achieved, but only if we remember to forge. We need to develop Strategies that can incorporate protection of high quality sites on private land, protection of as many remnants as possible on public land and a shift towards lower stocking rates or practices which are more complementary to nature conservation on rural land, Only then is there a possibility of long-term survival of either wildlife or agriculture in the Box-Ironbark lands. References Beale, B. and Fray, P. (1990). ‘The Vanishing Continent: Australia’s Degraded Environment’ (Hodder and Staughton: Sydney). Office of the Commissioner for the Environment (1991). ‘Agriculture and. Victoria’s Environment’, (Office of the Commissioner for the Environment: Melbourne), Robinson, D. and Bennett, S. (in prep). Patterns of decline among landbirds in southeastern Australia. Woodgate, P. and Black, P, (1988), ‘Forest Cover Changes in Victoria, 1869-1987, (Dept of Conservation, Forests and Lands: Melbourne). Victorian Nat. Forestry, Birds, Mammals and Management in Box and Ironbark Forests. B.J. Traill* Introduction For two decades there have been bitter controversies over the effects of forestry operations on the flora and fauna of the mountain and coastal forests of eastern Australia. These disputes have led to the completion of a wide range of studies on the effects of logging in these forest types. However, the drier Box and Ironbark forests and woodlands have been largely ignored by groups on both sides of the debate. Yet these forests are in a far poorer State of conservation than most vegetation communities in the wetter forests (Frood and Calder 1987) and have been managed far more extensively, and intensively, for timber production (eg. Newman 1961), In this paper I discuss the effects on fauna of forestry practices in Box and Ironbark forests and recommend changes needed to adequately conserve the vertebrate fauna of Box and Ironbark in timber production areas. Unless otherwise stated my comments in this paper specifically relate to Victoria but all discussions I have had with people working in New South Wales indicate that similar problems occur in that state. History In Victoria approximately 85% of the Box and Ironbark country has been totally cleared (Woodgate and Black 1987). With the possible exception of some small areas in East Gippsland, all the remaining country has been degraded in some way by mining, logging, grazing or combinations of all three. The clearing occurred mostly in the Grey Box Eucalyptus microcarpa, White Box FE. albens, Yellow Box E. melliodora and Yellow Gum E. leucoxlyon communities on the more fertile soils. The vegetation associations in the remaining * Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Monash University, Clayton, 3168. Vol. 110 (1) 1993 larger blocks are typically on poorer soils and are mostly Ironbark E. sideroxylon and E, tricarpa, and some Grey Box, communities (Frood and Calder 1987). These remaining larger blocks (‘large’ here means approximately 300 ha or more) have been used for timber production since gold-rush days in the 1850’s. Initially there was uncontrolled cutting for mining timbers and fuel. Regrowth of trees from this early exploitation has been intensively managed for timber production. This included the systematic removal of mature trees in the 1930’s and 1950’s to improve the growth of younger ‘pole’ aged trees (Newman 1961). Mature refers here to ecological maturity, not silvicultural maturity as is used by foresters. An ecologically mature tree is one which has ceased net growth and is likely to have a large crown and dead wood and hollows of value to many species of wildlife. The structure of the forest has changed from that of open stands of probably 30-40 trees per ha of mostly large, mature trees of greater than 1 m diameter at breast height, to the current structure of much denser stands of immature trees (Newman 1961; Kellas 1991). In most areas very little standing or fallen dead timber remains due to continual collection for firewood. Changes in the floristics of the forests since European settlement do not appear to be known, Effects on fauna At least two key wildlife resources are likely to have been affected by these changes: Tree hollows and nectar. Tree Hollows As in other forest types in Australia, a large proportion of birds and mammals in Box and Ironbark forests (about 40 species, around 30% of all resident birds and mammals) require tree hollows for nesting il or roosting. Such hollows are usually provided by mature trees when the branches begin to die back and fungus or termites enter the tree (eg. Mackowski 1984). In Box and Ironbark forests such mature trees are rare or absent over large areas due to past silvicultural treatment. Studies in the Chiltern State Park (146° 35’ E., 36° 10’ N.) in north-eastern Victoria indicate that a lack of hollows is affecting the distribution and densities of many species dependent on hollows. Meredith (1984) found significantly higher densities of arboreal mammals in parts of Chiltern with higher numbers of mature trees. I found that birds and mammals which required types of hollows found only in mature trees (eg. Powerful Owl, Barking Owl, Sacred Kingfisher, Australian Owlet- nightjar and Common Ringtailed Possum) were absent or very rare in areas lacking mature trees (Traill 1991), Other hollow-dependent species such as Brush-tailed Possums, Brush-tailed Phascogales, Brown Treecreepers, and Squirrel and Sugar Gliders were found to use stumps and ‘coppice hollows’. Coppice hollows are formed at the rotting base of trees that have regrown from coppicing stumps. The two hollow types are widespread throughout Box and Lronbark forests but they are not abundant (pers. ob.) At sites which had these hollows but lacked mature trees, there was a high rate of use by these animals of artificial nest-boxes and a high degree of inter-specific overlap in the use of the available natural hollows (pers, ob.; T. Coates and T. Soderquist pers. comm.). This indicates that lack of suitable hollows may also be limiting populations of the animal species that can use stumps and coppice hollows. Nectar Eucalypt nectar (and possibly pollen) is an extremely important winter and spring food resource for birds and Mammals in Box and Ironbark forests, Nearly 20% (25 Species) of all resident Box and Ironbark birds and Mammals feed on nectar. Ironbark B sideroxylon, White Box ft 12 albens, Yellow Box, Yellow Gum and Ironbark £. tricarpa are the important trees for nectarivorous vertebrates (Webster and Menkhorst 1992; Franklin ef a/. 1989; pers. ob.; T. Soderquist pers. comm.). The importance of the flowering is exemplified by what happens when flowering fails. At Chiltern in those years of poor flowering the normally resident and abundant Fuscous Honeyeaters disappeared from the forest and Squirrel Gliders and Sugar Gliders made unusually long daily moyements to reach isolated flowering trees (pers. ob.). In good flowering years of White Box and Ironbark, very large numbers of nectarivorous honeyeaters and lorikeets may move into those areas. At Chiltern from transect counts, density estimates of up to 140 honeyeaters per ha have been recorded (pers. ob.). Several pieces of evidence indicate that the loss of mature trees in Box and Ironbark would have reduced the availability of nectar. Apiarists report that larger trees produce more nectar (B. Kirkwood pers. comm.) and studies on nectarivorous vertebrates support. this. Webster and Menkhorst (1992) found Regent Honeyeaters selected the largest trees within forest stands and preferred these for nectar feeding. Studies on Squirrel Gliders and Brush-tailed Phasco- gales also found that larger flowering trees were preferred (pers. ob.: T. Soderquist pers. comm.). Given that there has been a widespread reduction in the number and size of large mature trees then nectar production in the remaining Box and Ironbark forests may haye been greatly reduced. Other effects There is little or no direct evidence of other effects of forestry operations on fauna in Box and Ironbark forests. However, it is worth strongly emphasising that lack of evidence indicates only a lack of studies not an absence of other deleterious effects. One obvious change has been the widespread removal of dead timber for Victorian Nat. firewood. Extrapolation from studies in wetter Australian forest types indicates that in Box and Ironbark forests, the lack of dead fallen timber could severely affect amphibians, reptiles and ground mammals through loss of cover and foraging habitat (Dickman 1991, Scott 1991). The loss of standing dead timber may affect species such as the Varied Sittella and the Brush- tailed Phascogale which have a preference for foraging on dead timber (Noske 1985; Traill and Coates in press). The changes in forest structure are likely to have affected factors such as the percentage of canopy cover and soil moisture and nutrient levels. The effects of any such changes on the abundance and distribution of herbaceous and understorey plants are not known. Any changes in floristics could lead to major changes in the vertebrate fauna. Recommendations for future management Currently most of the large blocks of Box and [Ironbark in Victoria are designated for timber production. Up until the last two years habitat prescriptions (practices aimed at helping to buffer flora and fauna from the effects of logging) for these forests appear to have been adapted from those developed for the very different foothill forests, and they have, at best, been haphazardly applied (pers. ob.). Given below are recommendations for habitat prescriptions and other actions to improve the conservation management of the remaining large blocks of Box and Ironbark. They are intended to provide a starting point and not a complete list of recommended actions. They are not listed in any order of priority. 1. A review of the conservation reserve system in the Box and Ironbark country to systematically determine what additions are required. Currently less than 3% of the original area of Box and [Ironbark country is in conservation reserves. This is very likely to be too small and patchy to maintain the wide range of plant and animal communities in this ecosystem. The current reserve system in the area appears to have Vol. 110 (1) 1993 evolved haphazardly without examina- tion of the ecosystem as a whole. This has perhaps been partly due to the lack of information of where species are, and which ones are threatened. Work in recent years has improved the knowledge of fauna and the Victorian Wildlife Atlas database now has reasonable distributional information, at least for birds and mammals in the area. However, there remains an urgent requirement for botanical surveys. Hopefully a beginning has been made this year with the start of a Goldfield’s botanical survey by the Department of Conservation and Environment. . In areas that continue to be used for timber production pre-logging biological surveys need to be carried out to determine sites of biological significance. Currently sites known to have species listed as threatened under the Flora and Fauna Guarantee are still being logged, with no specific controls for determining the effects of logging on the species involved. . The permanent retention of at least 10 large (‘habitat’) trees per hectare in remaining timber production areas. Bendigo and Benalla Regions have apparently already begun implementing this, but state-wide prescriptions are required. In choosing habitat trees the largest available trees and those with existing hollows should be selected. . Total ban on removal of all standing dead timber, This will help the shortfall in production of tree hollows until the retained habitat trees begin producing hollows in the longer term. . Ceasing the current practice of allowing random removal of fallen timber by firewood collectors. Bendigo Region has apparently begun phasing out this practice and only allowing cutters to areas with a known resource from thinning or logging operations. This change should be implemented across the state. . Ceasing the practice of allowing tree species with preferred timber quality (typically Ironbark) to form the larger 13 © 14 ‘standard’ trees, while keeping other tree species at a more immature level by frequent cutting for smaller sized timbers. This is against the spirit of the recommendation of the Victorian Timber Industry Strategy, that the natural composition of tree species should be maintained in timber production areas. Maintaining some species as saplings and shrubs does not constitute maintaining the natural ecological composition of the forest, In New South Wales the removal of Box species to favour the Callitris sp. is apparently a widespread management practice (B. Williams pers. comm.) with possibly severe consequences for the many animal species which depend on eucalypts for foraging and shelter. . Ceasing of the unrestricted poisoning of Dodder-laurel Cassytha melantha. Dodder-laurel is a parasitic creeper which has affected areas with coppice regrowth. Poisoning has occurred in some forest areas without any investigation of the effects of herbicides on other plant species. Problems with Dodder-laurel appear to arise as a result of logging practices which produce areas of young coppice growth (Pederick and Zimmer 1961). Any control work done should not use persistent herbicides and areas treated should first be surveyed for the presence of any significant vegetation. . Examine the advantages of thinning coppice growth in conservation reserves, Kellas er al. (1972) found increased growth rates in the remaining trees when thinning of surrounding growth occurred in a Bendigo Ironbark forest. Currently a large proportion of conservation reserves have dense stands of immature coppice growth. Thinning of some smaller trees could help to increase the speed at which large mature trees are restored to these areas, Work out sustainable yield in Box and Ironbark Jorests. Currently the sustainable yield is not known. Until it Is, the effects of logging on fauna will be very difficult to Manage effectively in more than the short term. References Dickman, C, (1991). Use of trees by ground- dwelling mammals; implica-tions for management. /n ‘Conservation of Australia’s Forest Fauna’. Ed. D. Lunney, pp. 125-136. (Royal Zoological Society: Sydney). Frood, D, and Calder M. (1987), ‘Nature Conservation in Victoria’. (Victorian National Parks Association: Melbourne). Kellas, J.D, (1991), Management of the Dry Sclerophyll Forests in Victoria. 2. Box-ironbark forests. Jn ‘Forest Management in Australia’. Ed. FH, McKinnell, E.R, Hopkins and J.E.D. Fox, pp. 163-169, (Surrey Beatty: Sydney). Kellas, J.D., Owen, JV, and Squire, R.O. (1972), Response of Eucalyptus sideroxylon to release from competition in an irregular stand. Forests Commission of Victoria Technical Note. No, 29,: 33-36, Mackowski, C, (1984), The ontogeny of hollows in Blackbutt (Eucalyptus pilularis) and _ its relevance to the management of forests for possums, gliders and timber. Jn ‘Possums and Gliders’. Ed. A. Smith and I. Hume, pp. 553-567. (Surrey Beatty and Sons: Sydney). Meredith, C. (1984). Possums or Poles? — the effects of silvicultural management on the possums of Chiltern State Park, northeast Victoria. In ‘Possums and Gliders’, Ed. A. Smith and I, Hume, pp, 575-577, (Surrey Beatty and Sons: Sydney), Newman, L.A. (1961). The Box-Ironbark forests of Victoria, Australia, Bulletin of the Forest Commission of Victoria, No, 14, Noske, R.A, (1985), Habitat use by three bark- foragers of eucalypt forests. Jn ‘Birds of eucalypt forests and woodlands: ecology, conservation, management’. Eds. A. Keast, H.F. Recher, H, Ford and D, Saunders, pp. 193-204, (Surrey Beatty and Sons: Sydney), Pederick L.A, and Zimmer, W.J. (1961). The parasitic forest Dodder-laurel Cassytha melantha. Bulletin of the Forests Commission of Victoria, No. 12. Scotts, D. (1991). Old-growth forests: their ecological characteristics and yalue to forest- dependent vertebrate fauna of south-east Australia. /n ‘Conservation of Australia’s Forest Fauna’. Ed. D. Lunney, pp. 147-160. (Royal Zoological Society: Sydney). Traill, B.J. (1991). Box-Ironbark forests: tree hollows, wildlife and management. Jn ‘Conservation of Australia’s Forest Fauna’ Ed. D. Lunney, pp, 119-124. (Royal Zoological Society: Sydney), Traill, BJ. and Coates T.D. in press. Field observations on the Brush-tailed Phascogale Phascogale (apoataja. Australian Mammalogy. Woodgate, P. and Black, P. (1988). ‘Forest cover changes in Victoria 1869-1987. (Victorian Department of Conservation and Environment: Melbourne). Victorian Nat. Fauna Conservation in Box and Ironbark Forests: A Landscape Approach Andrew F. Bennett* Abstract Box and Ironbark forests in south- eastern Australia have experienced profound changes over the past 150 years. Landscapes that formerly were continuous forest and woodland cover are now mosaics of modified natural forests amongst cleared land. Changes to the spatial pattern of forests, changes to temporal patterns (time-related processes), and the introduction of new species to the flora and fauna, have each had, and continue to have, important consequences for the conservation of wildlife that depend on these forests. A landscape approach to wildlife conservation emphasises the need for understanding the structure and function of patchy environments, and for integrating natural resource management across broad areas that may include a range of differing land-uses. Introduction Landscape ecology is the study of land mosaics - their structure, function and change (Forman and Godron 1986). In recent years, there has been a growing interest in landscape ecology as a conceptual framework for land-use planning and the development of conservation strategies (e.g. Harris 1984; Noss and Harris 1986; Saunders 1990; Hanssen and Angelstam 1991; Hobbs e¢ al. in press). This arises from a recognition that all environments, whether natural or modified, are mosaics of different elements. Box and Ironbark forests in south- eastern Australia now comprise a complex patchwork of forest habitats of differing composition, size, shape, and degree of disturbance; interspersed with lands committed to agriculture and urban * Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, 123 Brown St., Heidelberg, Victoria, 3084 Vol. 110 (1) 1993 development. The patterns of occurrence of fauna within these different landscape components varies greatly, Effective conservation and land-use planning in such mosaics must recognise the characteristics and values of the different landscape components, the interactions between these components, and their changes through time. This requires that research, planning and management are carried out at an appropriately broad spatial scale. The need for a large scale is further highlighted by the complex movement patterns of animals within and beyond this forest system; by the size of natural areas that are required to sustain viable populations of all species (especially large predators); and by the geographic scale at which disturbance processes operate in these environments (e.g. fires, floods, rising saline groundwater). The last 150 years of settlement have brought about profound changes to the pattern and structure of Box and Ironbark forest landscapes. The distribution and abundance of many species of animals that depend upon these forests has also changed markedly. In this contribution, | discuss from a landscape perspective, the types of changes that have occurred to Box and Ironbark forests, and the consequences that these changes have had on faunal populations, This approach provides a different, and complementary, perspective on wildlife conservation to that traditionally derived from surveys or the study of selected threatened species. Box and Ironbark forest landscapes Box and Ironbark forests, in the present context, refer to the broad zone of forests and woodlands along the inland slopes of the Great Dividing Range and adjacent plains, that are dominated by eucalypts known as Ironbarks (e.g. Red Ironbark Eucalyptus sideroxylon) or Box species 15 (eg. Yellow Box E. melliodora, Grey Box E. microcarpa, White Box E. albens, Red Box £. polyanthemos). Little information is available on the natural structure and composition of Box and Ironbark forests prior to European settlement. Recent descriptions of these forests in Victoria are provided by Newman (1961), Land Conservation Council (1978, 1983, 1984) and Frood and Calder (1987). Box and Ironbark forests comprise a mosaic of different forest types, varying in floristic composition, structure and productivity. This diversity arises from variation in topography, geology, soil structure and fertility, and moisture regimes. In turn, the forest mosaic provides habitats that differ in the quality and quantity of resources (e.g. food, shelter, nest sites) that are available to animals. A useful distinction can be made between the forest landscapes of the inland slopes and foothills of the Great Dividing Range and those on the inland riverine plains. The slopes and foothills are of Paleozoic origin, and their variable topography (ridges, slopes, valleys) results in higher spatial diversity of forest types than on the plains (ie, there is a greater range of forest types within a defined area), The composition of these forests generally includes two or more dominant eucalypts, and sclerophyllous shrubs are prominent in the understorey. Typical Ironbark forests dominated by Red Ironbark and Grey box occur in these landforms. In contrast, the plains have a more Tecent origin in the Quaternary period, Topographic relief is limited and the Spatial diversity of habitats is lower than in the foothills. Woodlands on the plains are often dominated by a single species of eucalypt (eg. Yellow Box, Grey Box, Black Box E. largiflorens), and the understorey 18 generally dominated by grasses and herbs, ; Nae forests and woodlands of the ‘ foothills were extensive in size, and essentially comprised large continuous areas with few natural barriers to the movement of forest-dependent animals. hey were also continuous with habitats 16 in other biogeographic regions; in the south and east with wetter forests of the Dividing Range, and in the north and west with Casuarina woodlands, mallee shrublands and chenopod shrublands. Changes to Box and Ironbark forest landscapes Three major types of change to the natural landscape can be recognised: changes to spatial patterns in the landscape; changes to temporal patterns in the landscape and the introduction of new species to the landscape. These are each discussed briefly, together with the consequences that they can have for animal populations, Changes to spatial patterns in the landscape The main aspects of the spatial pattern of habitats in a landscape are: the amount of each habitat type, where it is located, and how it is arranged. Here, these aspects are considered in relation to remnant forest vegetation amongst cleared land, Amount of natural habitat The riverine plains and inland slopes and foothills were among the most attractive lands for pastoral settlement in the 19th Century, and were rapidly occupied by pastoralists following overland exploration. In the ensuing 150 years, there has been a massive loss and degradation of forests and woodlands, In Victoria, the two main regions Supporting Box and Ironbark forests have lost approximately 84% (Benalla region of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources) and 85% (Bendigo region) of their forests (Woodgate and Black 1988); and Caughley and Gall (1985) estimated a 95% loss of forests and woodlands in the south-west slopes region of New South Wales. For wildlife that depend on forests and woodlands, the consequences of these changes have been devastating. A number of species have become extinct in the region (e.g. Marlow 1958), many more species are considered threatened (Baker-Gabb 1991), and hundreds of species have experienced Victorian Nat. regional and local population declines. Every time that remnant woodland is cleared or fragmented, the population decline continues, For example, estimates of the densities of woodland birds (Bennett unpubl, data) indicate that for every 100 ha of woodland that is cleared, between 1000-2000 birds permanently lose their habitat. A clear implication for conservation and Management is that the amount of available habitat sets an upper limit on the Maximum size that populations can achieve. This may also impact on conservation recovery efforts. Regardless of scientific management skills, an upper limit on the size of a threatened species population is imposed by the availability of suitable habitat. Conversely, for species that are able to utilise farmland and grassland environ- ments, these landscape changes have led to an increased amount of habitat. Native species such as Crested Pigeon Ocyphaps lophotes and Galah Cacatua roseicapilla, have had the opportunity to expand their Tanges or increase population sizes. Introduced species, such as European Rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus, Brown Hare Lepus capensis, Common Starling Sturnis vulgaris and European Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis have also benefited from these changes. Location of remnant natural habitats A striking difference in the location of remaining forest habitats relates to land tenure: by far the greatest amount of natural vegetation is on public lands, In the Benalla region, for example, 85% of remaining forests are on public land compared to 15% on privately owned land, although private land comprises 87% of the total area (Woodgate and Black 1988). Clearly, public lands must be a primary focus for conservation strategies. This does not imply that forests and woodlands on private lands are not important: they have a Critical role where they support habitats that are poorly reserved on public land, they may form valuable corridor links through the landscape, and they are Vol. 110 (1) 1993 essential if we are to maintain populations of wildlife throughout their natural ranges. The loss of forests has not been uniform throughout the environment. There has been a selective loss from those areas that have the most fertile soils and are most amenable to agriculture (Newman 1961). In particular, there has been a dispropor- tionate loss of forests and woodlands on the plains, and from the lower slopes and fertile stream valleys. Forests that remain are located mainly on rocky areas, upper slopes, poorer soils, or alluvial floodplains that are subject to periodic inundation. This selective loss has resulted in a greater impact on those components of the fauna that depend on these habitats. Box woodlands dominated by Grey Box, Yellow Box and White Box, for example, have been severely depleted and those remaining have generally been degraded and disturbed. It is not surprising, then, that a number of species that utilised these habitats are now extinct or regarded as threatened (e.g. Bush Thick-knee Burhinus magnirostris, Squirrel Glider Petaurus norfolcensis, Brush-tailed Phascogale Phascogale tapoatafa). Species that utilise these habitats on a seasonal basis are also affected. Yellow Box and White Box are important food sources for nectarivorous birds, such as the Regent Honeyeater Xanthomyza phrygia (Webster and Menkhorst 1992), that move between habitats on a seasonal basis. Selective loss of forests may deplete a food resource at a critical time of year and contribute to local or regional population declines. Recent research in forests of south- eastern Australia has highlighted the importance of patterns of soil fertility. Sites with fertile soils tend to have higher productivity, higher foliage nutrient levels, and a greater diversity and abundance of certain animal species (e.g. Braithwaite er al. 1983, 1989). Forests and woodlands on fertile soils are those habitats that were most rapidly cleared for agriculture in the Box and Ironbark belt, leaving little associated vegetation for wildlife. Thus, not only has there been extensive loss of habitats, but clearing has been selective and 17 those that have been lost may have supported the greatest diversity and abundance of wildlife. How the remaining habitats are distributed Box and Ironbark forests now exist as a mosaic of patches and strips of varying size, shape and isolation, across the landscape. The largest blocks generally occur on the slopes and foothills, while remnant forests on the plains are primarily small scattered blocks or linear strips along toads and watercourses. Size and shape of remnants have been shown to be important influences on fauna, Size has consistently been identified as a significant correlate of the number of species present in remnant habitats in Australia (Kitchener ef a/. 1980; Suckling 1982; Bennett 1987; Loyn 1987). With increasing size of remnants an increasing number of species are present. For example, Caughley and Gall (1985) documented a significant relationship between the number of species of reptiles and frogs in nature reserves and State forests in the south-west slopes of NSW and the size of those forests. Size also influences the composition of the fauna that inhabits remnants. Some species are ‘generalists’ that are able to utilise a range of areas, while others are restricted mainly to larger remnants. Species with ‘specialist’ requirements for food or habitat are preferentially lost as habitats are reduced in size (Humphreys and Kitchener 1982). The shape of the remnant vegetation is also important. Linear strips such as roadsides and creekside vegetation, can become ‘edge’ habitats that may be unsuitable for forest-dependent species. A simple summary is presented in Table 1 of species of birds that occurred most frequently at a comparable series of census plots in Grey Box forest on roadsides and in forest blocks in northern Victoria (Bennett unpubl. data). The difference is striking — only one species (Willie Wagtail Rhipidura leucophrys) had a_ high frequency of occurrence in both landscape elements. Many of the commonly- occurring birds on roadsides are species that forage in farmland (eg. Australian Magpie Gymnorhina_ tibicens, Galah, Eastern Rosella Platycercus eximius). These patterns of distribution mean that for many species in fragmented landscapes, the amount of suitable habitat may be much less than that apparently present to the casual observer. A false impression of how much habitat remains can easily be gained. For example, in the Northern Plains of Victoria where remaining Box woodlands are mostly linear strips, the amount of suitable habitat for species such as Hooded Robin Melanodryas cucullata, Western Gerygone Gerygone fusca and Buff-rumped Thornbill Acanthiza Table 1. Commonly occurring birds in Grey Box forests on roadsides and in forest blocks in northern Victoria, (Species that were recorded from four or more 1.0 ha sites, censused twice in spring 1991, are listed in decreasing frequency of occurrence.) ROADSIDES (n=11) Species BLOCKS (n=11) Sites Species Sites Australian Magpie 10 Striated Pardalote Yellow-rumped Thornbill Brown-headed Honeyeater ' . 8 Noisy Miner 7 Willie Wagtail 6 Eastern Rosella 4 Galah 4 4 4 Black-faced Cuckoo-shrike 18 White-plumed Honeyeater Willie Wagtail Jacky Winter Brown Treecreeper White-browned Woodswallow Dusky Woodswallow Rufous Whistler Grey Fantail White-winged Chough BHF HKRUUUD SO Victorian Nat. reguloides that require forest blocks, is extremely small. Conversely, for species such as Noisy Miner Manorina melanocephala, Red-rumped Parrot Psephotus haematonotus and Eastern Grey Kangaroo Macropus giganteus that thrive in edge habitats, substantial areas of habitat are still available. Isolation is an important consequence of the fragmented pattern of remnant vegetation. Expanses of farm paddocks are barriers to the movement of many animals that depend on forest vegetation. Small animals with low mobility (eg. reptiles, small mammals, spiders) are particularly vulnerable to habitat isolation, and the local extinction of many small, isolated populations will inevitably continue. Corridors or ‘stepping stones’ of natural vegetation may facilitate population continuity between otherwise isolated habitats, by providing links of suitable habitat through the inhospitable environment (Bennett 1990), At Barmah Forest, Victoria, the Superb Parrot Polytelis swainsonii nests in large River Red Gums in the forest, and feeds in remnant Box woodlands in nearby farmland. These birds regularly use forested roadside corridors as a pathway for flight between habitats, instead of flying across open paddocks (Webster 1988). Ecological processes in remnant forests can be disrupted or altered when key plants or animals disappear, or when environ- mental conditions are altered. We know little about the essential components of processes such as seed dispersal, polli- nation, predator-prey relationships, and nutrient cycling, or the implications of the breakdown of these processes in remnants. The loss of basic ecological processes can have far-reaching effects on the health and stability of ecosystems. Defoliation and dieback of eucalypts, for example, can have profound effects on rural environments (Beckmann 1990; Landsberg ef a/. 1990). Dieback is generally more severe for isolated trees or small remnants amongst pasture, than for larger protected blocks, Vol. 110 (1) 1993 Changes to temporal patterns in the landscape Changes to time-related processes in the landscape also have implications for biological conservation. Changes to the age structure of forests Older trees provide important resources for wildlife populations in Box and Ironbark forests. Tree hollows, which characteristically do not develop until trees reach older stages, are required for shelter and breeding sites by a range of animals such as parrots, cockatoos, owls, possums, gliders and bats. Large old trees may have heavier flowering and nectar flows, and may also be important for their foliage density and mistletoe infestations. The age structure of Box and Ironbark forests and the relative proportions of older and younger trees show marked variation through the landscape. In Victoria, forests on public land are biased towards younger age classes; the old trees are scarce after a history of felling for mining timbers and forest products. Comparisons of the fauna in forests of different age structures show that animal species that depend on tree hollows are greatly reduced in number, or are absent, from stands where old trees and hollows are scarce (Meredith 1984; Traill 1992). In contrast, remnants and isolated trees on private land are frequently biased towards older age-classes. In these situations it is the lack of regeneration that is of concern. Unless opportunities for regeneration are provided, profound changes to the rural landscape can be expected as these older trees senesce and die, and tree cover is lost. Roadside strips of vegetation are often valuable as stands in which both older and younger age classes are represented. Rates of land degradation The visible effects of land degradation (soil erosion, weed infestation, salination of land and water) and its impact on primary production has been a major stimulus for the growth of the LandCare movement in Victoria and throughout 19 Australia. Time-related processes such as the compaction of soils, the loss of topsoil layers, the erosion of slopes and stream channels, the rise of saline groundwater, and the salination of streams and wetlands, are all degrading processes that have accelerated over the last 150 years of agricultural settlement. Their effects are far from trivial, because soils and water are basic elements in the sustainability of ecological processes upon which all living things depend. Unless these processes are halted and reversed, farmland will continue to go out of production, and natural ecosystems will continue to be degraded. Introduction of new species to the landscape A third major type of change to Box and Ironbark forests is the introduction of new elements into the flora and fauna. Introduced herbivores (e.g, sheep, cattle, rabbits, hares) and their impacts on natural habitats were probably responsible for the first wave of population decline and regional extinction in the fauna of the inland slopes and plains from the 1860's onwards. Medium-sized mammals in the ‘critical weight range’ of 3500-5500 g (Burbidge and McKenzie 1989) have been the most vulnerable; species such as the Rufous Bettong Aepyprymnus rufescens, Bridled Nail-tail Wallaby Onychogalea JSraenata and White-footed Rabbit Rat Conilurus albipes. Introduced herbivores continue to degrade natural habitats and limit regeneration. There is a critical need for research to clearly define these impacts and for active Management to prevent te degradation, especially on public ands, The introduced carnivores, Fox Vulpes vulpes and Cat Felis catus, are known to be effective Predators of native fauna, and are ane * nl their greatest impact on sround-dwelling or ground-nest; animals, Other j 3 wien potential competitors with native fauna. Common Starlings, for example, compete hollows, 20 Large numbers of introduced plant species are present in the Box and Ironbark forest regions, and now comprise a substantial percentage of regional floras (e.g. 319/1103 species in north-central Victoria, Beauglehole 1980). Introduced grasses and legumes are the basis of agriculture on private land, but unfortunately many of these introduced plants also invade and degrade natural ecosystems, Landscape perspectives for conservation and management An important contribution of a landscape perspective to conservation is its emphasis on planning and management at the level of whole landscapes that typically comprise areas of different land-use and varying habitat quality. Some of the implications of this approach to the management and conservation of fauna in Box and Ironbark forests are discussed below, Conservation and management of threatened species An understanding of the consequences for animals of landscape pattern and landscape change can complement knowledge of a species’ biology to provide an appreciation of its conservation status and causes of decline, Together, these approaches may also facilitate the prediction of those species that are likely to become threatened in the future. For example, Table 2 lists several groups of animal species that utilise Box and Ironbark forests whose conservation status Warrants concern. Each group is affected by at least three main types of landscape change. A landscape approach also emphasises different types of questions that need to be addressed at both the research and Management phrases of wildlife conservation. For example, which parts of the landscape mosaic does a particular species use? Do certain parts of the landscape have a higher abundance and diversity of wildlife? What is the spatial Pattern and size of species’ populations? How easily can a species move between the Victorian Nat. different habitats that it uses? What are the long-term effects of changes to the availability of resources that a species requires? Time-related processes and management Changes to time-related processes are less obvious than changes to the spatial pattern of habitats, but their long-term effects may be equally severe. There are several important implications. Firstly, there is a time-lag in experiencing the full effects of past changes. The lack of tree regeneration in farmland, for example, will not be fully experienced for many decades until veteran trees collapse and die, and woodland cover disappears. Secondly, the measures that are implemented now to arrest land degradation and enhance conservation may require many years to take effect, and species will continue to decline in the meantime. For example, the cessation of timber harvesting in an Ironbark forest will not result in an immediate increase in the availability of tree hollows - it will take decades for such management actions to have an appreciable effect. Thirdly, it is essential that land managers and the community appreciate that the decline and extinction of wildlife species is a process, not a sudden event. Typically, this process might involve a widespread species becoming uncommon within a restricted range, then declining further to scarce localised populations, then to rare sightings, and finally local extinction. The decline of the Grey-crowned Babbler in parts of its range in Victoria (Schulz 1991) is an example of such a process (Fig. 1). This species has disappeared from south- western Victoria, and its status in the area north of Melbourne and on the Mornington Peninsula is precarious. Populations in the Wimmera and lower Murray Valley have also declined. We must learn to recognise the symptoms of decline, and to act before species reach crisis situations. An integrated approach to management and conservation Box and Ironbark forests are now largely remnants within the wider rural environment in south-eastern Australia. If we are to pursue a national goal of Table 2. Examples of groups of species of potentially threatened conservation status in box and ironbark forests and major landscape changes that affect their populations. Species group Examples of species Landscape changes with major impacts Hollow-dependent species that Powerful Owl Reduction in total area of habitat require large areas Barking Owl Reduction in size of remnants Squirrel Glider Change in forest age-structure Brush-tailed Phascogale (loss of hollows) Australian Owlet-nightjar Mobile species that utilise Little Lorikeet Reduction in total area of habitat resources in different locations Superb Parrot Selective loss of important habitats Swift Parrot Isolation of habitats Regent Honeyeater Painted Honeyeater Mistletoebird Forest-dependent species that Hooded Robin Selective and extensive habitat. loss forage and nest on the Southern Whiteface Degradation of soils and ground ground, or live in or on the Bush Thick-knee vegetation ground, Woodland Blind Snake Introduced predators Bandy Bandy RO — — Vol. 110 (1) 1993 21 ecologically sustainable development, then both sustainable agricultural production and sustainability of our flora and fauna are necessary and important goals in these environments, The challenge is to develop an integrated approach to landscape management that encompasses both of these goals. A landscape perspective emphasises the integration of natural resource manage- ment across the whole landscape, rather than being focussed on selected areas (e.g. conservation reserves on public land) to the exclusion of all others. This is especially relevant to the fragmented landscapes that are typical of rural environments in Australia (Hobbs ef ai. in press). For example, large areas of natural vegetation are of great importance for wildlife conservation, but often all that persists in the rural environment are small remnants of various shapes and sizes on both private and public land. Management of these remnants as systems of habitat across the landscape will maximise their value for the conservation of biodiversity, while also maintaining their contribution to the ecological health and sustainability of the rural environment. Acknowledgements I thank Lindy Lumsden for useful comments on the manuscript. References Baker-Gabb, D. (1991). ‘List of threatened fauna in Victoria in 199P. (Department of Conservation and Environment: Victoria.) Beauglehole, A.C. (1980). ‘Victorian Vascular Plant Checklists’. (Western Victorian Field Naturalists Clubs Association: Portland.) Beckmann, R. (1989/90). Rural dieback: restoring a balance. Ecos 62: 8-15. -— Grey-crowned Babbler m since 1980 + before 1980 149 Source: Auas of Victorian Wildlife Victorian Nat. Bennett, A.F. (1987). Conservation of mammals within a fragmented forest environment: the contributions of insular biogeography and autecology. Jn ‘Nature Conservation; The Role of Remnants of Native Vegetation’. Eds. D.A. Saunders, GW. Arnold, A.A. Burbidge and A.J.M. Hopkins. pp. 41-52 (Surrey Beatty: Sydney). Bennett, A.F. (1990). ‘Habitat Corridors: Their Role in Wildlife Management and Conservation! (Department of Conservation and Environment: Melbourne). Braithwaite, LW., Austin, M.P., Clayton, M,, Turner, J. and Nicholls, A.O, (1989). On predicting the presence of birds in Eucalyptus forest types. Biological Conservation 50: 33-50. Braithwaite, L\W., Dudzinski, M.L. and Turner, J. (1983). Studies on the arboreal marsupial fauna of eucalypt forests being harvested for woodpulp at Eden, New South Wales I. Relationship between the fauna density, richness and diversity, and measured variables of habitat, Australian Wildlife Research 10; 231-47. Burbidge, A.A. and McKenzie N.L. (1989). Patterns in the modern decline of Western Australia’s vertebrate fauna: causes and conservation implications. Biological Conservation 50: 143-98. Caughley, J. and Gall, B. (1985). Relevance of zoogeographical transition to conservation of fauna: amphibians and reptiles in the south-western slopes of New South Wales. Australian Zoologist 21: 513-29. Forman, RT. and Godron, M. (1986). ‘Landscape Ecology: (John Wiley & Sons: New York.) Frood, D, and Calder, M. (1987). ‘Nature Conservation in Victoria. Study Report Volumes 1 & 2! (Victorian National Parks Association: Melbourne.) Hansson, L. and Angelstam, P. (1991). Landscape ecology as a theoretical basis for nature conservation. Landscape Ecology 5: 201, Harris, L.D. (1984). ‘The Fragmented Forest. Island Biogeographic Theory and the Preservation of Biotic Diversity: (University of Chicago Press: London.) Hobbs, R.J., Saunders, D.A. and Arnold, GW. (in press). Integrated landscape ecology: a Western Australian perspective. Biological Conservation Humphreys, W.F. and Kitchener, D.J. (1982). The effect of habitat utilization on species-area curves: implications for optimal reserve design. Journal of Biogeography 9: 391-6. Kitchener, D.J., Chapman, A., Dell, J., Muir, BG. and Palmer, M. (1990). Lizard assemblage and reserve size and structure in the Western Australian wheatbelt — some implications for conservation. Biological Conservation 18: 179-207, Land Conservation Council (1978), ‘Report on the North Central Study Area’? (Land Conservation Council: Melbourne.) Land Conservation Council (1983), ‘Report on the Murray Valley Area’ (Land Conservation Council: Melbourne.) Vol. 110 (1) 1993 Land Conservation Council (1984), ‘Report on the North eastern Area (Benalla-Upper Murray) Review. (Land Conservation Council: Melbourne.) Landsbergh, J., Morse, J. and Khanna, P. (1990). Tree dieback and insect dynamics in remnants of native woodlands on farms. Proceedings of the Ecological Society of Australia 16: 149-65, Loyn, R.H. (1987). Effects of patch area and habitat on bird abundances, species numbers and tree health in fragmented Victorian forests, Jn ‘Nature Conservation: The Role of Remnants of Native Vegetation’. Eds, D.A. Saunders, GW. Arnold, A.A. Burbidge and A.J.M. Hopkins. pp. 65-77 (Surrey Beatty: Sydney). Marlow, B.J. (1958). A survey of the marsupials of New South Wales. CSIRO Wildlife Research 3: 71-114. Meredith, CW. (1984). Possums or poles? — the effects of silvicultural management on the possums of Chiltern State Park, northeast Victoria. Jn ‘Possums and Gliders’, Eds. A.P. Smith and LD. Hume. pp. 575-7. (Australian Mammal Society: Sydney). Newman, L.A, (1961). The Box-lronbark forests of Victoria. Forests Commission Victoria, Bulletin 14. Noss, R.F, and Harris, L.D. (1986), Nodes, networks and MUMS: preserving diversity at all scales. Environmental Management 10: 299-309, Saunders, D.A. (1990). The landscape approach to conservation: community involvement, the only practical solution, Australian Zoologist 26: 49-53. Schulz, M. (1991). The Grey-crowned Babbler Pomatostomus temporalis - a cause for concern in southern Victoria. Australian Bird Watcher 14: 37-43. Suckling, G.C. (1982). Value of preserved habitat for mammal conservation in plantations. Australian Forestry 45: 19-27, Traill, B,J. (1992). Box-lronbark forests: tree hollows, wildlife and management. Jn ‘Conservation of Australia’s Forest Fauna’. Ed. D. Lunney pp. 119-23. (Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales: Sydney). Webster, R. (1988). The Superb Parrot. A survey of the breeding distribution and habitat requirements. ANPWS Report Series No, 12. Webster, R. and Menkhorst, P, (1992). The Regent Honeyeater (Xanthomyza phrygia): population status and ecology in Victoria and New South Wales. Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research Technical Report Series No. 126. (Department of Conservation and Environment, Victoria.) Woodgate, P. and Black, P. (1988), ‘Forest Cover Changes in Victoria 1869-1987! (Department of Conservation, Forests and Lands: Victoria.) 23 Conservation of Remnant Vegetation in the Box and Ironbark Lands of New South Wales Dominic Sivertsen* Introduction Pc Box and Ironbark communities cover over 90% of New South Wales. A plot of the known distributions of the commonest and most widespread Ironbark and Box species in NSW (Eucalyptus crebra, E. Sibrosa, E, melanophloia, E. sideroxylon, E. populnea, E. largiflorens, E. intertexta, E. microcarpa, E. conica and E. melliodora), shows that only the north-west and the south-east corners of the State lack these communities (Fig. 1). In this paper it is the overlap zone between Box and Ironbark species, as they occur west of the great divide (Fig, 2), comprising about one third the area of NSW, which will be discussed; i.e. the Box and Ironbark lands. The NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service currently has three broad-scale vegetation inventory and mapping programmes underway in this region, namely, the Northern Wheatbelt (NWB), the Southern Wheatbelt (SWB), and the Pilliga Nature Reserve (Fig. 3), Within this area are many vegetation communities other than Box and Ironbark woodlands. They include: Brigalow (Acacia harpophylla) lands in the north; Boree (Acacia pendula) communities throughout; native grasslands; and wetland, Belah, and riparian communities to name but a few, These communities, and their component plants and animals, do not occur in isolation but as a network; and as conservationists and land managers, our challenge in the future is the conservation of this complex mosaic, In this paper I intend to explore the Processes of change, their effects on biodiversity and their implications for Conservation in the Box and Ironbark lands of NSW. * NSW National Parks and Wildlife Servi ice, P.O, Box 1967, Hurstville, NSW, 2122, 24 ieee uae SSE wey TA % ve SU ates oe box ostreuTION f OVERLAP ZONE PoNaarK osTRUBLTION [=] + Fe Figure 1. Distribution of common Box and Ironbark Species in NSW, (After Brooker and Kleinig, 1983) pees coo -- ( ! } 1 | ' i 1 | \ | \ \ L os ‘ Wey Se ee | Figure 2. The Box and Ironbark Lands of NSW; The overlap Zone between box and ironbark Species west of the Great Divide. we vag: a, —— SOUTHERN WHEATBELT 4 NORTHERN | Pil vmeataety| | ed | Figure 3, NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service Vegetation Surveys current in the Box and Ironbark lands, Victorian Nat. Processes of change A number of processes in this part of New South Wales have considerably changed the Box and Ironbark lands. In order to adequately manage these communities, and the species they contain, we must identify these processes and their effects. Clearing Clearing of native vegetation is producing the greatest change in the Box and Ironbark lands of NSW. This region is the main cereal producing part of the State and has been subject to extensive clearing since European settlement, this has resulted in widespread habitat loss and fragmentation. Estimates of clearing vary, however, between 70% and 95% of the original native tree and shrub vegetation has been cleared since the mid 1800's (Murray Darling Basin Ministerial Council 1987). Duggan and Allison (1984) describe a similar trend in native grasslands of the Liverpool Plains. Clearing has also led to severe fragmentation of the remaining native vegetation. Many remnants are small and isolated or joined by narrow corridors. The bulk of these corridors are road verges, road reserves and river-bank remnants. Soule and Gilpin (1991) suggest that the ecological hazards associated with such narrow corridors can mean that they are a net liability for the survival of some species. This is particularly true in corridors containing functioning roads with the additional hazard of road-kills. The lesson here is not to reject corridors, but to assess their utility for species known to occur in the area. For example, a bird such as the Regent Honeyeater (Xanthomyza phrygia) may successfully utilize a narrow corridor of trees with disjunct canopy and no understorey, as long as the tree species are favourable. On the other hand, the same corridor may present insurmountable barriers or unacceptable risks to species such as the White Winged Wren (Malurus leuctopterus), which requires dense shrubs, or to a small mammal like the Yellow- footed Antechinus (Anthechinus flavipes) Vol. 110 (1) 1993 which requires low shrubs and tussock grasses. Clearing is an ongoing process. As an indication of contemporary clearing rates, Fig. 4 shows the reduction in woody vegetation cover of all types on the Condobolin 1:100,000 sheet between 1974 and 1989. Clearing has taken this vegetation cover from about 94,000 ha in 1974 to 36,600 ha in 1989; a reduction of 57,400 ha or 61% in 15 years. This is a clearing rate of about 3,800 ha per year. Clearing means the total destruction of habitat for most native plants and animals. Although stating the obvious, we must realise that preconceived notions of natural distributions of species may no longer apply; the potential distributions of species in the Box and Ironbark lands have been significantly and, apparently permanently, changed. Fragmentation and isolation cause profound changes in remnant vegetation. Changes to microclimate i.e. the radiation balance, wind effects and water balance result from fragmentation and, together with time since isolation, distance from Figure 4. Native, woody vegetation of the Condobolin 1:100,000 scale map in 1974 and what remains in 1989 other remnants, size and degree of connectivity will greatly influence species survival in those remnants (Saunders ef a/ 1991). For example, such changes: affect the dispersal and reproductive patterns of many plant species (Hobbs 1987); have contributed to the decline in Carnaby’s Cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus funereus latirostris) in the Western Australian wheatbelt whilst the numbers and breeding success of Galahs (Cacatua roseicapilla) have increased (Saunders and Ingram 1987); have contributed to the decline in the Regent Honeyeater (Franklin et a/ 1989) and the Superb Parrot (Polytelis Swainsonii) (Webster 1988) in eastern Australia; and have brought about decline in invertebrates such as the Chekerspot butterfly (Euphydryas editha) from native grassland remnants in California (Ehrlich and Murphy 1987; Ehrlich 1992), A review of the literature will reveal similar trends world-wide and in all taxonomic groups. Grazing Grazing by domestic stock such as sheep (Ovis aries) and cattle (Bos taurus) and feral grazers such as goats (Capra hircus) and rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) has affected change in the Box and Ironbark lands of NSW. The effects of grazing are, perhaps, more subtle than those of clearing but they are just as important in the survival of many species. Grazing has extensively altered the native grass, shrub and small tree components of native vegetation (Denny 1987 cited in Benson 1991). Some plant extinctions are directly attributable to the effects of grazing (Benson 1991), In the north of the Box and Ironbark lands grazing has caused a rapid decline in tall grasses (e.g. Themeda australis) followed by a slower decline in shorter native grasses and an Mecrease in unpalatable shrubs, In the 26 Adamson and Fox 1982 for a review), The trend in the north is supported by recent work of Grice and Barchia (1992) and is also supported by NPWS work in the wheatbelt. About 89% of the 1200 sites described in the northern and southern wheatbelt surveys show evidence of grazing in the form of sheep, goat and/or rabbit faeces. These sites tend to contain few native perennial grasses or palatable shrubs. However, they do often support shrub layers of unpalatable species. By contrast other sites with low grazing pressure; for example verges of minor roads and fenced off hill-tops, commonly have a diverse shrub and/or tall native grass layer. Grazing not only removes adult plants, it also inhibits recruitment of many species. There are no juvenile palatable woody species in most sites in the NPWS wheatbelt study areas. In some instances there is abundant post-disturbance recruitment but the overwhelming trend is for there to be little recruitment amongst most tree and shrub species, However, not all plant species suffer decline under grazing regimes; the most notable exceptions are those that are poisonous and unpalatable to stock, many of which have become known as woody weeds (eg. Budda, Eremophila mitchellii, and Deans Wattle, Acacia deanii). Grazing by hard-hoofed animals has also altered soil conditions considerably, Compaction and loss of the original soil surface (60% of the wheatbelt sites showed obvious signs of erosion) affects the habitat availability for many small, ground- dwelling mammals and reptiles. Soil compaction alters water penetration Tegimes, soil moisture holding capacity and runoff; all of which will ultimately affect the survival of species locally and the quality of ground-water in connected aquifers (see Saunders ef al 1991; Adamson and Fox 1982). _ Hence grazing, like clearing, has Significantly affected the Box and Ironbark lands of NSW, the plant and animal species mu contain and the processes that support em, Victorian Nat. Other processes State Forests comprise the largest remnants of natural vegetation in this part of NSW and, although they provide important habitat and refuge for many species, they often comprise considerably altered habitat regimes, Most are grazed by either domestic stock or goats and hence, have had their understories altered as described previously. Ironbark species have been selectively logged and, particularly in the west, Box species have been removed to encourage recruitment of the more commercially viable White Cypress Pine (Callitris glaucophylla) thus altering the canopy composition dramatically. Hence, although very important, State Forests cannot be equated with unaltered habitat. Native biota will react to these changes in different ways, some will be disadvantaged and decline or disappear whilst others will prosper. Urbanization, construction of infrastructure (roads, railways, power lines etc), regulation and management of waterways and the introduction of exotic plants and animals have altered the communities of the Box and Ironbark lands of NSW, favouring some species and causing decline in others. The effects of these processes are cumulative. About 90% of the sites described in our wheatbelt studies have been extensively altered, In mapping remnants it is often difficult to determine what should, and what should not, be included. For example, in many sites Poplar Box (Eucalyptus populnea) was found as the canopy species (although this has been thinned as evidenced by stumps and ringbarked trees) with no other native species present! Ground cover consisted solely of introduced pasture species and weeds. Briggs and Leigh (1988) list some 70 plant species as being rare and/or vulnerable or extinct for this part of NSW (regions 49, 50, 51 and 52 in that reference). In describing 898 sites in the NWB and 290 in the SWB only 7 of these species were found, thus supporting their listing. However, many native species in these Vol. 110 (1) 1993 studies, other than those listed by Briggs and Leigh, only occurred once or twice; 319 species in the NWB and 207 in the SWB; an average of 41% of the total species found fall into this category. Allowing for edge effects, the cyclic nature of many understorey species (Fox 1990), the natural sparsity of some taxa and for some misidentifications, this suggests that many more species than the 70 listed by Briggs and Leigh (1988) may be rare, endangered or at least in decline in the region. Many communities in the Box and Ironbark lands fall into the ‘extremely altered’ category. Figures derived from our wheatbelt data suggest that whilst the canopy species in these communities may not appear to be at risk at the present time, the communities they characterise most certainly are. The long-term prognosis for canopy species such as Eucalyptus populnea and E. sideroxylon may not be good, however. Adamson and Fox (1982) suggest that decline in these long-lived species is likely. Again, the wheatbelt work supports this concept given the lack of recruitment of canopy species over much of the study area. These trends of declining species are attributable to the cumulative effects of the processes already discussed. Conserving what remains “Tt is reasonable to suggest that something like half of all terrestrial species are likely to become extinct over the next 50 years, if current trends persist? (May in press, cited in Ulfstrand 1992). This alarming global trend seems true for the Box and Ironbark lands as evidenced by the wheatbelt data presented above. For whatever reasons, good or bad, we find ourselves with a small, fragmented and highly altered remnant of the original Box and Ironbark lands to manage. Our challenge is to manage, not just species or plant communities but a system which contains native flora and fauna assemblages, pasture and farming lands, feral animals and exotic plants, towns and cities. Part of this challenge is to conserve, not only native life-forms but the processes 27 which support them (Western 1992). Western (1992) argues that, as scientists, we must begin to bring together autecological research and broad scale inventory and survey to better understand the dynamics of whole ecosystems and thus begin to assess the conservation and management needs of those ecosystems. Many legislative tools are available in NSW for the conservation and protection of lands. Reservation is an option under the National Parks and Wildlife Act, the Crown Lands Act and the Forestry Act. Provisions exist under our Planning legislation for the formulation of State Environmental Planning Policies (which in effect control development on designated lands) and Local Environmental Plans which can assist Local Governments to protect land for conservation. Another mechanism for the control of development and land-use in rural New South Wales is the ‘environmentally sensitive lands’ classification of the Soil Conservation Act. Other legislative tools include endangered species legislation, covenants under the Land Titles Act and conservation agree- ments under the National Parks and Wildlife Act. All of these will form the backbone of Government initiatives to conserve our natural environments. However, in this paper I have tried to show that the conservation challenge is both urgent and vast. No matter how good the legislation, it can never cover all conservation issues, and legislative tools are often difficult and expensive to apply, Legislation cannot Succeed without the active support of the human community. The conservation, revegetation and landscape reconstruction required are far beyond the resources of government agencies and have become a community Tesponsibility (Saunders in Press). Community based initiatives such “ aes ues on Farms and Save the this ‘ pottras incon! cla sedi ies Must become an integral part of an ongoing exchange of information among land-owners, land 28 managers, conservationists and ecologists, If we cannot conserve the remaining native biota and processes of the Box and Ironbark lands, then what hope can we hold out for the continued survival of the rural and urban components of the region? The loss of the native biota with the attendant degradation of soil and water; the microclimatic changes; and the increased possibility of disease and pest outbreaks may well bring about the demise of the rural, and eventually the urban, components of this system. The final extinction of the Box and Ironbark lands, which is what we face if current trends continue, will be a loss to the whole community. Their conservation presents a challenge to the whole community: to biologists who must provide sound and broad-scale insights before time runs out; to land managers, public and private, to work with broad strategies; to local communities whose active support is vital in meeting this challenge; and to conservationists, who probably already fall into one of these categories but who have a special role to play in keeping the momentum going. There is no easy and convenient recipe to follow for conserving remnant vegetation in the Box and Ironbark lands of New South Wales. However, the task is not impossible if we can work together to develop the broad-based Strategies needed to accomplish the task. Acknowledgements I gratefully acknowledge Common- wealth financial support for my wheatbelt projects: States’ Assistance (NWB) and Save the Bush (SWB). Bob Pressey, Richard Kingsford, Elizabeth Ashby, Ross Bradstock and Dan Lunney all offered valuable criticism and suggestions on the manuscript; I thank Elizabeth Ashby and John Porter for their work in preparing the Figures. Victorian Nat. References Adamson, D.A., and Fox, M.D. (1982) Change in Australasian vegetation since European settlement. In ‘A History of Australasian Vegetation’. Ed. J.M.B. Smith. (McGraw Hill: Sydney.) 109-160. Benson, J.S. (1991). The effect of 200 years of European settlement on the vegetation and flora of New South Wales. Cunninghamia Vol 2. No. 3. Briggs, J.D. and Leigh, J.H. (1988). Rare or Threatened Australian Plants. (Special Publication No. 14. ANPWS: Canberra.) Brooker, M.I-H. and Kieinig, D.A. (1983). ‘Field Guide to Eucalypts’, Vol. 1. South-eastern Australia. (Inkata Press: Sydney and Melbourne). Denny, M. (1987). ‘Historical and ecological study of the effects of European settlement in inland New South Wales. Report to the NSW Nature Conservation Council and National Estate Committee of the Heritage Council of New South Wales. Nature Conservation Council, Sydney. Duggin, J.A. and Allison, P.N. (1984). “The Natural Grasslands of the Liverpool Plains, New South Wales’. Eds. 1. Sim and N. Urwin. (Department of Environment and Planning: Sydney.) Ehrlich, PR. (1992). Population biology of chekerspot butterflies and the preservation of global biodiversity. Oikos 63. No. 1. Erhlich, P.R. and Murphy, D.D. (1987). Monitoring populations on remnants of native vegetation. /n ‘Nature Conservation: the Role of Remnants of Native Vegetation’. (Surrey Beatty & Sons Pty. Ltd.: Sydney.) Fox, M.D. (1990). Composition and Richness of New South Wales Mallee. Jn ‘The Mallee Lands: a Conservation Perspective”. Eds, J.C. Noble, P.J. Joss and G.K. Jones. (CSIRO: Melbourne.) Franklin, D.C., Menkhorst, PW. and Robinson, J.L. (1988) Ecology of the Regent Honeyeaier Xanthomyza phrygia. Emu 89:140-145, Grice, A.C. and Barchia, I. (1992). Does grazing reduce survival of indigenous perennial grasses of the semi-arid woodlands of western New South Wales? Australian Journal of Ecology. 17:195-205. Hobbs, R.J. (1987). Disturbance regimes in remnants of natural vegetation. Jn ‘Nature Conservation; the Role of Remnants of Native Vegetation’. (Surrey Beatty & Sons Pty. Ltd.: Sydney.) May, R.M. (in press). Past efforts and future prospects towards understanding how many species there are. In 'Biological diversity and global change, a symposium at the 24th General Assembly of IUBS, Amsterdam’. Murray-Darling Basin Ministerial Council (1987). ‘Murray-Darling Basin Environmental Resources Study’. (SPCC: Sydney). Saunders, D.A. (in press). The effects of habitat reduction and fragmentation on the mammals and birds of the Western Australian central wheatbelt: lessons for western New South Wales. Jn ‘The future of the fauna of western New South Wales’. Eds. D. Lunney, S. Hand, P. Reed and D. Butcher. (Royal Zoological Society of NSW: Sydney), Saunders, D.A., Hobbs, R.J., and Margules, C.R. (1991) Biological consequences of ecosystem fragmentation, Conservation Biology 5:18-32. Saunders, D.A. and Ingram, J.A. (1987), Factors affecting survival of breeding populations of Carnaby’s Cockatoo Calyptorhynchus funereus latirostris in remnants of native vegetation, In ‘Nature Conservation; the Role of Remnants of Native Vegetation’, (Surrey Beatty & Sons Pty. Ltd.: Sydney.) Soule, M.E. and Gilpin, M.E, (1991). The theory of wildlife corridor capability. Jn ‘Nature Conservation 2, the Role of Corridors’. Surrey Beatty & Sons Pty. Ltd. Sydney. Ulfstrand, S. (1992). Biodiversity — how to reduce its decline. Oikos 63:. No. 1. Webster, R. (1988). The Superb Parrot; a survey of the breeding distribution and habitat requirements. Report Series 12, (Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service: Canberra). Western, D, (1992). The biodiversity crisis: a challenge for biology. Oikos 63. No. 1. Geology Group We are pleased to report that the Geology Group held a most successful meeting on Wednesday, 3rd February in the Herbarium Hall. There were 22 people present and a number of new faces were noted. along with former members. A committee was elected and a programme of meetings and activities is being arranged. Meetings will be held on the fourth Wednesday of each month in the Herbarium Hall, the next meeting being on the 24th March when Bob Dalgarno, Director Geological Survey of Victoria will speak on ‘An Introduction to the Geological Time Scale’. All Club members are invited to attend. Vol. 110 (1) 1993 Ed Grey, Hon. Sec. 29 The Ecology and Genetics of Remnant Grassy White Box Woodlands in Relation to their Conservation Suzanne M. Prober* and K. R. Thiele** Abstract ‘ The grassy woodlands dominated by White Box (Eucalyptus albens) originally covered vast areas of the wheat belt from northern Victoria to southern Queensland, but are now one of the most poorly conserved ecosystems in Australia. While White Box trees still remain abundantly scattered throughout the landscape, tree regeneration is limited and the native understorey community is very rare, either due to complete clearing for cropping, replacement by improving pasture, or altered floristic composition and weed invasion caused by livestock grazing. In- tensive searching on the central and south- west slopes of New South Wales has reveal- ed only three very small sites with both natural tree cover and a relatively unmodi- fied, natural understorey. Several other sites with natural understorey but few trees have also been found. A conservation profile for the woodlands is being developed through studies of floristic variation in the woodlands within NSW, and of genetic variation in White Box across its range. Preliminary results indicate that whilst both floristic and genetic diversity at a site are relatively high, differentiation among sites is low (except for floristic variation due to differing management history). Such a result would be advantageous for conservation planning, since few major geographical constraints would apply to reserve selection. Genetic studies also show a significant relationship between Population size and genetic diversity, thus aiding estimation of minimum population sizes for reserve design, Our surveys in southern NSW suggest that grazing by livestock leads to weed invasion, and to a gradual change in native species composition and diversity as * CSIRO Division of Plant Industry G.PO, Box 1600, Canberra, ACT, 2601 ** School of Botany, University i y of Parkyille, Vic, 3052 si arte 30 grazing levels increase. In particular, a suite of native species is lost very early along this continuum. Effects of other disturbance, especially burning regime, still require further study. A system for conservation of the grassy White Box woodlands, and other similarly fragmented ecosystems, is proposed. Introduction Eucalyptus albens Benth., or White Box, is the dominant tree in the box woodlands in the eastern part of the wheat-sheep belt of south-eastern Australia. As with other Box woodlands, the White Box woodlands once occupied vast areas of fertile country, but have now largely been cleared for cropping or modified by livestock grazing. The grassy White Box woodlands are classified as one of the most poorly conserved ecosystems in Australia (Specht et al. 1974). This paper summarizes the ecology, recent history and current status of the White Box woodlands, and presents preliminary results and recommendations from research directed towards a conservation strategy for these woodlands. Distribution and ecology White Box is widely distributed on the gently undulating or hilly country of the western slopes regions of New South Wales. In the north it reaches the southern Darling Downs in Queensland and it extends into northern Victoria in the south, A significant outlying occurrence is in the ranges around the upper Snowy River in Victoria, and there are a few minor Occurrences in western Victoria and near Melrose in the southern Flinder Ranges of South Australia (Boland ef al, 1985). _ The climate experienced in these regions 1S Mostly warm sub-humid. We used the BIOCLIM Climatic Database (Nix 1986) to describe the climatic envelope for White Box. Mean annual rainfall is generally between 500 mm and 800 mm, with a change from a slight summer maximum in the north to a slight winter maximum in Victorian Nat. the south. Mean maximum temperatures in the hottest month range from 27 to 32°C, and mean minimum temperatures in the coldest month range from 5 to -1°C. From 5 to 70 frosts may be experienced each year. Intolerance to heavier frosts may prevent the occurrence of White Box on the more elevated areas of the Tableland (Boland et al. 1985). White Box woodlands develop on deep, fertile soils derived from a wide variety of parent materials. In southern New South Wales they predominate on red and yellow podsolic and solodic soils derived from sedimentary and granite rocks, as well as on minor occurrences of reddish chocolate soils of basaltic origin and terra rossa soils derived from limestone. They are usually replaced by Grey Box (E. microcarpa) on the red-brown earths (Moore 1953a; Moore 1970). On the central and north west slopes they are known from podsolics and hard setting loams derived from acid volcanic and various sedimentary rocks, as well as limestone derived soils around Wellington. They can also develop on the deep black or red earths of basaltic origin, which predominate in areas such as the Inverell Plateau and the Darling Downs, and occur in scattered pockets elsewhere (Durham 1953; Moore 1953a; Biddiscombe 1963; Williams 1979). White Box communities typically form a tall or savannah woodland, with E. albens as the single dominant. Trees reach about 25 m in height and the canopy is never completely closed. Blakely’s Red Gum (E. blakelyi) and Yellow Box (E. melliodora) occur as occasional trees, increasing in abundance on lower slopes, and often becoming locally dominant along non-permanent watercourses or on the deeper soils of the valleys. Apple Box (E. bridgesiand) is a less common associate, confined to the best-watered sites (Moore 1953a). Other species can become codominant with the White Box either on less favourable or on ecotonal sites. In the higher rainfall parts to the east Red Stringybark (E. macrorhyncha) appears, whilst White Cypress Pine (Callitris Vol. 110 (1) 1993 glaucophylla) is often co- or subdominant on sandy soils largely to the west, but also in the Monaro and Snowy River regions to the east. Red Ironbark (E. sideroxylon), Hill Red Gum (E. dealbata) and Black Cypress Pine (Callitris endlicheri) can occur with White Box in steeper or rockier areas with shallow soils. Kurrajong (Brachychiton populneus) and, in the north, Rough Barked Apple (Angophora floribunda), may occur in areas of good soil drainage. Grey Box (E. microcarpa), Pilliga Box (E. pilligaensis) and Poplar Box (E. populneus) generally occur further west than White Box, but sometimes intermingle with it in ecotonal areas (Moore 1953a; Costin 1954; Williams 1979; Beadle 1981; Boland ef a/. 1985). The understorey of the White Box communities is generally dominated by grasses, with numerous herbs and few shrubs. Early explorers and naturalists of the region reported that the general aspect was parklike (Andrews 1920), and that the ground was dominated by ‘oat or forest grass’ (presumably Kangaroo Grass, Themeda triandra, Sturt 1833) or ‘covered with thick grass and gay flowers’ (Bennett 1834), Greater detail of the understorey in its pre-European condition is not to be found in their descriptions. The understorey today, where not entirely removed for cropping or improved pastures, is highly modified by sheep and cattle grazing. In 1920, Andrews reported that Kangaroo Grass was almost entirely extinct from the upper Murray region. Various studies describe changes in the dominant species of the pastures, typically from Themeda triandra, Stipa aristiglumis and Poa spp. to Stipa falcata and Danthonia species, through to short forms of Danthonia and eventually invasion by introduced annuals and the native Bothriochloa macra as grazing intensity increases (Moore 1953b; Moore (1970). In contrast, Williams (1979) reports a predominance of Bothriochloa macra on the loamy soils of the northern slopes region of New South Wales, and suggests that this was the natural dominant and is 31 not radically affected by grazing, On more marginal sites, usually with shallow or sandy soils, shrubs become more abundant in the understorey. Because of their occurrence on less desirable country, these shrubby woodlands have not been as greatly modified as the grassy woodlands, hence the grassy woodlands will be the main subject of this paper. History Before European settlement, light grazing by soft-footed marsupials and recurrent burning by aborigines were the major forms of disturbance which contributed to the structure and species composition of the White Box woodlands (Andrews 1920; Lodge and Whalley 1989). Andrews (1920, p.27), describing the upper Murray region of NSW and Victoria stated: "The natives were accustomed to burn it off almost every year and thereby prevented the heavy growth of young trees. That these frequent fires had the effect of keeping the country open was demonstrated in many parts. After settlement put an end to the practice, and the aborigines had died out, dense masses of scrub then took possession of large areas of yaluable country ..? It is also likely that, while frequent burning encouraged the dominance of Themeda triandra (Lodge and Whalley 1989), burning prevented formation ofa dense Themeda sward, allowing a high diversity of other herbs and grasses to co- occur (Stuwe and Parsons 1977), Europeans first encountered the White Box woodlands in 1817, when John Oxley explored the Lachlan and Macquarie River areas. On this trip, the type specimen of White Box was collected by Alan Cunningham, Later exploration, leading the way for settlement in the White Box country, included the discovery of the Upper Murray in 1924 by Hamilton Hume, and investigations in northern NSW by Thomas Mitchell in 1829 (Perry 1963). Settlement, bringing with it grazing by woe and cattle, began around 1825 in the ellington Valley and Mudgee areas. By 32 1829 settlement had spread to the Liverpool Plains in the north and Gundagai in the south (Perry 1963; Andrews 1920). Settlement and stock numbers increased steadily through the 1830s and 1840s and most of the White Box woodlands would have been settled to some degree by the end of this period (Andrews 1920; Barker 1987; Lodge and Whalley 1989). Consolidation of settlement occurred in the latter part of the nineteenth century. The gold rushes of the 1850s, then the expansion of railways, the granting of freeholds and the reduction in size of leaseholds in the 1880s, led to further clearing for cropping and more intensive grazing of the native pastures by livestock. Combined with the increasing numbers of rabbits and decreased fire frequency, changes in the original species composition of grazed lands were inevitable, Invasion by annual grasses such as Briza, Bromus, Vulpia and Hordeum are evident from as early as 1878 (Bentham 1878), After 1900, the most significant effects on the already modified understorey of the woodlands in southern and central NSW were the increasing use of superphosphate and the spread of subterranean clover (Peel 1973). This eventually led to the replacement of most native pastures with improved pastures of various introduced grasses and legumes. In the northern, summer rainfall areas, pasture improve- ment never became widespread, so even today natural pastures predominate on the north west slopes (Lodge and Whalley 1989). Current Status Land in areas of White Box woodland is predominantly under private freehold tenure, Given the difficulties of settling a hew country with few resources, it is not surprising that few areas of productive grassy woodland were fenced off in the early years to exclude grazing stock. Consequently, we know of no sites on private property which contain little- modified grassy White Box woodlands. Small areas of the woodlands were set aside for public use early in the history of Victorian Nat. settlement, and a few of these, including cemeteries, travelling stock routes and Teserves, railway easements and road reserves, still contain remnants of unmodified or less modified woodland. Travelling stock routes and road reserves are significant for their trees, often providing faunal habitat and allowing tree regeneration in a landscape generally with few or scattered trees. Understorey is variable, ranging from entirely weedy to, rarely, almost entirely native and unmodified by grazing. Railway easements and unused portions of cemeteries are commonly cleared of trees, but a few still contain little-modified understorey. The grassy White Box woodlands are extremely poorly represented in reserves. The few reserves that do contain grassy White Box woodlands were gazetted long after modification had already occurred. Exceptions include the Wongarbon Nature Reserve, which contains perhaps 0.3 ha of White Box with a natural grassy understorey, and the extensive but outlying example of White Box woodlands in the Snowy River National Park in north- eastern Victoria. After two seasons of survey in the woodlands on the south west slopes and on the central west slopes south of Molong, NSW, we estimate that less than 0.01% of the grassy White Box woodlands in this region remain relatively unmodified. We have found only three sites with both tree cover and native understorey relatively intact. The largest site (c. 10 ha) is in a cemetery near Cowra, another on a roadside strip about 10 m wide and 300 m long, and the third (c. 2 ha) in a travelling stock reserve. We have found six further sites with a relatively good-condition native understorey but with few or no trees remaining. Most of these are in cemeteries of small villages, and two are on railway easements. Current Research We are currently researching the ecology and genetics of the grassy White Box woodlands, in order to develop a conservation and management profile for them. Our initial aims have been to Vol. 110 (1) 1993 describe the distribution and variation of the woodlands, and to identify significant and valuable sites. Future aims are to make explicit recommendations for reserve selection and design, and to investigate Management options for maintaining existing sites, and rehabilitating partly- modified, moderately weed-invaded, sites. We are surveying the understorey of the White Box woodlands throughout New South Wales, using a sampling strategy which stratifies for climatic region, geological type and management history. We are studying the genetic (allozyme) diversity of White Box throughout its range. Preliminary results indicate that: (1) Floristic diversity at a site is generally high (up to 87 species or 63 native species in a 0.1 ha quadrat). Even extremely small remnants (0.1 ha) may have high numbers of native species, and be relatively free of weeds, if they have not been grazed by sheep or cattle. (2) Floristic variation between sites is generally low; that is, apart from the wide variation due to management history, there is little differentiation in floristics on differing soil and geological types, and in differing climatic regions. The only pattern apparent so far is a split between sites in the south (approximately south of Dubbo), and sites in the north, corresponding with predominantly winter and predominantly summer rainfall areas respectively (Fig. la), and with an increase in weed abundance in the south (Fig. 1b). The increased weed abundance in the south is likely to reflect the difference in pasture management between northern and southern areas (see above). Further floristic variation may yet be found on the black earths of northern NSW, which have not yet been adequately sampled. (3) In southern NSW, grazing by livestock leads to weed invasion, and to a gradual change in native species composition and diversity as grazing levels increase. A suite of native species, including the Australian Yam 33 ~ . Asie 2 . . (b) . e- Ass? Fig, 1. Ordination (using Nonmetric Multidimensional Scaling, Kruskal 1964) of 30 quadrats recorded from the grassy white box woodlands throughout New South Wales, showing the differentiation between sites north of Dubbo (bottom left) and sites south of Dubbo (top right). Size of circles indicates (a) mean rainfall of the hottest quarter and (b) weed abundance, Daisy (Microseris lanceolata), Twining Fringe Lily (Thysanotus patersoni), Leafy Templetonia (Templetonia stenophylla) and Purple Diuris (Diuris Punctata), are lost very early along this continuum. Native species diversity can initially increase with very light grazing, but then declines with higher levels of grazing, (4) Within the population the genetic diversity for White Box is higher than for any eucalypt previously examined (H, (unbiased expected panmictic heterozygosity) = 0.29, Prober and Brown in prep.). (5) Genetic differentiation between Populations is one of the lowest for eucalypts (5.7%), and there is no apparent Seographic pattern in relationships between the 25 Populations examined (Prober and Brown in prep.), 34 (6) There is a significant relationship between the number of trees in a remnant and the genetic diversity within its population (Fig. 2, Prober and Brown in prep.). Genetic diversity increases with an increasing popula- tion size up to c. 500 individuals (=20-50 ha of woodland), but thereafter shows little further increase up to population sizes of over 10,000 individuals. This number of c. 500 may reflect the number of individuals required to contain the diversity existent in original populations, or to avoid increased inbreeding after fragmentation. It is important to note that the sampled populations are only 1-2 generations beyond clearing, and so with more generations this critical figure may increase. A similar study for the Australian Yam Daisy, an important component of the original White Box understorey, is presently underway. Reserve design We see the results listed above as important in designing a reserve system for the grassy White Box woodlands. There are four important properties of these Heterozygosity 8000 0 2000 4000 6000 Population Size Fig. 2. Relationship between genetic diversity (unbiased expected panmictic heterozygosity) and population size for remnant white box populations, woodlands that affect reserve design. Firstly, the relative uniformity of the White Box understorey across the range of the woodlands, and the low genetic variation between populations of White Box, means that reserve selection is relatively unconstrained by floristic and genetic patterning. Rather, reserves selected on Victorian Nat. other criteria, such as availability, are likely to conserye much of the floristic and genetic variation of the woodlands, Secondly, high quality remnants (i.c., little modified sites with predominantly native species) are all relatively small (0.1 ha to 10 ha). Our studies suggest these still contain significant species diversity, and as no extensive and continuous areas of woodland remain intact, these small remnants are critical to the conservation of the woodlands. Furthermore, small areas appear to be able to resist major weed invasion, provided that they are not grazed, that there is no significant extraneous nutrient inputs (e.g. fertilizers leaching or broadcast from adjacent paddocks), that they are managed properly, and that the soil is not disturbed. Thirdly, there are very few high quality remnants. There is a larger number of lower quality sites (with a somewhat modified, weed-invaded understorey, but still a significant complement of native species). A selection of these lower-quality sites would be required as part of an effective reserve system. Finally, these sites are currently under a diversity of land-tenures, ranging from crown land controlled by local governments (e.g. cemeteries) and state public authorities (eg. rail and road easements, travelling stock reserves) to private freehold. Management practices applied by these diverse tenure-holders in the past have succeeded in preserving some remnants up to the present day. As long as management practices at sites do not change, there is no reason to believe that current managers will be unable to continue this into the future. Most nature reserves are relatively large, high quality, contiguous, and tenured to a single managing body. We believe that this model of reserve design is inappropriate for conserving the grassy White Box woodlands, and propose a new system that we believe to be more appropriate in this case. A series of small, high quality sites is available across the state, which, although widely separated, could form the core of a reserve system. On the south and central Vol. 110 (1) 1993 west slopes, however, these sites total no more than 40 ha, and would be inadequate alone. With the addition of other, lower- quality sites, the total area could be sufficient to provide a reasonable representation of the major floristic and genetic variation, especially if sites are selected from both northern and southern NSW. We propose that these sites be linked together by agreement into a single ‘Grassy White Box Woodlands Reserve’. We see no reason that tenure of all sites should be transferred to a single body. Rather, some day-to-day management could be provided by the current tenure-holders, with a management and policy umbrella provided by a central body, It may, however, be practical that tenure of the core areas be transferred to the central body, If tenures of other areas were to be transferred, they may be best vested in local LandCare groups, Friends groups, Boards of Management etc. We believe that this system would have several key advantages. It would encourage an integrated view of management (this would be difficult if every significant site were reserved in isolation). It would be flexible, allowing that other sites found to meet defined criteria could easily be added to the reserve system. It would allow some forms of landuse (eg. light grazing by travelling stock) to continue. It would allow some recognition to high quality sites even though they may be too small to be otherwise considered for reservation. Finally, it would allow significant and increasing local involvement and awareness. Nearly 20 years ago Specht et al. (1974) and Fenner (1975), recommended a national system of ecological reserves in Australia. Specht et a/. considered about half of Australia’s 1200 ecosystems as being adequately conserved. At the other extreme, they listed seven major Australian plant formations that are virtually absent from or poorly conserved in the network (Specht et al. 1974, Specht 1981). One of these is the woodland communities of the wheat belt areas of southern Australia, including the White Box woodlands. Many 35 of the other Box woodland types included in this group, share some or all of the properties of the White Box woodlands listed above. A ‘White Box Grassy Woodlands Reserve’ along the lines proposed above could form a model for more effectively conserving these other ecosystems. Woodland management Given their history of frequent burning by the aborigines, it is likely that woodlands require some form of active Management to maintain their pre- European character. Frequent burning, mowing and strategic grazing by livestock are the only practical methods available (Stuwe and Parsons 1977; Lunt 1991). High-quality sites forming the core of a Teserve system will need management to maintain their high species diversity. Since the management regimes imposed for the last 150 years have allowed these sites to survive, continuing the same managements is an obvious starting point. However the historical management is not necessarily optimal for these sites. Sites of lower quality, with moderate weed invasion and a lower native species diversity, may benefit from more intensive Management to shift the native/weed balance and, possibly, the reintroduction of important species that have been lost. If restorative Management practices are Possible, the reserve system is essentially Open-ended, We would envisage that, for instance, landholders with moderate- quality Sites that would not necessarily qualify immediately for inclusion in the Teserve system, may be willing to use Testoration management for several years, after which the area could join the reserve. We are currently Planning long-term experiments to evaluate some possible management regimes for maintaining high quality sites, and for restoring modified and moderately weedy sites, Andrews, A. (1920). “The Firs HSBAS, (OS. For: Sydney UP Mura, Barker, T. (1987), European settlement, Jn j i ‘Scenic and Scientific Survey of the Central Western Region’. Eds, D.C, Goldney 0. and 11S, Bowie, pp, 47-56. (nj : Education: Baths), (Mitchell College of Advanced 36 Beadle, N.CW. (1981). ‘The Vegetation of Australia’ (Cambridge University Press: Cambridge), Bennett, G, (1834), ‘Wanderings in New South Wales’. Volume I. (Bentley; London). Bentham, G. (1978). ‘Flora Australiensis: A description of the plants of the Australian Territory’, (Reeve and Co.: London). Biddiscombe, E.F. (1963). A vegetation survey of the Macquarie Region, New South Wales, Technical Paper, Division of Plant Industry, CSIRO Australia, No. 18, Boland, D.J,, Brooker, M.I.H., Chippendale, G.M., Hall, N., Hyland, B.P.M., Johnston, R.D., Kleinig, D.A, and Turner, J.D. (1985). ‘Forest Trees of Australia’. (Nelson, CSIRO: Melbourne). Costin, A.B, (1954). ‘A Study of the Ecosystems of the Monaro Region of New South Wales, with Special Reference to Soil Erosion’. (A.H. Pettifer, Government Printer: Sydney). Durham, L.J, (1953). A general survey of the Keepit Catchment Area. Part 1. Journal of the Soil Conservation Service of N.S.W. 9, 70-80. Fenner, F. (ed,) (1975). A National System of Ecological Reserves in Australia, Australian Academy of Science Report No. 19, Kruskal, J.B. (1964). Multidimensional scaling by optimizing goodness of fit toa nonmetric hypothesis. Psychometrika 29, 1-27. Lodge, G.M, and Whalley R.D.B. (1989). Native and natural pastures on the Northern Slopes and Tablelands of New South Wales. NSW Agriculture and Fisheries Technical Bulletin No. 35, Lunt, 1.D, (1991), Management of remnant lowland grasslands and grassy woodlands for nature conservation: a review. ‘The Victorian Naturalist’ 108, 56-66. Moore, CW.E. (1953a). The vegetation of the south-eastern Riverina, New South Wales. I. The climax communities, Australian Journal of Botany 1, 485-847. Moore, CW.E. (1953b). The Vegetation of the south-eastern Riverina, New South Wales, Il. The disclimax communities, Australian Journal of Botany 1, 548-567. Moore, R.M. (1970), South castern temperate woodlands and grasslands. Jy ‘Australian Grasslands’. Ed. R.M. Moore, pp. 169-190, (Australian National University Press; Canberra). Nix, H.A, (1986), A biogeographic analysis of Australian elapid snakes. Jn ‘Atlas of Elapid Snakes of Australia’ Ed. R. Longmore, pp. 415. Australia F lora and Fauna Series No. 7. (Bureau of Flora and Fauna: Canberta), Peel, L.J, (1973). History of the Australian Pastoral industries to 1960. Jn The Pastoral Industries of Australia’, Eds, G, Alexander and O.B, Williams, pp. 41-75, (Sydney University Press: Sydney), Perry, T.M,. (1963), ‘Australia’s First Frontier. The Spread of Settlement in New South Wales 1788-1829! (Melbourne University Press: Melbourne), Probet, S.M. and Brown A.H.D. (in prep.) Conservation of the White Box woodlands. I, Population genetics and fragmentation of Eucalyptus albens. Biological Conservation, Specht, R,L. Roe, E.M. and Boughton, V.H. (1974). Conservation of major plant communities in Australia and Papua New Guinea, Australian Journal of Botany Supplement No. 7. Specht, R.L. (1981), Conservation of vegetation types. Jn ‘Australian Vegetation’, Ed. R.H. Groves, Pp. 394-410. (Cambridge University Press: Cambridge). Sturt, C, (1833). ‘Two Expeditions into the Interior of Southern Australia During the Years 1828, 1829, 1830 and 1831, Vol. I. (Smith, Elder and Co,: London). Stuwe, J. and Parsons, R.F. (1977). Thermeda australis grasslands On the Basalt Plains, Victoria: floristics and management __ effects, Australian Journal of Ecology 2, 467-476, Williams, A.R. (1979), A Survey of natural pastures in the north- West slopes of New South Wales, Department of Agriculture NSW Technical Bulletin No, 22, Victorian Nat. Rural Dieback and Insect Damage in Remnants of Native Woodlands Jill Landsberg* Rural dieback — the premature and relatively rapid decline and death of native trees on farms — is widespread in Australia, but its causes are not necessarily the same in all regions and for all affected trees. The most frequently demonstrated causes are secondary salinisation and insect damage. Changes in soil water availability, nutrients, pH or physical properties may also be involved, but have not been thoroughly investigated. The same is true of airborne salt, farm chemicals and physical damage, all of which are more likely to be localised in their impact. Current knowledge about rural dieback is reviewed in Landsberg and Wylie (1991, updated from 1988). In the southern tablelands of New South Wales, insect-damage is probably the major direct cause of dieback of Eucalpytus blakelyi trees. This was shown by Landsberg et al. (1990), who compared stands of trees that were heavily used by livestock with otherwise similar stands that livestock rarely visited. They found that: (1) defoliation by insects, dieback and tree death were all more severe in the stands used by livestock; (2) despite site stress such as soil acidity, tree branches that were protected from herbivores produced prolific regrowth foliage; (3) insect abundance was not directly related to numbers of trees, since tree numbers were similar in both types of stands but insects were much more abundant in the stands used by livestock; (4) floristic and avian diversity were much reduced in the stands used by livestock, but levels of predation of insects were similarly high in both types of stands, at least during the period of the study; and * CSIRO Division of Wildlife & Ecology, PO Box 84, Lyneham ACT 2602. Vol. 110 (1) 1993 (5) insects feeding on trees in the stands used by livestock grew bigger and more quickly, probably because values of nutrients in soil and foliage were higher in these stands, The most likely cause of this nutrient enrichment was pasture improvement and subsequent redistribution of nutrients by livestock. They concluded that nutrient enrich- ment may be a key factor contributing to the abundance of defoliating insects, and hence to rural dieback, in remnants of woodland used by livestock. Subsequent work by Old ef al. (1990) showed that the probable agent of dieback in one of the stands of trees studied by Landsberg ef al. was a species of fungi that causes cankers and subsequent death of tree branches. However its action appears to be secondary, since it shows greatest development on trees suffering chronically high levels of insect defoliation. References Landsberg, J. and Wylie, F.R. (1991). A review of rural dieback in Australia. In ‘Growback ‘91’. Eds. T. Offor and R.J. Watson. (Growback Publications: Fitzroy, Victoria.) Landsberg, J. and Wylie, ER. (1988). Dieback of rural trees in Australia. Geo Journal 17: 231-237. Landsberg, J., Morse, J. and Khanna, P. (1990). Tree dieback and insect dynamics in remnants of native woodlands on farms. Proceedings of the Ecological Society of Australia 16: 149-165. Old, K.M., Gibbs, R., Craig, I., Myers, B.J. and Yuan, L.Q, (1990). Effect of drought and defoliation on the susceptibility of eucalypts to cankers caused by Endothia gyrosa and Botryosphaeria ibis. Australian Journal of Botany 38; 571-581. 37 Apiculture in Box and Ironbark Forests Linton Briggs* Introduction Although Australia’s Box-Ironbark woodlands extend to all Australian eastern states, this conference inevitably developed a focus on the Victorian woodlands by virtue of its sponsorship and the location of the conference. This paper focuses on the Box-Ironbark woodlands and forests of Victoria because of the author’s local knowledge accumulated through activity as a commercial apiarist over a period of forty years. However, discussion and outcome of the conference should be of value in helping to identify conservation strategies applicable to the refurbishment of these important woodlands in all eastern states, This paper discusses the structure of the Australian apiculture industry, the origin of honey bees in Australia, the critical relationship between the working by commercial beekeepers of native plants of the Myrtaceae family in Victorian forests and woodlands, particularly eucalypts, and the continuing viability of the apiculture industry. Also discussed are some facts that relate to the objectives of nature conservation which are considered compatible with the practice of migratory commercial apiculture as well as some means by which the decline of the Box- Ironbark woodlands may be arrested and maintained in perpetuity as an essential ingredient of the Australian landscape and the biota in general. The Australian apiculture industry Beekeeping is a craft of man, and has been for thousands of years. This ancient craft attracts people from all walks of life, all over the world, wherever honey bees are to be found, whether the motive be for profit, for Science, or the humble feeling of affinity for one of nature’s truly remarkable creations, Thirteen thousand * Chief Executive Officer Federal Council of Australian Apiaris iati iarists Assoc RMB 1030, Glenrowan Vie. 3675 ee 38 (13,000) Australians are the owners of 700,000 registered bee hives, However, the bulk of Australia’s honey and beeswax production derives from the operations of 2000 commercial and semi commercial beekeepers, a thousand of whom can be regarded as the industry’s mainstream producers. Annual farm gate value of production, based on current honey prices, is $40m. In 1991-92, the value of the industry’s production in retail prices was $80m. Other sectors include commercial honey bee queen production which multiplies and markets to honey producers genetically improved races and strains of honey bees (Apis mellifera). This is done to improve production and productivity, honey bee exports, pollen production for human consumption, and the horticultural and agricultural crop pollination which is rapidly emerging as an important sector conferring mutual economic benefits on beekeepers and farmers. In addition, there is an efficient packaging and marketing sector served by the Australian Honey Packers’ and Marketers’ Association. Most mainstream honey producers have supply arrangements with respective packers, Honey produced from Victorian Box and Ironbark woodlands and forests almost invariably is a high quality product, eagerly sought by packers for premium domestic retail outlet. Many of the human food, seed, and pasture crops grown in Australia today require insect pollination in order to maximise production. In the ecologically disturbed environment of the Victorian farmland, 90% of all insect visitors to flowering plants are honey bees (estimate from Victorian Department of Agricul- ture). In a recent study by the University of New England crop pollination in Aust- talia by honey bees is valued at $1.2b per annum. The importance of the enormous external benefit of the Apiculture industry to the wider community should be under- Victorian Nat. stood and never underestimated so far as the economic production of quality food products is concerned, not only in Aust- ralia but around the world. Most commercial apiarists operate between 400 and 800 hives, although some operations are much larger, managing up to 2,000 hives. The apiarist migrates these hives several times a year to areas where it is known that periodically one to several plant species will flower and provide a source of nectar and pollen for a predic- table calendar period. About half of an apiarist’s sites are likely to be located on public land (including reserves), and about half on private land. In Victoria, commercial apiarists regard an economically efficient foraging area to be about 800 ha for a commercial apiary located in most eucalypt forests. The woodland eucalypt estate, although slowly diminishing on freehold land, is also utilised from time to time by the industry. In Victoria, an average commercial apiarist occupies about 20 individual bee sites on an occasional basis and in total about 16,000 ha of foraging area per annum. This example is very much a rule of thumb measure, for there would be up and down estimate variations not only within Victoria, but in all other states, according to the extent and type of available forage because individual bee sites do not provide commercially useful honeybee forage over a full season or on an annual basis. The Apiculture Industry is well organised for a comparatively small primary industry. The peak policy forming body is the Federal Council of Australian Apiarists’ Association and there are 50 state and regional beekeeping associations. On behalf of industry constituents the FCAPA maintains through producer levies, two Commonwealth statutory arrange- ments - the Australian Honey Board, which regulates exports and product promotion, and the Honey Bee Research and Development Council. The origin of Honey Bees in Australia The Old World honey bee which had evolved to become a pollinator of European food crops was brought to Vol, 110 (1) 1993 Australia with European settlement. At the time of the introduction, during the early part of the nineteenth century, it is probable that the pollination potential was less a factor in the introduction than European man’s desire to bring to this new country the marvellous insect which, for tens of thousands of years, had given man an abundant, highly nutritious food and natural food sweetener. The newly introduced honey bees quickly colonised Australia’s forest systems which were richly endowed with melliferous flora (nectar and pollen producing plants). As a result all Australian forest systems with the necessary ingredients to sustain honey bees now contain a stable permanent feral honey bee population. There is evidence that by at least the late 1860’s, settlers clearing the bush came across feral honey bees, and in my own district in North Eastern Victoria at least, they were supplementing diet and in some cases income from the rudimentary harvesting of bush honey. Before the turn of the century, there were many well organised commercial honey producing apiaries. These early commercial beekeep- ers derived their initial stocks from the, by then well established, feral honey bee population. In recent years, there has been some debate as to whether the introduced honey bee has had or continues to have an adyerse effect on the reproductive success of Australian native flora and fauna. Some early experiments, designed to investigate the possible impact of honey bees on native flora and fauna, are considered by the FCAAA to be deficient in design and execution (FCAAA Policy 1987). Unfor- tunately, some results of these studies have been influential in forming negative attitudes towards honey bees so far as their interaction with the natural environment is concerned. The industry recognises legitimate concern and, in the absence of reliable data that could confidently shed light on this complex question, the industry has been proactive in seeking hard data through properly designed and executed research that should allow the development of correct public land management policies 39 for commercial beekeeping throughout Australia, In 1987, the industry developed a policy document, ‘Honey Bees in Australian Conserved Forests’, to assist the wider community, including land managers, toa better understanding of the industry’s position. The policy, although now in need of some updating, remains essentially relevant. (FCAAA Policy 1987). A number of research programs are currently being performed by various institutions with the full cooperation of the commercial industry. For example, a two year research program designed to test the effects of feral honey bees on the reproductive success of native bees has commenced in north eastern Victoria. This study will be performed by the Latrobe University, The industry has assisted through consultation and remains available throughout the project for further input, if required. Properly designed and executed research is necessary to test a recurring hypothesis in Australia that honeybees are increasing hybridisation of native plant species, Over- seas study, including the work of yon Frisch (1953), demonstrates the remarkable fidelity to a particular floral source that is a characteristic of honeybee foraging behaviour. The extension of this information is that foraging by honey bees does not increase hybridisation through the transfer of pollen between species. Loads of pollen carried by honey bee foragers rarely contain pollen grains sourced from more than one plant species, A honey bee forager is programmed before leaving the colony to forage one species only, and she will continue to do so with remarkable fidelity until she is programmed to another Species. Other bee species around the world including many of the three thousand or SO native Australian species are not so selective (Michener 1974), The industry submits that native birds, bees, other Msects and wind currents are 40 tive effort between industry and research institution would be supported by industry. Similarly the interest of the industry would be attracted through competent research, to testing the hypothesis that feral honey bees in the undisturbed natural environment adversely affect the reproductive success of hollow nesting fauna. Industry observation is that direct competition for nesting sites is rare in the undisturbed environment because of the abundance of hollows with suitable volume, aspect, and entrance dimension specification. Furthermore, feral honey bee colony survival rate is poor because of the high energy requirements of honey bees which cannot be sustained by the natural environment between the sporadic super abundant eucalypt honey flows that are the feature of the Australian environment. The apiculture industry melliferous resource base The principal melliferous resource base of the industry is vested in the native plants of the continent, particularly those of the family Myrtaceae, eucalypts in particular, For example The Honey Research Council survey (1989) shows that in the State of Victoria, eucalypt forests and woodlands, and some banksia heathland, growing on public and freehold land constitute 84% of the industry’s honey and pollen resources. With the exception of South Australia which has a greater reliance on ground flora (pasture and weed species), this acute dependence on eucalypts in particular js generally reflected across Australia wherever commercial apiculture is practiced, Beekeepers have become the most knowledgeable people in the community, in a practical sense, about the flowering habits of cucalypts simply because the economic success of their respective Operations is critically geared to those Powers of observation which enable them lO assess crop potential, and subsequent Management decisions. The inherent Sporadic flowering behaviour of eucalypts of which no species regularly flowers on an annual basis contrasts with most melliferous flora of the Victorian Nat. Northern hemisphere, whether it be of tree, shrub, or pasture plant form, and where, from a beekeeping management perspec- tive, resource behaviour is much more predictable than in Australia. Eucalypts, probably because of variability in climate including rainfall, have evolved to bud and flower according to stimuli that are not yet completely understood. General ‘buddings’ of respective eucalypt species occurs at sporadic intervals, and most bud well in advance of flowering, usually the season before, and sometimes two years or more in advance. Relatively few eucalypts bud and flower in the same season. Notable exceptions are in fact Red Ironbark, (E. sideroxylon), Grey Box (E. goniocalyx) and White Ironbark (E. /leucoxylon). Grey Box and Ironbark are referred to as ‘short budders’ because only a short time elapses between budding and flowering. Grey Box, for example, puts on new growth during the spring (not every spring), sets bud by the end of November or sometimes a little later and commences flowering in late February of the same season. Average periods between general ‘flowerings’ are somewhere between three to eight years according to species. The intervals between flowerings may be extended as a result of the effects of drought and wildfire A run of above average years of rainfall tend to decrease the periods between flowering. An average flowering period for a summer flowering eucalypt stand is about 6 weeks. Although flowering usually takes place at a particular time within a calendar year for particular species, the frequency of flowerings is irregular and most often are many years apart thus sporadic flowering behaviour of ihe eucalypts moulds the nature of beekeeping in Australia. This general phenomenon has had two important effects on the Australian beekeeping community. To be successful, individuals and mainstream commercial honey production must always be geared to the need to migrate wherever nature dictates from time to time. Economics play an important role in how distant a species may be worked. It is not uncommon, how- Vol. 110 (1) 1993 ever, for mainstream commercial beekeepers to transport their apiaries for distances up to 500 km or beyond, several times each year, Many Victorian commer- cial beekeepers for example from time to time work in South Australia and New South Wales as well as Victoria in order to maintain commercial viability. It should be understood that migratory commercial apiarists also value highly other Box woodlands and Boxes that form part of the mosaic of forest species. For example, magnificent remnants of the once great Yellow Box woodland are still important on loamy soils throughout the state, Red Box (£. polyanthemos), Black Box (£. Jargiflorens) both yield premium quality honey from time to time. White Box (E. albens) is a species avoided by most commercial apiarists in Victoria because this winter flowering species induce a deleterious effect in honey bees. The seemingly itinerant mode of mainstream commercial honey production thus stands revealed as a unique craft embracing a specialised knowledge of the natural environment as well as the ability to maintain and manage large honey bee populations in order to take economic advantage of the contemporary situation. Bee sites are in public land are rented from the Victorian Department of Conservation and Environment. Other states have similar arrangements with respective Departments. Most public land bee sites each contain several eucalypt species and understorey plants. Bee sites are also temporarily located on freehold property, where remnants of the once great eucalypt woodland remain in sufficient quantity to yield commercial quantities of honey. Sometimes, agricultural crops including leguminous pasture are worked on freehold land, (distinct from formal crop pollination contracts) and both farmers and beekeepers derive mutual benefit in these cases. Honey yields from respective bee sites vary greatly, according to: * species of eucalypt (reliability of yield and important factor); 41 © density of budding; «climate (rainfall, temperature, wind); * colony stocking rates; ® managerial skill of the apiarist. ' Competent mainstream commercial honey producers, like any competent farmer of animals, are able to assess the economic carrying capacity of the area of land over which the honey bees of the apiary will forage, Most well budded public land bee sites will economically carry 150 colonies (hives) during the relatively short ‘honey flow’ period of about 6 weeks per species. In exceptional circumstances, under optimal budding and species distribution conditions, a site could carry 300 colonies (two truckloads). Today, most honey flows seem to yield between 30 kg and 60 kg per colony. Rarely do yields exceed 60 kg per colony, Frequently, yields are less than 30 kg per colony, Therefore, it should not be surprising to learn that the beekeeping industry has for many decades been in the vanguard of community effort to conserve and expand the native plant environment, The native plant resource in states other than Victoria (where the Land Conservation Council since 1970 has provided the community with an excellent public land management planning mechanism), is declining for commercial beekeepers, Factors causing this include land clearing, particularly in Queensland and New South Wales, some forestry practices such as chip wood Production and intensive logging, urbanisation, some public land Management practices, forest diseases and pests and occasionally wild fire. The apiculture industry, for ecological as well 4S economic reasons, has been consistent and insistent in Taising its voice Mm concert with other Members of the concerned wider community about the accelerating degradation of the land and the landscape that has resulted from the soil moisture, 42 A vision for the future It might be useful to reflect at this time that throughout the evolution of mankind, the historical record tells us that wherever man settled the land and began to till the soil, erect buildings and graze animals, land degradation has occurred, and in the fragile environments such as for example, the Middle East, it has often occurred on a wide scale. In 400 B.C. in Greece, Plato noted and lamented how the mountains in Attica had once been clothed with fine trees, the land then producing good pasturage for cattle, but now the land was only good for bees. Obviously, some melliferous shrub, understorey species, or weed, in the absence of trees, must have flourished, at least for a time. In the Old Testament of the Bible, the Book of Kings tells of great cedar forests in Lebanon which were cut down by thousands of King Solomon’s forest workers and transported by sea to Palestine for building purposes, Analysis of pollen grains in honey found stored in the tombs of ancient Egyptian Kings reveal that thousands of years ago, a range of plants once grew in Egypt that no longer naturally occur in the region. Today, man understands the causes of land degradation, and has the skills and resources to set about the task of healing the land, at the same time safely ensuring continuity of farming of the land to feed and clothe its people. Thus revegetation of Strategic parts of the Australian landscape in a carefully planned and sympathetic manner is vital to the future well being of our continent. Planned revegetation throughout the once extensive Box and Ironbark woodlands which is representative of locally indigenous plant communities is a critical component of my vision for the future, Refurbishment of Box and Ironbark woodlands therefore needs to take into account, as far as it is possible to do SO, the full range of associated eucalypt species according to original distribution. The collection of seed from local communities for Propagation, and the careful matching of soil type to species would play an Important part in successful establishment Victorian Nat. or extension of Box and Ironbark wood- lands, Critical to the establishment and maintenance of such woodlands would be the need to simultaneously establish understorey that are, or used to be found locally, particularly leguminous Acacia spp. A characteristic of Red Ironbark not widely understood by the community at large is that there is a summer or ‘early’ flowering form which is of particular conservation and economic value. It is indistinguishable botanically from later flowering forms, and relatively small provenances of this summer flowering form are located at Whroo near Rushworth, the Whipstick near Bendigo, and at Tarnagulla. The original forest estate of Victoria probably contained other early flowering Red Ironbark provenances. It would seem logical to take this factor into account when planning the establish- ment or extension of Ironbark woodlands in this state, in an attempt to proportion- ately mimic original Red Ironbark dis- tribution. Of particular local significance are the outstanding Green Mallee (E. viridis) remnants on the iron stone ridges on freehold property to the west of Benalla which are to my knowledge the most eastern distribution of this species in Victoria. These remnants in my view are of high conservation significance because of their location and extraordinary large form. Most importantly the goodwill and the cooperation of Australia’s farming sector is absolutely essential in the decades ahead if the goal is to be fulfilled across the nation. The cooperation and support of the beekeeping industry sector of the community can be guaranteed for any extension of the nation’s melliferous flora estate which must, in time, have a beneficial flow on for the industry, if for no other reason. Obviously, mapping of all salinity recharge areas over time and revegetation with native flora indigenous to the region is a massive but necessary conservation strategy, the implementation of which Vol. 110 (1) 1993 would ultimately provide benefit to farmers and the nation and all its people. It is a project that will require intelligent long term planning that should include the process of consultation and the development of incentives and even levels of compensation for strategically placed land owners. In some circumstances, it could become necessary for the public purse to be used to purchase through the freehold land market, strategically important land for revegetation in order to help restore the health and productivity of adjacent freehold land. The trade off for the community through the expenditure of public funds would be the consequent expansion of the forested public land estate. Clearly, the implementation of this overall woodland refurbishment strategy would incidentally do much for the maintenance and extension of the Box and Ironbark woodlands. A major key to the acceleration of woodland refurbishment in the freehold land estate is to link conservation strategy with economic and other benefits for land holders. It must be understood that farmers love the land from which they derive their livelihood, and from which they incidentally provide the wider Australian community with much of their food and fibre. The linkage of their love for the land with economic benefit, particularly in economic recessional climates such as is affecting the whole community at present, can become powerful conservation tools. In general, farmers are beginning to understand that some traditional farming practices are having an adverse effect on the land, and are concerned, The growth of the LandCare movement, and individual revegetation efforts across Australia are testimony to understanding and positive corrective action by some members of the farm community. Above all, present day farmers should not be blamed for the degraded woodlands the community has inherited as a result of some past land management practices. Indeed, we should not parcel blame or recrimination towards our earlier rural 43 communities, who simply did not and could not foresee all the adverse effects that widespread and unplanned clearing of the woodlands and forests would ultimately have on the natural environment. Instead, the community as a whole should now resolve with determination to work togeth- er in a spirit of cooperation over the next 100 years towards goals that should be agreed through consultation between all community sectors including farmers. The best opportunity we have of refurbishing the freehold woodlands I believe is through an agreed strategy to establish a woodlot/s on every broadacre freehold property that is located in eucalypt woodland, or former woodland districts. Fundamentally, the proposal would need to be made economically attractive to the landowner during the woodlot establishment period, for the farmer of the establishment generation would not otherwise benefit. Succeeding generations of farmers, and the nation and its people would reap continuing benefit for different reasons as the woodlots grew to maturity and became managed for sustainable yield. It would be up to the community to determine economic incentives during the establishment period, but these could include taxation deduc- tions, fencing subsidies, rates exemptions, land rental, and so on. The concept of woodlot establishment in the farmlands is already attracting attention from researchers and farmers, not only because of easier establishment and management than for example, as would be the case with small groups of trees or cven single trees, but because eucalypt woodlots would provide, in the long term, in addition to aesthetic and conservation values, an enormous and enduring comm- ercial on-farm structural and firewood timber resource right across the length breadth of the nation. oe Aesthetically, change somewhat with the appearance of 44 in the farmlands in association witt woodlots. The original extent of the great and ancient woodland, although not being restored strictly to its former appearance, would be preserved sufficiently to continually remind future generations of Australians of its early greatness. I am confident the woodlot system will be embraced by the total community including farmers, since it will also allow the land to continue to be used for cropping and grazing and will, in fact, enhance these pursuits. Woodlots on every farm, particularly in association with on-farm water conserva- tion, will make an enormous contribution to the maintenance of native bird and animal habitat. Importantly, the establishment of woodlots, particularly when strategically planned and planted, will go a long way towards conserving the land surface from further degradation. 1 am confident that, eventually, the ownership of farmland will carry with it the responsibility of maintaining a percentage of freehold land under eucalypt woodlot forest, managed for sustainable yield. 1am also confident, as the decades tick by, the Australian eucalypt woodland estate can expand and be maintained in perpetuity. Where there is a common will, there will be a way. What we need to do now is to sit down as a community and set short, medium, and long term goals that are realistically achievable over the period of the next 100 years. References FCAAA Policy 1987, Honey Bees in Australian Conserved Forests. Available from FCAAA, RMB 1630, Glenrowan, Vic. 3675. Michener, C.D, (1974). ‘The Social Behaviour of Bees’ (Harwood University Press, Massachussets: USA). The Honey Research Council Survey (1989). Victorian Melliferous Resources, Jn FCAAA Policy 1987, Appendix [V, VonFrisch, K. (1953), ‘The Dancing Bees’. (Harcourt Brice: London), Victorian Nat. Making it Happen: Strategies Needed to Conserve Box and Ironbark Forests Margaret Blakers* The shift from ‘nature’ to ‘biodiversity’ over the last few years mirrors a changing perception - conservation of the natural environment is no longer a peripheral concern of ‘nature-lovers’ but, rather, an issue of central concern to governments, _ industry and the community. Australia and over 150 other countries have signed the International Convention on Biological Diversity; State and Federal Governments are preparing biodiversity strategies (Biological Diversity Advisory Committee 1992; Department of Conservation and National Resources 1992); and the pro- tection of biodiversity is a fundamental tenet of ecologically sustainable devel- - opment. The biodiversity debates of recent dec- ades have mainly concerned the use of public land, particularly forests. Debates of the future will increasingly be about the conservation of flora and fauna on land that is used predominantly for agriculture. Here the issues are more complex; environ- mentally, socially, and economically, be- cause remnant native vegetation and habitat are fragmented, often degraded, and occupy land (and water) under a var- iety of tenures and uses. The conservation of Box and Ironbark forests exemplifies all these complexities. This paper briefly outlines some of the questions which will need to be addressed in developing strategies for the conserv- ation of Box and Ironbark forests, and for ecologically sustainable land management generally. Strategies Strategies are plans for achieving change. Issues as complicated as the conservation of Box and Ironbark communities require not one strategy but a range of strategies. They must take account of issues at differ * Office of the Environment Vol. 110 (1) 1993 ing physical scales (individual land areas, local, regional and interstate), and differing temporal scales, from immediate to dec- ades and centuries. At the broadest scale, conservation of Box and Ironbark communities requires management of habitats from Tasmania to Queensland and South Australia because birds such as the Swift Parrot and Regent Honeyeater move seasonally or nomad- ically over this range. It also needs sustained action to ensure that the require- ments of dependent species are continu- ously available over the long-term; for example, trees planted now will not develop hollows suitable for many animals until the century after next. Ecologists, biologists and naturalists have a major task in defining the states of the Box and Ironbark forests which are necessary either to minimise losses of biodiversity or, more desirably, to give a reasonable level of confidence that all species and communities can continue to survive and flourish in the wild. The development of these objectives, and of mechanisms for monitoring and review, are essential components of any strategy. Environmental issues Other papers in this seminar describe the extent and condition of Box and Ironbark forests in detail. These communities are evidently severely diminished and degrad- ed. Few areas are managed for conserv- ation, and much of what remains relatively intact is in fragments on roadsides or in cemetries; which are vulnerable to disturb- ance. The degree of fragmentation is also a threat in its own right, increasing the likelihood that chance events will lead to local and regional extinctions. On agri- cultural land, the remnants of the over- storey trees are old, with very little regeneration. On much public land, logg- ing prevents trees from reaching ecological 45 maturity. Climate change is a looming threat. : Ongoing threatening processes include clearing for agriculture, firewood gathering, wood harvesting, grazing, dieback, inappropriate fire regimes, agricultural chemicals and disturbance associated with fire prevention works and the installation and maintenance of utilities, Most of these threatening processes are broad-scale and incremental in nature. They can only be addressed by widespread, permanent changes in the current management practices of local and state governments, public authorities and landholders. Economic and social issues Because Box and Ironbark forests are predominantly either on private land or on awkward pieces of public land such as roadsides which are intimately affected by the management of adjacent private land, landholders inevitably have a major role to play in their conservation, We therefore need to know who owns or manages land, and the economic and social environment in which they are working. This environment is changing rapidly, Global economic trends and the increas- ingly non-interventionist Stance of goy- ernments are accelerating structural adjustment in agriculture (Lawrence, 1992). They are Producing major shifts in population and services within rural areas, and increasing economic and social press- ure on many landholders. Their conse- quences for land Management and biodiversity conservation are major, but not yet adequately analysed. The following description highlights some of the trends in Victoria; the trends for NSW and Queensland are likely to be similar, The dominant use of land in Victoria is for agriculture, Agricultural establishments Occupy about 58% of the State (13.1 million hectares on freehold land With an additional 1.5 million hectares of public land licensed for grazing), There has been a longstanding trend to aggregation of farms, and increasing 46 displacement of labour by capital. The number of farms in Victoria declined from around 80,500 in 1922/23 to around 33,000 in 1990 (OCE, 1992). The rural labour force has declined correspondingly to about 94,000 people in 1990 (less than 5% of the State’s workforce) (OCE, 1992). The majority of farms are run by families (60%) or sole operators (29%); about 5% are corporately operated (Cribb, 1989). During the 1980s, about two-thirds of farmers became net borrowers from the banking system and about 40% of these are in difficulties with their debts (DA and OOE, 1991). The proportion of part-time operators has increased significantly as farmers seek off-farm income. As well, new people are entering farming for commer- cial, lifestyle or speculative reasons (DA and OOE, 1991). There is also evidence that the average age of farmers is in the mid-50s and increasing (OCE, 1992), These factors all suggest that there will be major changes in land ownership over the next decade as today’s farmers retire. Economically, agriculture has dimin- ished in relative importance as mining, manufacturing and services contribute increasingly to employment and economic activity. Agriculture contributes about 5% of Australia’s national income; it remains an important export industry, contributing about 24% of Australia’s export income in 1990 (OCE, 1992). A significant amount of Victoria’s non- urban freehold land (3.4 million hectares) is occupied by lower density residential, recreational or small-scale farming users (DA and OOE 1991), This is likely to in- crease as Victoria accommodates a project- ed 34% increase in population (1.6 million people) over the next 40 years; Ballarat, Bendigo and Albury-Wodonga have been nominated as regional growth centres (DPUG 1990, Government of Victoria | 1992). In Victoria, much of the land likely to be under pressure for rural residential or ‘small-scale farming is within the historical distribution of Box and Ironbark communities. Victorian Nat, A thorough analysis of social economic factors will need to look not just at gross trends, but also at their distribution both socially and geographically. We need to know who will be the farmers or land- owners of the future, and relate their characteristics (e.g. family or corporate ownership) to the agricultural capability, biodiversity value, speculative value and susceptibility to degradation of the land they occupy. The implications of a declin- ing rural workforce when conservation work is almost invariably labour-intensive also need to be investigated. The economic pressures to increase productivity through more intensive management or larger farm size, or both, generally work against the conservation of remnant native vegetation. We need a detailed understanding of the trends and forces operating in each major agricultural industry sector so that effective mech- anisms for the long-term maintenance of biodiversity values on private land can be established. Some potentially positive aspects of the changes are the increasing role of non- traditional landholders with greater resources at their disposal, and the possiblity for farmers to reduce their dependence on the traditional agricultural sector. High value products that use less land may provide more flexibility to accommodate conservation requirements. Tree-growing (for wood production as well as for biodiversity and land protection), and tourism and recreation are economic activities that can combine with farming and conservation. The development of co- operatives to undertake non-traditional activities may help to provide the skills and scale of enterprise necessary for economically viable operations. Towards strategies Many landholders are already acting individually to protect remnants; in Victoria many shires are assessing roadside vegetation and preparing management plans and action has been taken to control the clearing of native vegetation. These are Vol, 110 (1) 1993 all positive developments, as is the enormous interest in the issue demon- strated by this Conference. Broad-scale strategies for conserving extensive communities such as the Box and Ironbark forests will take time to emerge, but some directions and pre-requisites are evident. First, major changes in rural land management, including the provision of resources to assist conservation manage- ment (especially restoration), will require increased awareness at an individual and political level. Urban dwellers, who comprise about 85% of the population, are especially important. This Conference is one step towards building public awareness. A proposal for a ‘hollow-tree survey’ is outlined as another mechanism for making some aspects of the problem ‘visible’. Secondly, a system of reserves on public land is the essential core of any long-term conservation plan. At present, there is no system of conservation reserves which adequately protects Box and Ironbark communities across their range. Thirdly, conservation reserves need to be complemented by active measures to protect and manage remnants on other public and private land, and in some cases to revegetate sites. Retention of existing native vegetation and natural regeneration is economically and ecologically preferable to revegetation. Fourthly, the conservation of these communities and their dependent species will require concerted action by the governments of at least four States (including Tasmania) and the Common- wealth. Formalised agreements amongst these parties may be a useful mechanism for highlighting critical areas of responsibility, especially in relation to protecting migratory species and their habitats, and threatened species with populations in more than one State. Monitoring programs will also need to span the entire historical distribution of the Box and Ironbark communities and should 47 be co-ordinated. Fifthly, local government has an important role to play through land use planning (including fire prevention management), direct management of roadsides and other critical remnants, and in Victoria through its ability to apply differential rating to encourage conservation. Finally, there is an urgent need for wide debate about the scale and implications of the social, economic and environmental changes taking place in rural Australia. To underpin this, we need a clearer understanding and more critical analysis of the relationships between the economy and the environment, especially in the globally deregulated economic regime that now prevails. Future action Many of the changes set in train by the initial clearing and development of pastoral industries are still working their way through the ecosystem. Vast areas that formerly were woodland or forest now carry only remnants of the original overstorey trees and these are nearly all old, and in many cases already dead or dying, Measured rates of loss over several decades in grazing land are 1-2% per annum (eg, Clifton and Sands 1988). It takes over a century for trees to mature and start to develop hollows suitable for wildlife, The current rate of loss and lack of recruitment means that a critical Shortage of mature trees and hollows looms, potentially threatening species dependent on these resources, Lindenmayer has investigated Mountain Ash trees with hollows, and defined a sequence of forms Tepresenting trees in different stages of growth, senescence and decay. He has used this typology to survey forests and predict the future availability of hollows for Leadbeater’s Possum. _ Lindenmayer’s approach could be used ina large-scale CO-operative project to map the age structure of trees on rural land, Providing current and predictive data of enormous value for wildlife Management, 48 Participants would need to apply a standard sampling procedure at each survey site to select the trees to be described; assign each tree to an age class defined by the sequence of forms; identify the tree species and provide any additional information required, The proposal has characteristics which make it eminently suitable for a co- operative project: the basic information that participants must collect can be made very simple; additional information can be added by those with the time and enthusiasm; useful data can be collected on an ad hoc basis; the reliability of data can be easily verified; and the need to obtain thorough coverage of a region provides a challenging but achievable goal. Perhaps a large-scale hollow tree survey can be completed before the next ‘Atlas of Australian Birds’ starts? References Biological Diversity Advisory Committee (1992). A National Strategy for the Conservation of Australia’s Biodiversity. Draft for public comment, (Department of the Arts, Sport, the Environment and Territories: Canberra.) Clifton, C.A. and Sands, R. (1988). Decline of River Red Gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis) on grazing land in Western Victoria. Research into Rural Tree Decline 4:4-6, Cribb, J. (1989). ‘Australian Agriculture, the complete reference on rural industry’. Vol. 2, National Farmers Federation. Department of Agriculture and Office of the Environment (1991). ‘A review of rural land use in Victoria’. (Government of Victoria: Melbourne). Department of Conservation and Environment (1992), Flora and Fauna Guarantee Strategy; Conservation of Victoria’s Biodiversity, Draft prepared under the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988. (Department of Planning and Urban Growth: Melbourne). Government of Victoria (1992). ‘A Place to Live: Shaping Victoria's Future’. (Victorian Government Printer: Melbourne). Lawrence, G, (1992), Rural Social Structure: Implications for Water Management in Australia. Paper presented at the Australian Rural Water Demand Management Workshop, Sydney 25-26 February 1992, Office of the Commissioner for the Environment (1992), Agriculture and Victoria’s Environment. 1991 State of the Environment Report. (Government of Victoria: Melbourne.) Victorian Nat, Case Studies The Regent Honeyeater Project Bill Willett* This project was initiated in the Lurg region of North-eastern Victoria to improve the habitat of native fauna, including species such as the Squirrel Glider, the Grey-crowned Babbler, the Bush Thick-knee and especially the Regent Honeyeater. The populations of all these species are in a rapid decline. This project included work on interconnecting shelter belts, gully erosion, corridors, salinity revegetation, blocks of existing vegetation and unused road and roadside vegetation. In all, it focussed on enhancing some 14 kms of corridors and roadside works at a cost of approximately $40,000. We have had a very positive response to the project. It has proven that people from different backgrounds can work together in spite of their different reasons for contributing — be it protection for domestic stock with the shelterbelts or solely for the protection of native fauna. Our area has a mix of both traditional farmers (those that make or attempt to make their living solely off their property) and those that own property, be it 10, 20, 50 or 100 acres but do not rely on it to earn their living. The latter earn most of their income off the farm, and probably subsidise the property out of that income. Both types of land holders may have different points of view towards this particular project. For example, the traditional farmer may need every square inch of his property in production just to have the luxury of being able to feed his family, whereas the smaller landholder may be only too willing to plant half of his block with trees because he does not need to produce anything from that land in order to be able to feed his family. One of the ways we could establish connecting corridors fairly quickly is by fencing off unused roads currently leased * Co-Ordinator, Molyullah-Iatong Tree and Land Protection Group. Vol. 110 (1) 1993 by adjacent property owners and letting these areas regenerate naturally where there are existing trees, or replanting native stock in places where there is no existing vegetation. Again there are strong economic restrictions for this not happening. The responsibility for fencing unused roads rests solely on the shoulders of the adjacent property owners, whether they lease the land and graze it, or not, and at somewhere between $3,000 and $4,000 per km for fencing, this is an option that will not be taken up by landholders without assistance, It is necessary that the actual landholders do the fencing because it makes no economic sense to fence them out and manage the unused roads independently. Another point to remember is that Local Government may be required to keep some unused roads for access to land that may be sub-divided at some future date. Costs for this type of conservation are prohibitive for an individual. Apart from the initial material there are heavy costs associated with on-ground works; labour and erection are nearly double the expense of the materials themselves and prepar- atory work can double the cost of planting the area, and so it goes on, and the burden on the rural landholder, where on-ground action is needed to solve the problem, becomes greater and greater. Now, not only are they being asked to supply the land for tree planting, about $1,000/acre in this area, but are also increasingly asked to prepare that site, buy trees, plant and guard the trees, and then fence the area and protect and maintain the trees as well. With primary produce commodity prices falling daily and production costs rising by the hour, the scope of the individual land- holder to achieve anywhere near enough rehabilitation of habitat in time, is fast becoming an impossibility. The trees cost 49 money, the tree guards cost money, the fencing costs heaps of money, the time taken to rehabilitate costs money, the loss of production costs anxiety and job losses, and the maintenance of all this great work we have done costs money. And if that is not enough we found that by creating all this wonderful habitat for the Regent Honeyeater, we also enhanced the habitat for pest plants and animals to thrive in. Something that we did not want or need to happen, and this necessitates further on- going maintenance to retain the work already completed, and adds further to the costs. However, landholders within the Molyullah-Tatong Tree and Land Protection Group and others, such as the Warrenbayne Boho and Swanpool and The Royal Society of I 50) A New Book on Victorian Spiders SPIDERS Commonly found in Melbourne and Surrounding Regions by Ken Walker and Graham Milledge sponsored by The Royal Society of Victoria 64 Pages: 16 Colour illustrations; 20 black and white illustrations. $9.75 per copy (incl. postage). Orders should be placed with Victoria, 9 Victoria Street, Melbourne 3000 The twenty Spiders described are those for 5 most commonly sought at the Muse Districts Groups, have indicated that they are prepared to support these types of projects by providing the sites, some manpower and the support and main- tenance of the finished product. Without that support, the projects will never get off the drawing board; without funding and backing from the urban _ based conservationists and community, they will never get on the drawing board. In my opinion we all have to pull together. No more of the city versus the country, the farmers versus the ‘greenies’, Labor versus Liberal. One in, all in. Then and only then will we be able to achieve our goals. May I finish by posing a question or two: Where do we find the funding to pay the costs? How do we share the workload? When do we start? which identification um of Victoria. Victorian Nat. : ‘Background | The most widespread use of private land ‘in Victoria is that of agriculture, with sgrazing stock and cropping predominating. Historically these two land uses have scaused the clearing of vast tracts of land particularly in fertile non mountainous sareas. At present the direct clearing of native vegetation has been greatly reduced through legislation (Native Vegetation {Retention) and reality in there is very little Ifertile private land left to clear. In northern Victoria the greatest single {threat to woodland habitat is the lack of jregeneration in farmland due to grazing, which will mean whole landscapes will irapidly change as trees in farmland senesce ;and die. This process is now under way — :already in some areas we have missed 150 ‘years of tree and shrub replacement. By way of practical example the | following project is a summary of one way sof conserving remnant habitat on private | land. This project focused on a threatened : species of fauna, the Superb Parrot, whose | survival was threatened primarily through | habitat loss. | Superb Parrot project in Victoria _ Distribution With the clearing of the Box woodlands | in northern Victoria, the historical range » of Superb Parrots contracted from west of | Melbourne to where the only birds | regularly seen are within 20km of the | Murray River between Echuca and Yarrawonga. Problem Whilst nest sites in Barmah Forest are being identified and protected the foraging habitat is mainly located on private land subject to the typical array of degrading processes ie. fragmentation, lack of fegeneration, destruction of under-storey. * DCNR Benalla Region. { Yol. 110 (1) 1993 ad Conserving Remnant Habitat on Private Land | lan Davidson* Strategy Effort was focussed on the foraging habitats as these were seen as the most threatened habitats where the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (CNR) was least likely to influence positive changes in management in the short term. Our Strategy involved:- 1.The development of a resource document with the important foraging habitat mapped by an ecologist and accompanied by a report outlining practical management recommendations for important remnant habitats. The project area was delineated by the distances travelled, ie. within 10 km of nest sites, by Superb Parrots when feeding young, as outlined by Webster and Ahern (1992). The mapping was done on 1:25,000 Mapsheets and covered approximately 25,000 Ha. This stage is important because it provided the basis for discussions with land managers i.e. it allowed CNR to present a clear strategy. 2. A community process was undertaken by the Land for Wildlife Extension Officer involving: (a) discussion of plan with local government roadside managers, as most of the intact habitat occurred along roadsides. (b) one on one meetings with landholders to present aspects of the report of relevance to them, and to seek their ideas and input on any works they would be prepared to undertake. a public meeting to consolidate project and gauge overall community support. This led to a questionnaire for all participants and initiation of a local steering group, annexed by an existing community group - Nathalia Tree Group. (At present participants include 40+ landholders, 2 Shires, (c) 51 3 school groups, 1 community group and associated interested community members). (d) finalise plan to form basis of funding application with specific details including areas to be fenced and costings. 1 think that it is fair to say that this project has been a success to date and is being transformed into positive actions in the field due to the degree of ownership shown by the group. These projects must take a long term view, not the all too common budgetary cycle timing, thus having the effect of changing overall management practices. For example, some people are reluctant to become actively involved until they can see positive changes occurring. I also advocate the use of a single species to highlight the more complex issues involved in ecosystem conservation. This enables the community to galvanise around a single issue, which then facilitates greater awareness about the species habitat. Obviously the best species to select are those specialists associated with the vegetation communities requiring protection. Actions to date © Collection of some seed and the compilation of a seed collection calendar for future seed collection, ¢ Growing of plants from seed collected. e Fencing of some areas. Other Works Underway e Major search for nest trees in Barmah during 1992 breeding season. e Identification of wintering sites and assessment of their security. Due to this bird’s life cycle it only spends approximately six months in Victoria. It is important to determine the security of habitat used for the other six months (believed to be around the Savernake area). Major points in preparation of plan to conserve remnant habitat on private land * Clear long term goal. © Good resource information. ® Practical habitat enhancement recommendations. * Present above to the community for their consideration and input. * Preparation of accepted plan. 52 (Protect and enhance the remnant Box woodlands abutting Barmah Forest). (1:25,000 map highlighting the important remnants). (Practical ways to protect and enhance remnants, eg. fencing, planting, reducing soil disturbance, etc). (Enables ownership, improvement and — modification of plant to suit landholders’ needs). (Enables a single package, including | the agreement of the community to be | provided to potential sponsors, providing a clear picture of what works will be achieved for what price). Victorian Nat.. The Action Plan for Australian Birds by Stephen Garnett Published by: Australian National Parks Available from The Royal Australian Ornithologists Union, 21 Gladstone Street, Moonee Ponds, Victoria 3039 cost $21.50 (includes postage) The Endangered Species Programmed has comissioned a series of Action plans for the major groups of flora and fauna. Stephen Garnett’s Action Plan for birds is the first of the series to be published. The Plan summarises the conservation status of all endangered and threatened birds in Australia. It contains relevant biological information including threats, habitat and current distribution, occurrence in reserves and current management plans (if any) in place. Future management actions, including costs, highlight what is required if the conservation of endangered species is to be taken seriously in Australia. This Action Plan gives a comprehensive summation of what is known about each species and gives a realistic benchmark for the effort required. All those dealing with environmental reports and submissions pertaining to habitat issues will find it an essential resource. Robyn Watson Grasses of Temperate Australia by C.A. Lamp, S.J. Forbes and JW. Cade Publishers; Inkata Press, Melbourne. 1990. rrp. $54.95 The book begins with an interesting account of a range of aspects of grasses. These include weeds and grasses which are toxic or otherwise harmful to stock, uses of grasses (pasture plants in particular but also woody bamboos, etc.), the role of cereals in the development of agriculture and the co-evolution of herbivores, man and grasslands. An illustrated account of grass mor- phology then provides a good introduction for the non-botanist, and this is backed up by an extensive illustrated glossary. The rest of the book - and the main part of it - is concerned with the identification and description of grasses. Identification begins with what is essentially a key, dividing grasses, on inflorescence and other easily visible characters, into five main groups (Types 1-5) and then into Vol. 110 (1) 1993 subdivisions labelled as figures (Figs. B-M). This is followed by detailed descriptions and illustrations of individual species, accompanied by notes on habitats and distribution and often on indentification and/or material designed to help farmers. The last covers topics such as the value of a species as a pasture plant, its hazards to stock, its establishment and its climatic and soil requirements. The list of references is substantial and valuable, but, for the general reader who wishes to go further, there are some omissions from the important com- prehensive books which together cover all of the area concerned except Tasmania. These include the 1986 edition of the ‘Flora of South Australia’, the key to all Australian grass genera by Watson and Dallwitz (1985) and the admirable but long 53 out of print book by Gardner (1952) on Western Australian grasses; publication of the key to all Australian grass species by Simon (1990) may have post-dated that of the work under discussion. Identification has invevitable problems because the book is not comprehensive. It covers about one in six of the grass species of temperate Australia and, while these are common ones, the user can never be certain that a grass to be identified is in the book and can be separated satisfactorily from similar ones which are not. The key is an important first step to identification, but unfortunately it is marred by a number of mistakes. For example, at least a dozen taxa are recorded in an incorrect group, and about half of these cannot be identified because they are missing from their correct group. Examples of the latter are the awned Alopecurus and Phleum in Fig. F (spikelets awnless) and the awnless Ammophila and Antho- seanthum in Fig. G (spikelets awned). Paspalidium constrictum is missing from the appropriate group (Type 4), and it seems likely that the illustration of this Species has been switched with that of Panicum bisulcatum, Otherwise, the text has a number of errors (eg., the glume labelled as a floret in Fig, 12), statements that should be qualified (eg., the limit of subfamilies to two) and things that the Teviewer would have done differently (? improved). The last includes the removal of the unlabelled Fig, 10, which is repeated in the labelled Fig. 11 (a drawing of a plant, not merely 54 a culm), The question of nomenclature is debatable, but it seems desirable to record, at least as alternatives, all changed names accepted by recent authors - eg., the change of most species of Hordeum to Critesion. The illustrations are generally very good, but they are a little uneven in quality and completeness and a few (eg., the one of Imperata cylindrica) do not seem to have survived reproduction satisfactorily. The lack of uniformity caused by the wide range of artists is emphasized by the restriction of green colour to the interesting old illustrations by J.P. Eckert and L. Lang. Stretching a drawing across two pages is debatably desirable, and the one of Setaria verticillata is a disaster because there is no match at all between adjacent parts of the drawing on the two pages. In all, the book is well constructed, it provides an excellent set of descriptions and illustrations of a large number of grasses and it will be particularly useful for the general reader for whom it is designed. However, small flaws are rather numerous, and there will undoubtedly be some problems with indentification. References Gardner, C.A, (1952). ‘Flora of Western Australia’. Vol. 1, Part 1. Gramineae. (Government Printer: Perth). Jessop, J.P. and Toelken, H.R. (Eds.). (1986). ‘Flora of South Australia’. Part IV. (Government Printing Division: Adelaide), Simon, B.K, (1990). ‘A Key to Australian Grasses’. (Queensland Department of Primary Industries: Brisbane). Watson, L. and Dallwitz, M.J. (1985), ‘Australian Grass Genera’. Second Edition, (Australian National University Printing Service: Canberra). ‘ Notice of the Annual General Meeting The Annual General Meeting of the Field Naturalists Club of Victoria will be held at the Astronomer’s Residence, Birdwood Avenue, South Yarra at 8 p.m. on Monday, April 5, 1993. Agenda 1, © 0 A 9. Confirmation of the minutes of the previous Annual General Meeting held on 13 April 1992. oe and adoption of Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 992. Receipt and adoption of Financial Statements and associated reports. Election of Members of Council. Election of Office Bearers. Appointment of Auditors (remuneration to be determined by Council). Future of the Kinglake Block. Any other business of which proper notice has been given in accordance with the Articles of Association. President’s Address - ‘A Mallacoota Medley’. Election of Councillors and Office Bearers All members of Council and Office Bearers retire annually but are eligible for re-election. Nominations by two financial members of the Club are required for the following positions. Council President Vice-President Ten other members Office Bearers Secretary Treasurer Assistant Treasurer Editor Activities Co-ordinator Librarian Excursion Secretary Conservation Co-ordinator Publicity Officer Sales Officer (Books) Sales Officer (Victorian Naturalist) This is your Club, and all members are urged to ensure its on-going viability by filling all the above positions with persons willing and able to contribute to activities, - functions and the general work of the Club. Arrange a nomination for yourself or - encourage some other appropriate member to be nominated. Nominations should be in the hands of the Secretary before the Annual General _ Meeting. The Field Naturalists Club of Victoria In which is incorporated the Microscopical Society of Victoria Established 1880 Registered Office: FNCV, c/- National Herbarium, Birdwood Avenue, South Yarra, 3141, 650 8661. OBJECTS: To stimulate interest in natural history and to preserve and protect Australian fauna and flora. Members include beginners as well as experienced naturalists. Patron His Excellency, The Honourable Richard E McGarvie, The Governor of Victoria. Key Office-Bearers December 1991 President: Dr. ARTHUR FARNWORTH, 47 The Boulevarde, Doncaster 3108 (848 2229). Vice-President: Dr. MALCOLM CALDER, Pinnacle Lane, Steels Creek, 3775 ((059) 65 2372). Hon. Secretary: Mr. ED GREY, C/- National Herbarium, Birdwood Ave. (650 8661/435 9019 A.H.) Hon. Treasurer: Mr. NOEL DISKEN, 24 Mayston St., Hawthorn East, 3123 (882 3471). Subscription-Secretary: FNCV, c/- National Herbarium, Birdwood Avenue, South Yarra, 3141 (650 8661). Editor: ROBYN WATSON, VCAH Burnley, Burnley Gardens, Swan St, Richmond, 3121 (BH 810 8858, AH 888 6513, WED 650 8661). Librarian: Mrs. SHEILA HOUGHTON, FNCY, c/- National Herbarium, Birdwood Avenue, South Yarra, 3141, Excursion Secretary; DOROTHY MAHLER (435 8408 A.H.) Conservation Co-ordinator: Mr. JULIAN GRUSOVIN, c/ National Herbarium, Birdwood Avenue, South Yarra, 3141. Sales Officer (Victorian Naturalist only): Mr. D.E. McINNES, 129 Waverley Road, East Malvern, 3145 (571 2427). Publicity Officer: Miss MARGARET POT TER, 1/249 Highfield Road, Burwood, 3125 (889 2779), Book Sales Officer: Mr. ALAN PARKIN, FNCV, cé National Herbarium, Birdwood Avenue, South Yarra, 3141 (850 2617 A.H,). Programme Secretary: Dr. NOEL SCHLEIGER, | Astley St. Montmorency, 3094 (435 8408). Group Secretaries Botany; Mrs. WIN BENNET, 22 Echuca Road, Greensborough, 3088 (435 1921), Geology: Miss KARINA BADER, 73 Richardson Street, Albert Park, 3206 (690 4653). Fauna Survey: Miss FELICITY GARDE, 30 Oakhill Road, Mt. Waverley, 3149 (808 2625 A.H.). Microscopical: Mrs. ELSIE GRAHAM, 147 Broadway, Reservior, 3073 (469 2509), MEMBERSHIP Membership of the FN.CV. is open to any person interested in natural history. The Victorian Naturalist is distributed free to all members, the club’s reference and lending library is available and other activities are indicated in reports set out in the several preceding pages of this magazine. Membership Rates 1993 Individual (Elected Members) Membership Subscription Single Membership Joint Membership... Concessional rate ( mi Junior (under 18, n Institutional Subscriptions ons to ‘The Victorian Naturalist’ only) (Subscripti PoP OCs as eee serenity Printed by; ae Aa McDougall Printing Pty. Ltd, oundary Road, North Melboume, 3051, Telephone: (03) 329 0166 KAA (it \ ty The sua. Victorimri- Volume 110 (2) 1993 April Published by The Field Naturalists Club of Victoria since 1884 May Sun 2 Tues 4 Sat 8 Mon 10 Thurs 13 Wed 19 Sat 22 Wed 26 June Tues 1 Sun 6 F.N.C.V. Calendar of Activities General FNCV Excursion. Fungi at FNCV Block Kinglake. Leader Tom May. Meet at block 10 a.m. Private transport. Fauna Survey Group Meeting. Design, Construction and Revegeta- tion of Wetlands - Steve Yorke. Herbarium Hall 8 p.m. Fauna Survey Group Field Survey. Leadbeater’s Possum Survey. Contact Ray Gibson, 874 4408 General FNCV Meeting. Beyond Bird Watching - Ian Endersby. Herbarium Hall 8 p.m. Botany Group Meeting. Coastal Satlmarsh Vegetation (Barwon Es- tuary) - Jeff Yugovic. Herbarium Hall 8 p.m. Microscopical Group Meeting. Freshwater Filamentous Algae under the Microscope - Tim Entwisle. Astronomer’s Residence 8 p.m. Botany Group Excursion. Coastal Ferns and Plants. Leader Hilary Weatherhead. Contact Joan Harry 850 1347 Geology Group Meeting. Film Night. ‘Our Dynamic Earth, The Building of the Earth, Earthquakes of San Fransisco. Astronomer’s Residence 8 p.m. (note change), Fauna Survey Group Meeting. Members night - slides, exhibits and discoveries by members. Herbarium Hall 8 p.m. General FNCV Meeting. Hosted by Botany Group. Evolution of the Australian Flora - Graeme O'Neil. Herbarium Hall 2 p.m. Sat 12-Mon 14 Fauna Survey Group Field Survey. Wilson’s Promontory (post-fire Wed 16 Wed 23 Sat 26 Sat 26 ecology study), Contact Russell Thompson, 434 7046. Microscopical Group Meeting. Wasp Parasites of Caterpillars - Ian Faithfull. Astronomer’s Residence 8 p.m. Geology Group Meeting. Building Stones of Melbourne - Rob King. Herbarium Hall 8 p.m. Geology Group Excursion. Sources of Stones that built Melbourne. Leader Rob King. Met at Herbarium Hall 2 p.m. Botany Group Excursion. Fungi. Leader Tom May. Meet 10 a.m. Picnic area at Tooradin, Melway reference - map 144 A3. Private transport, The Victori rp . orran Naturalist is the bi-monthly publication of The Field Naturalists Club of Victoria. Volume 110 (2) 1993 ‘The Victorian Editor: Robyn Watson Assistant Editors: Ed and Pat Grey Award Reflections Australian Natural History Medallion, RVR ETC GDI OP ih Ler. cect ko atias ereapnatscisseseetsssedeeyesacentsenegee ess Some Highlights of my 65 years among Fungi, TENA IOE TW VALLES Senet pene ate Te 4.7, ON oleh Ch gAieeks Cokes tZiTéssascoty cui Research Reports First record of Mycenella (Xerulaceae) in Australia, Commentary PPV O SPER RIROUEG wrertec. th creer cs fos Fete Ta tasveciscgeeeeatg: Hg Feo yeti? Thysanophora in Australia, by J.A. SimpSOn ...ccccccccctetetseneeeees Host specificity of Disc-fungi in the genus Banksiamyces on Banksia, by B. Fubrer and T. MAy..cccceccccccceetecscesetseescetseeseesseaeees A Hypocreopsis (Fungi) from Nyora, Victoria, ae EG Fo aa eta UND TEC} eed eee SOP Py ORE RARE CATS UAT RE OT ARIES OIC The Cinnamon Fungus. Is it a threat to Australian native plants? FEMA UL CAVA teerieks SPO otc, aed RACE ep Ray ets oh ORR EO oe a Research Reports Fungal dict of the Long-nosed Bandicoot (Perameles nasuta) in Contributions Book Reviews Obituaries ISSN 0042-5184 South-eastern Australia, by A.W. Claridge vicccccccccccccceceeteeseeetensenes The Mountain Brushtail Possum (Trichosurus caninus Ogilby): Disseminator of Fungi in the Mountain Ash forests of the central highlands of Victoria, by A.W. Claridge and DILTSS LAVCHOLIPIGVET or5 losllosotey kos tbcrer esses cag spon sete OHS ET TED EAD TAVIS ESTEE Fungus photography, by B, Fultrer....c.ccscccescereseeeceseteeseeentiens Cordyceps or plant cats animal! by P. Grey and R. Barker .......... Rainforest Fungi of Tasmania and South-east Australia, by B. Fuhrer and R. Robinson, reviewer E. Grey.iccccceeccecceees The Ecology of Mycorrthizae, by M.F. Allen, reviewer C.W. MCCUDDIN.c.cccccceccccscsstssreeveeseenseesevserssnneseneeneeneenes BS gaL NY DD ENW ANC srs paul oes, ots paps canbe pee Te sad canes nv dad phtgo 8 ei gacan toe Geoffrey Richard Hughes..........:s:sscsssescsssessseresaatenssetonssieascsetersees Cover Photo: Rooting Shank, Collybia radicata, photographed by Rod Barker. Award Australian Natural History PSEA aM, Mrs Enid L. Robertson Mrs Enid L. Robertson, distingushed botanist, ecologist and conservationist from Adelaide, has been awarded the prestigious Australian Natural History Medallion for 1992. The award was presented in Adelaide by Dr Margaret Davies, Vice-President of the Royal Society of South Australia, at a meeting of the South Australian Society for Growing Australian Plants. The Field Naturalists Club of Victoria was represented by the President, Dr Arthur Farnworth, and his wife, Enid. The text of Dr Davies address follows. . It is my very great pleasure to be asked in my capacity of Vice-President of the Royal Society of South Australia to present the Australian Natural History Medallion to Enid Robertson. Enid is, of course, well known to all of you. She is undoubtedly appreciated Since this is the second successful nomination by this Society for recognition of her outstanding contributions in many areas - the first being the Association of Societies for Growing Australian Plants Australian Plant Award for 1990/91. - she goes out and does it! ant in the Depatment of Botany at the University of of 20 years, Enid has contributed substantially to our AS a research assist Adelaide for a period knowledge of the Aust ° Victorian Nat. Award In addition to this professional contribution, however, Enid makes an enormous voluntary contribution by way of her participation in a wide range of organisations (such as this) and specialist committees. Her involvement with the National Trust and its Nature Preservation Committee is visibly recorded in the Watiparinga Reserve owing its care and preservation to her innovative and effective management. The Native Vegetation Authority and Native Vegetation Council benefit from her wise advice as does the Mitcham Open Space Advisory Committee. Enid does not confine her interest in natural history to committee service. She isa very popular public speaker at seminars, meetings of Natural History groups and school functions. She is one of those very special people who can convey her message and enthusiasms to any age and interest group. Enid’s contributions and dedication to the care and understanding of our natural environment has been recognised in a number of ways, In 1986 she was awarded an Australian Heritage Award in the Nature Conservation category and in 1988 received a Bicentennial medallion, Women 88 Awards. In 1991 she was recognised as one of a hundred notable contributors to the S.A. National Parks, was awarded the Australian Plants Award: Professional category, an Award for Excellence from the Mitcham City Council and the Nature Conservation Award by the Field Naturalists Society of S.A, To this impressive list joins the Australian Natural History Medallion for 1992 for meritorious contribution to the understanding of Australian Natural History. I have very great pleasure in presenting this medallion on behalf of the Field Naturalists Club of Victoria to a very worthy recipient. The Australian Natural History Medallion, established in 1939 and administered by The Field Naturalists Club of Victoria, is awarded each year to the person judged to have made the most meritorious contribution to the understanding of Australian natural history. Enid Robertson is a very worthy winner and joins an illustrious group of medallionists. Book Review Rainforest Fungi of Tasmania and South-east Australia by Bruce Fuhrer and Richard Robinson Publisher: CS/RO, 314 Albert Street, East Melbourne, VIC 3002. 95 pages with colour plates, rrp. $19.95 (soft cover). This book is particularly relevant for all those people interested in the fungi found in the cool temperate rain-forests of Tasmania and South-east Australia, where myrtle beech is the dominant species. While not claiming to be a comprehensive coverage of all species or genera, the book provides a guide to the fungi species most likely to be seen, as well as some of the rare fungi. Clear colour photographs plus des- Vol. 110 (2) 1993 criptive text notes help make field identification relatively simple and the size of the book (150mm by 210mm) enables it to be readily carried in a pack. The photographs deserve — special mention as they are not only technically brilliant but capture the textures and colours of the subjects. The book is visually rich and leaves the reader with an appreciation of the beauty of these fungi. Ed, Grey 61 Reflections Some Highlights of my 65 years among Fungi J.H. Willis* The only kind of fungus that claimed any of my attention, as a little boy at Stanley, N.W. Tasmania, was Agaricus campestris (the common Field Mushroom, possibly introduced) that in season we avidly collected for food, though one was aware of other, different-looking fungal growths. Early in 1928, when aged 18, I had the great good fortune to begin training at the Victorian School of Forestry, Creswick. That School’s Principal, Mr Edwin J. (Ted) Semmens, happened to be also a keen student of fungi who encouraged me to collect and identify species inhabiting both the pine plantations and natural eucalypt forest around the township; use was made of his own immense, freely-shared knowledge of the subject and of certain standard books in his library (e.g. Carlton Rea's ‘British Basidiomycetae’, 1922). In no time I became familiar with the larger, frequently seen items in the Creswick district, such as Coprinus comatus (Shaggy Cap), Oudemansiella radicata (Rooting Shank), Lactarius deliciosus (Orange or Saffron Milk-cap) and Suillus luteus ( Sticky Bolete) - the last (wo being introduced Species, always near or under pines - , Trametes versicolor (Rainbow Fungus), Piptoporus _ port- entosus (White Punk) and Tremella mesenterica — (Orange-folded Jelly Fungus), One was soon aware that many kinds of toadstool could not be named with certainty (or even tentatively) using every available text: undescribed Species that lacked formal f rascinating pastime indeed, even when ending in some * 102 Male Street, Brighton, Vic 3186 62 nomenclatural cul-de-sac! The Creswick bushland could put on an amazing autumnal show of fungi, among which the colourful members of gilled Cortinarius, Russula and Mycena were as conspicuous as several genera of the puffball group were strange and intriguing: rubbery-stalked, red-mouthed Calostoma; fleshy-rayed ‘Earth Star’, Geastrum indicum; completely subterranean, strongly odorous Mesophellea; delicately latticed, iodaform smelling ‘Basket Fungus’, Heodictyon (Clathrus). Of all the fungi noted at Creswick during my 3-year residence at the V.S.F. none was more interesting than a white-capped, pink-gilled, pink-spored, amply-ringed and rosy-fragrant agaric that looked remarkably like Metraria insignis, as depicted on colour plate 18, fig 131 in M.C. Cooke’s ‘Handbook of Australian Fungi’ (1892). This rare toadstool was seen ona single occasion (December 1930) and, to my knowledge, it has been recorded only once again - at Wonga Park on the river Yarra, November 1949, Doubtless, Cooke's monotypic ‘Metraria’ was actually a species of Amanita, appearing after summer rains and related to A. rosea. My first encounter with what is probably the world’s largest terrestrial fungus, Phaeogyroporus portentosus, took place at Sailor’s Falls near Daylesford in March 1929. I was walking there with two fellow students from the V.S.F., and we each took turns at carrying this monster bolete (some 6 kg) the 22 km back to Creswick - for the edification of Ted Semmens. Another very showy, crimson-topped and yellow- Spored species, Boletellus obscure- coccineus, was discovered by my future wife and me at Drake's Creek (S.E. from Creswick) on her birthday, 30th May, 1931. That was also the day of our formal engagement, made doubly memorable by Victorian Nat. Reflections ‘the profusion of colourful fungi that came ‘our way. It was to be another half-century before we learned the correct botanical name of that gaudy ‘birthday bolete’. This one, and numerous other fungi of the district, were exquisitely painted in watercolour by my wife’s invalid brother, Malcolm I. Howie, who executed studies of 208 fungal species before he died in January 1936 - see obit. in The Victorian Naturalist 53: 21-22 (1936). School vacations from 1927 to 1931 were spent chiefly in the Goulburn Valley, at Nathalia where my father was managing the Bank of Australasia (now A.N.Z. Bank). The flat, open, dryish terrain of this district had its own suite of interesting fungal species, even if much fewer than in Creswick’s rich diversity. The puffball assemblage, Gasteromycetae, were prominent along creek frontages and sandy rises around Nathalia. A most exciting trophy was the large spectacular Bart- arraea stevenii (Drumstick Puffball) to 30 cm tall, also the contrastingly small, stalked Tulostoma minutum (to 2 cm only); others were: Mycenastrum corium (5-10 cm diameter and free from the soil), Calvatia candida, Gedstrum floriforme (tiny ‘Earth Star’), the unusual and spongy-stalked phalloid Lysurus gardneri of lawns in the township. Asa forest cadet, at the end of 1932 I was appointed to Belgrave in the Dandenong Forest District which then extended from Melbourne easterly to the Bunyip River and down to the north coast of Western Port - altogether a marvellous region for any budding mycologist. After marriage, in October 1933, I set up home at Cockatoo, working as an assistant forester chiefly inthe Gembrook section of the district. While patrolling several operational sawmill areas, I became acquainted with remoter ranges and fern gullies around the watersheds of the upper Bunyip River, McCrae, Tomahawk, Back and Diamond Creeks. All this damp forest Vol. 110 (2) 1993 land provided a wealth of hitherto unfamiliar fungi, e.g. Polyporus mylittae (‘Blackfellow’s Bread’), P sclerotinius and P. tumulosus, with their massive sub- terranean sclerotia, large orange-textured Piptoporus australiensis (‘Curry Punk’, from its powerful, permanent odour), the bristly gregarious toadstool Lacrymaria asperospora, big gilled fungus on sassafras trunks Agrocybe parasitica, red-armed phalloid Anthurus javanicus, an impressive obligate parasite of Nothofagus trees Cytiaria gunnii (the ‘Beech Orange’, having globular honeycombed fructifica- tions during November -December). A gem among the 500 odd species of larger fungi in the Dandenongs was certainly Beenakia daCostae; this little downy, snow-white, top-shaped fungus (to 3 cm high) bears on its under-surface rather long, tawny, spine-like teeth. Its habitat is quite odd - on dry powdery debris under large logs (commonly of Eucalyptus regnans). The genus Beenakia was considered endemic to Victoria, until someone found the same thing ina tropical rainforest of West Africa, While at Cockatoo I came to know mycologists Dr Ethel. I McLennan (Melbourne Uni- versity) and Professor J.B. Cleland of Adelaide, through copious correspond- ence with him; both proved extremely helpful. After I came to live permanently in Melbourne (October 1937), having joined the staff of the National Herbarium, fungal researches continued; one was grateful for the availability of much extra literature, also of the compound microscope. I contributed several short papers to The Victorian Naturalist and in 1941 ventured to bring out ‘Victorian Fungi’ ,a pioneering FN.C.V. field guide to some 120 commoner species of gilled fungi; its title was changed to ‘Victorian Toadstools and Mushrooms’ in a 1950 edition, two further up-dated editions appearing in 1957 and 1963. 63 Reflections Trips to the Mallee (especially Mildura district) yielded Polyporus basilapiloides (‘Stone-making Fungus’) and _ several unfamiliar genera of puffballs (Disciseda, Chlamydopus, Podaxis and Phellorinia) not to omit the curious cup-fungus Peziza austrogeaster of sandhills. During a memorable excursion to Anglesea (August 1968) I found a sizeable colony of the morel-like Underwoodia beatonii - a rarely seen terrestrial of coastal sand, associated with old Melaleuca lanceolata (Moonah trees). Alpine tracts of the Bogong High Plains provided spectacular examples of smelly Aseroé rubra (‘Red Starfish Fungus’, amongst grass), on Snow Gum wood Piptoporus maculatis- simus and Tyromyces pulcherrimus (spongy, crimson brackets); the minuscule yellow cup-fungus (1-2mm) Bisporella oritis was always restricted to old opened capsules of the protead Orites lancifolia. A very exciting experience, back in June 1942, had been under guidance by Mr and Mrs Paul Fisch (of East Doncaster) to a spot along Koonung Creek; there, beneath Silver Wattle trees, they were able to show me four large species of "Vegetable Caterpillar", all growing together within a few square metres: Cordyceps gunii, C. hawkesii, C. cranstounii and C. robertsii - What an unforgettable sight! During my term as Australian Botanical Liaison Officer in Great Britain (1958/59), it was stimulating to meet up with a number of notable British mycologists, including Drs Elsie M. Wakefield, John Ramsbottom, R.W.G. Dennis, Derek Reid and Stephen Hutchinson. With their help, 64 and on field forays of the British and French Mycological Societies, I was to enlarge my repertoire by many European species, e.g. Cordyceps militaris (Isle of Wight), Cantharellus cibarius (Loch Lomond) and Stink Horn Phallus impudicus (Dwingelo, Holland). In 1965, jointly with E.D. Gill, I published through the Royal Society of Victoria a paper on a fossilized fungus (Hypoxylon annulatum). These remains were very well preserved (even to ascospores) in a Tertiary seam of brown coal at the Yallourn open-cut mine. In mid-May 1969 a visit to O’Reilly’s, Lamington National Park, Queensland, brought to light material of a new tooth-fungus; it was later named Steccherinum willisii by R.A. Maas- Geesteranus in Holland. On the same occasion, a putrid smell in the rainforest led one to a white form of the phalloid Anthurus javanicus. Even in retirement I can’t resist the never-ending enchantment of the fungal world. Central Australia has unexpectedly produced a _ Brazilian phalloid, /tajahya around Uluru (Ayers Rock); the tropics have delighted me with a wealth of such polypores as white Trametes muelleri, multiseriate Gloeo- phyllum concentricum, the elegant yellow- Stalked Microporus xanthopus (‘Wine- Glass Fungus’) and leathery, lilacine, honey-combed species of Pseudo favolus. Last, but not least, a little brilliant red puffball came my way on Norfolk Island (October 1989) - the second known record of Secotium fragariosum, Victorian Nat. Research Reports First record of Mycenella (Xerulaceae) in Australia Cheryl Grgurinovic* Abstract The genus Mycenella (J.E. Lange) Singer had not been recorded in Australia prior to collections in 1981 of M. margaritispora (J.E. Lange) Singer from Victoria which are described below. Introduction The genus Mycenella (J.E. Lange) Singer was erected by Lange (1914) as asubgenus of the genus Mycena (Pers. ex Fr.) Gray and raised to generic level by Singer (1938). Collections from Victoria of the type species of the genus, Mycenella margaritispora (J.E. Lange) Singer, are described here as a first record of the genus from Australia. A number of other species occur in the southern hemisphere: Mycenella fuliginosa Singer from Argentina (Singer 1964); M. minima Singer from Chile (Singer 1969); M. eriopoda (Sacc. & P. Syd.) Singer from Argentina (Singer 1952a; 1964); M. polylepidis Singer from Argentina (Singer 1989); M. funebris Singer from Tierra del Fuego, mainland Argentina and Chile (Singer 1952b; Singer 1964; Singer and Digilio 1953); M. aristoteliae Singer from Masatierra, Chile (Singer 1959); and M. subtropicalis Singer from Argentina (Singer 1964). Materials and methods As each collection of Mycenella was made, notes were taken describing the substratum upon which the collection was growing, the presence of any distinctive odour, and the growth habit, that is whether solitary, scattered, gregarious or cae- spitose. Spore prints were made as soon as possible after collection. The procedures of macroscopic exam- ination and the terminology used are based on those of Largent (1977). Colours of the basidiomata were recorded using Rayner (1970). Although the macroscopic * Australian Biological Resources Study GPO Box 636 Canberra, ACT 260:. Vol. 110 (2) 1993 characters for Mycenella were determined on fresh collections, the microscopic characters were determined later, using specimens preserved by freeze drying using a Dynavac high vacuum freeze drying unit, model FD16. The procedures for microscopic examination and the terminology used were those of Largent ef al. (1977). Measurements of microscopic struct- ures were recorded from fragments of basidioma stained with ammoniacal Congo Red and then mounted in a five per cent aqueous solution of potassium hydroxide. Data on the number of measurements taken per number of collections examined is given (for example, (27/1), twenty-seven mea- surements from one collection [Bas 1969]). Data given for spores include the length/breadth ratio (mean _ length divided by mean width) and the quotient (sum of lengths divided by sum of widths). Basidiomata were also exam- ined for sarcodimitic tissue (Corner a is b Fig. 1. Mycenella margaritispora: a, longitudinal section of basidioma, Bar = 10 mm, b, longitudinal sections through pileus, Bar =5 mm, 65 Research Reports ya eaae \ \ | \ —"j Fig. 2. Mycenella mare garitispora: a, spores from two-spored basidia; b, two-spored basidia; c, four-spored basidia; d, Spores from four-spored basidia; e, chei locystidia; f, pleurocystidia; g, caulocystidia; h, pileal surface: i, pileocystidia; j, Stipe surface. Bar = 10 jum. Mycenella margaritispora (J.E. Lange) Singer in Lilloa 22: 29] (1951). Figs 1-2, Mycena margaritispora J.E, Lange in Dansk Bot. Arkiv 5: 37 (1914), Pileus to 10 mm diam., to 5 mm high, conic to steeply conic or campanulate, slightly umbonate or not, silky, moist, minutely radially tugulose; margin entire, translucent-striate, slightly flared at maturity; ‘sepia’ to ‘umber’ at apex, becoming ‘isabelline’, ‘hazel’ or dark ‘umber’, then light ‘isabelline’ to ‘isabelline’ at Margin; flesh thin to thick, tapering gradually to Margin, white to walery grey. Lamellae narrowly adnate to adnate, ascending, distant, narrow to 66 moderately broad, with two series of lamellulae, rarely one or three, with occasional — bifurcate branching near margin of pileus, minutely denticulate at edge, sides minutely pubescent, white with slight ‘hazel’ tinge towards pileus. Stipe to 41 mm long, to 1 mm diam., cylindric, smooth except towards apex where minutely denticulate from caulocystidia, dry, polished, with sparse short white Strigose hairs at base, or base naked, cartilaginous, fistulose, pallid to ‘hazel’ at apex, becoming dark ‘honey’, dark ‘hazel’ or ‘umber’ towards base. Odour not distinctive, Basidiospores (two-spored basidia, from collections 468] and 1782) (27/1), Victorian Nat. Research Reports 6.4-8.3 (K = 7.6, SD = + 0.46) x 5.6-7.8 (x= 6.85, SD = + 0.51) um, L/B = 1.1, Q = 1.1; (four-spored basidia, from collection 4/587) (26/1), 5.3-7.2 (k =6.3, SD = + 0.54) x 4.8-8.3 (x =6.1, SD=+ 0.91) um, L/B = 1.0, Q = 1.0 (excluding ornamentation); globose to subglobose, with large conical apiculus to 4.0 1m long, nodulose, with large obtuse nodulae to 0.9 m high, inamyloid, hyaline. Basidia (25/1), 22.0-31.2 [-46.0] (X = 28.1, SD = + 4.33) x 7.0-8.4 (XK = 7.7, SD = + 0.36) Lim, with sterigmata to 5.6 um long, two- or rarely four-spored (468/, 1782) or four-spored (4/58/), clavate, with clamp connection at base. Cheilocystidia moderately abundant, (25/1), 51.6-67.0 (x = 56.5, SD =+ 4.20) x 8.7-12.1 (K=9.9, SD = +1.19) pm, fusoid-ventricose, with a long, tapering neck, with many short excrescences at apex, rarely none, slightly thick-walled from apex to middle of ventricose region or just below neck, walls to 1.2 m thick, with clamp connection at base, hyaline. Pleurocystidia moderately abundant, (17/1), 48.0-61.6 (x = 55.7, SD = + 4.13) x 6.4-18.4 (X = 11.65, SD = + 2.39) um, similar to cheilocystidia, with clamp connection at base. Hymenophoral trama regular, non-dextrinoid. Pileal surface an epicutis, consisting of filamentous to cylindrical hyphae with abundant, short, rod-like to cylindrical excrescences, hyphae (11/1), 1.6-3.8 (x = 2.8, SD=+ 0.70) um diam., some terminal cells slightly thick-walled and appearing pileocystidioid; pileocystidia scattered or moderately abundant in places, (2/1), 57.6-61.6 x 8.6-10.6 um, fusoid to fusoid-ventricose, without apical excrescences, slightly thick-walled in ventricose region or in neck region. Pileal context non-dextrinoid. Stipe surface of filamentous hyphae, with short rod-like to cylindrical excrescences. Caulocystidia moderately abundant over stipe surface, (9/1), 44.8-78.4 (x = 58.0, SD = + 10.07) x 6,0-10.5 (x = 8.3, SD = + 1.69) pm, fusoid-ventricose, with few apical excrescences or none, sometimes slightly Vol. 110 (2) 1993 thick-walled in neck region. Stipe context non-dextrinoid. Sarcodimitic tissue present at base of stipe only. Clamp connections present, Habit, habitat and phenology Gregarious; on trunk of Nothofagus cunninghamii (Hook.f.) Oerst., on trunk of Bedfordia salicina (Labill.) DC. and on trunk of Acacia melanoxylon R. Br. Specimens collected from May to July. Collections Victoria; Sherbrooke Forest, Hardy Creek, 10.v.1981, C.A. Grgurinovic 41581 (CBG 9302147). Glen Nayook, 7.vi.1981, C.A. Grgurinovic 4681 (CBG 9302148); 20.vii.1982, C.A. Greurinevic 1782 (CBG 9302149). The spores and basidia of Australian collections are similar in size to those of European and North American collections. Smith (1947) recorded the spores as (5-) 6-8 um. Kiihner (1938) recorded the spores as 5.5-6.5 jum and the basidia as 20-25 x 7-8.5 im. Bockhout (1985) recorded the spores as (5.5-) 6.3-8.1 x (4.5-) 5.1-6.7 (-7.4) um and the basidia as 23-35 x 6-8 pm. Australian collections have two- or four-spored basidia. Horak (1968) also recorded the basidia as two-or four-spored. The collections he examined were Mycenella lasiosperma (Bres.) Singer, which he considered conspecific with M. margaritispora. Boekhout (1985) recorded collections from the Netherlands as having two-spored basidia, as did Smith (1935; 1947) for collections from North America. Australian collections also have slightly thick-walled cheilocystidia and pleurocystidia. They are, however, the same size as those in European and North American collections. Boekhout (1985), Smith (1935, 1947) and Kiihner (1938) described the cheilocystidia and pleurocystidia as thin-walled. Collections from the Netherlands are reported as having a hymeniform pileal 67 Research Reports surface (Bockhout 1985). This disagrees with what was found in Australian collections and also with the description of the pileal cuticle by Horak (1968), and by Singer (1986) who reported that the epicutis in Mycenella is not hymeniform, Boekhout (1985) noted that M™. margaritispora is characterised by a small, conical to campanulate pileus and cheilocystidia with simple or coralloid excrescences at their apex. In the latter aspect this species agrees with M. lasiosperma (Bres.) Singer, which according to some authors (e.g. [Horak 1968] Kiihner 1938: 612, 1980: 896) is conspecific with M. margaritispora. He noted that the latter species seemed to differ from M. lasiosperma in the smaller non-fasciculate basidiomata, in the absence of a rooting base and in having a hot very pronounced smell. Bigelow (1984) noted that further study of the spores of North American and European collections variously identified as M. margaritispora, M. bryophila (Voglino) Singer, M. trachyspora (Rea) Bon, M. lasiosperma _ (Bresadola) Singer, M, kuehneri Romagnesi, Mycena nodulosa Smith, is in order. When comparing various accounts of these species there is some confusion about the definitive characteristics of each, and an exami nation of spores under the scanning electron microscope may provide additional information which will aidin clarifying the number of species which actually exist. Sarcodimitie tissues in the Stipe have been reported for two species of Mycenella: M. bryophila (Corner 1966; Natarajan and Raman 1981) and M™. nodulosa (A\H, Smith) Boekhout (Redhead 1987), The generic and family relationships of Mycenella have been the Subject of much dispute. Mycenella was originally described asa subgenus of Mycena (Lange 1914) which Kiihner (1938) reduced toa section. Singer (1936) initially transferred eile enter ake ; s section Laccariosporae, but quently recognised Mycenella as a 68 genus (Singer 1938; 1986) in the tribe Marasmieae. Kihner (1980) placed Mycenella with Mycena in the tribe Myceneae. He did this on the grounds that species of Mycenella possess intracellular pigmentation and are much too mycenoid in habit to be placed in the tribe Marasmieae (Kiihner 1980), Mycenella can be distinguished from Mycena by its spores which are globose, inamyloid, and nodulose or smooth, and have a large apiculus. Mycenella aristoteliae, M. eriopoda, M. subtropicalis, M. funebris and M. salicina (Voglino) Singer have smooth spores. However, these species, with the exception of M. aristoteliae, have a large apiculus, The apiculus of the latter species is described as ‘not very voluminous’ (Singer 1959). Species of Mycenella also have non-dextrinoid hyphae, whereas most species of Mycena have dextrinoid hyphae. Romagnesi (1940) indicated that Mycenella and Xerula are closely related, and in fact were not divided by a hiatus. He believed that the two genera should be combined under the name Mycenella. Singer (1986) noted that it may be argued that the pilosity of the Xerulas is nothing but an extreme of the ( microscopical) hairs observed in Mycenella, and it may be said that if smooth spores are admitted in _ Mycenella (M. salicina), echinate spores should also be admitted in the large-spored forms (Xerula). However, Singer believed that these characters coincided with the general habit of the basidiomata, and therefore a correlation between two important characters exists. He Stated that at the moment one could not go beyond Romagnesi’s demonstration of affinity between the genera Mycenella and Xerula (= Oudemansiella). Redhead (1987) circumscribed the family Xerulaceae Jiilich to include twenty-five genera characterised by the presence of sarcodimitic tissues. Many of these genera have been closely linked by other characters (Redhead 1987) and had all been formerly placed in the large family Tricholomataceae Roze sensu lato. Bas Victorian Nat. Research Reports (1990) reduced Xerulaceae to the tribe Xeruleae in the Tricholomataceae. The Xerulaceae contains Mycena, Mycenella and Xerula. Redhead (1987) considered Mycenella to be more closely related to Xerula than to Mycena. Acknowledgements I would like to thank Jack Simpson for making valuable comments on_ the manuscript, Heino Lepp for drawing my attention to Boekhout’s paper, and Catherine Jordan for her assistance with obtaining literature. References Bas, C. (1969). Morphology and subdivision of Amanita and a monograph of its section Lepidella, Persoonia 5: 285-579. Bas, C. (1990). Notulae ad floram Agaricinam Neerlandicam-X VII. On tribus names in the family Tricholomataceae sensu lato. Persoonia 14: 233-235. Bigelow, H.E. (1984). Spore omamentation in the Tricholomataceze. II. Sydowia 36: 11-18. Boekhout, T. (1985). Notulae ad floram Agancinam Neerlandicam-IX. Mycenella. Persoonia 12: 427-440. Comer, E.J.H. (1966). ‘A Monograph of Cantharelloid Fungi’. (Oxford University Press: London.) Horak, E. (1968). Synopsis generum Agaricalium (Die Gattungstypen der Agaricales). Beitrage zur Kryptogamenflora der Schweiz 13: 1-741. Kiihner, R. (1938). Le Genre Mycena. Encyclopedie Mycologique 10: 1-710. Kiihner, R. (1980). Les hymémomycétes agaricoides, Numéro spécial du Bulletin de la Société Linnéenne de Lyon 49. Lange, J. (1914). Studies in the agarics of Denmark 1. Dansk botanisk arkiv udgivet af Dansk botanisk forening 1: 1-40. Largent, D.L. (1977). ‘How to Identify Mushrooms to Genus 1: Macroscopic Features’. (Mad River Press, Inc.: Eureka, California.) Vol. 110 (2) 1993 Largent. D.L., Johnson, D. and Watling, R. (1977). ‘How to Identify Mushrooms to Genus III: Microscopic Features’. (Mad River Press, Inc.: Eureka, California.) Natarajan, K. and Raman, N. (1981). South Indian Agaricales-IX. Sydowia 33: 225-235. Rayner, R,W. (1970). ‘A Mycological Colour Chart’. (Commonwealth Mycological Institute: Kew, Surrey, and British Mycological Institute.) Redhead, S.A. (1987). The Xerulaceae (Basidiomycetes), a family with sarcodimitic tissues. Canadian Journal of Botany 65: 1551-1562. Romagnesi, H. (1940). Mycenella et Xerula, Bulletin de la société mycologique de France 56: 59-65. Singer, R. (1936). Studien zur Systematik der Basidiomyceten. Beihefte zum _Botanischen Centralblatt 86 B: 137-174. Singer, R. (1938). De Nonnulis Basidiomycetibus. Botaniceskie meterialy Otdela sporovyh rastenij Botaniceskogo instituta’ imeni- V.L. Komarova Akademii nauk SSSR 4 (10-12): 4-8. Singer, R. (1952a). Type studies on agarics III. Lilloa 25: 463-514. Singer, R. (1952b). The Agarics of the Argentine Sector of Tierra del Fuego and limitrophous Regions of the Magallanes Area. Sydowia 6: 165-226, Singer, R. (1959). Basidiomycetes from Masatierra (Juan Femandez Islands, Chile). Arkiv fér Botanik 4: 371-400, pls V-XII. Singer, R. (1964). Oudemansiellinae, Macrocystidiinae, Pseudohiatulinae in South America. Darwiniana 13; 145-190, Singer, R. (1969), Mycoflora australis. Beiheft zur Nova Hedwigia 29; 1-405. Singer, R. (1986). ‘The Agaricales in Modem Taxonomy’, 4th edn. (Koeltz Scientific Books: Koenigstein, Germany.) Singer, R. (1989). New Taxa and New Combinations of Agaricales (Diagnoses Fungorum Novorum Agaricalium IV). Fieldiana n.s. 21: 1-133. Singer, R. and Digilio, P.L. (1953). Prédromo de la flora agaricina Argentina. Lilloa 25: 5-462. Smith, A.H. (1935). Studies in Mycena, |. American Journal of Botany 22: 858-877. Smith, A.H. (1947). ‘North American Species of Mycena’. (University of Michigan Press: Ann Arbor, and Oxford University Press: London.) 69 Research Reports Thysanophora in Australia J.A. Simpson* While examining samples from unthrifty caucasian fir trees, Abies nordmanniana (Steven) Spach, from northern New South Wales we observed an unusual Hyphomycete growing on recently fallen needles. The fungus was identified as belonging to Thysanophora Kendrick, a small genus of six described species, not previously reported to occur in Australia. Materials and Methods For isolation of the fungus, conidia were picked off conidiophores using a sterile moist needle and plated on 1.25% malt extract agar containing 50 pg mL! streptomycin sulphate. Isolates were subsequently grown on Czapek yeast autolysate agar (CYA), malt extract agar (MEA) and 25% glycerol nitrate agar (G25N) prepared according to Pitt (1979). Inoculated plates were incubated at 5°C, 25°C and 37°C. After seven days the plates were examined, colony diameters measured, described and examined microscopically. Colony colours were determined using Komerup and — Wanscher (1983). Microscopical observations were made on material mounted in lactofuchsin (Carmichael 1955). Production of laccase and tyrosinase was tested for using © - naphthol and p-cresol drop tests as described by Kaarik ( 1965), Results Thysanophora penicilloides (Roum- eguere) Kendrick = Haplographium penicilloides Roum. Sclerotial morph Sclerotium albidum Desmagieres = Thysanophora glauco-albida (Desm.) Morelet Conidiophores €rumpent from stomata on conifer leaves or borne in a dense stand * Forestry Commission NSW PO Box 100, Beecroft, 21 19 glauco- 70 from surface hyphae on agar media, erect, to 700 x 8-17 um, thick walled, olivaceous brown, paler above, septate, with an apical penicillus, and frequently, proliferation of the conidiophore from just below the penicillus to give rise to a sympodial series of heads; metulae in verticils of 3-8, slightly divergent, 11-17 x 3.6 um , each metula bearing 2-7 phialides at its apex; phialides lanceolate, 9-15 x 2.0 -3.5 um, hyaline to pale yellowish brown in age, with tapering colulla but no collarette; conidia dry, hyaline to pale brown, subglobose to ellipsoidal, 2.0-5.1 x 1.6-3.0 jim, finely roughened, bome in disordered basipetal chains (Fig. 1A-C). CYA, 20°C, 7 days : colonies 14-17 mm diameter, plane with a dense stand of conidiophores, olive, 3E3 to 4E3, exudate and soluble pigment absent, reverse yellowish brown, 3F3 "goose turd", MEA, 25°C, 7 days: colonies 21-31 mm diameter, plane, yellowish brown, 4F3-4 ‘sepia’, margin 1-2 mm wide white, exudate and soluble pigment absent, reverse 4F3-4. G25N, 25°C, 7 days: colonies 3-4 mm diameter, subhyaline, no sporulation. CYA, 5°C, 7 days: colonies 2-3 mm diameter, subhyaline, no sporulation. CYA, 37°C, 7 days: no growth. Laccase: negative. Tyrosinase: negative. Specimens examined: New South Wales, Guyra, on dead fallen leaves of Abies nordmanniana, D. Crossing, 19 February, 1993, DAR 69515. Discussion Overseas the conidiophores of T, penicilloides and of other species of Thysanophora are often associated with white to brown or olivaceous brown sclerotia (Kendrick 1961, Stolk and Hennebert 1968, Barron and Cooke 1970, Victorian Nat. Research Reports Ellis 1971). No sclerotia were observed on the leaves of the Guyra collection or in culture. Willetts and Bullock (1992) have suggested sclerotia are derived from conidiogenous or ascogenous tissues. No teleomorph is known for any species of Thysanophora. The penicilli of T. penicilloides are similar to those of species Fig. 1. Thysanophora penicilloides. A. Group of conidiophores emergent from Abies leaf. B, Proliferations of the conidiophore. _C. Apical penicillus and conidia. (Bar = 10 jm). Vol. 110 (2) 1993 71 Research Reports of Penicillium Ludwig subgenus Biverticillium Dierckx section Simplicium (Biourge) Pitt. Subramanian (1979) ob- served ‘that most phialidic Hyphomycetes producing dry conidia in true chains have teleomorphs in the Eurotiales’. However, no species of the Eurotiales (von Arx 1987) is known to have sclerotia like those of species of Thysanophora. Pitt (1979) rejected the idea of any close relationship between Penicillium and Thysanophora. If the sclerotia are of ascocarpic origin, their absence from the Guyra collection may indicate the teleomorph is heterothallic and only one mating type was introduced. The presence of a sclerotial morph presents a nomenclatural problem first addressed by Kendrick (1961). He placed Sclerotium glauco-albidum, which was described in 1851, into synonymy with 7, penicilloides the basionym of which was described in 1890. Kendrick found no Thysanophora conidiophores on the type collection of S. glauco-albidum, Because the genus Thysanophora is characterised by its conidiophores rather than its sclerotia Kendrick chose not to typify the genus with a type consisting only of sclerotia. Morelet ( 1968), however, made the valid combination Thysanophora glauco-albida. 1 have chosen to use the nomenclature of Kendrick (1961) rather than Morelet (1968) in view of Recommendation 59A,2 of the Inter- national Code of Botanical Nomenclature (Greuter 1988) which states “When in naming a new morph of a fungus the epithet of the name of a different, earlier described morph of the same fungus is used, the new name should be designated as the name of a new taxon or anamorph, as the case may be, but not as a new combination based on the earlier name’, Ti penicilloides is reported to be common on rotting leaves of Abies grandis (Douglas ex D, Don) Lindl, in the United Kingdom and Occasionally on Larix, Picea and Pseudotsuga (Ellis and Ellis, 1985), 72 Kendrick (1961) also reported it from fruits of Cornus, Sorbus and Coprinus, and from soil. Careful searches may reveal it in south eastern Australia in gardens with old trees of Abies, Larix or Picea. Acknowledgements I thank C.A. Grgurinovic for Figure 1 and M. Priest for advice on the occurrence of Thysanophora in Australia. References Arx, J.A. von (1987). A re-evaluation of the Eurotiales. Persoonia 13: 273-300, Barron, G.L. and Cooke, WB. (1970). Thysanophora. Mycopathologia et Applicata 40; 353-356. Camnichael, JW, (1955), Lacto-fuchsin: a new medium for mounting fungi. Mycologia 47: 611, Ellis, M.B. (1971). ‘Dematiaceous Hyphomycetes’. (Commonwealth Mycological Institute : Kew.) Ellis, M.B, and Ellis, J.P. (1985). *Microfungi on Jand plants. An identification handbook’ (Croom Helm : London.) Greuter, W. (ed.) (1988), ‘Intemational Code of Botanical Nomenclature’ (Koeltz Books: Konig- stein.) Kuarik, A. (1965). The identification of the mycelia of wood-decay fungi by their oxidation reactions with Phenolic compounds. Studia Forestalia Suecia 31: 1-38, Kendrick, W.B. (1961). Hyphomycetes of conifer leaf liter. Thysanophora gen. nov. Canadian Journal of Botany 39: 817-823, Kornerup, A. and Wanscher, J.H, (1983). ‘Methuen handbook of colour. Third edition’ (Methuen: London.) Morelet, M. (1968), Micromycetes du Var et d' Ailleurs. Annals Societe Scientifique Naturelle Archeol, Toulon et Var 20: 102-106, Jl. (1979). ‘The genus Penicillium and its teleamorphic states Eupenicillium and Talaro- myces’. (Academic Press: London.) Stolk, A.C, and Hennebert, G.L. (1968). New Species of Thysanophora and C. ustingophora gen. nov. Persoonia §: 189-199, Subramanian, C.V, (1979). Phialidic Hyphomycetes and their teleomorphs - an analysis. Jn ‘The Whole Fungus’, Ed B. Kendrick, 125-151. (National Museums of Canada for Kananaskis Foundation: Ottawa.) Willetts, HJ. and Bullock, S. (1992). Developmental biology of sclerotia Mycological Research 96: 801-816, A new Mycologia Pitt, Victorian Nat. 4 Research Reports Host Specificity of Disc-fungi in the Genus Banksiamyces on Banksia. Bruce Fuhrer* and Tom May** Banksiamyces is a uniquely Australian genus of small Disc-fungi, found only on Banksia cones. Four species of Banksiamyces have been described (Beaton and Weste 1982, 1984) each recorded up to now from a single, different species of Banksia (Banksiamyces macrocarpus on Banksia spinulosa Fig. 1; Banksiamyces toomansis on Banksia marginata; Banksiamyces katerinae on Banksia ornata Fig. 2; Banksiamyces maccannii on Banksia saxicola Fig. 3. Beaton and Weste (1984) also noted that infertile (and hence unidentified) collections have been made _ of Banksiamyces on Banksia canei, B. integrifolia and B. serrata. Banksiamyces has thus been found on all seven Victorian Banksia species. Banksiamyces has also been observed on some Westem Australian Banksia species (Ian McCann, pers. comm.) and on the Queensland B, conferta cultivated in Victoria. Fresh fruiting bodies are stalked, with a concave disc on the upper surface where the spores are produced, Banksiamyces macrocarpus (also illustrated, in colour, by Fuhrer 1985) is considerably larger than the other species, with a disc up to 20 mm in diameter. The remaining species all produce fruiting bodies which rarely exceed 5 mm diameter. B. toomansis can be distinguished by the blue-grey disc and white granular outer covering to the stipe surface and disc underside. In B. katerinae both the disc and the outer covering are dark grey. B. maccannii has much larger spores than the preceding species and the outer surface is not noticeably granular. When dried, the fruiting bodies of B. * Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Monash University, Clayton, Vic. ** National Herbarium of Victoria, Birdwood Ave., South Yarra, Vic. Vol. 110 (2) 1993 ae : Bebe dy. c Fig. 1. Banksiamyces macrocarpus on Banksia spinulosa (ce. x1). Fig. 2. Banksiamyces katerinae on Banksia ornala (c, x1), Deities my \. Fig. 3. Banksiamyces maccannii on Banksia saxicola (c. x1). 73 Research Reports toomansis and B, katerinae do not shrink much and assume a characteristic laterally compressed form (Fig. 2) with the edge of the disc being strongly inrolled. This mode of drying is similar to other fungi in which the spore producing area is protected after drying prior to later rehydration when favourable conditions recur. Further observations of material in the field are required on this matter. In contrast, B.macrocarpus dries in an_ irregular manner and shrinks to a relatively greater degree than the other three species. The four species also differ in the distribution of gelatinous tissue within the fruiting bodies and in the position of the fruiting bodies on the cone. B. katerinae is found predominantly on the exposed surface of the seed capsules, towards the lips of the valves, sometimes massed on the valve lips, whereas B. toomansis tends to occur on the cone surface between the seed capsules and on the exposed portion of the seed capsule distal to the lips of the valves. In most dried collections spores are rarely found even though frequent in fresh material prior to drying. Perhaps there is mass discharge of spores during drying, although at least some spores would be expected to adhere to the disc surface especially in those species where the disc edges are inrolled after drying. Fruiting bodies placed when fresh in 70% alcohol appear to retain spores and this method of preservation should be used for at least some fruiting bodies from each collection. In the absence of spores there are sufficient other distinguishing characters, as described above, for Satisfactory iden- tification, Beaton and Weste (1984) considered that each species of Banksiamyces was limited in occurrence to one host species. We were therefore suprised to find for sale at a craft market a cone of Banksia marginata (for ty ha a omamental animals) upon present two different species 74 of Banksiamyces (B. katerinae and B. toomansis), the identification of which was confirmed by Gordon Beaton. The cone had been collected on Kangaroo Island, where the only species of Banksia are B. marginata and B. ornata, The cone did lack the persistent styles usual in B. marginata, but further typical material of B. marginata was received from Kangaroo Island (via Ilan McCann) on which there were also the same two species of Banksiamyces. The finding of two species of Banksia- myces on the one host prompted a closer look at the host range of the Victorian species. Observations now include: (1) B. toamansts on Banksia saxicola (Fig. 4), (2) B. toomansis and B. maccannii on the one cone of Banksia saxicola, (3) Banksia- myces toomansis and B. katerinae on the one cone of Banksia ornata, (Fig. 5), (4) Banksiamyces toomanis on Banksia canei, and (5) two different but unidentified species of Banksiamyces on Banksia serrata. Thus Banksiamyces toomanis is found on at least four different species of Banksia, Banksiamyces katerinae on two species and B. maccannii on one species. B. macrocarpus remains the only species on Banksia spinulosa, and has only been found on that host. Beaton and Weste (1982) considered, but did not accept, the possibility that the different species which they described Fig. 4. Dried fruiting bodies of Banksiamyces toomansis on Banksia saxicola (c. x1). Victorian Nat. Research Reports Fig. 5. Dried fruiting bodies of Banksiamyces toomansis (paler fruiting bodies) and B. katerinae on Banksia ornata (c. x2). were in fact a single species which produced fruiting bodies of different morphology on different hosts. The finding of typical fruiting bodies of two different species on the one host, and also of the same species on more than one host, supports the contention that morphology is not affected to any major extent by the host. Differences in position of fruiting bodies are also constant when two species co-occur. On Banksia ornata, fruiting bodies of Banksiamyces katerinae are found massed near the lips of the valves whilst those of Banksiamyces toomansis Vol. 110 (2) 1993 on Banksia ornata occur mainly toward the base of the seed capsule, as they do on other hosts. There are more than 70 Australian species of Banksia and one species in Papua New Guinea (George 1984), It will be of interest to see what is the host range of each Banksiamyces in relation to all species of Banksia, and to see if further species of Banksiamyces are discovered. Investigation of the occurrence of different species of Banksiamyces on different species of Banksia, similar to the study of the fungus Cyttaria on Nothofagus by Korf (1983), may provide useful information on possible evolutionary relationships in both host and fungus. Acknowledgements We thank Ian McCann for keeping an eye out for interesting collections, Dean and Bev Overton for material from Kangaroo Island, and Alan Mills for helpful comments. References Beaton, G. and Weste, G. (1982). Banksiamyces gen, nov., a discomycete on dead Banksia cones. Transactions of the British mycological Society 79:271-277. Beaton, G. and Weste, G. (1984). A new species of Banksiamyces on Banksia saxicola (Proteaceae). Tranactions of the British mycological Society 83:533-535. Fuhrer, B. (1985). ‘A field companion to Australian fungi’. (The Five Mile Press: Hawthom,) George, A.S. (1984). ‘The Banksia book’. (Kangaroo Press: Sydney.) Korf, R.P. (1983). Cyttaria (Cyttariales): coevolution with Nothofagus, and evolutionary relationships to the Boedijnopezizeae (Pezizales; Sarcoscyphaceae). Australian Journal of Botany, Supplementary Series 10:77-87. 75 Research Reports A Hypocreopsis (Fungi) from Nyora, Victoria Tom May* and John Eichler** Approximately 3 km_ north-west of Nyora, near the South Gippsland Highway, is a parcel of public land of about 640 hectares which supports native vegetation growing on predominantly sandy soils. Vegetation communities present are quite varied and include heathy woodland, wet heathland, riparian forest and sedge swampland. In areas seen by us the vegetation is in good condition, with litte evidence of weed invasion, The parcel of land straddles the South Eastern Railway. The part north of the railway is mostly committed to sand extraction, the southern portion — is, however, uncommitted (Land Conser- vation Council 1991), The future of public land in the eastern half of the Melbourne region is currently under review and the Land Conservation Council is expected to release proposed recommendations for public comment in April 1993, During surveys of the vascular plants of the area a peculiar fungus was collected which proved to be an undescribed Species of the ascomycete genus Hypocreopsis (Fig. 1). The fruiting body occurs on dead wood and forms a firm, raised patch up to 6 cm in length with Strongly lobed Fig. 1, Hypocreopsis Sp. (c. x1). * National Herbarium Of Victoria, Birdwood Ave,, South Yarra, Vic, ** 18 Bayview Crescent, Black Rock, Vic, 76 margins; the lobes being up to about 2 mm broad and clasping the substrate. The surface is brown, with the tips of the lobes a paler yellowish-brown. Older specimens often have white, powdery areas. The spores are elongated-ellipsoid in shape. There are one to three (sometimes as many as six) septa and the spore surface is ornamented with low warts. Spores are produced in asci which line flask-shaped chambers (perithecia) embedded in the fruiting body. These chambers open to the upper surface through tiny pores. Asexual spores (conidia) are also produced. Hypocreopsis is arelative of Hypocrea and Nectria, distinguished by the combination of a Hypocrea-like fruiting body and Nectria-like spores (Doi 1977), Fruiting bodies have been seen in June and July. Most specimens were found on dead branches of —Leptospermum myrsinoides, but occasional — fruiting bodies were also observed on dead Banksia marginata. The Hypocreopsis seems to be associated with overmature stands of Leptospermum myrsinoides which have reached a height in excess of 3 m and are collapsing. These stands have obviously had a long fire free history. The effect of fire on the Hypocreopsis is unknown but should be investigated. In macroscopic appearance the Nyora collection has a remarkable similarity to the rare Northern Hemisphere H. ricciodea (= H. lichenoides), illustrated by Dennis (1960) and Strid ( 1967), which, however, has smooth spores. An even rarer species known from a few collections from North America and Scotland, H. rhododendri, is also. macroscopically very similar to H. lichenoides, and does have roughened Spores, but the spores differ in that they have a single septum and are less elongate (Dennis 1975). Other species in the genus produce very different fruiting bodies (Samuels 1988). The Nyora collection is Victorian Nat. Research Reports thus considered to represent a distinct species which will be formally described elsewhere. A number of synonyms of H. riccioidea, such as H. lichenoides, have specific epithets which refer to the similarity of the fruiting body to that of a lichen. There do not appear to be any previous collections or references to the Nyora species, but it is possible that it may have been inadvertently identified as a lichen, especially if old and weathered specimens were seen, and thus specimens should be looked out for amongst lichen collections in herbaria. Some fruiting bodies were directly overlying fruiting bodies of a quite different species of fungus (a resupinate species of Hymenochaete). Other species of Hypocreopsis, including H. liche- noides, have also been recorded on various fungal hosts (Samuels 1988). Other fungi present at the Hypocreopsis site in July included Amanita sp., Barya agaricicola (yellow individual perithecia on decaying agaric fruiting bodies); Coltricia cinnamomea; a dark grey Cantharellus with a strong odour of old cheese when dried, unclamped hyphae and 4-5 spored basidia (possibly C. fuligineus); a brilliant pink Cantharellus, more robust and less orange than the common C. cibarius var. australiensis; Dermocybe sp.; Discinella terrestris; Gymnopilus sapineus; Hydnellum sp.; | Hydnum repandum; Lactarius subdulcis; Leotia lubrica; and Pycnoporus coccineus. Voucher collections of some of these species, and of the Hypocreopsis are deposited in the National Herbarium of Victoria. Hygrophorus lewellinae was found at a nearby site. The two species of Cantharellus, Hygrophorus lewellinae and the Hydnellum are all species which have been infrequently encountered in Victoria. It is of interest that Strid (1967), in a survey of known collections of H. riccioidea, found that most were from sites with a ‘maritimely influenced climate’, It is possible that the Nyora Hypocreopsis Vol, 110 (2) 1993 may have a similar distribution. Hygrophorus lewellinae is also known in Victoria only from near-coastal sites (Tarwin, Westernport, Lower Glenelg). Few collections of macrofungi have been made from coastal sites and no doubt other interesting species await discovery. There is a need for further systematic surveys to determine the rareness or otherwise of the unusual species noted from Nyora, especially the Hypocreopsis sp., and the fidelity of the species to particular habitats. The Nyora site is in an area which has little vegetated public land. It is likely to have a high value for nature conservation because of its size, the range of vegetation communities present, the integrity of the vegetation, and the presence of several species of fungi, which, at least on present information, must be considered rare. A submission has been made to the Land Conservation Council advising of the presence of the Hypocreopsis sp., with a recommendation that the site should be included in a flora and fauna reserve. Acknowledgements We thank Ilma Dunn for providing the photograph and Bruce Fuhrer for assistance in preparation of the figure. References Dennis, R.W.G. (1960) ‘British cup fungi and their allies’, (Ray Society: London.) Dennis, R.W.G. (1975). New or interesting British microfungi, III. Kew Bulletin W:345-365, Doi, Y. (1977). Revision of the Hypocreales with cultural observations X. Two new species of the genus Hypocreopsis. Bulletin of the National Science Museum, Series B (Botany) 3:99-104, Land Conservation Council (1991). Melbourne Area, district 2 review: descriptive Report. (Land Conservation Council: Melbourne.) Samuels, G.J. (1988). Fungicolous, lichenicolous, and myxomyceticolous species of Hypocreopsis, Nectriopsis, Nectria, Peristomialis and Trichonectria. Memoirs of the New York Botanical Garden 48:1-78. Strid, A. (1967). Hypocreopsis lichenoides (Tode ex. Fr.) Seaver, a rare ascomycete. Svensk Botanisk Tidskrift 61:79-87. 77 Commentary The Cinnamon Fungus. Is it a Threat to Australian Native Plants? Gretna Weste* The short answer is Yes! The epidemic attack by the cinnamon fungus on the unique Australian Flora is a botanical tragedy. Such destruction is unknown elsewhere in the world. What is the cinnamon fungus? Where did it come from? The cinnamon fungus, Phytophthora cinnamomi is entirely microscopic and consists of threads which infect intact plant roots and wounds in the base of the stems, It was first isolated from cankers in the cinnamon trees growing in the mountains of Western Sumatra in 1822. It is therefore, an introduced and illegal immigrant into Australia. It belongs to the Oomycetes, a group of organisms closely linked to the Fungi but with motile spores, cellulose walls and aseptate threads or hyphae, There are about 50 species of Phytophthora ran ging from free-living marine species to those parasitic on higher plants. One species Causes potato blight, infamous since the Irish famine of 1845, and hence directly responsible for many famous Americans who emigrated from starving Ireland to America, the land of promise. However, while the potato blight fungus attacks only one or two closely related species of plant, the cinnamon fungus attacks over a thousand different plant species, many of them Australian natives. The cinnamon fungus P.cinnamomi produces sporangia containing tiny kidney-shaped swimming spores which have two flagella but no cell wall. Masses of these are produced following warm wet periods in Spring. They swim or are carried in water or puddles and are attracted to roots. They encyst on the roots, and the germ tube penetrates the root, killing the cells (Fig. 1). The fungus Penetrates all roots tested, whether * Botany School, University of Melbourne, Parkville, 3052 78 susceptible, or not, temporarily stops root growth and may produce a new crop of swimming spores in 24 hours. In resistant plants, such as most eucalypts, grasses and sedges the fungus stops there, and no root rot develops. But in susceptible hosts the threads grow through the root tissue producing extensive root or collar rot. The primary symptom is root rot, which is invisible since it occurs in the soil. As a result of infection water transport is inhibited and infected plants develop chlorosis (yellowing), dieback of the branches and finally die from drought. These are the visible but secondary symptoms. The pathogen also produces thick walled resistant spores both in root tissue and externally in gravel or soil, These can survive dry conditions. There is a sexual stage which requires two mating types and only occurs rarely, The diagram (Fig. 2) shows these stages in the life of the fungus, but it is a very adaptable organism and will produce either swimming spores or resistant spores and these germinate in various ways depending on nutrient and water supply. Normally the fungus requires temperatures greater than 10 degrees C. and moist soil for growth, but heat, cold or dryness do not kill it merely prevent active growth. The pathogen Tremains alive inside roots, or soil clumps Fig. 1. Swimming spores of the cinnamom fungus encysted on the root of (Eucalyptus sieberi) - Silvertop. Victorian Nat. Commentary oagonium Va ae y ae fe) _— Q antheridilm ee A or : q ee eet, spores Fig. 2. Phytophthora cinnamomi life cycle. or gravel heaps, Wetness and warmth favour production, dispersal and infection by swimming spores. The natural enemies for this pathogen are the soil microbes, and for this reason epidemic disease occurs in soils or gravels which are low in organic matter and therefore contain relatively few soil microbes. Soils like those of most Mountain Ash forests, such as Sherbrooke, contain enormous numbers of soil microbes and are termed ‘suppressive’. Thus, although Mountain Ash is susceptible, dieback disease is unlikely to be a problem, whereas the soils of the Brisbane Ranges have relatively few soil microbes. In addition they are shallow, poorly drained and contain a mass of susceptible roots, providing a delectable feast for this fungus. Most Victorian open forests, woodlands or heathlands grow on poor soils with low organic content and few soil microbes. The Stringybark and Ash group of eucalypts are susceptible, whereas most other eucalypts are resistant. Moreover most of the colourful shrubs in these communities are highly susceptible. This is wildflower country! In spring the maximum numbers of swimming spores are produced. When a warm, wet spring is followed by warm summer rains double crops of swimming spores are formed. In moist periods many plants can cope with Vol. 110 (2) 1993 a few rotted roots, but when the warm moist periods are followed by hot dry conditions, such as frequently occur in autumn, the plants die. If water stress is severe following a wet period, there may be epidemic deaths, as occurred in 1970-71 in open forests and heathlands over the whole of southern Australia. Epidemic deaths therefore, are likely when a combination occurs with enormous numbers of swimming spores, then efficient dispersal during a prolonged wet period, a dense growth of susceptible roots and subsequent host water stress. The roots become infected during warm wet conditions but the plants die in periods of water stress because insufficient water reaches the leaves. Once the pathogen is present in soil and roots there is no practical way of removing it froma native plant community. What cash-crop plants does the cinnamon fungus threaten? It threatens Avocado, Pineapple, stone fruit, citrus, Macadamia, Chestnut and Walnut. But these are produced in orchards or crops and may be treated chemically. Phosphorous acid may be sprayed on the leaves or injected into the trunk. Native communities cannot be treated in this way. Is there a threat in Victoria? Victoria has few vulnerable endemic species growing where disease threatens, but consider, for example Pultenaea graveolens (v), Grevillea chrysophaea, Prostanthera decussata(r) and Olearia pannosa (v) in the Brisbane Ranges and Grevillea repens(Rr) from Kinglake. These may all be at risk. The most susceptible Victorian species are /sopogon ceratophyllus and Monotoca scoparia but these are plentiful. Xanthorrhoea australis is a special case, because although plentiful, it is killed completely by P. cinnamomi and is very slow growing, producing few seeds unless fire stimulated. In addition it is a characteristic feature of Victorian open forests. 79 Commentary Whole plant communities are at risk in Victoria. The open forest with its sclero- phyllous, shrubby understorey becomes a sedge woodland after dieback disease. Victoria stands to lose some of its most attractive plant communities with colourful, scented, bird, mammal and insect pollinated flowers. These are replaced by drab communities of grasses and sedges which are wind pollinated. 3 . Work on Anglesea heathlands (Wilson er Fig. 3. Brisbane Ranges in Victoria. Dieback in al. 1990) has shown a significant the trees. reduction in small-mammal populations sg with this change. Populations of Antechinus stuartii and Rattus lutreolus (Swamp Rat) were reduced by 60% and 83% respectively after infection. The Heath Rat Pseudomys shortridgei is a restricted species which needs a floristically rich vegetation for its survival in the Grampians. The battle for survival of the Helmeted Honeyeater Lichenostomus melanops cassidix is made more difficult because some of the trees it inhabits are infected with dieback. Where are the diseased plant communities in Victoria? The worst examples are in the Brisbane Ranges (Figs. 3, 4 and 5), in East and South Gippsland, in the Victoria Valley of the Grampians (Fig. 6), in Kinglake National Park, Angahook Forest Park and Wilson's Promontory National Park (Fig. 7). Work on Victorian plant communities has shown that P.cinnamomi in open i — forests and heathlands causes death of Fig. 5. Brisbane Ranges, Victoria, dieback in the more than 25% of the overstorey and from Slavin. : rds Dibeat Mere Seba snd 50-75% of the understorey. There is y DY Biase tics, change in understorey from bright colourful shrubs to grasses und sedges, a loss of diversity, a decline in plant numbers or abundance, increased bare ground, a loss in birds and small mammals and a real risk for Permanent loss of aritied rare or endangered endemic Species, Teat los j ‘ (Weste ey Oss of our wildflowers How is the disease spread? The fungus 1S Spread by PEOPLE, Particularly by 80 OA nz fk i) > Fig. 4. Brisbane Ranges, Victoria, dieback in the understorey, 1973, CES a - BS 4 sho Fig. 6. Victoria Valley, Grampians, dieback in Overstorey (Siphon Road). say Victorian Nat. Commentary Gs \ SAT ‘i Fig. 7. Dieback, Miller's Landing, Wilson's Promontory, 1972. and during all construction activities, such as roading, logging or mining, wherever heavy equipment is used and driven through the bush. Soil, gravel and mud are collected from infested areas and dumped in Phytophthora-free vegetation or roadside. Other potent means of spread include changes in drainage, movement of soil and gravel, planting infected stock from nurseries, and less often by animals, bush walkers or flower pickers in the gravel or mud adhering to boots or fur. These methods of spread have all been documented, Wherever infection occurs, whether in a heap of infested gravel at the road verge, or from mud on bush-fire fighting trucks, drainage will carry it downhill very rapidly - this has been measured at 400 m. per annum in several districts. There is also a slow spread, 4-6 m. per annum, from root to root up- hill. Unfortunately some commercial nurseries are responsible for spreading several Phytophthora spp., including P. cinnamomi. Plants in containers which are well watered may survive infection and Vol. 110 (2) 1993 normally do not show symptoms, but die when planted out and subject to water Stress, Tests on nursery stock have shown a high percentage of infections (Hardy and Sivasithamparam 1988). Many people involved in plant propagation do not understand either the need or the practice of hygiene. Sterile soil becomes contaminated by rubbish, by dead or sick plants or by drainage from these, or from gravel dumps or drives. Two changes are required: firstly a half-day’s certificated training in hygiene, and secondly inspection by trained independent observers, At present there is a self-accreditation scheme which, at best, falters periodically and is subject to misinterpretation, The problem in Western Australia is enormous. Dieback and death of Jarrah Eucalyptus marginata were first reported in the early 1920's, and were considered as due to poor management etc. Nearly fifty years later P.cinnamomi was isolated and shown to be the major cause of Jarrah dieback (Podger 1968). During those 50 years the pathogen spread through the valuable Jarrah forests always adjacent to logging, road or construction sites. The disease escalated with the use of heavy off-road mechanical equipment post 1942, until certain devastated areas of the forest were labelled ‘graveyards’ (Shea er al. 1978, Shearer and Tippett 1989). Soil disturbance, with activities such as logging and mining, distributes the fungus very effectively. The pathogen destroys the understorey rapidly, especially the dominant, highly susceptible Banksia grandis. The fungus remains alive in the dead Banksia roots for up to three years. Two or three years later the Jarrah trees die. They have a two-tier root system, the superficial roots succumb early. Deep ‘sinker’ roots penetrate pores in the laterite capping and grow down into the water table below the bauxite and these are killed there by swimming spores of P.cinnamomi. The tree then dies from lack 81 Commentary of water. Western Australia’s flora contains 45% of Australia’s endemic species, 365 of them. The flora is therefore of major scientific importance. Dieback occurs in parts of all the state forests and in a thousand parks. Because the disease destroys the Jarrah, it affects the water supply, the timber industry, the cut-flower trade, nursery sales and tourism. The Department of Conservation and Land management (C.A.L.M.) spends an enormous amount of money, expertise, research and labour on Phytophthora control, Eight species of Phytophthora cause problems but none is as destructive as P.cinnamomi. In the southwest of the state 4,000 species of flowering plant grow, 1,000 of these are susceptible and 300 species are actually at risk (Wills 1991). The area is considered a major centre of speciation with high species diversity and a large number of endemics. The plant communities at risk are Banksia woodlands, shrubland and heathlands, Jarrah forest and dunes, but not arid country or Karri forests, all are fire adapted. Species at risk include 18 Banksia spp, 29 Species of rare, Susceptible heaths and plants from Myrtaceae and Fabaceae, and their bird and marsupial pollinators, Vertebrate pollinators are required by 58 species of West Australian plants. In one area an 88% reduction in bird species followed dieback (Hart 1983). Banksia brownii Survives in tissue culture, as the known populations are al] diseased, The department of C.A.L.M. strictly controls all off-road activities and enforces hygiene for all forestry, mining and park procedures. A sophisticated aerial dieback detection System enables the accurate location of a single diseased Banksia or grass tree in the understorey. Colourful brochures are produced to alert people to dieback risks. The flora of the genetic diversity goa nals of high y and of international 82 fame. This flora is threatened with an ecological catastrophe. The present devastation caused by Phytophthora in Western Australia provides an exceptional example of an introduced pathogen with a wide host range causing destruction of whole unique plant communities and the death, in some cases obliteration, of susceptible species. It is a tragedy that so many rare, endangered, endemic species should be threatened with extinction in such a short time span, Humans have dipersed the pathogen and are responsible for the irreversible loss of genetic material, species diversity and beauty. Yet the landscapers still sell sand from dunes where the fungus has killed the banksias as topsoil for suburban gardens and commercial nurseries continue to sell infected container plants (Hardy and Sivasithamparam 1988). Tasmanian flora also contains a high percentage of endemic species. The cool temperate rainforest of the west and southwest remains as the sole intact relic of a formerly widespread Gondwanaland flora, and most of the Species are susceptible, as are the rare endemic heaths of eastern Tasmania, Mining, logging and hydrological engineering introduced and spread infection, 1973 was a bad year for Susceptible species. Soil temperatures and moistures suited the pathogen. Three years of above average rainfall were followed by a period of water stress (Podger et al. 1990). Species from the thamnic and implicate rainforests on the West coast of Tasmania grow on infertile soils much disturbed by fires, mining, logging, road and dam construction. Richeas, Celerytop Pine, King William and Pencil Pines, Leatherwood, Horizontal, White Waratah, Blandfordia and Mountain Laurel are all highly Susceptible. Only the commercially valuable Huon Pine is resistant! At present disease only occurs in realatively small patches, but these will extend and global warming may increase the risk, The Victorian Nat. Commentary rare endemic species of Epacris, E. limbata (ined) and E. grandis 2V Cyathodes spp and Pultenae selaginoides 2V of the eastern forests are very susceptible and all their dependent fauna are also at risk (Kirkpatrick 1977). The cinnamon fungus therefore poses a threat to the conservation of rare endemic species in Tasmania. It has the capacity to eliminate these from the world’s flora. The island is fortunate that, because of its isolation, it has allowed the growth of species which represent the relict flora of Gondwanaland and it is an urgent priority to maintain such a flora intact. Little control is practised at present, because the mountains provide a refuge, but these are a bushfire risk, and global warming may enable P. cinnammomi to colonize these relatively low peaks. Queensland growers experienced disease in Pineapple plantations due to P. cinnamomi probably in 1887, and certainly in 1929 (Simmonds 1966). The remedy was simple; just clear a fresh patch of the native disease-free forest. Pineapple, Avocado and Macadamias are susceptible, became infected, and the pathogen spread from these into native vegetation. Major disease centres were in the southeast coast woodlands and heaths near Cooloola, endangering Pultenaea villosa, Eriostemon australasius and the Banksias (Pegg and Alcorn 1972). The tropical rainforests of Eungella (near Mackay) and Gariwalt (near Ingham) also became infected (Brown 1976). These are simple notophyll evergreen vine forests receiving 2,500 mm rain per annum. Susceptible genera include Cinnamomum and Cryptocarya. Wallows made by feral pigs provided ideal conditions for the swimming spores of P.cinnamomi. These rainforests are robust and appear to be recovering, Management of diseased forest aims to minimise disease extension and to prevent the occurrence of new infections, above all to protect from infection susceptible Vol. 110 (2) 1993 healthy vegetation. Rainwater and natural drainage will always carry infection downhill unless special drainage is constructed. No roads should therefore, be constructed along ridges. Gravel from infested areas is a high risk because it lacks sufficient soil microbes, and consequently the resistant spores of the fungus remain active in it. All vehicles, equipment and boots should be cleaned before leaving an infested area. Public education is required to ensure this. Public access should be restricted to guard wilderness areas with endangered species, and sealed roads with- out gravel verges pose much less risk. For such policies to be effective all diseased areas need to be defined, and the susceptibility of all endangered species must be determined. On the positive side, the occasional resistant trees of Jarrah have been cloned and such clones are genetically resistant and may eventually provide resistant Jarrah plantations. In Perth, tissue cultures, and cell cultures in liquid nitrogen, of disappearing species are being maintained. Visitors to the Brisbane Ranges in 1992-3 will be surprised at the ‘recovery’ of dieback areas. Nine new plants of Xanthorrhoea australis have appeared on a plot 30 years after dieback killed them off. On other plots Monotoca scoparia and Leucopogen virgatus have reappeared 23 years after disease. These latter plots remain relatively bare except for sedges, but the survivor eucalypts show vigorous crown growth. We do not know whether the epidemic has abated, whether there has been a selection for avirulence in P. cinnamomi or for increased resistance in the host species or whether the whole phenomenon is cyclical and epidemic disease will recur when conditions dictate. References Briggs, J.D, and Leigh, J-H. (1988). ‘Rare or threatened Australian Plants’ (revised). Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service: Special Publication 14. 83 Commentary Brown, B.N. (1976). Phytophthora cinnamomi, associated with patch death in tropical rainforest in Queensland. APPS 5: I, 1-4. Hardy, G.E, and Sivasithamparam, K. (1988). Phytoplthora spp. associated — with the container-grown plants in Western Australia. Plant Disease 72: 435-437. ' Hart, R. (1983), Dieback due to Phyophthora cinnamomi in Two Peoples Bay Nature Reserve. Report no 3 presented to the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, W.A. by Two Peoples Bay Nature Reserve management consultants, Kirkpatrick, J.D. and Leigh, J.H. (1977). ‘The disappearing heath’, Tasmanian Conservation Trust Inc, Pegg, K.G. and Alcorn, J.L, (1972), Phytophthora cinnamomi in indigenous flora in southern Queensland. Search 3:7, 257, Podger, FD, (1968). Actology of Jarrah dicback and disease of dry scherophyll Eucalyptus Marginata (Sm) Forests in Western Australia, Msc,Thesis University of Melbourne, Victoria, Podger, F.D,, Palzer, C.B.S, and Wardlaw, T, (1990). A guide to the Tasmanian distribution of Phytophthora ciinamomi and its effects on native vegetation. Tasmanian Forests 2: 13-21. Shea, S.R., Gillen, K.J, and Kitt, R.J. (1978). Variation in sporangial production of Phytophthora cinnamomi Rands on Jarrah (E.marginata Sm) forest sites with different understorey compositions. Australian Forest Research 8: 219-216, Shearer, B,L and Tippett, J.T. (1989). Jarrah dieback. The dynamics and management of Phytophthora cinnamomi in the Jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata) forest of southwestem Australia, Department of Conservation and Land Management, W.A, Research Bulletin no 3. Simmonds, T.H. (1966). Host index of plant diseases in Queensland. Weste, G. (1986). Vegetation changes associated with invasion by Phytophthora cinnamomi of defined plots in the Brisbane Ranges, Victoria 1975-85, Australian Journal of Botany 34: 633-648. Wills, R.T, (1991). The ecological impact of Phytophthora cinnamomi in the Stirling Range National Park, Westem Australia. Australian Journal of Ecology. Wilson, B.A., Robertson, D., Moloney, D.J., Newell, G.R. and Laidlaw, W.S. (1989), Factors affecting small mammal distribution and abundance in the eastern Otway Ranges , Victoria, Proceedings of the Ecological Society of Australia 16, Book Review The Ecology of Mycorrhizae by Michael F. Allen Publisher: Cambridge University Press 199] 184 pages, (soft cover). This book is an overview of research into the biology and ecology of mycorrhizae: the mutualistic symbiosis between plants and fungi that may be one of the most Important and least understood biological associations regulating community and ecosystem functioning. Written essentially for ecologists and mycorrhizasts, it is in eight sections: introduction, Structure-functioning — re- lationships, evolution, physiological and population biology, community ecology, ecosystem dynamics, mycorthizae and Succession and future directions for mycorrhizal research. There are 27 ; references, en 84 It is well illustrated with diagrams and black and white photographs, some of which are a little dark in reproduction. The lay reader may have some difficulty with technical terms, as there is no glossary, but the vital importance of this field of research should still be clear. Considering the paucity of Australian publications, this book should be considered essential reading by ecologists, mycologists, agricultural scientists, foresters, botanists and plant pathologists. C.W. McCubbin Victorian Nat. Obituary Obituary Ercil Webb-Ware 11 September 1899 - 6 July 1992 Ercil was born in Bendigo and undoubtedly began her love of botany in its environs. She became a much respected botanist and much loved person. She attended the Melbourne Church of England Girls’ Grammar School and obtained the Exhibition in Botany and First Class Honours in the Matriculation Certificate. She was awarded a scholarship to Melbourne University where she graduated B.Sc. in 1923, majoring in Physiology and Biochemistry. Her Science course was interrupted after her second year by a planned trip with her mother around Europe, which delayed her graduation by one year but greatly enhanced her appreciation of natural history. For two years she worked with Colin MacKenzie (not yet ‘Sir’) on Platypus Research. She met her future husband, Roger, at Trinity College, Melbourne University, and married him at Christ Church South Yarra in 1925 and spent the next 25 years looking after her 5 children on their farm south of Yea (now managed by her son, Ken), situated amongst some tall rounded hills at the end of what is now Webb-Ware Road. She moved to South Yarra in 1956 after her husband died, and here began her active participation in the Field Naturalists Club of Victoria, and her intrepid camping tours into remote areas of the country in her Austin A40 motor vehicle. One of these trips, ‘Camping in the Caves Country’ near Buchan, was published in the Victorian Naturalist, Vol. 90 No. 5, May 1973. Ercil also contributed, with Laura M. White and Ian Morrison, toa paper on the ‘Grampians and Little Desert Tour’, published in the Victorian Naturalist, Vol. 93, No. 2. Dr Jim Willis remembers her scaling Bluff Knoll in the Stirling Ranges during the F.N.C.V. excursion to W.A. in 1963. Mary Doery remembers Ercil taking her to see a rare stand of Eucalyptus crenulata on the Mt Loch Road near Noojee. Ilma Dunn has a 2% foot hard tree-fern (Cyathea australis) in her garden at Brighton, which Ercil had given her years before, mistakenly believing it to be a seedling of the Bat-Wing Fern (Histiopteris incisa), which she had gathered at Fernshaw. Ercil made a very detailed study of ferns and was one of three botanists asked toclassify ferns in the Mt Dandenong area. Hilary Weatherhead remembers that, even after Ercil went to a Retirement Village in Croydon North, she used to go for walks daily and was thrilled to find a patch of Brunonia (blue pincushions) nearby. Everyone to whom I have spoken remembers her as a delightful and enthusiastic person, and they send their sympathies to her four remaining children, 19 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. Elizabeth K, Turner Vol. 110 (2) 1993 85 Research Reports Fungal diet of the Long-nosed Bandicoot (Perameles nasuta) in South-eastern Australia. A.W. Claridge* Abstract Information on fungi in the diet of the Long-nosed Bandicoot (Perameles nasuta) at two sites in south-eastemn Australia is presented. Many of the fungi identified in bandicoot faecal pellets from this study are presumed to form mycorrhizal relationships with trees and shrubs. As a potential disseminating agent for these fungi, P. nasuta may help in the long-term health and vigor of native forests. The implications of this habit for forest management should not be overlooked. Introduction The ecology of many of Australia’s marsupial families remains poorly understood relative to that of other taxa. One such family is the Peramelidae, or bandicoots. Many of the species within this family have been inadequately studied in their native habitats. For example, the ecology of the Long-nosed Bandicoot (Perameles nasuta), a common inhabitant of the rainforests, eucalypt woodlands and eucalypt forests of eastern mainland Australia (Stodart 1983), remains largely undescribed. In one of the few studies of televance, Claridge et al. (199] ) described the diet and habitat requirements of a small population of P. nasutaina dry sclerophyl! forest site near Eden, New South Wales. At that Site, animals were found to consume invertebrates, plant material and some fungi, while preferentially inhabiting gully sites with an open ground cover. The preference of P. nasuta for moist (gully) sites was later re-confirmed by Opie et al, (1990). Here, I Present some additional information on the fungal diet of P nasuta * Department of Forestry, Australian National University, Canberra ACT 0200, Australia, (Facsmilie: 06 249 0746) 86 from two other forest sites in south-eastern Australia. This data, while sparse, is the best currently available for the species. Methods Study Sites The diet of Perameles nasuta was monitored in two forest sites in south-eastern Australia. The first site (here referred to as Cabbage Tree Creek) was located near the settlement of Cabbage Tree Creek, East Gippsland, Victoria (148°47'25E, 37°04'40S), while the second site (here referred to as Bruces Creek) was located in Nadgee State Forest in far south-eastern New South Wales (149°49°20E, 37°23’30S). Details of the Cabbage Tree Creek study site have been described in another paper (Claridge er al. 1992). Briefly, the site comprises a forested catchment with a series of slopes of predominantly easterly-facing aspect, and slopes with a more exposed predominantly westerly- facing aspect, divided by a tributary of a small creek. Mean annual rainfall for Cabbage Tree Creek is 1113 mm, and is distributed evenly throughout the year, with slight peaks in late autumn and early winter and relatively low rainfall in summer, The highest mean monthly maximum temperature is 25.1°C (Jan- uary), the lowest mean minimum temperature is 3.9°C (July) (Stuwe and Mueck 1990). Overstorey vegetation is dominated by mature Silvertop Ash (Eucalyptus sieberi L. Johnson), Yellow Stringybark (E. muelleriana Howitt) and White Stringybark (E. globoidea Blakely) on the slopes and ridges, and by Mountain Grey Gum (E. cypellocarpa L. Johnson) and Southern Mahogany (E. botryoides Sm.) in the gullies. Trees on the site are from a variety of age classes, Understorey vegetation is dense and species commonly Victorian Nat. Research Reports contributing the cover layer to this stratum include Handsome Flat Pea (Platylobium formosum $m.), Forest Wiregrass (Tetrarrhena juncea R.Br.), and a variety of ferns and sedges (see Stuwe and Mueck 1990). The Bruces Creek site shares some features of the Cabbage Tree Creek site, comprising slopes with a predominantly easterly-facing aspect, slopes with a predominantly westerly-facing aspect, divided by a small creek. Mean annual rainfall recorded at Greencape Lighthouse (approx. 16km north-east of site) is 751 mm, being distributed irregularly throughout the year with peaks in January and March, and lows in winter-early spring (July and August), The highest mean monthly temperature is 22,2°C (February), the lowest mean minimum temperature 8.3°C (July) (Bureau of Meteorology 1988). The Bruces Creek study site was burned by severe wildfire in 1972-73, subsequently salvage logged and then burned again in another wildfire in 1980 (P. Moore, Forestry Commission of New South Wales, pers. comm. 1992). The predominant overstorey vegetation re- sulting from this disturbance regime is a regrowth stand of Silvertop Ash (E. sieberi). Below the eucalypt canopy, a thicket of wattle (Acacia floribunda (Vent,) Willd. and A. terminalis Salisb.) forms a dense midstorey, The understorey is also dense, with Wiregrass (T. juncea), a variety of ferns and sedges and large burned logs forming much of the ground cover. Sampling of Bandicoots Bandicoots were sampled at both sites using wire cage traps baited with a mixture of peanut butter, oats and pistachio essence (Scotts and Seebeck 1989). To avoid contamination of faeces, baits were held within a wire tea infuser suspended from the roof of each trap. Faecal pellets were collected from the floor of the traps on the first night that any individual was trapped. Bandicoots were sampled at irregular intervals during the period January 1990 to Vol. 110 (2) 1993 February 1992, Faecal Analysis Faeces collected for dietary analysis were divided into a coarse fraction containing fragments of fungal tissue, plant matter and invertebrates, and a fine fraction containing fungal spores, by washing crushed pellets through a soil sieve with mesh openings of 0.125 x 0.125 mm, Coarse material retained on the mesh was suspended in approximately 20 ml of 70% ethanol in a glass vial. For analysis, a pair of smooth-sided tweezers were placed in each vial and closed. Materials held by the closed tweezers were placed on aslide, to which a drop of glycerol was added. The fragmentary nature of the coarse fraction precluded quantitative analysis, so the abundance of different food items were estimated under light microscope (X 100 magnification), using the following subjective scoring system: 1 = item covering less than 25% of a field of view, a few small fragments; 2 = item covering between 25 and 50% of field of view; 3 = item covering between 50 and 75% of field of view; 4 = item covering greater than 75% of field of view. For each sample, fragments of food in 40 random fields of view were scored. The percentage occurrence of each food item was calculated according to the methods of Bennett and Baxter (1989). This involved adding up all scores foreach food category, respectively, and then dividing that value by the total score for all food categories in the sample. These values were added, then divided by 10 (the total number of samples), to derive the average percentage occurrence of that food category. Methods of analysis of fine fraction materials (containing fungal spores) have been described in Claridge er al. (1992). Briefly, a small portion of the remaining sediment from each sample was extracted and placed on a microscope slide. A drop of Melzer’s reagant (McIntyre and Carey 1989) and a drop of glycerol were then added to the slide and a coverslip placed over the entire suspension. The suspension 87 Research Reports was examined using a light microscope (X 1000 magnification), Where possible, spore types were identified to species using the descriptions of Beaton and Weste (1982, 1984) and Beaton et al. (1984 a; 1984 b; 1985 a; 1985 b; 1985 c; 1985 d). However, one spore type was placed into a category called ‘other’ (Table 1) because it did not agree with any known hypogeal taxa. The relative abundance of all spore types in each of 20 fields was assigned to one of the following categories: 1 = sparse, one or two spores; 2 = uncommon, three to five spores or; 3 = common, more than five spores present in the field of view. For all Fungi Invertebrates Seeds Monocaot Leaf Dicat Leal Plant Vascular Tissiw 13 a Qo oO Fig. 1. Average percentage occurrence of food items in coarse fraction faeces of Perameles nasuta at Cabbage Tree Creek and Bruces Creek. Table 1. Average percentage (%) occurrence of fungal taxa identified from spores in faeces of Perameles nasuta at Cabbage Tree Creek and Bruces Creek, x the samples, the percentage occurrence of Species Average % occurrence each spore type was calculated according to the methods of Bennett and Baxter (1989) for all samples. This involved adding up all scores for each species, respectively, and then dividing that value by the total score for spores in the sample. These values were added, then divided by 10 (the total number of samples), to derive the average percentage occurrence of that spore type. Results A total of 10 faecal samples, from 10 individual bandicoots, were analysed for food items. In order to describe the diet of P. nasuta, results were pooled (averaged) from samples from both sites (9 from Cabbage Tree Creek and | from Bruces Creck), For the coarse fraction analysis, P. nasuta was found to consume mainly plant vascular material, invertebrates and plant seeds. Items of additional dietary importance were fungi, monocot leaf matenal and dicot leaf material (Fig. 1). For the fine fraction (fungal spores) component of the diet, 25 fungal taxa were identified from Spores in faeces (Table 1). Most of these taxa were attributed to Species of hypogeal (underground- fruiting) basidiomycetes that produce complex Sporocarps (fruiting-bodies). On an average percentage occurence basis, the Most commonly found Spores were of two 88 Ascomycetes Jafneadelphus sp. 0.50 Labyrinthomyces varius 1.20 Basidiomycetes Gasteromycetes Castoreum sp. 5.80 Chamonixia vittatispora 12.90 Chamonixia sp. 0,40 Gautieria monospora 0.50 Gautieria sp. 1 1.00 Gautieria sp. 2 0.20 Hydnangium sp. (U) 0.20 Hymenogaster albus 0.40. H. atratus 8.60 H. nanus 3.30 H. zeylanicus 0.50 H. inflatum 3.70 Hymenogaster sp. 2.10 Hysterogaster sp. 1 (U) 1.50 Hysterogaster sp. 2 (U) 0.40 Mesophellia sp. 22.50 Octavianina tasmanica 4.00 Richionella pumila 6.80 Thaxterogaster scabrosus 4.10 Zelleromyces daucinus 5.20 Zelleromyces sp. 1.30 Zyzomycetes Endogonaceae Endogone sp. (spore walls 2.50 Single layered) Other Opaque black, spherical spore 5.70 — ee Fruiting habit was either hypogeal or sub-hypogeal, except for Jafneadelphus sp. which was epigeal and the ‘other’ category, for which fruiting habit was unknown, (U) indicates uncertainty in identification of that genus. Victorian Nat. Research Reports species, Mesophellia sp. (22.5%) and Chamonixia vittatispora (12.9%). Spores of remaining species contributed less than 10% of the total of spores counted. Discussion The use of faecal analysis, as I used, in the qualitative and quantitative estimation of animal diet has been widely criticized on the basis of differential digestibility of food items (Calver and Wooller 1982; Ford etal. 1982; Batzli 1985). Soft-bodied food items, for example, are liable to complete digestion (Stoddart 1974; Bradbury 1983), whereas other items may be crushed into fragments beyond recognition. Samples are therefore likely to be biased in fayour of less digestible items, precluding any accurate reconstruction of diet. Never- theless, despite these limitations in technique, confirmation of the omnivorous feeding habit of P. nasuta in this study is in general agreement with the dietary habits of other bandicoot species (see Heinsohn 1966; Watts 1974; Opie 1980; Lobert 1985; Quin 1985; Claridge er al. 1991). In addition, I have identified that P nasuta feeds on a variety of fungi. At least one other peramelid species, the Southern Brown Bandicoot (Jsoodon obesulus), is also known to feed on fungi. Ina Victorian heathland, Lobert (1985) found J, obesulus consumed fungi mainly in the winter months. However, Lobert (1985) was unable to describe the species of fungi being consumed. In Tasmania, Quin (1985) found that/. obesulus consumed the sporocarps of unidentified gasteromycete and zygomycete fungi throughout the year. More recently, Claridge et al. (1991) identified at least three species of fungi in the faeces of /. obesulus at a dry sclerophyll forest site in south-east New South Wales. One of the species found in the diet was from the genus Mesophellia. Mesophellia was abundantly represented by spores in the faeces of P. nasuta in the current study, and is a prolific sporocarp-producer in the eucalypt forests of south-eastern Australia (A. Claridge, unpubl. data 1990-2). Vol. 110 (2) 1993 At Cabbage Tree Creek and Bruces Creek, RP nasuta is not the only medium-sized ground-dwelling marsupial known to feed on fungi. Long-nosed Potoroos (Potorous tridactylus) are very common at both study sites, and feed heavily on fungi throughout most times of the year (A. Claridge, unpubl. data 1990-2), Moreover, the range of fungal species consumed by P nasuta and Potorous tridactylus show complete over- lap (see Claridge et al. 1992; A. Claridge, unpubl. data 1990-2). This suggests that there may be some competition for food resources between the two sympatric marsupial species. However, destructive competition may be avoided, in this case, because P nasuta appears to consume far less fungi (as a proportion in faeces) than does Potorous tridactylus. In addition, P. nasuta exists at much lower population densities than Potorous tridactylus. A combination of these two factors (as well as other factors), may allow for two ecologically similar species to co-exist. The consumption of fungi by P. nasuta is noteworthy, since many of the species found as spores in its faeces are thought to form mycorrhizal associations on the roots of a variety of trees and shrubs (see Bennett and Baxter 1989). These fungal ass- Ociations are Vital, among other functions, for the uptake and transfer of nutrients and water from the soil to the plant host (Trappe and Maser 1977). PR. nasuta may play a role in the dissemination of mycorthizal fungi by depositing spores in faeces. This role has already been attributed to at least two other species of marsupial, the Brush-tailed Bettong (Bettongia penicillata) and the Long- nosed Potoroo (Potorous tridactylus) (Lamont et al, 1985; Claridge et al. 1992). The role of P nasuta as an agent for beneficial fungi in native forests emphasises that all species within an ecosystem perform some vital role. These roles need to be fully appreciated by forest managers. Acknowledgement of the 89 Research Reports current example should take the form of practices designed specifically to enhance habitat for P. nasuta, and habitat for the fungi that it consumes, Such measures do not currently exist. Acknowledgements Bandicoots were trapped and handled under the provisions of a Victorian National Parks and Wildlife Permit (RP-90-156), and ANU Ethics Committee Permit (F-FOR-10) and a Forestry Commission of New South Wales Special Purposes Permit (03926). Tony and Martha Claridge, Karen Brisbane and Rod Avery assisted in field work at Cabbage Tree and Bruces Creek. Staff of the Victorian Department of Conservation and Environment (DCE) provided additional useful help. Rod Avery helped prepare faecal samples. Funding to carry out field work was granted by the Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service (ANPWS) and the Victorian Department of Conservation and Environment under the States Assistance Programme: particular thanks go to Dr Gerry Maynes (ANPWS) and Rod Gowans (DCE). Additionally, while the project was underway, A.W. Claridge was in recei pt of an Australian Government Postgraduate Research Scholarship. References Batali, G.O, (1985). Biology of new world Microtus, Special Publication of the American Society of Mammalogists 8: 779-81). , Beaton, G., Pegler, D.N. and Young, T|W.K, (1984a), Gasterid basidiomycota of Victoria State, Australia l Hydnangiaceae, Kew Bulletin 39: 499-508, Beaton, G., Pegler, D.N. and Young, T.W.K, (19846), Gasteroid basidiomycota of Victoria State, Australia I; Russulales, Kew Bulletin 39: 669-698. Beaton, G,, Pegler, D.N. and Young, T.W.K. (1985a), Gasteroid basidiomycota of Victoria State, Australia Il: Continariales. Kew Bulletin 40; 167-204, Beaton, G,, Pegler, D.N. and Young, T.W.K, (1985b). Gasteroid basidiomycota of Victoria State, Australia IV: Hysterangium, Kew Bulletin 40: 435-444, Beaton, G., Pegler, D.N. and Young, T.W.K, (1985¢) ee tert catery of Victoria State, Austrailia ~YH: Boletales, Agaricale: ‘les Kew Bulletin 40: 513-598," APhYllophorates. ton, G., Pegler, D.N, and Young, T.W. Gasteroid basidiomycota of Victoria Swe at VII; Additional Taxa. Kew Bulletin 40): 827-842, 90 Beaton, G. and Weste, G, (1982) Australian hypogean ascomycetes, Transactions of the — British Mycological Society 79: 455-468. Beaton, G. and Weste, G. (1984). Victorian hypogean gastcromycetes : Mesophelliaceae. Transactions of the British Mycological Society 82: 665-671. Bennett, A.F. and Baxter, BJ, (1989). Diet of the long-nosed ~~ potoroo, ~~ Potorous tridactylus (Marsupialia; Potoroidae), in southwestern Victoria. Australian Wildlife Research 16: 263-271, Bradbury, K. (1983), Identification of eanhworms in mammalian seats, Journal of Zoology 183: 553-554, Calver, M.C, and Wooller, R.D, (1982), A technique for assessing the taxa, length, dry weight and energy content of the arthropod prey of birds. Australian Wildlife Research 9: 293-301, Claridge, A.W., MeNee, A., Tanton, M.T. and Davey, 5.M. (1991). Ecology of bandicoots in undisturbed forest adjacent to recently felled logging coupes; a case study from the Eden woodchip agreement area, In Conservation of Australia’s Forest Fauna’ ed D, Lunney, pp 331-345, (Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales, Mosman), Claridge, A.W., Tanton, M.'T,, Seebeck, J.H., Cork, S.J. and Cunningham, R.B, (1992), Establishment of cclomycorrhizae on the roots of two species of Eucalyptus from fungal spores in the faeces of the long-nosed — potoroo ~— (Petorous tridactylus), Australian Journal of Ecology 17; 207-217, Ford, H.A., Forde, N, and Harrington, S. (1982), Non-