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Volume 29 Number 1 June — August 2020
ANPC INC. MISSION STATEMENT: To promote and improve plant conservation
GPO Box 1777
Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
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Australasian Plant Conservation
Editor
Heidi Zimmer
Associate Editors
Nathan Emery and Selga Harrington
Editorial Team
Tony Auld, Stephen Bell, Lucy Commander,
Andrew Crawford, Paul Gibson Roy, Jo Lynch,
Cathy Offord
Layout & Graphic Design
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Australasian Plant Conservation is produced
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Australasian Plant Conservation is printed
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ISSN 1039-6500
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Opinions expressed in this publication are those
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Contributing to
Australasian Plant Conservation
Australasian Plant Conservation is a forum for
information exchange for all those involved in
plant conservation: please use it to share your
work with others. Articles, information snippets,
details of new publications or research and
diary dates are welcome. General articles on
any plant conservation issue are most welcome.
The deadline for the Spring 2020 issue is
1 August. If you are intending to submit an
article or wish to discuss possibilities, please
email the editor the editor, Heidi Zimmer:
editor@anpc.asn.au.
Authors are encouraged to submit images with
articles or information. Please submit images
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Using the article template, please send articles,
no more than 1200 words, as an MS Word file by
email to: editor@anpc.asn.au.
YEARS
GOVERNMENT ;
OTHER SPONSORS AND SUPPORTERS
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This issue
From the editor
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Hairpin Banksia: a widespread plant threatened with decline by frequent fires
by Annette Muir, Lucas Bluff, Paul Moloney, Nevil AMOS GNC JIM THOMSON .....esesssssesessssssssssesesesesesesesesesesessseseseseacsesescacscacscsesenesesesesesesesensess 9
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December 2019 bushfires
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Late summer and autumn rains spark new hope for three Endangered Midge Orchids in South-east NSW
by Laura Canackle, Rob Armstrong, JOAN BrigGs ANA DAVID MCCLECTSY ........sssssssssssssssesescscsssssssscassesessssenescsescsssseseacsesessesensasseseseneaeseseseesenees 15
A new project investigating the floral phenology and seed biology of threatened ecological communities
in northwest NSW
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Sand Spurge: The reintroduction
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Nature needs people, but people need connection: can microbes be the ‘joining dots’?
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Review of the ANPC’s Germplasm Guidelines
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Regular features
News from the Australian Seed Bank Partnership —
Seed banks respond to the bushfires with collecting, research and restoration
by Andrew Crawford, Peter Cuneo, Gavin Phillips, Dan Duval, Jenny Guerin, James Wood and DaMidn Wrigley ........sseeeeee 35
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Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 1
From the editor
HEIDI ZIMMER
Welcome to the Winter 2020 issue of Australasian Plant
Conservation. This issue opens with the address from
Linda Broadhurst (the recent past-president of ANPC)
given to the ANPC Annual General Meeting at the end
of 2019. Better late than never, it gives an overview of
the important work of ANPC in 2019 and into 2020.
We then move to regular articles, beginning with those
focussed on plant responses to fire. Michele Kohout et al.
describe a post-fire upsurge of the aggressive pioneer
weed Phytolacca octandra (Inkweed) around Mallacoota
in East Gippsland, Victoria, and efforts taken to control
it. Staying in Victoria, Annette Muir et al. provide
important observations of seed production and seedling
recruitment of the serotinous obligate-seeding shrub
Banksia spinulosa var. cunninghamii (Hairpin Banksia),
in relation to time since fire and to consider the potential
impacts of the 2019-2020 bushfires. Staying on the
theme of fire, but moving to NSW, in the next article lan
Baird and Doug Benson describe impacts of longwall coal
mining on the threatened shrub swamps of the Newnes
Plateau, as revealed by the recent bushfires.
Next, we have four plant conservation stories from
NSW. First, Laura Canackle and colleagues tell us the
stories of three Midge Orchids (Genoplesium spp.),
concerns over declining numbers and the effects of this
years’ summer-autumn rains. Next Justin Collette and
Nathan Emery present their new project looking at how
threatened ecological communities in the Brigalow Belt
south bioregion respond to seasonal fluctuations and
rainfall events, and tell us why they are collecting seeds
for research and conservation. This is important work
2 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
and we look forward to hearing more results from Justin
and Nathan as results begin to roll in. Returning toa
favourite theme for APC, Nicola Booth and Mark Hamilton
describe the translocation of Euphorbia psammogeton
(Sand Spurge) including at one site due to declines
resulting from storm erosion. Moving from the coast to
inland NSW, Darren Shelly and Susan Lamb detail their
survey for Dentella minutissima.
In his article ‘Nature needs people, but people need
connection’ Jacob Mills takes us somewhere completely
different: into the world of microbiota which, while
essential to life on earth, many of us rarely think about.
A/Prof Paul Adam, the past editor of APC, inspired me to
get in touch with Jacob, after reading his recent articles
on the influence of restoration on the microbiota, and
flow on effects for human health. If you need more
reasons for plant conservation and restoration in urban
environments, the findings of Jacob and colleagues
detailing the effects of the environment on microbiota,
and the effects on human health will give you plenty!
Next, Amelia Martyn Yenson introduces us into her work
around reviewing and updating the ANPC’s Germplasm
Guidelines. Everyone involved with ex situ plant
conservation will be following this important project with
interest. This is followed by news from the Australian
Seed Bank Partnership, a profile of new ANPC committee
member Stephen Bell, a review of the new edition of
Plant Names and ANPC News. Phew! Time to grab a hot
Cuppa, sit back and enjoy the read.
Out-going President's Report
To the Annual General meeting, 20 November 2019
LINDA BROADHURST
ANPC President, Australian Network for Plant Conservation Inc. Email: anoc@anpc.asn.au
lam very proud to say that 2019, our 28th year, has
been a highly successful year for the ANPC and our role
as Australia’s key plant conservation organisation. Over
the first half of the year, we successfully negotiated
funding with the NSW Environmental Trust for our new
Healthy Seeds Project which commenced in September
(2019) and will run for 18 months. This project aims to
deliver an evidence-based roadmap to secure a reliable,
genetically-appropriate, native seed supply in NSW for
restoration. We will also be undertaking a long-overdue
update of the Florabank Guidelines for best practice
native seed collection and use as well as an audit and
investigation into past and current Seed Production
Areas (SPAs). A consortium of partners from across the
native seed and ecological restoration sectors has been
established to oversee the project including Greening
Australia, CSIRO, Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney, NSW
Department of Planning, Industry and Environment,
the Australian Association of Bush Regenerators, the
Australian Seed Bank Partnership, and the Society for
Ecological Restoration Australasia.
We are also extremely excited to announce that we
were awarded an lan Potter Foundation Environment
and Conservation grant to review and update the
ANPC’s Germplasm Guidelines over the next two years.
Through this grant we will be able to comprehensively
update one of our flagship publications ‘Plant Germplasm
Conservation in Australia — strategies and guidelines for
developing, managing and utilising ex situ collections’.
These Guidelines remain the definitive Australian
standard for native seed and regenerative plant material
collection, storage and use following publication in 2009.
Since that time, seed biology research has progressed
significantly and to ensure that the latest information
IS passed onto practitioners and land managers, we will
bring together leading experts in seed biology research
and practice from across Australia to review and rewrite
the Guidelines. By continuing to incorporate updated
scientific knowledge in our publications we are ensuring
that Australia’s seed sector has the necessary skills and
knowledge. We will establish a steering committee and
employ a project manager to co-ordinate the revision,
with a specialised two-day consultation workshop with
germplasm experts (Editor’s note: A report from the recently
appointed project manager, Amelia Yenson, is included in
this issue). We will also develop new training materials
which will be delivered at four stakeholder workshops
across Australia. For those unable to attend these events,
online training and innovative video content will be
produced to widely promote and promulgate the new
Guidelines and its content.
The ANPC has again been involved in submissions to
government either through participation in workshops
or commenting on proposed legislative changes or
guidelines. On 12 July, we commented on and endorsed
a Submission to the draft National Environmental
Biosecurity Response Agreement submitted by the
Invasive Species Council, along with many other
environmental organisations, which was a follow up
to our 2017 submission. The ANPC has also been an
active participant in the environmental biosecurity
review through participation at several meetings and
roundtables by Bob Makinson and myself. The ANPC is
among the few plant-oriented NGOs to have been closely
engaged in this environmental biosecurity process at the
national level, and it needs to become one of our core
areas of advocacy.
The ANPC made a submission on 30 September 2019
on the Priority List of exotic environmental pests
and diseases recently issued by The Commonwealth
Department of Agriculture. This is a significant step in
the slow process of building greater awareness and
capacity for Australia’s environmental biosecurity.
The public comment period for the list has now closed,
but the list remains available pending its finalisation.
The ANPC is looking to bring members concerned about
environmental biosecurity issues into closer contact
with each other, to give us greater capacity on this
side of our work. If you are interested in networking
on this, please email the office with subject line
‘Enviro biosecurity’.
The ANPC continues to maintain its strong involvement
in promoting awareness of the plant pathogen Myrtle
Rust (Austropuccinia psidii) threat to Australia’s biota, and
advocating for action. This has been a focus of activity
by our Vice-President Bob Makinson since 2010. We are
the only organisation, government or non-government,
to have rolled out a national awareness program of
workshops, collaborating with many agencies. This year,
we published the new updated Global Host List for
Myrtle Rust on our website, by Julia Soewarto and
co-authors. The new Global Host List shows that the host
range now stands at 480 nominate species (524 taxa
when subspecies are counted separately, as they
are in Australian conservation practice). This host range,
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 3
and the rapid geographic spread of one strain of the
pathogen, demonstrate that Myrtle Rust disease is now a
major threatening process for the Myrtaceae family ona
global scale.
The Australian community continues to demonstrate
strong interest and support for plant conservation.
To meet these expectations the ANPC is playing a key
role in facilitating and communicating plant conservation
initiatives and information across Australia. This is
reflected in the ongoing participation of land managers,
government departments, industry, the volunteer
conservation movement and the broader community in
ANPC workshops and conferences as well as the requests
we receive from other organisations and government
agencies to participate in and comment on various flora
conservation initiatives.
While | continue to be greatly impressed by the
dedication and breadth of knowledge of ANPC members,
we still face many significant challenges. We need
to ensure that we continue to effectively promote
the inherent value and cultural significance of our
unique and wonderful flora to the broader Australian
community and remain true to our core business of
facilitating Australian plant conservation, threatened
species recovery, ecological restoration and remnant
vegetation management.
2018 APCC12 Conference
The ANPC’s flagship event is the biannual Australasian
Plant Conservation Conference and our 12th conference
was held in Canberra on 11-—15th November 2018.
This conference brought together a diverse range of
participants including botanists, geneticists, ecologists,
practitioners, land managers, and on-ground plant
conservation managers from around Australia to review
and highlight plant conservation achievements and
challenges. The theme for the conference was “Moving
House — A new age for plant translocation and restoration”.
Together we explored and discussed recent advances and
latest scientific findings for successful threatened plant
translocations and restoration across Australia. Soecies
translocations have been an important conservation
approach for more than two decades to save threatened
species from extinction. With no foreseeable reduction
in threats from climate change, urban and agricultural
expansion and intensification, and invasive pests
and diseases, plant translocations and restoration
will continue to be an important component of plant
conservation into the future.
| would like to thank all the conference sponsors and
the conference organising committee: Josh McGregor,
Damien Wrigley, David Coates, Lucy Commander,
Chantelle Doyle, Nicki Taws, Jasmyn Lynch, Jo Lynch
and Martin Driver for their huge effort in helping me
coordinate the conference. Particular mentions go to
Robert Hawes and Chris Ikin in the ANPC office as well as
4 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
other ANPC volunteers, and Josh McGregor from CANBR
who all worked tirelessly to ensure that the conference
ran smoothly.
Workshops, Projects and Outreach
One of our major achievements in 2018 was the
publication of the 3rd edition of the ANPC’s ‘Guidelines
for Translocation of Threatened Plants in Australia’, in
association with the Threatened Species Recovery
(TSR) Hub and the ACT Government, and launched by
the Threatened Species Commissioner Dr Sally Box
at the APCC12 Conference. This new edition of the
Guidelines is essential reading for all those involved in
translocation projects both in Australia and elsewhere.
Many thanks go to Lucy Commander, Dave Coates,
Cathy Offord, Bob Makinson and Maria Matthes for the
successful completion of this project as well as to the
authors and experts who willingly gave their time to this
important project.
During 2019 we widely distributed and promoted the
new Guidelines, including through three short videos that
are available on our website at https://www.anpc.asn.
au/translocation_guidelines_review/, to keep Australia
at the cutting edge of this important technique used in
the fight against plant extinctions. In addition, twenty-six
threatened plant translocation case studies were
oublished on our website at https://www.anpc.asn.au/
translocation-case-studies/.
Through support from the Threatened Species Recovery
Hub, the Western Australian and South Australian
governments, and the University of Adelaide, we have
held two Threatened Plant Translocation Workshops
this year in Perth and Adelaide. A total of 24 speakers
presented to 108 participants representing volunteer
groups, universities, landcare groups, government
departments, local councils, NGOs, consultancies and a
winemaking company. Material in the new Translocation
Guidelines was presented, as well as local translocation
case studies, followed by lively panel discussions.
Thank you to our sponsors and all those who presented
at the workshops. Selected presentations are available
on the ANPC website here https://www.anpc.asn.au/
wa-threatened-plant-translocation-workshop/ and
here https://www.anpc.asn.au/sa-threatened-plant-
translocation-workshop/.
The ANPC collaborated with the Australian Association
of Bush Regenerators (AABR) to co-host the Seeds for
the Future Forum held in Sydney on 8 October 2019.
This one-day forum brought together people from
the bush regeneration, revegetation, nursery and
landscape architecture sectors to set the scene for
future collaborations, and introduce the Healthy Seeds
project and an outline of the National Native Seed Survey
findings. It included in-depth discussion and practical
case studies for optimising the conservation of remnants,
through identifying the issues and suggesting solutions
for improved seed supply across the Greater Sydney area.
One of the outcomes of the forum is a ‘Communique
from the NSW restoration industry’ which calls upon State
and Federal governments to direct incentive funding to
biodiversity restoration and the infrastructure required
to support it.
We are currently collaborating with the Australian Seed
Bank Partnership on planning the Australasian Seed
Science Conference (Editor’s note: now postponed until
September 2021). The conference will be covering the
following themes:
« Seed biology and evolutionary ecology — Unlocking
the challenges of germination, dormancy and seed
ecology in a changing world.
- Seed sourcing and end-use — Considering genetic
diversity, restoration and translocations as well as
sector specific approaches to seed conservation
and use.
- Seed and gene bank management - The ins and
outs of managing ex situ seed banks and gene
banks and the methods for maximising seed quality
and longevity.
« Seeds in culture and society — Sharing stories
and learning about cultural seed use, including
collaborations between traditional use and ex situ seed
banks and gene banks.
ANPC Project Manager, Martin Driver has continued to
implement the ANPC’s networking and communications
role between researchers and practitioners for Stage
2 of the Bringing Back the Banksias project from the
Norman Wettenhall Foundation. It has enabled further
Banksia marginata collections to be taken from relict
populations or trees from Kangaroo Island, North East
Victoria, Southern NSW, Upper Murrumbidgee and
New England for analysis in conjunction with The
Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney ‘Restore and Renew’
project. Genetic analysis is still to be completed and
cross referenced with sub-samples from the previously
completed Victorian projects. Once analysis is completed,
a workshop to communicate findings and implications
is planned for 2020. This year he has presented at three
workshops for this project. Due to the effects of the
current drought and limited funding, no plant ID or seed
collection workshops have been held this year.
Between October 2016 and April 2017 the ANPC
undertook a survey of the Australian native seed
sector, which reported dwindling seed supplies and a
decline in expertise and training. Initial survey results
were disseminated at a workshop held at the APCC11
2016 conference in Melbourne. Survey results have
been collated and interpreted over the last two years
with the final report to be published in early 2020. The
project team is Nola Hancock (Department of Biological
Sciences, Macquarie University), Paul Gibson-Roy
(Kalbar Resources), Martin Driver and myself. Thanks
to Nola, Paul and Martin for their continued efforts to
helping to understand this critical and complex part
of plant restoration. The survey results presented at
the 2016 workshop are available on the ANPC website
https://www.anpc.asn.au/seed-survey-and-workshop/.
Over the past 12 months, the ANPC has continued its
collaboration with the Orchid Conservation Program
at the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria (RBGV) on two
projects. The ‘Saving the Threatened Audas Spider-orchid
(Caladenia audasii) from extinction’ project funded by
DELWP in 2017 has resulted in seed collection and
propagation of seedlings, hand pollination of wild plants,
plant surveys and pollinator baiting, and the construction
of an exclusion fence to protect newly discovered plants
from grazing kangaroos and rabbits. This project will
finish in June 2020 with the re-introduction of 200 plants.
In 2018 DELWP also funded a similar project ‘Saving
the Brilliant Sun Orchid (Thelymitra mackibbinii) from
extinction’. This project has been undertaking plant and
pollinator surveys as well as the construction of two
exclusion fences and signage. Community volunteers
have been assisting with the surveys and will reintroduce
600 propagated seedlings in winter 2021.
Our outreach efforts continue to expand through social
media with the regular sharing of news and events in
plant conservation via Twitter, Facebook, Instagram
and LinkedIn. Our monthly email newsletter ANPC News
continues to reach at least 630 subscribers. A new look
ANPC website was launched in early 2019 which has
significantly improved our information delivery and
online shopping procedures and membership form.
A big thank you to Heidi Zimmer for assisting us with
this transition.
Our quarterly bulletin, Australasian Plant Conservation
(APC), has continued to publish high-quality articles
relevant to a broad range of plant conservation
practitioners and managers, under the editorship this
year of Heidi Zimmer and assistant editors Nathan Emery
and Selga Harrington. This year, there have been two
editions on the Translocation of Threatened plants,
papers from the 12th Australasian Plant Conservation
Conference and a focus on the NSW Saving our Species
program. We sincerely thank Heidi, Nathan and Selga
for their efforts over the past year in ensuring that APC
continues to be a quality and well-respected publication
communicating Australasian plant conservation
issues. Thank you also to the many authors who have
contributed to these editions this year.
Staffing
In June 2019, Dr Lucy Commander completed her
employment as Project Manager for the review,
publication and promulgation of the third edition of
the ANPC’s Guidelines for the Translocation of Threatened
Plants in Australia. | would like to thank Lucy for her
excellent work. Lucy’s dedication to this project was
immense. She consulted with more than 30 experts
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 5
from across Australia to ensure that the Guidelines were
underpinned by the latest scientific findings. However,
lam very glad to say that Lucy has not left us just yet, as
she has now been employed as the Project Manager for
the Florabank Guidelines review under the Healthy Seeds
project and has hit the ground running after starting in
September 2019.
In July 2019, Martin Driver was further employed as the
Healthy Seeds Project Manager where he will coordinate
and manage the Healthy Seeds project, and oversee the
SPA audit and Investigation Reports, Florabank Guidelines
update and development of the roadmap. He will also
coordinate consultation and liaison with stakeholders,
consortium members, other reference groups,
experts (scientists and practitioners) and community
representatives from a range of organisations.
Many thanks to our Business Manager Jo Lynch, who
continues to work above and beyond the call of duty for
the ANPC. Her dedication, advice and support make my
role and the work of the Committee much more effective
and ensures that the ANPC continues to function as a
highly respected conservation organisation. Also sincere
thanks to our office volunteers this year, Chris kin and
Robert Hawes, who have helped enormously with various
administrative and financial tasks.
lam grateful to all the Committee members for
their tremendous support over the year. All of the
Committee members have significant commitments
outside the ANPC, and it is often challenging to devote
the time required to be active committee members.
The involvement in the committee by all members is a
clear demonstration of their dedication to the ANPC and
its goals in improving plant conservation.
| would especially like to thank Chris Ikin, Kate Brown,
Maria Matthes, Selga Harrington and Kylie Moritz
who are leaving the committee this year, as well as
Bob Makinson who is stepping down as Vice President
but re-standing as an Ordinary Member, and | sincerely
thank them for their time and support over the last four
years of my President-ship. | too am resigning this year
as my term is up and | am extremely thankful to have
had the opportunity to work with a group of people
that are so passionate and dedicated to Australian
Plant Conservation.
Funding
Our financial situation will be reported on in detail
separately at the AGM but some of our keys sources of
income this year have included:
- NSW Environmental Trust Healthy Seeds project.
- lan Potter Foundation Environment and Conservation
grant for the review of the Germplasm Guidelines.
- Threatened Species Recovery Hub, Department
of Biodiversity Conservation and Attractions,
6 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
South Australian Murray-Darling Basin Natural
Resources Management Board and the Environment
Institute at the University of Adelaide for two plant
translocation workshops.
- Normal Wettenhall Foundation biodiversity
conservation grant for Stage 2 of the Bring Back the
Banksias Project — coordination, communication
and workshop.
- Biodiversity On-ground Action 2017 - Community
and Volunteer Action Grant (Victoria) for “Saving the
threatened Audas Spider-orchid (Ca/adenia audasii)
from extinction”.
- Biodiversity On-ground Action 2018 — Community
and Volunteer Action Grant (Victoria) for “Saving
the Brilliant Sun Orchid (Thelymitra mackibbinii)
from extinction”.
¢« Memberships and donations.
| would like to thank Jo Lynch and Martin Driver, as well as
committee members, for their efforts in seeking projects
and grants — while not every application is successful, we
rely heavily on their efforts to continue to seek funding to
support our key activities.
The coming year
2020 will be a busy year for the ANPC undertaking the
following activities:
- Implementing the Healthy Seeds Project including
producing the Roadmap and Florabank Guidelines.
- Reviewing and revising our Germplasm Guidelines.
« Planning and holding the 13th Australasian Plant
Conservation Conference.
« Launching the National Seed Supply Survey Report.
-« Seeking additional funding for further translocation
workshops. The ANPC is available to run workshops
based on the new Translocation Guidelines anywhere
in Australia. Registration fees depend on the amount
of funding available (either from an institution
or a successful grant application) to cover such
expenses as catering, venue hire and ANPC staff
time and travel. Please contact the ANPC for further
information and request a quote, or to collaborate on a
grant application.
- Completing Stage 2 of the Bring Back the
Banksias project.
- Continuing the two orchid projects with RBGV.
| have thoroughly enjoyed my time as President over the
last 4 years. It has been a pleasure and a privilege to work
with all of you and for an organisation that does so much
for plant conservation in Australia. | see an ongoing and
important future for the ANPC as it continues to play a
key role in plant conservation across Australia and the
region more broadly.
Battling an “aggressive pioneer’ after fire:
Phytolacca octandra (Inkweed)
MICHELE KOHOUT"™, PAT COUPAR? AND MAX ELLIOTT?
‘Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, Department of Land, Water, Environment and Planning, 123 Brown St, Heidelberg VIC 3084.
“Friends of Mallacoota, PO Box 147, Mallacoota VIC 3892.
*Corresponding author: Michele.Kohout@delwp.vic.gov.au
Bushcare Mallacoota has been controlling seedlings of
the exotic plant Phytolacca octandra L. (Phytolaccaceae)
(Inkweed) since fires in January 2020. This plant was first
recorded in small numbers in urban areas of the township
about 15 years ago and ongoing control has been by
hand removal. Since the recent fires, there has been
large-scale germination of this weed, including spread
into bushland areas, where it had not been previously
recorded (Figure 1).
Inkweed is native to tropical South and Central America.
In Australia it is found along roadsides, creeklines and
in disturbed areas, including cleared vacant blocks.
This species is a leafy, short-lived perennial plant growing
up to 2 m tall with a tuberous taproot and long fibrous
lateral roots. Leaves are elliptic, 16 cm long with an entire
margin, the petiole is 40 mm long. It produces spikes of
small greenish-white flowers followed by red succulent
berries with a fruit length of 5-9 mm. Up to eight seeds,
each 2 mm long, are produced per fruit (Walsh and
Entwistle 1999). When ripe, the berries produce a red ink-
like juice, which has been used as a dye. It can produce
fruit year round (Wotton and McAlpine 2015).
The seeds are eaten by birds (especially Silvereyes and
Satin Bower Birds) and Foxes, which spread the seed
in their droppings. The digestive juices of birds help to
dissolve the hard seed coat, allowing germination when
they are passed (Floyd 1976). The seeds have recorded
Figure 1. Young Phytolacca octandra seedlings, Mallacoota.
Photo: Pat Couper
96% viability after passing through Silver-eyes (Stanley
and Lill 2002).
Inkweed seeds germinate poorly unless heated and may
therefore remain in the soil seed bank until this occurs
(Floyd 1966). It appears to be favoured by low intensity
fire (Floyd 1976). It is an initial coloniser following fire,
emerging in large numbers, maturing quickly and
producing many seeds, such that Floyd (1976) described
itas an “aggressive pioneer’. It is possibly stored in
the soil seed bank for up to 14 years (Floyd 1976).
The reported shade intolerance of inkweed may mean
that it could gradually be replaced by a suite of perennial
exotic species that invade after fire (Floyd 1976, Thomson
and Leishman 2005; it could also be outcompeted by
recovering natives but, to date, there is no evidence
of this). However, more research is needed into this
succession since the broad leaves suggest that it can
tolerate some shading. BushCare Mallacoota have
observed that pre-fire plants were growing on disturbed,
vacant land out in the open. Post-fire germination
has mainly been observed under burnt trees in shade
(Figure 2), particularly in damp poorly drained areas
and gullies.
Interestingly, this species was declared a noxious weed in
Australia as early as 1907-1918, but is no longer declared
noxious, most likely because it is present across a large
geographic range and hence enforced control is no
Figure 2. Phytolacca octandra infestation in burnt area,
Mallacoota. Photo: Pat Couper
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020
longer warranted (Johnson 2013). In Victoria, however,
it is classified as an environmental weed with a high
risk rating for control or eradication (White et al. 2018).
It occurs in every state and territory in Australia, except
the Northern Territory, with the main distribution on the
east coast of New South Wales and has been recorded
at 200 to 1000 m in elevation (Atlas of Living Australia)
(Figure 3).
1.780 Kikmoters
St 9
Figure 3. Distribution of Phtyolacca octandra in Australia (Atlas of
Living Australia).
Bushcare Mallacoota are controlling the species using the
herbicide glyphosate (Bayer RoundUp*®) plus a surfactant.
The results of this control have been very effective to date
on seedlings and young plants. Larger, flowering plants
are also affected by treatment with herbicide, but it is
too soon to know if they will die or re-sprout. One site
with a dense germination of Melaleucas has been left
untreated as a control to determine if the Inkweed
will be outcompeted in time. Young seedlings may be
manually removed but older plants, which develop a
strong taproot, tend to break off and regrow. It has been
observed to be a fast grower such that, within a month of
germination, it can start to flower (Figure 4). The weeding
group had not considered this to be a problem weed
in Mallacoota until this recent fire occurred and they
hope to control the outbreak before seed-set. This is a
significant observation and it is imperative that the young
seedlings of this species are identified and removed
before it can outcompete native regeneration.
8 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
Figure 4. Flowering Phytolacca octandra, two months after fire.
Photo: Pat Couper.
References
Floyd, A. G. (1966). Effect of fire upon weed seeds in the wet
sclerophyll forests of northern New South Wales. Australian
Journal of Botany 14: 243-256.
Floyd, A. G. (1976). Effect of burning on regeneration from seeds
in wet sclerophyll forest. Australian Forestry 39: 210-220.
Johnson, S. B. (2013). Don’t let the truth get in the way of a good
story. The declaration of weeds that affect the environment
started in 1907 in New South Wales. Plant Protection Quarterly
28:75.
Stanley, M. C. and Lill, A. (2002). Avian fruit consumption and
seed dispersal in a temperate Australian woodland. Austral
Ecology 27: 137-148.
Thomson, V. P., & Leishman, M. R. (2005). Post-fire vegetation
dynamics in nutrient-enriched and non-enriched sclerophyll
woodland. Austral Ecology, 30: 250-260.
Walsh N. G. and Entwisle T. J. (1999). Flora of Victoria. Inkata
Press, Melbourne.
White, M., Cheal, D., Carr, G. W., Adair, R., Blood, K.and Meagher,
D. (2018). Advisory list of environmental weeds in Victoria. Arthur
Rylah Institute for Environmental Research Technical Report
Series No. 287. Department of Environment, Land, Water and
Planning, Heidelberg, Victoria.
Wotton, D. M. and McAlpine, K. G. (2015). Seed dispersal of
fleshy-fruited environmental weeds in New Zealand. New
Zealand Journal of Ecology 39: 155-169.
Hairpin Banksia: a widespread plant threatened
with decline by frequent fires
ANNETTE MUIR", LUCAS BLUFF2, PAUL MOLONEY', NEVIL AMOS' AND JIM THOMSON!
‘Arthur Rylah Institute; Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Victoria.
“Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Victoria.
*Corresponding author: annette.muir@delwp.vicgov.au
Background
The extensive bushfires in south-eastern Australia during
the 2019-2020 summer significantly impacted many
threatened plant taxa, including species listed under
legislation. However, the life history characteristics of
many unlisted serotinous obligate seeders make them
vulnerable to frequent fires, especially when combined
with increasing temperatures and decreasing rainfall due
to climate change.
Banksia spinulosa var cunninghamii (Hairpin Banksia)
is one such taxon vulnerable to local extinction from
short fire intervals because: adult plants are killed
by fires; time to reproductive maturity is relatively
long; and canopy-stored seed does not persist in the
soil. Almost the entire range of Hairpin Banksia in
the East Gippsland region of Victoria was within the
boundary of the 2019-2020 bushfires (DELWP 2020).
These populations, along with small populations in far
southeast NSW and southwest of Sydney, are considered
taxonomically distinct from others in the B. spinulosa
complex (Stimpson et a/. 2016). The species is at increased
risk of decline in areas where fires in the preceding ten
years overlap with the 2019-2020 fires, because there are
unlikely to be sufficient seeds available for recruitment to
replace the fire-killed adults.
This article summarises Victorian Hairpin Banksia
reproduction between 2014 and 2017 in relation to fire
intervals, to determine time to reproductive maturity and
seedling establishment. It compares the extent of the
2019-2020 bushfires to previous fires in the modelled
distribution of Hairpin Banksia in Victoria, to assess the
potential impact of the fire and subsequent recovery.
Some implications for management are discussed.
Methods
Seed production and seedling recruitment
Hairpin Banksia seed production and seedling
recruitment were studied in two areas of mixed Eucalypt
forest — east of Melbourne and East Gippsland. Sites
represented a sequence of time since fire spanning five to
35 years (DELWP 2020).
Cones with closed follicles (as a proxy for viable seeds)
were counted on live adult plants for three years at the
two study areas (Figure 1). In 2014, 295 individual plants
were tagged and sampled, and 154 of these plants were
sampled again in 2015 and a different subset of 160
in 2016.
Seedling recruitment was measured in spring 2016 at
sites which had been burnt at low severity within the
previous six to 18 months. We measured the number of
seedlings for each of 200 dead adult plants, within the
radius of the original canopies (Figure 1).
Figure 1. Hairpin
Banksia cone with
closed follicles;
seedling six months
after fire. Photos:
Annette Muir
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 9
Analysis for both the probability of individual Hairpin
Banksia carrying viable cones, and the average number
of viable cones carried by individuals was done with a
hurdle model in a Bayesian framework (Zeileis et a/. 2008)
to account for the large number of zero observations.
For seedling recruitment, a simple calculation was made
of the average number of seedlings per adult plant, with
standard error (SE).
Spatial data resources
Hairpin Banksia records and a habitat model were
overlaid with fire severity mapping within the 2019-2020
fire boundary and Victoria Government fire history data in
East Gippsland (DELWP 2020). The Victorian Biodiversity
Atlas was used to identify all records of Hairpin Banksia
(1979-2017) with location precision better than 50 m.
The species distribution model for Hairpin Banksia had
previously been developed by the Arthur Rylah Institute
(DELWP), using a multi-objective regression-tree analysis
of plant quadrat data to jointly model flora species
using a suite of climate, terrain and remotely sensed
environmental variables. Fire severity was mapped using
pre- and post-fire Sentinel 2 imagery, with Random Forest
classification of severity classes based on a large dataset
of human-classified severity samples from previous
bushfires, as described in Collins et al. (2018). Polygons
of fire boundaries for all recorded bushfires and planned
burns occurring in East Gippsland from the 2009-2010
season to 2019-2020 were collated.
Results
Seed production and seedling recruitment
About two-thirds of plants produced no cones in the
first decade after fire. Up to nine years after fire, the
probability of an individual plant having at least one
viable cone was 37.7% (95% Credible Interval (Cl):
30.5-44.7%), but from 14 years, this probability increased
to 74.4% (95% Cl: 69.3-79.3%). The dataset lacks data
for the period 10-13 years inclusive, meaning that
the mean plant age at which probability of bearing
cones transitions from low to high cannot be resolved
more closely.
Juvenile plants (younger than 10 years) had an expected
0.5 (95% Cl: 0.4-0.6) cones per plant, while for mature
plants (older than 13 years) this increased to 1.5 (95% Cl:
1.3-1.8). Several years’ production of cones made up the
total canopy seedbank, which was low in the first decade
after fire, and reached a plateau from 15 years post-fire
(Figure 2). Trajectories of cone production were not
shown from 10 to 13 years’ post-fire due to the lack of
data for this period.
An average of 8.0 (SE 0.8) seedlings per dead adult
Hairpin Banksia was recorded six months after autumn
fuel reduction burns. However, only 0.8 (SE 0.3) seedlings
10 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
uv 4
E
[o'
g
= 3
S
c
iw
kc
2
1
0
rs) 10 15 20 20 30 35
Time since fire (Years)
Figure 2. Total number of cones per plant (unconditional) as
a function of time since fire. Curve shows the median and the
shaded area represents 95% credible interval. Trajectories of
cone production are not shown from 10 to 13 years post-fire due
to the absence of data for this period.
per adult on average was recorded at 1.5 to 2 years
post-fire. This apparent reduction may be due to
increased seedling mortality from summer drought stress
or browsing.
Proportion of species distribution impacted by fire
Of the 266 recorded occurrences of Hairpin Banksia
in East Gippsland, 78% were mapped as burnt (at any
severity) within the boundary of the 2019-2020 bushfires.
For the area of the species distribution model in the
East Gippsland region, 88% was within the 2019-2020
fire boundary and 29% had experienced fire in the prior
10 years (Figure 3). The percentage habitat burnt in the
last 10 years is overestimated due to lack of fine-scale
mapping for some planned burns, but is likely to be a
significant proportion of the East Gippsland population.
Conclusions
Our study indicates that seed production in Hairpin
Banksia under ten years of age is likely to be insufficient
for replacement recruitment. A precautionary
interpretation is that two fires in 10 years would cause a
severe decline in the local persistence of Hairpin Banksia.
Rainfall in the three years preceding the 2019-2020
bushfires was well below average in the study area in East
Gippsland (BOM 2020), and seed production may have
been lower than measured in our study.
y a = ; > aa ey ~ a pane, vo ,
Pe er eal ie at allt ait ln a et oll ot a alt a de ae a
tt get ete gel get yet etl gett et gt tt tt
: Ty yt peat ie at tae vena ta
) 7 ’ 2 ’ j ~ B , W
— 4
. i+ Fe
a Py ry
s] a ‘Ss
WT
ws te ” J
*. ee et wt tle ye atl tt ath gat ie ee P
tet te — tt te et ot et —_ mite
oid ¥ = is
Figure 3. Distribution of Hairpin Banksia and recent fires in
Victoria. Modelled habitat is shown in green; 2019-20 bushfires
in vertical hatching; fires 2009-2019 in diagonal hatching.
The spatial data suggest declines in populations of
Hairpin Banksia across up to 30% of the species’ range
in East Gippsland, with additional declines likely
over the next decade as fires reoccur in this area.
Ground verification in Spring 2020 will confirm the extent
of adult plant death, and levels of seedling recruitment.
It is unknown what effects post-fire grazing by feral deer
may have on emerging seedlings.
What actions can be taken to address these risks
to Hairpin Banksia? Field surveys are needed to
determine the extent of decline within the fire ground
where previous fire occurred in the last 10 years.
Plant Germplasm
Conservation In
Australia (E-version)
Strategies and guidelines for developing,
managing and utilising ex situ collections
Australia + International orders $5.00
FREE FOR MEMBERS ONLY
For more information and to order, go to https://www.anpc.asn.au/plant-germplasm/
As an insurance strategy, seed should be collected from
different populations of Hairpin Banksia to preserve
genetic diversity across its range. Management and
research attention are needed for relatively widespread
species such as Hairpin Banksia, which are susceptible to
reductions in population size and distributional extent
caused by increased fire and climatic warming.
References
Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) (2020). ‘Climate Data Online’.
Bureau of Meteorology, Australian Government. Available at:
http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/data/index.shtml
Collins, L., Griffioen, P., Newell, G. and Mellor, A. (2018).
The utility of Random Forests for wildfire severity mapping.
Remote Sensing of Environment 216: 374-384.
Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning
(DELWP) (2020). Corporate Spatial Data Layer. Department of
Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Victoria.
Stimpson, M.L., Weston, P.H., Whalley, R.D.B. and Bruhl, J.J.
(2016). Amorphometric analysis of the Banksia spinulosa
complex (Proteaceae) and its complex taxonomic implications.
Australian Systematic Botany 29: 55-86.
Zeileis, A., Kleiber, C. and Jackman, S. (2008). Regression Models
for Count Data in R. Journal of Statistical Software 27. Available
at: http://www. jstatsoft.org/v27/i08/
Acknowledgements
This project was funded by the Victorian Government.
We thank staff from the Department of Environment, Land,
Water and Planning, and Parks Victoria, for their contributions
in developing this research, for assistance in the field, and for
helpful comments on the manuscript.
Fully revised edition 2009
: Plant Germplasm
Edited by C.A. Offord CONSERVATION
and P.F. Meagher in Australia
Strategies and guricke times
for dewetoping, managing and utilising
Full of practical case studies evdtn éallactions
on germplasm conservation
including seed collection,
banking, germination
and dormancy.
Eetted Sy Catherow A. Cited and Petree 1, eegie
ALS Cea
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 11
Serious impacts of longwall coalmining on
endangered Newnes Plateau Shrub Swamps,
IAN R.C. BAIRD’ AND DOUG BENSON?
'3 Waimea St, Katoomba NSW 2780.
exposed by the December 2019 bushfires
“Hon. Research Associate, Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust, Sydney.
*Corresponding author: petalurids@gmail.com
Situated in the highest part of the Blue Mountains of NSW
the characteristic Newnes Plateau Shrub Swamps (NPSS)
provide habitat for a suite of threatened flora and fauna.
In 2005, subject to a range of threatening processes,
these swamps were listed as an Endangered Ecological
Community (NSW BC Act 2016), and subsequently as part
of the Commonwealth Temperate Highland Peat Swamps
on Sandstone Endangered Ecological Community
(EPBC Act 1999).
Impacts of longwall mining
The Newnes Plateau is underlain by significant coal
reserves, and nearby Lithgow has a long history of
traditional bord and pillar coalmining. However, current
underground coal extraction of concern involves
longwall mining, with more complete removal of coal
and increased subsidence impacts than older methods.
In spite of denials from the coal industry, there has been
increasing evidence of the lowering and loss of water
tables in undermined NPSS swamps, and resulting
impacts on groundwater-dependent flora and fauna.
NPSS are groundwater dependent ecosystems, with
differing proportions of dependence on precipitation
and groundwater (Benson and Baird 2012). ‘Alteration of
habitat following subsidence due to longwall mining’ has
been listed as a Key Threatening Process in NSW (NSWSC
2005) in recognition of the potential impact of subsidence
on the quality and/or quantity of groundwater available
to groundwater-dependent ecosystems.
Our observations in NPSS swamps have confirmed the
continuing presence of surface moisture along drainage
lines through these swamps, and maintenance of at
least some continuous stream flows in their effluent
streams, throughout the Millennial drought (1997-2009)
(IRCB, PhD research and unpubl. obs.; DHB, in fieldwork,
environmental inquiries e.g., Birds Rock Colliery 1981)
(Figures 1a—e). Since 2012, when we described the natural
vegetation of the swamps (Benson and Baird 2012),
and including the recent 2019 drought period, we have
continued to record conditions in both undermined and
non-undermined reference swamps, through fieldwork
records and photographs.
12 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
We have seen increasing drying out of vegetation in
undermined swamps (Junction Swamp undermined
2003-2004; East Wolgan Swamp, 2006; Carne West
Swamp, 2013-2014; Gang Gang West Swamp, 2015-2016;
Gang Gang East Swamp, 2017-2018) and increasing
evidence of lowering water tables (see Figure 2 for
Carne West). Peaty swamp soils have dried and oxidized,
seepages disappeared, and the central drainage lines and
streams ceased to flow. This has been accompanied by
desiccation and, depending on species, gradual death
of plants (Figure 1f). In stark contrast, reference swamps
(e.g., Broad Swamp, Sunnyside Swamp) which lie outside
the mining impacted area, have maintained consistent
seepage areas and high soil moisture, with no obvious
visual evidence of lasting drought effects on vegetation,
despite periods of severe drought (Figures 1a-c).
Impacts of fire
The recent December 2019 bushfire swept across the
Newnes Plateau burning most of the swamps, including
previously undermined, and reference swamps, followed
by good rain in February-March. Vegetation recovery
in the reference swamps has been rapid with vigorous
resprouting of shrubs and sedges, and little evidence
of death of plants despite the severity of the fire. There
has been relatively little combustion of surface peat
(Figures 3a-c).
In contrast, the impact of the fire in undermined swamps
has been catastrophic (Figs 3d-f). There have been
large areas where all lignotuberous resprouter shrubs
have been killed or completely combusted, including
those with very large and presumably old lignotubers,
such as Leptospermum and Baeckea species (Figure 3e).
Similarly, large tussock-forming and apparently long-lived
foundational sedgeland species such as Buttongrass,
Gymnoschoenus sphaerocephalus, Xyris ustulata and
Empodisma minus, have been either killed, or are barely
surviving. With the destruction of the dried out surface
peat, the rooting zone bases of very large old tussocks,
which typically survive fire in moist peat conditions, have
been substantially burnt away (Figure 3f).
al
*
4
Figure 1 (a) Broad Swamp, a large wet peat swamp, with Boronia deanei, Grevillea acanthifolia, Pultenea divaricata and Sprengelia
incarnata in flower. This swamp maintained surface seepage throughout the Millenial drought. Photo: lan Baird, 9 September 2010;
(b) Broad Swamp with seepage-fed streamlet and flowering shrubs. Core habitat for Eulamprus leuraensis and Petalura gigantea. Photo:
lan Baird, 9 September 2010; (c) Broad Swamp with Euastacus australasiensis burrow complex in saturated peaty substrate with high
water table; high quality reproductive microhabitat for Petalura gigantea and core habitat for Eulamprus leuraensis. Photo: lan Baird,
1 November 2008; (d) Carne West Swamp showing wet peat swamp with dense sedgeland and shrub vegetation near the end of
the Millenial drought. Photo: lan Baird, 18 January 2007; (e) Carne West Swamp showing wet swamp vegetation with peaty soil and
seepage-fed streamlet at the end of the Millenial drought. Some drought-affected Coral-fern, Gleichenia dicarpa, evident. Core habitat
for Eulamprus leuraensis and Petalura gigantea. Photo: lan Baird, 12 January 2008; (f) Carne West Swamp after undermining, showing
extensive dying vegetation along previously wet but now dry, main drainage line. Photo: lan Baird, 6 December 2016
a! hak ‘w,
Pe ai 4 ee el ily | ‘|
‘ Piya ‘unl gh A, 1 see , iil taal 41! ) |
| i ai
Groinidteshar deplh (mi) hal
Figure 2. Carne West Swamp piezometer hydrograph for
piezometers CW1 (red), CW2 (green), CW3 (mauve), and
CW4 (pale blue) from 2005 to 2020 (Centennial Coal 2020).
Following undermining, the water level in all piezometers
had dropped dramatically by July 2015 to at or near the
bottom of piezometers and has not recovered, regardless of
prevailing rainfall.
The soil surface in undermined swamps, already
unnaturally dry before the burn, has been dramatically
altered as a result of ongoing oxidization and then
combustion of the peaty-organic surface layer, often
to a depth of 10-30 cm, exposing the roots of old
tussocks, and roots and lignotubers of shrubs (Figure 3e).
It is likely that the soil seedbank has also been largely
destroyed and large areas effectively sterilized
(Figure 3d-f). In any case, swamp species are unlikely to
recruit without suitable moist conditions. This includes
the vulnerable Boronia deanei subsp. deanei and
endangered Carex klaphakei. |In contrast to the extensive
seedling recruitment and resprouting in reference
swamps, undermined swamps are characterised
by an absence of both, with the exception of some
recruiting non-swamp Eucalyptus and Acacia seedlings.
These observations are consistent with our predictions
of a transition from groundwater dependent mires to
rainfall dependent non-mire vegetation communities
(swamp or non-swamp), following mining-related loss
of groundwater.
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020
13
In addition to the mire ecosystems themselves,
associated groundwater dependent fauna, including
the endangered Giant Dragonfly, Petalura gigantea, and
endangered Blue Mountains Water Skink, Eulamprus
leuraensis, are threatened by the potential compounding
effects of lowering water tables, more intense fire
regimes, and projected climate change (Baird and
Burgin 2016). Monitoring of Peta/ura populations in the
undermined swamps, and observations of the loss of
all suitable ovipositing and larval burrowing habitat,
suggests that they have been extirpated as a result of the
loss of groundwater (IRCB, unpubl. data).
Monitoring of Eulamprus populations in recently
undermined swamps has indicated reduced
abundance and a dramatic loss of suitable habitat
(S. Gorissen, unpubl. data). The loss of core habitat in
individual swamps is likely to lead to the extirpation of
these populations.
Based upon observations of the loss of the necessary
hydrological conditions and absence of burrows in
undermined swamps, the groundwater-dependent,
burrowing Sydney Crayfish, Euastacus australasiensis, a
swamp ecosystem engineer whose burrows are also used
by Eulamprus (Baird and Burgin 2016; Benson and Baird
2012), appear to have now been eliminated from these
swamps. Populations of Swamp Rat, Rattus /utreolus, an
under-appreciated ecosystem engineer in these swamps
can be expected to have been severely impacted at the
very least and unlikely to recover to previous abundance,
if at all.
Our observations of the impact of the longwall
mining-related lowering of watertables and subsequent
fire impacts in these swamps provides dramatic evidence
of the irreversible damaging impacts of longwall
mining. Unlike the reference swamps, the undermined
swamps failed to respond to good rains since January
2020, with almost no resprouting of typical and often
long-lived, resprouter sedgeland and shrub species,
destroying any hope that future rainfall might allow some
semblance of the pre-mining conditions to return. These
groundwater-dependent peat swamps are scarce and
already face a rapidly changing climate; the dead swamps
provide clear evidence of the impacts of longwall mining.
No more swamps should be allowed to be destroyed.
Figure 3 (a) Broad Swamp after December 2019 fire, showing rapid resprouting of swamp
sedgeland because of high water table and minimal combustion of peaty soil and vegetation
tussocks. Photo: lan Baird, 19 March 2020; (b) Broad Swamp after December 2019 fire, showing
vigorous sedgeland resprouting and complex hummock-hollow microtopograhy of fibrous
peat. Hollows frequently have seepage pools. Photo: lan Baird, 19 March 2020; (c) Broad
Swamp after December 2019 fire, showing emergent groundwater along seepage line and
complex microtopography of fibrous peat, with abundant burrows of groundwater-dependent
Euastacus australasiensis and Petalura gigantea, with pre-fire foraging excavations of Rattus
lutreolus. Photo: lan Baird, 19 March 2020; (d) Carne West Swamp showing December 2019 fire
impact, with deeply burnt and simplifed microtopography in what was a wet peat swamp with
perennial seepage lines, complex microtopography and suitable habitat for Petalura gigantea
and Eulamprus leuraensis pre-undermining. Photo: lan Baird, 11 March 2020; (e) Carne West
Swamp after December 2019 fire, showing deeply burnt peaty substrate, burnt and frequently
dead tussock bases of Gymnoschoenus sphaerocephalus and Xyris ustulata, and exposed fire-killed
shrub lignotubers (Scale rule 30 cm). Photo: lan Baird, 11 March 2020; (f) Carne West Swamp after December 2019 fire, showing burnt
tussock base and exposed root zone of old Gymnoschoenus sphaerocephalus tussock (Scale rule 30 cm). Photo: lan Baird, 11 March 2020
14 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020
Acknowledgements
Our research colleagues, Martin Krogh and Sarsha Gorissen, are
thanked for their ongoing commitment to better understanding
and protecting these swamp ecosystems.
References
Baird I. R. C. and Burgin S. (2016). Conservation of a
groundwater-dependent mire-dwelling dragonfly: implications
of multiple threatening processes. Journal of Insect Conservation
20: 165-78.
Benson D. and Baird I. R. C. (2012). Vegetation, fauna and
groundwater interrelations in low nutrient temperate montane
peat swamps in the upper Blue Mountains, New South Wales.
Cunninghamia 12: 267-307.
South-east NSW
Birds Rock Colliery (1981). Review of Environmental Impact
Statement submissions May 1981. EIS463 ABO19122. Available at:
https://data.nsw.gov.au/data/dataset/birds-rock-colliery-review-
of-environmental-impact-statement-submissions197e1
Centennial Coal (2020). Temperate Highland Peat Swamps on
Sandstone Monitoring and Management Plan LW 415 to 417
Annual Report. Springvale Mine - March 2020.
NSWSC (New South Wales Scientific Committee) (2005).
Alteration of habitat following subsidence due to longwall
mining. NSW Scientific Committee Key Threatening Process
final determination. [Accessed January 10th 2018]. Available
from: http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/determinations/
LongwallMiningKtp.htm
Late summer and autumn rains spark new
hope for three Endangered Midge Orchids in
LAURA CANACKLE', ROB ARMSTRONG', JOHN BRIGGS' AND DAVID McCREERY?
'NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment, 11 Farrer Place, Queanbeyan NSW 2620.
*NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service, South Coast Branch, Merimbula NSW 2548.
Background
Midge Orchids (genus Genoplesium) are a group of small
terrestrial orchids typically producing a short, single
flowering stem between 10-30 cm high, bearing clusters
of small flowers in a moderately dense spike. When not
in flower, only a single, thin, green leaf is present
above ground that is indistinguishable from other
midge orchids.
In recent times, officers from the Department of Planning
and Environment (DPIE) Ecosystems and Threatened
Species team with NSW National Parks and Wildlife
Service (NPWS), have become increasingly concerned
about the low numbers of individuals of three threatened
midge orchids being monitored as part of the NSW Saving
our Species (SoS) program. Declines in populations appear
related to unfavourable weather conditions associated
with reduced summer rainfall, with uncertainty as to
whether populations could ultimately survive under
prolonged drought. Late summer and autumn rains in
south-east NSW have contributed to a relatively large
increase in the flowering populations of these orchids,
bringing renewed hope that they will persist for a little
longer. The stories of these midge orchids are outlined in
this article.
Rhyolite Midge Orchid (Genoplesium rhyoliticum)
Corresponding author: laura.canackle@environment.nsw.gov.au
The Rhyolite Midge Orchid (Genoplesium rhyoliticum;
Figure 1) is Endangered in NSW (Biodiversity Conservation
Act 2016) and nationally (Environment Protection and
Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999) and nationally.
Its habitat is extremely specific, with only a handful of
records from seven rhyolite outcrops in the far south-east
of NSW. In 2002, the estimated total population was
around 1,300 (NPWS, 2002); however, more recent counts
suggest the species has declined by approximately 85%
in the past 20 years.
The tiny plants grow in shallow crevices on rhyolite rock
outcrops, in a thin layer of soil usually dominated by
mosses and lichens. These refugia also support a diversity
of invertebrates which attract fauna such as lyrebirds who
turn over the moss to forage for insects. Such disturbance
of the moss-beds may expose the tubers to desiccation
and predation, and with so few plants occupying these
moss-beds protecting them from disturbance to facilitate
flowering and seed set is considered a management
priority. In addition to protecting the immediate areas
where the plants grow, staff from DPIE and NPWS have
been monitoring the known sites under the SoS program
to better understand the distribution and trajectory,
but numbers have been nowhere near the 1,300 plants
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 15
reported to exist with only 31 flowering plants observed
over two outcrops in 2019.
Although the flowering period is recorded as December
to January, flowering of G. rhyoliticum appears to be
largely triggered by rainfall. In January 2020, following
an incredibly dry few months, the Border Fire in southern
NSW spread northwards to within one kilometre of
the known sites, so monitoring could not be safely
undertaken until mid-February. It was therefore assumed
the flowering window had been missed. However, a
fortuitously timed rain event in early February triggered
a late flowering response and we were delighted to
discover 50 flowering plants on five outcrops.
ie
o
_ — =
Figure 1. Rhyolite Midge Orchid. Photo: Jackie Miles, DPIE
The strategy
Due to the variability of flowering and remote nature
of these rhyolite outcrops, past surveys have been
opportunistic and resource dependent. Since the
introduction of SoS, annual population counts have
been conducted at two important outcrops and other
sites have been monitored. Other critical actions include
habitat protection from native herbivores and monitoring
for emerging threats.
Wildlife cameras were installed at one site to determine
the cause of disturbance at an important moss-bed
(Figure 2). In order to protect the few plants thought
to remain, stainless steel mesh panels were installed
over small areas to help the moss recover from lyrebird
diggings and protect it from further disturbance.
16 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
09.24.2017 09:12:18
Figure 2: Wildlife camera image showing moss-bed with a lyrebird
fossicking for insects.
Extensive surveys were initiated this year (2020) after
one population was observed to be flowering in higher
numbers than recent years. Nine outcrops were surveyed
in late February and March including five where the
species had previously been recorded.
All plants (including leaves) were counted. Although
the identity of sterile plants cannot be 100% confirmed,
these are very likely to be G. rhyoliticum based on leaf
characteristics and that no other Genoplesium species
have been recorded in the area with which it could
be confused.
Results
Wildlife camera footage showed that mesh was successful
in deterring lyrebirds and herbivores from overturning
the moss. This was confirmed during February’s site
visit when panels were observed to be intact with
non-browsed plants persisting (Figure 3). Some of these
plants flowered and set seed, which were collected and
sent to the Australian PlantBank at the Australian Botanic
Garden Mount Annan.
Table 1 shows the monitoring results from the past four
years. From 2017-2019, below average rainfall resulted
in poor emergence of the species and a reduced survey
effort, as the plants would have likely been dormant if
present. In 2020 all five locations with previously known
records had plants — the other two outcrops were not
surveyed, although it is probable that they also supported
good numbers. Four outcrops not previously surveyed
did not have any plants.
Table 1. Monitoring results of the Rhyolite Midge Orchid from the
past four years.
2016-2017 0 11
2017-2018 0 33
2018-2019 31 17
2019-2020 50 142
Figure 3: Rhyolite Midge Orchid leaves with habitat protection.
Photo: Laura Canackle, DPIE
It is not clear whether the 1,300 plants reported in 2002
included non-flowering plants so it is difficult to compare
2020 numbers with confidence, but it is certain there
has been a sharp decline over the past two decades.
Numbers are still critically low, which leaves the species
vulnerable to localised stochastic events. Fortunately,
these plants escaped the fires over summer 2019-2020 so
they were able to flower this season.
The reason for the higher emergence and flowering in
2020 may not only be due to the February rain event
but also that the extremely dry season leading up to the
flowering period resulted in some shrub death, leading
to more habitat availability on the outcrops (Jackie Miles,
2020 pers comm.). It is hoped the coming year brings
more reliable rainfall, and that some outcrops may still
have undiscovered populations persisting, waiting to be
discovered and conserved through continued investment
in threat mitigation.
Superb Midge Orchid (Genoplesium superbum)
Corresponding author: rob.armstrong@environment.nsw.gov.au
The Superb Midge Orchid (Genoplesium superbum;
Figure 4) is Endangered in NSW (Biodiversity Conservation
Act 2016), with a few small populations in the Nerriga and
Mongarlowe area and a disjunct record around Lithgow.
The habitat is non-specific, with occurrences on rock
shelves, dry forest and grassy woodlands on Ordovician
and Permian sediments. Flowering generally occurs from
December to April in response to substantial summer and
autumn rains, as have occurred in 2020.
With varied habitat and small population sizes, main
threats include land development and a range of threats
associated with small and isolated populations including
inbreeding depression and increased susceptibility to
stochastic events (DPIE, 2020). Opportunistic browsing
by native herbivores is a threat at each population, along
with unpredictable warm-season rainfall.
Some populations were burnt by the Currowan and
Gospers Mountain fires in early 2020, whereas others
escaped the fire by small margins. The late summer
and autumn rain sparked a significant flowering event
after recent years yielded minimal or no flowering in
all populations.
Figure 4. Superb Midge Orchid, showing characteristic
coarse, pinkish mauve cilia and purplish lateral sepals.
Photo: Rob Armstrong, DPIE
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020 17
The strategy
Under the SoS program, we have been undertaking
critical actions to reduce the threat to populations
such as caging individuals to reduce opportunistic
browsing, installing roadside markers in collaboration
with local councils, weed control and increasing survey
effort in better years to determine the extent of current
populations and find new populations.
Targeted surveys in known locations were undertaken
to confirm above-ground presence, with meandering
surveys in nearby suitable habitat. Where presence
was confirmed at key sites, each plant was tagged and
demographic parameters suggested by Swarts and Dixon
(2017) including flowering status, number of flowers
on each plant, grazing pressure, microhabitat, leaf
length, inflorescence length, total length and seedpod
development were measured. Covariate information on
fire intensity and preceding rainfall events was also noted
(BoM, 2020). Populations were periodically monitored
to check seedpod development and the emergence of
additional plants.
Results
After no records in early 2017 and 2018, minimal
records in 2019 (no plants in Mongarlowe cluster and
four in Nerriga cluster), the significant and well-timed
January-February rainfall event sparked a flowering/
emergence event not seen since the inception of the
SoS surveys in early 2017. In burnt areas, it is likely that
smaller plants were more detectable. Table 2 shows the
number of orchids observed across years, with rainfall for
January-February since 2017 compared to the long-term
median; in 2020 there was 2-day rainfall events of
145.4mm at Nerriga (250% of median February rainfall)
and 109.2 mm at Mongarlowe (191% of median February
rainfall), a phenomenon not seen in previous years, that
contributed to the eventual suppression of the Currowan
fire after 74 days. It is considered that this soaking rain
lead to the significant flowering.
The large number of plants provided the first opportunity
to examine population demographics. There were
no obvious trends between sites/clusters or burnt/
unburnt populations, however recorded information
suggests there is significant variation beyond that of the
described taxon.
Seed pod development was noted across all plants
that had flowered (Figure 5), although with flowering
observed from early March to late April, observations
were not made on the late-flowering plants.
However, it appears that pollination rates are very high
which was pleasantly surprising as the level of impact
on pollinators in fire-ravaged areas was unknown.
Most Genoplesium are pollinated by very small Diptera
(Kuiter, 2016); it is unknown if the Superb Midge Orchid
is autogamous and many smaller Genoplesium previously
thought as such are now suspected to be pollinated
in part by very small Diptera (Scatopsidae), so it is
considered likely that pollinators are present. Seeds
were collected from five locations within the Nerriga and
Mongarlowe clusters, as well as the disjunct population
near Lithgow.
Not surprisingly, browsing rates on uncaged plants
differed markedly between burnt and unburnt
populations, with a browsing rate of 53% in unburnt
areas (30 samples) and 6% in burnt areas (34 samples).
The browsing rate in unburnt samples is consistent
with observations in other Genoplesium (e.g., G. littorale,
observed browsing rate of 50%; Bower et al. 2015).
Low browsing rates in burnt areas are reflective of the
catastrophic effect of the 2019-2020 fire season on
browsing fauna.
Figure 5. Caged Superb Midge Orchid, with developing seedpod.
Photo: Rob Armstrong, DPIE
Table 2. Orchid detection relative to January-February summer median rainfall.
2017 0 74.8mm (65%)
2018 0 153.8mmM (134%)
2019 4 99.6mm (87%)
2020 137 249.8mmM (217%)
* includes a new population of 13 plants.
18 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
0 53.2mm (47%)
0 134mm (118%)
0 165.2mm (146%)
40* 185.6mm (164%)
Tallong Midge Orchid (Genoplesium plumosum)
The Tallong Midge Orchid (Genoplesium plumosum;
Figure 6) is Critically Endangered in NSW (Biodiversity
Conservation Act 2016) and Endangered nationally
(Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act
1999). Until recently it was only known from the vicinity
of Tallong with very small disjunct populations near
Marulan and Wingello. The habitat is highly specific, with
the species only growing on sandstone rock shelves that
support low heath, mosses and lichens. Flowering occurs
between mid-February and late-April, with flowering
generally occurring 3-4 weeks after substantial summer
or autumn rainfall.
The largest population occurs near Tallong, with many
sub-populations occurring on residential blocks and road
verges. Most sub-populations have been under threat
by construction, vehicle movements, soil dumping or
weed invasion. Fortunately, some sub-populations occur
on land that has been set aside to protect the orchid.
Other threats include those associated with small and
isolated populations, particularly increased susceptibility
to stochastic events such as drought. Browsing by
native herbivores, particularly wombats, is also a threat
leading to reduced seed production needed for ongoing
recruitment. The Tallong and Marulan populations were
also spared from the recent bushfires.
A recovery plan completed in 2002 facilitated detailed
surveys of known and potential habitat, establishing
three permanent monitoring plots on protected land at
Tallong to track population trends and monitor individual
plant demography. All flowering plants were measured
and tagged initially, and along with subsequent new
plants, measured and tagged annually.
Figure 6. Tallong Midge Orchid, best distinguished from several
co-occurring midge orchids by its elongated dark purplish labellum
with its short fringe of dark hairs at its tip. Photo: John Briggs, DPIE
The strategy
Selected recovery actions from the recovery plan were
incorporated into the SoS conservation project, with
two new actions added to help address the apparent
long-term decline. These include seed collection and
storage in the Australian PlantBank and undertaking
research into propagation, which if successful, would
provide translocation options.
Results
Tallong Midge Orchid has 20 years of annual monitoring
data from three plots established in 2001 (prior to the
onset of the millennium drought), documenting the
impact of that drought and release in 2010, as well as the
initial resoonse to recent rains providing some relief in
the current drought.
Figure 7 shows the number of flowering plants
within plots from 2001 to present. The impact of the
millennium drought is clearly evident, with a steady
decline in flowering plants from 2001 (96 plants) to
2006 (5 plants), with the number remaining below 15
until the breaking of the drought in 2010 (40 plants; less
than half pre-drought numbers). Numbers of flowering
plants have been below 30 in all subsequent years.
Despite the observed strong flowering of other midge
orchids in 2020, the number of flowering plants in the
Tallong Midge Orchid plots has not shown a marked
increase. Given the current conditions, it would seem
reasonable to expect an increase to numbers similar
to 2001 if the long-term situation was relatively stable.
The decline suggests a long-term lag from the effects of
the millennium drought and subsequent conditions.
Fortunately, the situation for Tallong Midge Orchid
may not be as dire as plot data suggests. Surveys of all
sub-populations in the Tallong area in 2020 indicated
that the response to recent rains is dependent on
aspect, with sites having a northerly and westerly aspect
responding poorly relative to less exposed aspects. This is
supported by the standardised plot data from the main
Tallong population, which shows a general trend of
higher relative proportion of flowering in sheltered
aspects as drought is prolonged or prevailing conditions
extremely dry. For one site there has been an overall
increase of flowering plants from 66 in 2019 to 303
in 2020, which is a similar number recorded in 2000.
Two plots have a westerly aspect and one has a southerly
aspect. In autumn 2020, the west-facing plots had no
flowering plants whilst the south-facing plot had nine.
The plot placement appears unrepresentative of the
overall response due to the susceptibility to drought of
west-facing sites. The effect of aspect on flowering can be
seen by comparing the relative abundance of flowering
on the plot with a southerly aspect with the total number.
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 19
Flowering Tallong Midge Orchids
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Figure 7. Number of flowering Tallong Midge Orchid plants on
monitoring plots each year since 2001.
On another positive note, a re-survey of a previously
recorded site near Marulan found a total of 176 flowering
Tallong Midge Orchids, up from three a few years
ago. This site has an easterly aspect and supports the
consistently better response to recent rains recorded on
similar aspects. A new smaller population was confirmed
while surveying for the Superb Midge Orchid in Morton
National Park in autumn 2020 in an area burnt in the
recent Currowan bushfire; this represents a 40 km
range extension.
References
BoM (2020) Climate Data online - Nerriga (069049),
Braidwood (069010). Bureau of Meteorology. Available at:
http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/data/
Bower, C., Towle, B. and Bickel, D. (2015). Reproductive success
and pollination of the Tuncurry Midge Orchid (Genoplesium
littorale) (Orchidaceae) by Chloropid Flies. Telopea 18: 42-55.
DPIE (2020). Tallong Midge Orchid profile, NSW
Department of Planning, Industry and Environment.
Available at: https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/
threatenedSpeciesApp/profile.aspx?id=20029
DPIE (2019). Superb midge orchid profile, NSW
Department of Planning, Industry and Environment.
Available at: https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/
threatenedSpeciesApp/profile.aspx?id=20029
Kuiter, R.H. (2016). Orchid pollinators of Victoria (4th edition).
Aquatic Photographics, Seaford Vic.
NPWS (2002). Approved Recovery Plan for the Tallong Midge
Orchid (Genoplesium plumosum). NSW National Parks and
Wildlife Service, Hurstville NSW.
NPWS (2002). Draft Recovery Plan for Threatened Flora of Rocky
Outcrops in South Eastern New South Wales. National Parks and
Wildlife Service, Hurstville NSW.
Swarts, N.D. and Dixon, K.W. (2017). Conservation methods for
terrestrial orchids. J. Ross Publishing, USA.
20 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
Acknowledgements
For all projects: Gavin Phillips, Zoe-Joy Newby, Jess Wait
and Karen Sommerville from the Royal Botanic Gardens and
Domain Trust for seed collection and propagation research.
For Genoplesium rhyoliticum: Anna Murphy, who laid the
groundwork for the project; the survey support, advice and
field skills of NPWS staff including David McCreery and George
Malolakis and survey skills of botanical expert Jackie Miles.
For Genoplesium superbum: the numerous survey efforts were
greatly supported by Roger Farrow, Laura Canackle, Mary
Appleby, John Briggs, Jean Egan. For Genoplesium plumosum:
Genevieve Wright for assistance in the development of the
recovery plan and early survey work. Several DPIE staff who
have assisted with the annual monitoring. Landowners who
have assisted in the protection of the species and permitted
annual monitoring.
Australian Network for
Plant Conservation Inc
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A new project investigating the floral phenology
and seed biology of threatened ecological
communities in northwest NSW
JUSTIN C. COLLETTE'? AND NATHAN J. EMERY '*
' Australian PlantBank, Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust, Australian Botanic Garden, Mount Annan, NSW 2567.
‘Centre for Ecosystem Science, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052.
*Corresponding author: nathan.emery@rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au
Background
Most of the Brigalow Belt South bioregion (BBS) occurs
in southern Queensland (QLD), but around one-fifth
(19.6%) extends into the North West Slopes region of
New South Wales (NSW). In NSW, the bioregion extends
south to Dubbo and includes other major towns such
as Coonabarabran, Narrabri and Moree. The region
experiences hot summers and cool to mild winters
with mean annual temperatures ranging from 10° C
to 19° Cand a highly variable annual rainfall from 449
mm to 1015 mm (Benson et al. 2010). The region boasts
a diversity of vegetation communities that reflect the
contrasting areas of sandstone-derived soils and rich
basalt soils. However, many of these communities are
now but a small fraction of their historical extent as at
least 60% of the BBS and its adjacent bioregions in NSW
have been cleared for grazing and cropping (Benson
et al. 2010). Consequently, there are several Threatened
Ecological Communities (TECs), listed under the NSW
Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016, within the region,
including both woodland and dry rainforest ecosystems.
While some research has been conducted on TECs within
the BBS, many knowledge gaps remain. In particular,
there is a lack of understanding regarding how
flowering, fruiting and recruitment potential of key
indicator species within these TECs interact with climate
factors. This information is critical for developing future
management strategies and prioritising restoration
efforts for TECs.
In 2019, we commenced a new conservation project to
conduct floral monitoring, seed research and community
engagement for three TECs in northwest NSW: Brigalow,
Semi-evergreen Vine Thicket and Ooline (Cadellia
pentastylis) community. In this article, we provide a
brief overview of each focal TEC before outlining the
main project components that will occur over the next
4—5 years. It is hoped that the outcomes of this project
will provide critical information to conservation managers
and restoration groups to more efficiently maintain and/
or restore these unique plant communities.
Threatened ecological communities
Ecological communities are a collection of populations
associated by their plant or animal compositions, defined
by either spatial boundaries, or by the interactions among
populations (Menninger and Palmer 2006). In this project,
we are focussing on three separate ecological communities
that are under threat from various processes (Table 1).
TEC 1: Brigalow
Brigalow occurs within the 500-750 mm annual rainfall
belt, from central QLD down to northern and western
NSW. In NSW, it occurs on undulating plains or sandplains
on soils with a deep cracking clay texture that can
have a high salt content. Brigalow is characterised by
open woodland forest with a canopy dominated or
co-dominated by Acacia harpophylla and a high shrub
diversity, but despite a highly fertile soil profile there is a
Sparse ground layer with little grazing potential (Dwyer
et al. 2009). Other key canopy species in Brigalow include
Eucalyptus populnea, E. pilligaensis and Casuarina cristata
(Figure 1), and the community also shares numerous
species that are also associated with Semi-evergreen
Vine Thicket (Department of the Environment 2013).
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Figure 1. Photograph of Brigalow community in Brigalow State
Conservation Area, NSW. The canopy species in the photo is
Acacia harpophylla (Brigalow) with its silvery foliage. There is a
sparse shrub and ground layer that is typical of the community.
Photo: Nathan Emery
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 21
Much of the Brigalow woodland has been cleared in
preference of grazing and cropping. Approximately
90% of the originally estimated 7.3 million ha extent has
been cleared (Department of the Environment 2013).
Around 143,000 ha of Brigalow remains in NSW, with
many remnants occurring in isolated patches or linear
fragments along roadsides.
TEC 2: Semi-evergreen Vine Thicket
Semi-evergreen Vine Thicket (SeVT) is a dry seasonal
subtropical rainforest characterised by trees with
microphyll-sized leaves (2.5-—7.5 cm in length) that are
evergreen, semi-evergreen or deciduous (McDonald
2010). Several species are also facultatively deciduous
in that much of their foliage is shed during extended
dry periods. SeVT occurs in a similar distribution
and climate as Brigalow, although this dry rainforest
community is associated with different land types and
soil types. In NSW, SeVT mostly occurs on hills and
hilltops with deep loamy basaltic or sandy loam soils
with a medium to high nutrient content (McDonald
2010). The pre-European extent of SeVT is estimated to
have exceeded 880,000 hectares, and like the Brigalow
woodland, much of the SeVT vegetation has been
cleared, with less than 8,000 hectares predicted to remain
(McDonald 2010)
SeVT in NSW is dominated by Notelaea microcarpa,
Geijera parviflora and Ehretia membranifolia, with
floristically rich shrubs and vines and a sparse ground
cover. Other common species include Alphitionia excelsa,
Casuarina cristata, Callitris glaucophylla and Capparis
mitchellii, as well. as characteristic vines such as Pandorea
pandorana, Parsonsia spp. and Jasminum lineare (Figure 2;
McDonald 2010).
TEC 3: Cadellia pentastylis (Ooline) community
Although more common in central and southern
QLD, Cadellia pentastylis (Ooline) is restricted in NSW
to the North West Slopes region. The community
Figure 2. Photograph of Semi-evergreen Vine Thicket community
in Mount Kaputar National Park, NSW with Notelaea microcarpa,
Beyeria viscosa and Dodenaea viscosa as the dominant trees and
shrubs. Photo: Nathan Emery
occurs on undulating terrain with a range of soil types
(NSW Scientific Committee 2011). The dry rainforest
vegetation is described by Curran et al. (2008) as ‘Cadellia
pentastylis low microphyll vine forest’, with the following
as key associated species: Eucalyptus albens, Callitris
glaucophylla, Elaeodendron australe, Geijera parviflora,
Notelaea microcarpa, Beyeria viscosa, Carissa spinarum,
and Teucrium junceum (Benson 1993; Curran et al. 2008;
Figure 3). Soecies compositions among stands of Ooline
are variable with those occurring on claystone soils
having a higher herbaceous diversity than those on
sandstone or conglomerate substrates. At least half of
the pre-European population of Ooline (around 2,500 ha)
has since been cleared for logging or agriculture,
and remnant stands are highly fragmented and are
susceptible to grazing and fire (Benson 1993; NSW
Scientific Committee 2011). As of 2010, it was estimated
around 1,000 hectares remained with 10% occurring in
protected areas (Benson et al. 2010).
Table 1. Asummary of the threatening processes affecting each of the three focal TECs as listed in the NSW Saving our Species database.
More details can be found at www.environment.nsw.gov.au.
Land clearing and fragmentation
Invasion from weed species
Overgrazing by domestic stock
Lack of value and understanding by landholders and managers
Predation of wildlife by foxes and feral cats
Wildfire and hazard reduction burns
Climate change
Lack of pollinators
Spray drift of herbicides/pesticides
Lack of viability of seed set
Logging
Changes in hydrology by pumping groundwater
Erosion of soils
22 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020
J NA NA
NA J NA
NA J NA
J J NA
NA J
J NA
NA NA
NA
J
NA
NA
J
J
Figure 3. Photo of an Ooline (Cadellia pentastylis) community
in Gamilaroi Nature Reserve, NSW featuring a prominent
C. pentastylis tree in the centre and regrowth on the left, anda
Carissa spinarum shrub to the right. Photo: Philippa Alvarez
Project components
Monitoring
We recently commenced a long-term monitoring
protocol for each TEC using permanent plots (Figure 4).
Within each community, we have set up three sites, each
with four, 10 x 10 m plots. By surveying these plots, we
are measuring species diversity, structure and phenology
through time, with a focus on how these values respond
to seasonal fluctuations and rainfall events. We aim to
determine whether key indicator species in our focal
TECs are risk-takers (i.e, produce flowers and set fruits
during dry periods) or risk-avoiders (/.e., only produce
flowers and set fruits in response to rainfall and/or
specific temperatures).
After our first monitoring trip, we have calculated
the Shannon-Weiner diversity index, which considers
the species richness and abundance for each site.
Diversity was similar for all sites, but slightly higher for
Brigalow and SeVT than Ooline sites (Figure 5). This trip
was conducted during a period of extended drought, and
the communities were showing signs of severe stress and
dieback (Figure 6). We therefore expect these values will
change over time, especially in response to the significant
rainfall events in February and March 2020.
Seed conservation
Another key aspect of this project is the collection of
seeds for research and conservation. Understanding a
species’ seed biology is a key step towards restoring
and conserving of ecological communities globally.
Not only does this information give insight into natural
recruitment within these systems which can aid in
management, it allows for more cost-effective restoration
efforts through direct seeding (Palma and Laurance
2015). Furthermore, by learning germination protocols for
the key species from the TECs, propagation protocols can
be developed, bolstering the ex situ conservation tools
available for each species to enable plants to be grown in
nurseries or to develop seed production areas.
Legend
& Project sites
— Major roads
. National Parks
and Reserves
Brigalow Belt
South bioregion
093510 20 30
ee
Kilometres
Figure 4. A map of the study area for this project. All sites are
within the NSW Brigalow Belt South bioregion.
) CG
Brigalow
Ooline
SsevVT
4.
Shannon diversity index
-
Figure 5. The Shannon-Weiner diversity index for each study
site. This index considers the species richness and abundance
for each site. The bars for each site are grouped into colours
which represent the three Threatened Ecological Communities
(Brigalow, Ooline and Semi-evergreen Vine Thicket (SeVT)).
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 23
Figure 6. Significant plant dieback and drought stress in
Planchonella Nature Reserve, NSW in December 2019.
Photo: Nathan Emery
Seeds will also be collected for long-term storage at the
Australian PlantBank, at the Australian Botanic Garden
Mount Annan. Storing seeds is another form of ex situ
conservation that can be used as an ‘insurance policy’
for the species into the future and is a cost-effective
conservation measure.
Seed biology research
The storage of seeds can be complicated and varies
between species. We will be using artificial seed aging
experiments to understand the storage behaviour of our
target species, which will facilitate higher quality seed
collections being stored in seedbanks.
Seed germination success is often influenced by the
type of dormancy. Seed dormancy prevents a seed from
germinating when conditions are ‘unfavourable’ and
can be relaxed by specific (and sometimes multiple)
environmental cues, allowing germination to occur.
To test for dormancy type and requirements we will be
running preliminary germination trials that identify the
conditions and/or treatments required to relax dormancy.
Once the initial germination and dormancy tests
are completed, we can scale-up the process using a
thermo-gradient plate to examine germination along
a bi-directional temperature gradient from 5° C to
35° C. This method helps identify the ‘temperature
envelope’ that a species will germinate. This data can
then be used to predict germination in situ under
current climate conditions and modelled future climate
scenarios. Finally, we will also examine seed survival and
germination capacity under different water potentials
from saturation point to permanent wilting point.
These data are critical for determining how seeds will
respond to extended and more extreme drougNts.
24 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020
Community engagement
One of the key issues highlighted in the ANPC’s recently
released Australian Native Seed Survey Report (Hancock
et al. 2020) was the need for training and education
of both seed collectors and purchasers. We aim to
address this issue by incorporating a community
engagement program later in the project. Once we
understand how to best propagate the species within
these communities, we will work with the Northern
Slopes Landcare Association to run a series of workshops
to engage with local and land councils, restoration
and regeneration groups, landholders, and others.
These technology-transfer events will share information
on how to properly collect, store and germinate seeds
of numerous species that occur in our focal TECs
with the goal of achieving greater conservation and
restoration outcomes.
Acknowledgements
This program is being funded by the NSW Government through
a partnership between the Saving our Species program and the
Environmental Trust. We thank Philippa Alvarez for her help
with fieldwork.
References
Benson, J. (1993). The Biology and Management of Ooline
(Cadellia pentastylis) in NSW. Species Management Report
Number 2. NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service, Sydney
Benson, J.S., Richards, P.G., Waller, S. and Allen, C.B. (2010).
New South Wales vegetation classification and assessment: part
3 plant communities of the NSW Brigalow Belt South, Nandewar
and west New England Bioregions and update of NSW Western
Plains and South-western Slopes plant communities, Version 3
of the NSWVC. Cunninghamia 11: 457-579.
Curran, T.J., Clarke, P.J. and Bruhl, J.J. (2008). A broad typology
of dry rainforests on the western slopes of New South
Wales. Cunninghamia 10: 381-405.
Department of the Environment (2013). Approved Conservation
Advice for the Brigalow (Acacia harpophylla dominant and
co-dominant) ecological community. Department of the
Environment, Canberra. Available at: http://www.environment.
gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/communities/pubs/028-
conservation-advice.pdf
Dwyer, J.M., Fensham, R.J., Butler, D.W. and Buckley, Y.M.,
(2009). Carbon for conservation: assessing the potential for
win-win investment in an extensive Australian regrowth
ecosystem. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 134: 1-7.
Hancock, N., Gibson-Roy, P., Driver, M. and Broadhurst, L. (2020).
The Australian Native Seed Sector Survey Report. Australian
Network for Plant Conservation, Canberra.
McDonald, W.J.F. 2010. National recovery plan for the “Semi-
evergreen vine thickets of the Brigalow Belt (North and South)
and Nandewar Bioregions” ecological community. Queensland
Department of Environment and Resource Management,
Brisbane. Available at: https://www.environment.gov.au/
system/files/resources/7994b254-82ed-40cf-9985-29fa091 38ff4/
files/semi-evergreen-vine-thickets.pdf
Menninger, H.L. and Palmer, M.A. (2006). Restoring ecological
communities: from theory to practice. In: Falk, D.A., Palmer,
M.A. and Zedler, J.B. (eds) Foundations of Restoration Ecology. pp
88-112. Island Press, Washington.
NSW Scientific Committee (2011). Cadellia pentastylis (Ooline)
community in the Nandewar and Brigalow Belt South bioregions
- Minor amendment to Endangered ecological community
determination. Available at: https://www.environment.nsw.gov.
au/threatenedspeciesapp/profile.aspx?id=10119
Palma, A.C. and Laurance, S.G.W. (2015). A review of the use of
direct seeding and seedling plantings in restoration: what do we
know and where should we go? Applied Vegetation Science 18:
561-568.
Sand Spurge: The reintroduction
NICOLA BOOTH" AND MARK HAMILTON?
"National Parks and Wildlife Service, 1 Blue Wren Drive, Wybung NSW 2259,
“National Parks and Wildlife Service, NPWS, 12 Darcy St, Parramatta NSW 2150.
*Corresponding author: Nicola.Booth@environment.nsw.gov.au
The urgent translocation
Sand Spurge (Euphorbia psammogeton) is a perennial
prostrate herb that forms mats to 1 m across.
The species grows on coastal sand dunes and other
near-shore habitats such as the base of headlands
and on beach shelves (Figures 1 and 3). The species
is rare and distributed from the Shoalhaven region in
Figure 1. Example of mature plant. Photo: Gavin Phillips
New South Wales (NSW) to south-east Queensland (QLD),
usually in small, transient populations that are disjunct
from one another. The species occupies the dynamic
foredune environment and is frequently impacted by
erosion during large coastal storm events. Seeds mature
in capsules (Figure 2) that explode, distributing the seeds
up to several metres. The seeds are also known to float,
meaning that dispersal via sea currents is likely.
P.
Figure 2. Sand Spurge flowers and fruits, Wamberal Lagoon
National Park. Photo: Barry Collier
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 25
Figure 3. Usual habitat of Sand Spurge. Photo: Gavin Phillips
Sand Spurge is listed as Endangered under the NSW
Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016. The main threats
to the species include competition from weeds, sea
level rise and increased frequency of storm surges, and
pedestrian and vehicle trampling. As a result, it has a high
risk of extinction from stochastic events (e.g. drought)
due to small population sizes. Recent regular survey
and monitoring has shown significant reductions in the
species’ area of occupancy and abundance, including
three local extinctions.
Under the NSW Saving our Species (SoS) program, this
species was identified to require site-based management
in order to secure it from extinction in NSW for 100 years.
There are six key management sites identified as critical
to the conservation of the species under this program, in
addition to several other known populations that are not
part of the SoS conservation project:
1. Jones Point to Freshwater Beach, Yuraygir National
Park (NP), Clarence Valley.
2. Serenity Beach, Moonee Beach NR, Coffs Harbour.
Blinky Beach, Lord Howe Island.
4. Seven Mile to Yacaaba, Myall Lakes and Booti Boot
NPs, Mid North Coast.
5. Wamberal Lagoon Nature Reserve (NR), Central Coast
(Figure 2).
6. Warrain Beach, Shoalhaven.
The largest known population of approximately 2,500
individuals occurs from Seven Mile to Yacaaba, while all
other populations average from 30 to 100 individuals, but
fluctuate greatly.
In response to the observed declines in population
numbers, loss of habitat and the suspected extinction of
the Shoalhaven population due to storm erosion during
the winters of 2017 and 2018, National Parks and Wildlife
Service (NPWS) decided that translocation was urgently
needed to bolster populations. Several site-specific
translocation plans were simultaneously prepared for
26 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020
the Wamberal Lagoon NR, Shoalhaven, Serenity Beach
and Yuraygir NP populations. A separate translocation
proposal was also prepared for the Lord Howe Island
population. The objective was to augment recently
depleted populations or, in the case of the Shoalhaven,
Wamberal and Serenity Beach locations, reintroduce
the species to where it formerly occurred if it was
suspected to be locally extinct. For each site, minimum
targets for adult and juvenile Sand Spurge plants were
developed, based on knowledge of previous population
size, available habitat and capacity to collect, grow and
maintain plantings. Minimum target population sizes
ranged from 50 to 100 plants. Plans were reviewed
by translocation experts and approved with issue of a
Scientific Licence.
Seeds were collected from the intended recipient site or
the closest population (if extinct or too low in numbers).
Plant propagation occurred in a community nursery, and
outplanting is being primarily conducted by NPWS staff
due to COVID-19 restrictions on volunteer involvement.
Around 50% of untreated seeds germinate, and
seedlings grow relatively easily in a nursery environment.
Earlier attempts to germinate and propagate seed in late
autumn and winter 2019 resulted in significant plant
mortality in nurseries on the Central and South Coasts,
which has been attributed to possible excessive moisture
levels and fungal attack. Germination commencing from
spring 2019 experienced much lower mortality, likely
due to warmer and drier conditions. As plants are often
browsed on by rodents, possums and lizards caging of
plants was also required in some nurseries.
At the time of writing, successful outplanting of adult
and juveniles in tubestock or 14 cm diameter pots has
occurred at Angourie (Yuraygir NP; 15 plants), Jones
Point (Yuraygir NP; 61 plants), and Serenity Beach
(49 plants). A further 200+ plants are to be planted out at
Wamberal Lagoon NR in mid-May 2020 (see next section
for further details) . The approach at all sites is not only
to increase overall plant numbers, but also to increase
the species’ local extent at each site in order to spread
the risk of coastal storm erosion. Each plant location
is georeferenced and ecological data are recorded,
including micro-site details, plant canopy, height, life
stage and health. Monitoring will occur monthly for
six months then less frequently. Watering will occur as
required but will be most frequent during establishment
then decrease as plants establish and soil moisture
increases in winter.
Wamberal Lagoon Nature Reserve
Sand Spurge was first recorded at Wamberal Lagoon
Nature Reserve on the NSW Central Coast in 1894 and
has been monitored by NPWS since the early 2000s.
Regular monitoring under the SoS program also began
in 2016. By 2018, the species was reduced to a handful
of individuals and monitoring later in that year found no
individuals. It is thought that the already small population
size combined with extreme dry and hot weather resulted
in extinction of the population. However, the species
is small and is difficult to detect in low numbers, and a
greater survey effort could have resulted in increased
Capacity to detect plants. A recent inspection on 1 May
2020 found that one population had either recovered
or persisted undetected. Twenty-two individuals were
found in a previously recorded area. Only two of those
found were existing records. As these numbers are
extremely low a translocation was actioned for the site.
The seeds for this project were sourced from the nearest
stable populations, including 150 seeds from Seven Mile
Beach and Booti Booti NP, and 250 seeds from Mona Vale
Headland on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. Seeds
were propagated at Bunya Native Nursery and 200 plants
have been successfully propagated (Figures 4 and 5) for
planting into the recipient site.
The planting strategy involves selecting preferred
microhabitats along the beachfront and sand dunes,
varying distance from the shoreline, vegetation density,
and aspect. A trial will be undertaken using three
revegetation treatments: TerraCottem®, water crystals
and no treatment (except watering) in each new
planting area. The rationale for this is to trial ideal and
cost-effective planting out methods to increase plant
survival. Plants will be translocated in small clumps to
give greater protection from the elements and to increase
opportunities for cross pollination. The results of these
plantings will not be determined for 12 months, when
most plantings are expected to have established and not
require further watering or treatment.
The site has also received extensive weed control by
professional bush regenerators and volunteers from
Spoon Bay Bushcare. The dune system at the site is
slowing returning to a natural gradient, where once
severe sand blowouts occurred due to the presence
of bitou bush (Chysanthemoides monilifera subsp.
rotundata). Weed control will continue at this site for
the foreseeable future. Other weeds that potentially
impact Sand Spurge habitat include African Daisy
(Gazania rigens), Sea Holly (Eryngium maritimum), and
Pennywort (Hydrocotyle bonariensis). The translocants will
also be monitored for the impacts of native vegetation
encroachment (Figures 4 and 5).
The translocation of E. psammogeton outlined here
should lead to larger, more robust populations across
NSW thereby increasing the species’ resilience to survive
coastal erosion and other threats. With an observed
increased frequency and severity of coastal erosion,
particularly East Coast Low events, it is hoped that larger
populations spread across a variety of microhabitats at
sites will minimise the impact of coastal erosion events
and result in increased survival.
Figure 4. Propagation of seeds in Bunya Native Nursery.
Photo: Bunya Native Nursery
Figure 5. Propagation of seeds now as tubestock in Bunya Native
Nursery. Photo: Bunya Native Nursery
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020
2/
Ecological observations of the endangered
Dentella minutissima from the Warrego River
at Toorale National Park
DARREN SHELLY* AND SUSAN LAMB
NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment, Dubbo and Parramatta.
*Corresponding author: Darren.Shelly@environment.nsw.gov.au
Introduction
Dentella minutissima (Rubiaceae) is a succulent,
mat-forming herb that grows on sandy riverbanks
and grey clay creek beds. It is only known from three
areas in New South Wales (NSW): on the Paroo River
at Nocoleche Nature Reserve, the Cuttaburra Creek
system north-west of Bourke and on the Warrego River
from Toorale National Park. The species is listed as
Endangered under the NSW Biodiversity Conservation Act
2016 but is not listed at the Commonwealth level.
An opportunity arose to survey for D. minutissima
along the Warrego River and floodplain, within Toorale
National Park and State Conservation Area, on 19-20th
February 2020.
Numerous locations were searched from the
impoundment of Boera Dam near the northern
boundary south to the Warrego River crossing of the
Louth Road at Dicks Dam (Figure 1). The species was
found at every dam catchment investigated and several
locations on the outer floodplain.
Sites found and population estimates
Plant density estimates at Boera Dam and Dicks Dam
ranged from 3.9-10.0 plants/m*. Therefore, a plant
density of 5/m* was taken as a conservative value to
give an indication of overall plant abundance at each
location. Plant densities of the other locations were
estimated at 3 plants/m? for Homestead Dam and Booka
Dam and at 1 plant/m? on the Western Floodplain.
Using the above criteria, the combined area of
occupancy across all 16 locations where plants were
found was estimated to be 6.7 ha (plus significant areas
of similar habitat not searched). With the mean plant
abundances used, the total estimated plant abundance
of D. minutissima in Toorale NP is around 290,500.
This total includes a significant proportion (possibly up
to 35%) which may have reached senescence in being
on the driest reaches of suitable habitat and brown in
colour with no flowers.
28 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
Size range of plants
Plant size ranged from 4-20 cm diameter. The most
common plant size found across all locations was around
10-15 cm diameter.
All plants were circular or slightly ovoid in shape with
the centre comprising a dense mat of leaves that looks
like a single mass, while individual small branches
could often be seen radiating out from the edges of the
plant. All plants were ground-hugging with the centre
<1 cm high.
Plant age classes
At all locations D. minutissima grew in concentric rings
parallel to the receding waterline. The further the plants
were from the water the poorer condition they were in,
which is indicative of the species colonising new sections
of dry ground as the surface water recedes.
The oldest plants, or those furthest away from the
waterline, were typically brown in colour with either
no or very few flowers (<10). (Most desert members
of the genus Dentella are ephemeral, so it seems likely
that D. minutissima is also ephemeral.) Plants that were
classified as middle-age, by being located between the
closest and furthest belts of plants from water, were
characteristically grey in colour across the entire plant
and/or around the edges. These plants typically had few
flowers ( <40). Plants located closest to (but not on) the
waterline were categorised as the youngest age class and
were mostly green in colour with many flowers (50-300).
Plant root size and length
Soil peds were gently removed from a sample plant until
the roots were exposed. This showed D. minutissima
had multiple main roots of fine structure approximately
5-6 cm long with numerous fine lateral off-shoots up to
5 mm long. This root structure suggests the plant is only
accessing soil moisture from the top 10 cm of soil.
Plant community
The Warrego River watercourse vegetation is primarily
Coolibah (Eucalyptus coolabah) woodland with occasional
Legend RN
Total Western Floodplain
* Key Dams on Toorale Na .
) Named Rivers & Creeks
NPWS Estate - Toorale
TD) NATIONAL PARK
STATE “Ef AREA
ee
\\ >
=
ooka Dam
9
2
La ee Park and State Conservation Area Figure 1. Toorale
! National Park
6 Copyright of Department of Planning Industry and Environment.
. This map is not guaranteed to be free from error or omission. The Department and its employees disclaim and State
—. km liability for any act done on the information in the map and any consequences of such acts or omissions. Conservation Area.
Black Box (Eucalyptus largiflorens) further south. Topography and soils
This same community type is present along the more
ephemeral off-shoots and by-washes from the river.
The primary riparian vegetation community occupying
the outer floodplain is that of Lignum (Duma florulenta)
shrublands. Within these communities D. minutissima
occurred on open mudflats with or without
scattered forbs.
All observations showed D. minutissima has a marked
preference for flat or near-flat areas. The species was not
present on slopes above 2-3°. Soils where the species was
found were uniformly grey clays which mostly cracked
when dry. The soil surface varied from a silty top layer
(such as on mudflats) to fine sands washed or blown over
the grey clay from adjacent slightly higher ground.
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020 29
Figure 2. Close-up of D. minutissima plant showing minute
hairy leaves and small flowers (4-6 mm).
Photo: Darren Shelly
Soil surface moisture
All recorded plants occurred on receded waterline areas
where the soil surface was dry. At Boera Dam, the closest
plants to the current waterline were at least 5 m away.
Plants were not growing within 1m of the outer limit of
the wet soil line.
Inundation
Common to all located populations was that plants
always occurred where water had flowed in and remained
for a period of time.
Exposure
D. minutissima was only found in areas that experience
full sun.
Tree canopy cover
D. minutissima did not grow under tree canopies
where the shade was continual. On several occasions,
plants were found growing around the outside edge of
tree canopies.
Leaf litter cover
The species was not found in any areas of potential
habitat where litter cover was extensive.
Our conclusion was that D. minutissima did not occur on
areas of suitable habitat where litter cover was over 10%.
Competitive plants
Competitive plants were defined as those species
growing in close proximity or physically growing within
the spread of the plant itself. Six soecies were identified:
Matted Pratia (Lobelia darlingensis), Noogoora Burr
(Xanthium occidentale [introduced species]), Small
30 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020
thy | ee a -* * r
en) a "— a) ae .
a es ea La ~ — ws
~~ — . ”
Cy = ~at ‘
.
= ~ =
a
a
; a we
L. — ‘ an a
* ee fe ee gt * - mS. + .
«a oo - a= ea + = “SL of ;
el es in
. 4 j=! . - *
-
- ~ ol
-. Ma ap tis,
otal tae
“1 a"
: aw
Figure 3. D. minutissima growing in dense patches on mudflat
at Boera Dam. Green plants are closer to water than grey plants.
Photo: Susan Lamb
Crumbweed (Dysphania pumilio), Desert Sneezeweed
(Centipeda thespidioides), Lesser Joyweed (A/ternanthera
denticulata) and a clover species.
Associated plants
Two groundcover species typically occurred in
association with D. minutissima on the large mudflats in
exposed positions. These were Hairy Carpet-weed (Glinus
lotoides) and the introduced species Spreading Heliotrope
(Heliotropium supinum). Their presence could be used as a
rapid site selection indicator for survey.
Disturbance
No observations were made during this survey of any
animal grazing on the plant or of any plant that had
grazing damage. Given how low to the ground the
species grows it is considered that grazing is not a threat.
- ‘3 — . . ne he ~y > | ¢
— ~ . . . ~~ ‘
\ wre
7 :
- ae OF Ff, : -_ : 4
: rics aie ? . 7 —
. &, ‘ % an
: So : ! ° a
c. - } oe noe * oe ets ‘. \ “4 : -
~ea - x 4 ~ oe / ‘
“’ oP
:
+
AL a ea “a Sas st + Y; ei
wale a > oo eee : = <3
Figure 4. D. minutissima growing in concentric rings from
receding water. Brown plants in foreground oldest with grey
plants in middle ground closer to water. Photo: Susan Lamb
The only evidence of disturbance to the species in this
survey was an occurrence of a plant being trampled by
cattle. In this instance, the plant was pushed down into
the soil under the hoof but was not enough to kill the
crushed area of the plant (since it was now in flower) or
the rest of the plant. Therefore, we conclude that a low
level of trampling does not necessarily kill plants.
Flooding regime
A check of the WaterNSW real-time data website
(https://realtimedata.waternsw.com.au) for the nearest
river flow meter on the Warrego River at Fords Bridge
showed high flows in late April/early May 2019.
Fords Bridge is located approximately 50 km north
(upstream) of Toorale National Park and so would record
flows earlier than the park.
The WaterNSW data also show that another flow came
down the Warrego River in November 2019 after
significant regional rainfall. This event would therefore be
the level from which D. minutissima should have started
to establish and then follow the receding levels to the
point where we observed plants in February 2020.
The time gap from this possible high-water level to the
levels observed at the time of survey was approximately
3.5 months. This then is the length of time required to
have a total population size of around 290,000 plants
across Toorale NP after a period of inundation.
Conclusion
This opportunistic survey has revealed large populations
of Dentella minutissima, an endangered plant which
was previously only little-known from this area.
During this survey we were also to make important
ecological observations about this species, including
its apparent preference for mudflats which were dry on
the surface, and damp below (rather than completely
damp, or completely dry). Maintaining the appropriate
hydrological conditions, including regular inundation, is
clearly key to the persistence of this species. Where stock
are present, trampling may be a threat to this species —
where populations are located on grazing lands fencing
of mudflats/ephemeral lagoons may be considered.
Nature needs people, but people need
connection: can microbes be the ‘joining dots’?
JACOB G. MILLS
Environment Institute and School of Biological Sciences, The University of Adelaide, South Australia.
Corresponding author: millsj515@gmail.com
Introduction
Microbiota are the support system for life on Earth.
The coevolutionary relationship between microbiota
and multi-cellular life is essential to fitness. This intimate
relationship is under pressure in the Anthropocene;
however, there is hope for plants, animals, people
and microbiota through conservation and restoration.
The success of large-scale conservation and restoration
will require scientists and practitioners to motivate and
engage the public — perhaps, in one way, by showing
them their direct connection to this microbial world.
It all started at the bottom
A long time ago, in an ocean not too far away
Appearing at least 2 billion years before eukaryotes
(protists and multi-cellular organisms), single-celled
microbiota was the first taxonomic group on Earth.
Such microbiota are still the majority of taxonomic
and genetic diversity. Today, microbiota are taxa
from four Kingdoms — bacteria, archaea (bacteria-like
prokaryotes, often extremophiles), fungi, and eukaryotes
(such as microscopic worms). Microbiota are defined
as the community of microorganisms in a bounded
environment, such as a leaf, some soil, or your gut.
It is these microorganisms, particularly the bacteria and
fungi as we currently understand, that have allowed the
proliferation of multi-cellular life in their microbial world.
Symbiosis and the ‘Way-Back Machine’
Multi-cellular organisms, such as plants and animals, are
holobionts, meaning that they are a multi-cellular host
with a resident microbiota — the term ‘holobiont’ stems
from the Greek hdlos (whole) and biont (unit of life).
Multi-cellular organisms cannot survive in the wild as
sterile entities because they evolved in a microbial world.
In a world where microbes had already inhabited every
life-friendly surface, airstream, and fluid for more than two
billion years, it was energetically easier for larger lifeforms
to coevolve with microbes than to keep them out.
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 31
That is, it was easier for them to become holobionts.
This is a multi-faceted evolutionary ‘lightbulb moment’.
Keeping yourself sterile is energetically expensive, and so
is doing all the work of staying alive.
The rise of the holobiont was essentially the rise of
outsourcing. The microbial cells of a holobiont roughly
equal or outnumber cells of the host (humans are
~43% human cells, 57% microbial). Given the diversity
of a holobionts’ microbiota, the collective genome by
far outweighs that of the host; the human genome
has around 20,000 genes, the human microbiome has
2-to-20 million (Tierney et a/. 2019). With all of those
genes come many functions. For example, in plants,
microbes produce many vitamins, bioactive compounds,
and phytohormones (Mills et a/. 2019) that must give
them a lot of control over the plant. As this coevolution
played out, the holobiont microbiota specialised in
ways to maintain their host, such as the ability to
control immune systems. Indeed, in plants, diverse
leaf-surface microbiota defend against fungal pathogens
(Ritpitakphong et al. 2016).
Holobionts are ecosystems developed from their own
ecosystem, a type of Russian doll, collecting their
microbiota as seedlings through soil, babies through
birth canals, and children putting every object they can
find into their mouths. Indeed, it is the first three years of
life that are critical for human microbiota and immune
development (Gilbert et a/. 2018). In ecological terms, a
diverse holobiont microbiota keeps pathogens out, just
as a diverse forest keeps out invasive species.
Symbiosis in the Anthropocene
Holobiont development is best when coevolved hosts
and microbiota can get together, but the relationship
is severely hampered by the modern world. Just as
large ecosystems can be degraded, so too can
holobionts. Taking too many antibiotics or eating
simplified diets degrades our diverse gut flora and
we become susceptible to opportunistic pathogens.
This susceptibility is akin to cutting down a rainforest,
effectively inviting in the opportunistic weeds. In the
age of degradation, we are seeing myriad diseases
related to degraded microbiota exploding in epidemic
proportions in plants and in animals and humans alike.
Indeed, low-diversity urban green spaces, such as lawns,
are more-likely to harbour opportunistic pathogens of
plants, animals, and people because the soils are in poor
health, with plant life maintained by inputs that are
detrimental to beneficial soil microbiota (Mills et a/. 2020).
However, much more research is needed on the
mechanistic links between the environmental microbiota
and health. That said, the evidence is growing; therefore,
conserving and restoring the microbiota of our wider
environment will most likely benefit our health and that
of the plants and animals that make-up a functionally
healthy ecosystem.
32 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
Bringing the bottom back to the top
Nature’s welfare is microbial welfare is
individual welfare
Microbial communities can be influenced by
manipulating environmental conditions for restoration
purposes. Restoring landscapes, for example from pasture
back to grassy woodlands, influences soil microbiota
by simply putting plants into the ground, and can work
in wild and urban contexts (Gellie et a/, 2017; Mills et al.
2020). This works because plant species can promote
proliferation of specific symbiotic microbiota (Rosado et
al. 2018). This promotion is by the exudation of carbon
compounds and amino acids in the rhizosphere that
microbes enjoy, the signatures of which are different
for each plant species and thus creates diverse soil
environments at the scale of each plant. Diversity of
plant exudates is widely used in regenerative agriculture
for its benefits to soil nutrition, structure, and biology.
Here, multi-species cover crops are used to improve soils
in the off-season by keeping the plants’ photosynthesis
and positive influence on soil conditions going.
Therefore, cover-crops helo improve soil structure and
microbial diversity and activity, and thus nutrient cycling
and disease suppression. Cover cropping is essentially
manipulating successional theory to create healthy soils
for the following cash crop, and there is ample room to
do this in ecological restoration (Sheley et al. 2006).
Healthy soils can be disease suppressive because even at
that scale the basics of ecology and coevolution apply.
Such basics include microbial predator/prey relationships
where pathogens and pests are often prey to other
microbes in diverse communities (Kinkel et a/. 2011).
However, many restoration efforts are unsuccessful
in-part because the soil health has been so heavily
degraded. Therefore, the plants don’t get that boost from
their coevolved microbiota to survive. For example, plants
that have to spend so much energy on trying to balance
the soils redox potential because the Eh and pH are now
so different will have less energy for growth, defence, and
promotion of their symbiotic microbiota (Husson 2013).
Such a struggle to survive can leave plants exposed to
pathogens. As such, many restoration efforts may require
a kind of cover-crop to help restore the soil health before
the target community is planted. Promisingly though,
soils inoculated with microbiota from target communities
can greatly improve the success of a restoration
intervention (Wubs et al. 2016; Smith et al. 2018).
In humans, it is hard to restore the state of the gut
microbiota; however, faecal-matter transplants may
be successful cures for certain gut disorders, such
as Clostridium difficile infection (Hvas et al. 2019).
However, it is the next generation that will really benefit
from ecological restoration. Plant and animal health are
better in pristine environments and the welfare of nature
is important for the welfare of microbiota, which in turn
is important for the health of the plants, animals and
beyond to the water, air, and back again. Everything is
certainly connected in all directions.
Motivating conservation and restoration action via
human welfare
The success of conservation and restoration at large
scales will require the support of local communities.
Therefore, this support will need to be inclusive of
the needs of people (after all, degradation supports
economies). We've been informed for many years now
that biodiversity provides for our most basic needs - air,
food, water etc. So why then, is global action on the
biodiversity crisis so inert, but for a few? Certainly, there
are entrenched political and economic systems in place
that are causing the crisis; however, | do believe in power
of the people to act and vote. So, if not governments and
corporations (who are responsible), what of the people?
Is it that we are too disconnected from the sources of
clean air, food, and water to be pro-environmental?
Our nature connectedness moderates the interactions
between our nature contact, wellbeing, and
pro-environmental behaviour (Martin et a/. 2020).
We may be able to use psychology to increase nature
connectedness amongst our communities. Maslow’s
‘hierarchy of needs’ places physiological needs (e.g., air,
food, water, sleep) as the base of the ‘needs’ triangle and
safety (e.g. health, security, employment) one step above.
Only above these base needs do community needs
come into requirement such as love and belonging, and
esteem. While employment and security are largely out of
our hands as a scientific and practitioner community, we
can provide valuable information to society.
Our global community needs to be reconnected to nature
in ways that connect the dots from our needs for clean air,
food, water, and health to nature’s welfare in informative
ways. This is where understanding of the links between
the health of environmental microbiota and those of
humans can help. If someone can sit at home and think,
‘I’m feeling rather anxious today, potentially because my
gut microbiota are unhealthy because I've been eating
from a broken food system that has departed from the
fruits of healthy soil’, or ‘I’m not being exposed in my
suburb to anxiety-reducing bacteria found in natural
soils’, then they might also think ‘I need to participate in
the conservation and restoration of nature’ (Luna & Foster
2015; Liddicoat et al. 2019).
References
Gellie, N.J., Mills, J.G., Breed, M.F. and Lowe, A.J. (2017).
Revegetation rewilds the soil bacterial microbiome of an old
field. Molecular Ecology 26:2895-2904.
Gilbert, J.A., Blaser, M.J., Caporaso, J.G., Jansson, J.K., Lynch, S.V.
and Knight, R. (2018). Current understanding of the human
microbiome. Nature Medicine 24:392-400.
Husson, O. (2013). Redox potential (Eh) and pH as drivers of
soil/plant/microorganism systems: a transdisciplinary overview
pointing to integrative opportunities for agronomy. Plant and
Soil 362:389-417.
Hvas, C.L., Jorgensen, S.M.D., Jorgensen, S.P., Storgaard, M.,
Lemming, L., Hansen, M.M., et al. (2019). Fecal microbiota
transplantation is superior to fidaxomicin for treatment of
recurrent Clostridium difficile infection. Gastroenterology
156:1324-1332. e1323.
Kinkel, L.L., Bakker, M.G. and Schlatter, D.C. (2011). A
coevolutionary framework for managing disease-suppressive
soils. Annual Review of Phytopathology 49:47-67.
Liddicoat, C., Sydnor, H., Cando-Dumancela, C., Dresken, R.,
Liu, J., Gellie, N.J., et al. (2019). Naturally-diverse airborne
environmental microbial exposures modulate the gut
microbiome and may provide anxiolytic benefits in mice. Science
of the Total Environment 134684.
Luna, R.A. and Foster, J.A. (2015). Gut brain axis: diet microbiota
interactions and implications for modulation of anxiety and
depression. Current Opinion in Biotechnology 32:35-41.
Martin, L., White, M.P., Hunt, A., Richardson, M., Pahl, S. and
Burt, J. (2020). Nature contact, nature connectedness and
associations with health, wellbeing and pro-environmental
behaviours. Journal of Environmental Psychology 68:101389.
Mills, J.G., Bissett, A., Gellie, N.J., Lowe, A.J., Selway, C.A.,
Thomas, T. et al. (2020). Revegetation of urban green space
rewilds soil microbiotas with implications for human health and
urban design. Restoration Ecology 10.1111/rec.13175.
Mills, J.G., Brookes, J.D., Gellie, N.J., Liddicoat, C., Lowe, A.J.,
Sydnor, H.R., et al. (2019). Relating urban biodiversity to human
health with the ‘holobiont’ concept. Frontiers in microbiology 10:
10.3389/fmicb.2019.00550.
Ritpitakphong, U., Falquet, L., Vimoltust, A., Berger, A.,
Meétraux, J.P. and L’Haridon, F. (2016). The microbiome of the
leaf surface of Arabidopsis protects against a fungal pathogen.
New Phytologist 210:1033-1043.
Rosado, B.H., Almeida, L.C., Alves, L.F., Lambais, M.R. and
Oliveira, R.S. (2018) The importance of phyllosphere on plant
functional ecology: a phyllo trait manifesto. New Phytologist 219:
1145-1149.
Sheley, R.L., Mangold, J.M. and Anderson, J.L. (2006). Potential
for successional theory to guide restoration of invasive-plant-
dominated rangeland. Ecological Monographs 76:365-379.
Smith, M.E., Facelli, J.M., Cavagnaro, T.R. (2018). Interactions
between soil properties, soil microbes and plants in remnant-
grassland and old-field areas: a reciprocal transplant approach.
Plant and Soil 433:127-145.
Tierney, B.T., Yang, Z., Luber, J.M., Beaudin, M., Wibowo, M.C.,
Baek, C., et al. (2019). The landscape of genetic content in
the gut and oral human microbiome. Cell host and microbe
26:283-295.
Wubs, E., van der Putten, W., Bosch, M. and Bezemer, T.B. (2016).
Soil inoculation steers restoration of terrestrial ecosystems.
Nature Plants 10.1038/NPLANTS.2016.107.
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 33
AMELIA MARTYN YENSON'?
Review of the ANPC’s Germplasm Guidelines
' Australian Network for Plant Conservation, GPO Box 1777, Canberra ACT 2601.
“Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust, NSW.
Corresponding author: Amelia.Yenson@bgcp.nsw.gov.au
The publication ‘Plant Germplasm Conservation in
Australia — strategies and guidelines for developing,
managing and utilising ex situ collections’ (known
as the Germplasm Guidelines) was first published in
1997, and was revised in 2009. The Guidelines provide
a science-based best practice guide for the ideal
management of ex situ (off site) collections of seeds,
plant tissues or whole plants. The Germplasm Guidelines
are focussed on conservation, particularly of threatened
plant species and those at risk of threat, within a highly
endemic and biodiverse Australian flora.
The Australian Network
for Plant Conservation
(ANPC) has been
awarded grant funding
from The lan Potter
Foundation to revise
and expand these
Guidelines to include
advances in ex situ
conservation over the last decade. The update is being
led by ANPC Project Manager (Germplasm Guidelines),
Dr Amelia Martyn Yenson.
The lan Potter
Foundation
The updated Germplasm Guidelines will complement
other ANPC publications, such as the recent revision
of the ‘Guidelines for Translocation of Threatened
Plants in Australia’ (2018) and the current review
of the Florabank Guidelines, a component of the
Healthy Seeds Project. The information in the updated
Guidelines will be essential reading to those working in
conservation agencies, seed banks and gene banks, and
botanic gardens.
34 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
The Germplasm Guidelines include topics such as living
collections (field genebanks), vegetative propagation
and cryostorage that are not covered in detail by the
Florabank Guidelines, which focusses on seed use for
ecological restoration. New chapters in the third edition
of the Germplasm Guidelines will include genetic
guidelines for acquiring and maintaining collections,
processes for identifying and conserving non-orthodox
seeds (those that can’t be dried and banked), and
practical strategies for risk management and utilisation of
ex situ collections.
Publication of the updated Guidelines is planned for
mid-2021, with workshops and training materials to
follow the launch. Please get in touch with Amelia if you
would like any further information about the project.
’
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“Sli ri
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Amelia Martyn Yenson. Photo: dandesigns.photoshelter.com
Guidelines for the Translocation of
Threatened Plants in Australia
The ANPC’s brand new third edition is on sale now! Step-by-step information on
how to do best-practice translocations, improve translocation success and
contribute to preventing plant extinctions.
Third Edition 2018 | Eds L.E. Commander, D.J. Coates, L. Broadhurst, C.A. Offord, R.0. Makinson
and M. Matthes. Australian Network for Plant Conservation, Canberra.
For more information and to order, go to http://www.anpc.asn.au/translocation
News from the Australian Seed Bank Partnership
Seed banks respond to the bushfires with collecting, research
and restoration
ANDREW CRAWFORD’, PETER CUNEO“, GAVIN PHILLIPS*, DAN DUVAL?, JENNY GUERIN?,
JAMES WOOD* AND DAMIAN WRIGLEY”
"Western Australian Seed Centre, Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions, WA.
The Australian PlantBank, The Australian Botanic Garden, Mt Annan, NSW.
>South Australian Seed Conservation, Botanic Gardens and State Herbarium, SA.
*Tasmanian Seed Conservation Centre, Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens, TAS.
> National Coordinator, Australian Seed Bank Partnership, ACT.
*Corresponding author: damian.wrigley@environment.gov.au
The bushfires have undoubtably created a focus on the
value of the Australian environment, more than many
of us have seen in recent years. Significant funds have
been mobilised for the recovery effort from individuals,
business and governments. These demonstrations of
solidarity with the plight of the Australian fauna and
flora show how much the devastation of these fires has
resonated with a global audience. While the story of
the fires has been overtaken by the universal impacts
of COVID-19, there is still much being done by botanic
gardens and seed banks across the country to ensure
critical seed storage and germination research work
continues. What follows is a snapshot of activities that are
already taking place across the Partnership in support of
our native flora as it recovers from the devastating fires.
Post bushfire activity in NSW - some early signs
of resilience
The catastrophic 2019-2020 summer bushfires
impacted heavily on the PlantBank threatened species
seed program. Despite these setbacks and COVID-19
restrictions, we have managed to maintain some
collecting and are consistently amazed at the resilience
and recovery of our native flora. One of our first ‘urgent
salvage’ collections after the fires were some critically
endangered leek orchids — Prasophyllum bagoensis and
P. keltonii. Some of these orchids had been burnt and their
habitat affected by the fire, however several previously
hand pollinated plants survived and viable seeds were
salvaged for storage at PlantBank. Other terrestrial
orchids have been very responsive to the post-fire
late-summer rains, and we have made some excellent
collections of the critically endangered Genoplesium
superbum in the Lithgow area and Budawang Ranges.
With well over 400 species impacted by the combination
of fire and drought, field reconnaissance for threatened
Species across NSW is a now very large task. We are
being called upon to assist with field assessments and
ex situ options for restricted plants that are heavily fire/
drought impacted. Recent site assessments included
Zieria odorifera subsp. copelandii from Kaputar National
Park, near Narrabri, whose population has reportedly
been reduced to only two plants. On this occasion the
news was positive, with many more seedlings observed
following summer rains. With no seed yet available for
collection, cuttings were taken for propagation at the
Australian Botanic Garden nursery for inclusion in the
garden’s living display collection.
Western Australia’s threatened species receiving
much needed help
The Stirling Range National Park is an area recognised
for its high species richness, including 30 EPBC listed
threatened plant species growing within its borders. In
the eastern portion of the park many of the threatened
plants are restricted to the peaks and slopes, only
occurring in two threatened plant communities.
In December 2019 a lightning-ignited bushfire burnt
out a large section of the eastern portion of the park,
impacting many of these threatened plant species and
the communities in which they grow. This fire followed
on from a previous fire in 2018, which unfortunately
had already impacted these particular species and
communities. The combined impact of these two fires has
seen populations of 23 of the 30 EPBC listed threatened
species affected, with nine of these species now having
no mature plants observed, putting them at a high risk
of extinction.
In an attempt to combat these impacts, the Western
Australian Seed Centre will use its existing collections
for ten of these species to establish seed production
areas with the aim of bulking-up seed stocks for future
in situ recovery work. For those unburnt populations of
threatened species that still remain in situ, additional
conservation seed collections are being planned for
the upcoming 2020-2021 collecting season to secure
new collections as an insurance against future fires and
other threats.
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 35
South Australia Seed Centre withdraws seeds
from the bank to support bushfire recovery
For two decades Australia’s major conservation seed
banks have been working closely with the Millennium
Seed Bank (MSB) of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew to
build capacity and collaborate on the conservation of
Australia’s native flora. Our Partners regularly duplicate
collections for many of the species they collect, with
these sent to the MSB as an added back up of our
in-country collections.
A rare EPBC and SA listed vulnerable pea, Glycine
latrobeana, was heavily impacted by the Cudlee Creek
fires and has now been the recipient of seeds previously
stored in the MSB. Thanks to a previous deposit of
12,000 seeds of G. latrobeana we made 12 years ago,
the South Australian Seed Centre (SASC) was able to
withdraw 250 seeds from the MSB, which were shipped
back to South Australia to be used for establishing a seed
orchard, and in further work restoring populations of the
species in situ. We have also made withdrawals from our
own collections in Adelaide, including Euphrasia collina
subsp. osbornii for propagation testing with various
host species.
While it will be some time before many severely impacted
species can be considered for collecting, we have visited
unburnt areas near the recent fires, securing collections
from the critically endangered Veronica derwentiana ssp.
homalodonta and endangered spider-orchids Caladenia
argocalla and Caladenia rigida. Further work is also
underway to survey, collect and propagate the endemic
Leafy Greenhood Pterostylis cucullata subsp. sylvicola. One
of the populations we were monitoring was burnt in the
fire at Lobethal Bushland Park, however we had managed
to collect seeds only about a month before the fire.
Over 10,000 ha burnt at Secret Rocks including part of the
9 ha exclosure where the SASC were doing translocations.
Additional threatened species work underway near
the Secret Rocks inselburg, includes translocations for
James Wood collecting during the 2020 conifer collecting
program on the Overland Track in Tasmania. Photo: Royal
Tasmanian Botanical Gardens
36 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020
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| | af y Sage io
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Genoplesium superbum resprouting after fire. Photo: Gavin
Phillips, Australian PlantBank, Mt Annan
Acacia cretacea, Brachyscome muelleri and Commersonia
craurophylla, among several other plant species. We are
also preparing proposals for new projects that will
assess the status of threatened species and make new
collections on Kangaroo Island.
Tasmania’s royal collection goes ahead despite
social distancing measures
Although Tasmania was not impacted by serious fires
during the summer of 2019-2020, the Tasmanian Seed
Conservation Centre had plans to work with a group
of fire vulnerable endemics. Tasmania is home to ten
species of native conifer, seven of which are endemic.
Of these seven, five primitive relictual species from past
cool climates are restricted to the Tasmanian highlands
and have their stronghold in the Tasmanian Wilderness
World Heritage Area. Tasmania’s montane conifers are
particularly vulnerable to increasing drought and fire
risk due to climate change. In fact, some populations
have already been lost to fire and may not be able to
re-establish naturally due to fragmented distributions,
poor dispersal capacity and excessive grazing.
Collecting of these species is impacted by the fact that
at least three are “masting” species, meaning seed
production takes place sporadically every several years.
Thankfully, 2020 was a masting year.
The 2020 conifer collecting program aimed to make 21
conservation-sized, seed collections of four key montane
conifers from 15 different locations between late
March to early May. Key to the success of the program
were volunteer teams, experienced arborists and the
use of helicopters to access the remote and scattered
populations. A supporting collaboration with Tasmanian
Walking Company was established and a fundraiser was
set up to try and cover the estimated cost of $36,000.
Unfortunately, the pandemic hit just as the program was
about to commence and activity was effectively stopped.
A two-man collecting team did sample Pencil Pine from
the Overland Track in mid-April, harvesting over 8,000
viable seeds from 46 individual stands of trees scattered
over 1,000 hectares of land.
Closing remarks
Like many across the country, restrictions on travel
has meant collecting and research has been modified
or delayed. Our teams look forward to returning to
business as usual in the months and years ahead,
securing seeds from across the country, and undertaking
more storage, germination and conservation research.
Genoplesium superbum flowers. Photo: Gavin Phillips,
Australian PlantBank, Mt Annan
We look forward to working with Greening Australia on
the implementation of Project Phoenix, and with the
ANPC on the Healthy Seeds Project and the revisions
to the Florabank and Germplasm Guidelines, two very
important tools for Australia in the conservation and use
of germplasm from Australian native flora.
Due to the pandemic, the Australasian Seed Science
Conference has been postponed until 5-9 September
2021. We thank all our conference partners and
sponsors for continuing to support us during this
time. For more information on the conference visit:
httos://seedscience2021.com.au
Critically endangered Zieria odorifera subsp. copelandii seedlings
in wild habitat. Photo: Gavin Phillips, Australian PlantBank,
Mt Annan
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 37
ANPC Member Profile for APC
Stephen Bell
What is your current position?
| run and manage my own botanical consultancy
business in the Hunter Valley of New South Wales, which |
established in 1996. Since 2014, | have also been conjoint
to the School of Environmental Life Sciences (Centre
for Plant Science) at the University of Newcastle, and
| currently sit on the NSW Threatened Species Scientific
Committee, and have been a member of the NSW Species
Technical Group (overseeing the NSW government's
Saving Our Species initiative) for the last six years. | have
been a member of the ANPC for 25 years, and recently
joined its management committee.
What projects are you working on at
the moment?
lam always working on a range of conservation-related
projects, some of them under paid contract but others
| do in my own time for the inherent challenges they
provide. For the NSW government, | am involved in
several monitoring projects on threatened species,
collecting baseline demographic data and then
investigating various aspects of their ecology and
how this is impacted upon by threats such as drought,
fire and grazing. Several of these projects involve
searching for additional populations which have
proven particularly successful (e.g., Eucalyptus pumila,
Lasiopetalum longistamineum, Pomaderris reperta,
Pterostylis chaetophora). Observations of poor pollination
in stands of Banksia conferta north of Taree led to a
program of remote camera trapping to investigate
potential vertebrate pollinators. For industry, | have been
monitoring the progress of two translocated threatened
orchid species over the past 10 years, documenting how
detectability is influenced by various environmental
and management factors. | also have an interest in plant
taxonomy, and in the absence of available and active
working taxonomists am slowly describing new taxa from
the Hunter Valley region of NSW.
How did you end up working in plant
conservation?
As a fresh graduate with visions of working in the animal
ecology field (my Honours degree was in birds), my first
professional position was a three month stint with a sand
mining company undertaking soil analysis of mined and
unmined coastal sands. At the completion of that rather
mind-numbing project, my manager advised that there
was more work available if | was willing to learn how
to identify plants and assess post-mine revegetation.
He took me into the field and shouted out plant names
38 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020
Sampling remnant Yellow Box (Eucalyptus melliodora) woodland
in the upper Hunter Valley, with Cymbidium canaliculatum (part
of endangered population) at left. Credit: Colin Driscoll.
while pointing at plants as we drove through the rehab,
but they just did not stick. It was only when | had to
commence surveys on my own and went through the
process of identification that | became enthralled. | soon
found that the 800-odd species of Australian birds were
no match for the >20,000 plants that awaited finding!
From that point on | worked exclusively with plants,
following my mine revegetation assessments with a
project classifying and mapping vegetation in Yengo
National Park for the NSW National Parks and Wildlife
Service, and then commencing full time consulting.
This then led to numerous classification and mapping
projects of varying scales (conservation reserves, offset
properties, local government areas), but for the last ten
years or more much of my work has involved researching
threatened plants and ecological communities.
What is your favourite plant and why?
| don’t have a favourite plant, but as a group | really do
like those species that only become apparent after some
form of habitat disturbance, suddenly appearing in an
area that has been otherwise well surveyed. | include in
this group those species that may only appear once in
a century, not just following recent and regular events.
The single population and long-lived small tree Acacia
dangarensis, for example, was seemingly absent from
its only known stronghold on Mt Dangar between 1825
(when Allan Cunningham collected in the area, but did
not find it) and 1979 (the first ever collection), despite
numerous botanists ascending and collecting on the
mountain during that period. We suspect that a major fire
event in the 1950s or 1960s stimulated mass germination
from the seed bank, waking it from a >125 year
hibernation in the soil. Another example is the low shrub
Commersonia rosea, which appeared in the thousands
following a fire in northern Wollemi National Park a few
years ago (and more have surfaced after the most recent
fires), but had previously never been recorded there;
indeed, it was only described in 2004 following a fire
event in similar habitat near Goulburn River National Park.
These sorts of events keep botany interesting, reminding
me to always expect the unexpected when working
with plants.
Why do you think the ANPC network is important
and what do you see as our priorities?
Without the ANPC, there is no efficient way for those
of us working in the conservation of plant species and
communities to keep in touch with happenings across
the country. | see the APC bulletin as integral in this, as
itis how researchers and managers best communicate
their findings. Not everyone is able to access scientific
journals to build on the knowledge and experience of
others, and without APC there are few other avenues
available and accessible to such a wide readership, from
on-ground practioners to academic researchers. Similarly,
not everyone has the skills, time or resources to commit
Book review
to the preparation of a full length scientific paper on their
work, and without a conduit such as APC to disseminate
findings others may be reinventing the wheel over and
over again.
Priorities for the ANPC should continue to focus on
addressing the myriad of threats that impact on our
native plants. A large part of this is researching and
documenting basic ecological traits, which presents a
yawning gap for so many of our species. But in addition to
the strong focus ANPC has on legally threatened species,
| also think that there should be renewed discussion
around the concept of ‘rare’ plant species: those taxa that
are naturally rare in the landscape or occupy rare habitat
types. These species are not necessarily threatened like
their more glamorous and legislatively-protected cousins,
however they do fill an important role in the ecology
of an area. Researching these species now may better
prepare us for their future management. We should
also be thinking and acting long-term in our research,
recognising that nature often works to far grandiose
time-scales than our individual 50 to 70 effective research
years on this planet — once in a century events are
sometimes all that is required to maintain a species in
its habitat; we should not panic and instigate expensive
management interventions before fully understanding
the ecology of a species.
Plant names - a guide to botanical nomenclature. 4th edition
Roger Spencer and Rob Cross.
CSIRO Publishing, Clayton South, Vic. 2020.
A5, 154 pp. ISBN 9781486311446 pbk, 9781486311453 epdf, 9781486311460 epub. RRP $44.99.
In the midst of the seemingly endless
biodiversity crisis, with dismally
inadequate policy and investment, it
is easy to lose sight of the fronts on
which the conservation cause is strong.
The problems are both systemic and
cultural. A change away from the
‘development at any cost’ mentality
depends, in the long run, not only on
winning policy and legal battles, but
also on the growth of alternative values
and cultural change among people.
And in the public values space, there a
are signs we are not doing too badly. “7
One reflection of this is the continued
popular demand for identification
resources, particularly for plants and
2 | A GUIDE TO
| | } ROTANICAL
- NOMENCLATURE
F »
’ ! 4
w \ » , :
~~
= names can be made to serve the
birds — the most conspicuous wild
organisms in most people’s lives.
And even in the face of the digital
deluge, there is still a sustained
demand for books — plant ID books in
Australia now number in the several
hundreds (not all in print) and their
production and consumption show
no sign of slowing. But where birds
of the continent can be dealt with in
a single volume and their common
POURTH EDITION
rr
needs of most general-public
end-users, the sheer number of plant
species dictates a need to use their
scientific names for anything beyond
the very local scale.
RiWSER SPENCER
ROB CROSS
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 39
That need has led most of the State and Commonwealth
herbaria at various times to produce ephemeral booklets
explaining the basics of plant scientific naming, but it has
been the preserve of the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria
(replaced synonym ‘RBG Melbourne’) to publish a really
solid plain-English guide to the meaning and use of plant
nomenclature. Each edition of this book has genuinely
sold out — a level of public demand for this proverbially
dry topic clearly exists.
This fourth edition supersedes earlier ones of the same
title authored by Spencer, Cross, and the late Peter
Lumley. Those earlier editions remain informative for
general principles, but the accumulated recent changes
in the two relevant International Codes of Nomenclature
make this new edition a worthwhile investment.
The book covers the naming of wild and domesticated
plants, why plant names change, their pronunciation, and
hints to help remember them. The final section provides
a detailed guide to authoritative web sites and published
resources on plant names and plant breeders’ rights.
The sections are logically divided.
Part 1 covers ‘Wild plants’, starting with the issue of
why a global scientific naming system is needed at all
(“Nothing is wrong with common names except their
lack of precision. Only a scientific name can provide an
internationally recognised way of denoting one particular
kind of plant”). It then outlines the fundamental principles
of that system — the /nternational Code of Nomenclature
for Algae, Fungi and Plants (ICN, the post-2011 name for
the former /nternational Code of Botanical Nomenclature)
— and the hierarchical ranking system of family-genus-
species and so on that it uses. The various reasons for
name changes are outlined, although for my money more
could have been made of the fact that the overwhelming
majority of name changes — elsewhere estimated at
90-95% — reflect actual advances in knowledge as a result
of taxonomic revisions and the description of new taxa,
rather than the nit-picking priority wars that taxonomists
are sometimes accused of.
Some taxonomists have yet to catch up with the revisions
to the ICN over the last decade or so that now make
‘conservation’ of scientific names in general use much
easier, even against the challenges of earlier valid names.
Those changes also allow the electronic publication of
new names, and no longer require the use of Latin for the
formal descriptive ‘diagnosis’.
Wild plants of course have far more complexity in their
descent (lineage) and variability, including ecological
and human-use variation, than can be accommodated
in any single hierarchical naming system that aspires
to be useful at all scales. Meaningful cultural or other
classifications may cut across the taxonomic or systematic
(evolutionary lineage) classification system and its rules.
40) Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
We sometimes hear overstatements about the inherent
oppressiveness of western science and its imposition of
power relations through hierarchical naming systems to
suppress alternative ways of looking at the world. This is
a baby and bathwater issue. If we (humankind) are to
become more ecologically literate about our common
planetary heritage, then a globally agreed naming system
bridges more gaps than it creates. How it intersects with
alternative cultural values and classifications is a matter
for dialogue and practice.
Part 2 covers ‘Cultivated plants and Cultigens’, plants
that have been deliberately selected or bred to suit
human purposes (mainly in the context of agricultural
and forestry use) to a degree that they often no longer
conform very well to wild or original genotypes.
Here the naming rules have become so different, to
meet information needs and the peculiarities of plant
breeding and property rights, that a whole separate set
has developed — the /nternational Code of Nomenclature
for Cultivated Plants, or CPC for short. There is overlap with
the ICN (for wild plants) to the degree that some plants
can be named down to a fine level under either Code, but
for the most part they serve different purposes within a
similar conceptual framework.
A useful addendum to this section deals with the various
Cultivar Registration systems that operate in Australia and
internationally, plant trademarks, and the Plant Breeders’
Rights system for protecting commercial rights in cultivar
names and genotypes.
Part 3 of the book deals with the conventions that govern
the use of plant names in writing or print, some of the
spelling conventions that govern names in Latin form,
and the often over-egged issue of how to pronounce
latinised names.
Part 4, and last, provides lists of Australian and global
plant name resources, including lists (not all fully current)
of valid scientific names, regional and global checklists
and Floras, cultivar registration bodies, plant name
authors, and other nomenclatural miscellania.
Put this book together with its Melburnian companion
‘Name that Flower: the identification of flowering plants’
(3rd edition, lan Clarke & Helen Lee, 2019, MUP), and you
have a core botanical resource that helps you make sense
of the plethora of images, descriptions and names in all
those field guides and Floras.
Bob Makinson
News and conferences
ANPC News
ANPC’s Australian Native Seed Survey
Report released!
The Australian Native Seed Survey Report was launched
by the Threatened Species Commissioner Dr Sally Box on
31 March 2020. The report details the full results of the
national survey capturing the behaviours and views of
a wide range of participants in the native seed sector —
which the authors say are not all encouraging.
‘Worryingly, the report highlights the concerns of the
sector that future demand for seed will be difficult to
meet from the wild’ said Martin Driver from the ANPC.
‘This is due to the high costs of seed collection and the
lack of seed from a broad range of the species that are
critical for restoration. The recent bushfires have made
this situation worse’.
Seed production of native seed offers some hope, but
currently lacks the capacity to meet demand. ‘Seed
production areas (SPAs) are an increasingly important
supplier of seed for restoration, landscaping and bush
food markets’ said Dr Paul Gibson-Roy from Kalbar
Resources. ‘SPAs are locations where we cultivate native
species for their seeds, like agricultural crops. They can
produce seed in higher quantities and quality that is
much easier to collect than in the wild. Their continued
development will be critical to meeting seed needs and
preserving wild populations’.
Download the Report here
https://www.anpc.asn.au/media-releases/where-will-
the-seeds-come-from/
Threatened Species Commissioner Sally Box launching
the ANPC’s The Australian Native Seed Survey Report.
Photo: Sally Box
SAVE THE DATE! 13th Australasian Plant
Conservation Conference (APCC13) - Albury
NSW, 19-23 April 2021
The ANPC is excited to announce that the 13th
Australasian Plant Conservation Conference (APCC13)
will be held in Albury from 19-23 April 2021 and hosted
by Albury City Council. Stay tuned for more information
soon. To keep up with the latest news, keep an eye
on the conference website
https://www.anpc.asn.au/conferences/apcc13/
2019’s Seeds for the Future Forum presentations
now online
The first round of videos from the Seeds for the Future
Forum have been published on AABR’s RegenTV
YouTube page, including the Introduction, some of the
Q and A sessions plus those by: Tein McDonald: Greater
Sydney or Lesser Sydney? Putting restoration standards
into practice; Paul Gibson-Roy: National Seed Survey,
aspirations vs reality. Are the issues relevant to Sydney?;
and the ANPC’s Martin Driver: Healthy Seeds — What's
needed? The current barriers and future opportunities.
Watch the videos here
https://www.youtube.com/c/regenTV
An update of the Florabank Guidelines - National
guidelines for best practice native seed collection
and use
As part of the Healthy Seeds project, an update of
the Florabank Guidelines has commenced to ensure
practitioners are aware of, have access to, and are
using up-to-date science and guidance materials for
best-practice native seed management in ecological
restoration. Listen to ANPC Project Manager Lucy
Commander's presentation on the update of the
Florabank Guidelines (which was to be presented at
the postponed Australasian Seed Science Conference in
Canberra in April 2020).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9kKxYNSzZZ4&f
eature=youtu.be
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 4]
Revision of the ANPC’s Germplasm Guidelines
The publication ‘Plant Germplasm Conservation in
Australia — strategies and guidelines for developing,
managing and utilising ex situ collections’ (known as
the Germplasm Guidelines) is currently being revised
with grant funding from The lan Potter Foundation.
The updated Germplasm Guidelines will complement
the recent revision of the ‘Guidelines for Translocation of
Threatened Plants in Australia’ and the current review of
the Florabank Guidelines.
The update is being led
by ANPC Project Manager
Dr Amelia Martyn Yenson.
A steering committee
composed of ANPC, CSIRO, )
Australian Seed Bank -
Partnership, Australian Le ot”
Grains Genebank, Royal
Botanic Garden Sydney, Australian National Botanic
Gardens, Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria, Australian
Tree Seed Centre, Botanic Gardens Australia and New
Zealand and NSW Dept of Planning, Industry and
Environment representatives has been formed to oversee
the project. We are currently inviting potential chapter
authors and reviewers for the publication
https://www.anpc.asn.au/germplasm-guidelines-
review/
The lan Potter
ye Foundation
2019-2020 Bushfires — resources pages
The ANPC is compiling resource pages on plants
and fire after the devastating 2019-2020 Australian
bushfires, with information about bushfire in Australia,
plant responses to fire, and conservation/restoration
post-fire. Read about what federal and state governments
are doing in response to the bushfires, and find other
related links, media articles and papers from past editions
of Australasian Plant Conservation. Find out how plants
and ecological communities recover from fire and what
we can all do to help. This includes not planting or
seeding in burnt and naturally regenerating areas in the
period immediately after fire, and waiting to see what
regenerates in the medium to long term and seeking
expert advice, before deciding what interventions
are needed. The highest priority in the short term
is to assist natural regeneration where necessary to
control feral predators, herbivores and invasive plants.
Reconstruction actions such as seed banking, direct
seeding and planting etc. should only be undertaken
where necessary and following expert advice.
https://www.anpc.asn.au/plants-and-fire-2020/
https://www.anpc.asn.au/bushfire-2019-2020-
resource-page-2/
42 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
ANPC’s submssion to the independent review
of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity
Conservation Act 1999
The second independent review of the EPBC Act
commenced on 29 October 2019. The review will be led
by Professor Graeme Samuel AC, supported by a panel of
experts. A report will be presented to the Minister for the
Environment within 12 months of commencement of the
review. Download the ANPC’s submission here
https://www.anpc.asn.au/wp-content/
uploads/2020/04/ANPC-EPBC-Act-review-comments-
20-April-2020.pdf
Pomaderris delicata, listed as Critically Endangered under the
Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.
(Photo: Neville Walsh)
Australasian Seed Science Conference —
new dates confirmed: 5-9 September 2021
As a result of the ongoing impact of the COVID-19
virus, the Australasian Seed Science Conference was
postponed. The Organising and Scientific Committees
are pleased to announce that the Conference will now
be held from 5-9 September 2021, and would like to
extend their appreciation to those who have contributed
abstracts and time to developing the conference
program. For more updated information please visit the
Conference website and join our mailing list to keep
up-to-date with new develooments
https://seedscience2020.com.au/
5 - 9 September 2021
Australian National Botanic Gardens
Canberra, ACT, Australia
AUSTRALASIAN -=
Seed Science
Conference &
e7 assc2021@arinex.com.au
LA. — a hive a eee SL 4
WV: www seedscience20?2 1.com.au
Plant cuttings — plant conservation news from around Australia
Editors’ note: News excerpts are clipped from a diversity of sources. To read the articles in full follow the links
attached to each clipping. The views expressed in these articles are those of their authors and do not necessarily
represent the opinion of the ANPC.
Provisional list of plants requiring urgent
management intervention - Dept of Agriculture,
Water and the Environment
The Wildlife and Threatened Species Bushfire Recovery
Expert Panel, on 23 April 2020, released a list of 471 plant
species identified as the highest priorities for urgent
management intervention to support recovery from
the 2019-2020 bushfires. The plants span a variety
of vegetation types and include rainforest trees and
shrubs like Monga Waratah (Telopea mongaensis) and
plants from subalpine vegetation, such as the Critically
Endangered Bredbo Gentiana (Gentiana bredboensis).
Some species were considered threatened before the
fires, and the fires have now likely increased their risk
of extinction. Many other fire-affected plant species
were considered secure before the fires but have now
been burnt across much of their range and may lack an
ability to recover without support. Some species, like
the Forrester’s Bottlebrush (Callistemon forresterae),
Betka Bottlebrush (Callistemon kenmorrisonii), and Grey
Deua Pomaderris (Pomaderris gilmourii var. cana) are at
imminent risk of extinction because all of their known or
modelled range has been burnt and they are exposed to
other stressors such as drought, high fire frequency or
severity, or disease.
http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/
bushfire-recovery/priority-plants
Help track Environmental Recovery from
the Bushfires
Citizen scientists can contribute to understanding how
the natural environment recovers from the devastating
2019-2020 bushfires by uploading your observations to
the Atlas of Living Australia. Please check fire-affected
areas have been declared safe by the land manager
before you enter.
https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/projects/environment-
recovery-project-australian-bushfires-2019-2020
New website to link citizen scientists into
Bushfire Recovery
CSIRO has launched the Citizen Science Bushfire Project
Finder website to enable members of the public to
contribute to projects ranging from air quality, to
identifying and confirming animal and plant sightings
while maintaining safe social distancing practices.
People can also get involved online by identifying
animals in camera images. The Project Finder also
features a geographic filter enabling users to identify
available projects in their area.
https://biocollect.ala.org.au/bushfire_recovery#isCiti
zenScience%3Dtrue%26max%3D20%26sort%3Ddate
CreatedSort
Regional Vegetation Guides now available
Ten Regional Vegetation Guides developed by NSW
Local Land Services are now available. The guides
describe vegetation formations, endangered ecological
communities and site managed species in each region to
enable rapid assessment of the potential status of native
vegetation in the field. The guides will be of particular
benefit to councils undertaking roadside vegetation
assessments using the Rapid Assessment Methodology
(developed through the Environmental Trusts Linear
Reserves program, which included the Council Roadside
Reserves project), as they provide valuable detail on
typical vegetation structure and key diagnostic features
of vegetation communities throughout NSW.
https://www.lls.nsw.gov.au/help-and-advice/
growing,-grazing-and-land/travelling-stock-reserves/
conservation-of-tsrs
Botanic Gardens Biosecurity Network launches
new website
The Botanic Gardens Biosecurity Network website aims
to act as a focal point for providing practical information
and advice to staff of botanic gardens, community
interest groups and members of the public to develop
awareness, knowledge and skills to contribute to general
biosecurity surveillance activities. You can help by sharing
the website with your networks.
http://extensionaus.com.au/botanicgardensbiosecurity
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 43
Rabbits, kangaroos and seedling survival in
Endangered buloke woodlands: Project update —
Threatened Species Recovery Hub
Grazing and browsing by herbivores like rabbits and
kangaroos can be a serious impediment to restoring
degraded ecosystems. A TSR Hub project used a field
experiment to investigate survival and browsing damage
to seedlings in the Endangered buloke woodlands
vegetation community. The findings show that complete
protection from browsers with wire guards was the
only treatment that resulted in a net positive growth
of seedlings over one year, while 95% of unguarded
seedlings were dead or significantly damaged. Mere
survival is not enough for seedlings exposed to strong
browsing pressure. To survive and reach maturity they
need to attain a height and bulk where they are no
longer vulnerable to herbivores. In buloke woodlands this
has been estimated to take around nine years or more.
The knowledge gained will also benefit the conservation
of other woodland communities where active or natural
regeneration is impacted by browsing.
https://environment.us16.list-manage.com/track/click
?u=1d841a64839b7d68557961 aefandid=3d15d4dd8
cande=dfcd4c0b45
Mapping threatened species and threatening
processes across northern Australia - NESP
Northern Australia Environmental Resources Hub
Northern Australia’s rich and unique biodiversity
faces many threats including weeds, feral animals and
inappropriate fire regimes. Knowledge gaps around
where threatened species are located and their
sensitivity and exposure to various threats can limit
the effectiveness of conservation actions and create
uncertainty for sustainable development in the north.
Hub research aiming to address these knowledge gaps
has produced spatially explicit data and maps that can
be used to inform conservation policy and assessments
as well as guide decision-making about how to manage
or mitigate threats. Project leaders Dr Anna Pintor (James
Cook University) and Associate Professor Mark Kennard
(Griffith University) have produced distribution maps
for more than 1,400 species of conservation concern,
hotspot maps showing species richness, and maps of key
threatening processes including ~250 weed species, feral
animals and wildlife diseases
https://www.nespnorthern.edu.au/projects/nesp/
prioritising-threatened-species/
44 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020
Tasmania’s montane conifers, including
King Billy and pencil pine, fruit for first time
since 2015
Theories abound, but there is no hard and fast way to
tell when certain kinds of trees will fruit — the only
thing you can be sure of is that it does not happen very
often. Tasmania’s montane conifers — several species
of which are endemic to the state — last propagated,
or masted, in 2015, sending researchers scrambling to
collect their seeds. Now the trees are at it again, but the
seeding is not just confined to the Apple Isle, or even
Australia. “Masting events like this appear to be global,
with conifers seeding in New Zealand and other parts
of the world,” said the Tasmanian Seed Conservation
Centre’s (TSCC) James Wood.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2020-01-14/
tasmanian-conifers-fruit-for-first-time-in-years/11
858284?fbclid=IwAR1 oiX9eeS9zZt6EY Gsp32KidmaP
4n_L1fHl00oYp4v2CF8TuqAvcOiINDXtbA
Gondwana-era rainforest stand of nightcap oak
devastated by unprecedented bushfire
A rare stand of Gondwana-era rainforest plants that
has survived for tens of millions of years, has now been
ravaged by fire in the wet, sub-tropical rainforests of
northern New South Wales. Unlike the successful mission
to save the Wollemi Pine in the Sydney Basin, the fate
of the nightcap grove has received almost no attention.
The nightcap oak Eidothea hardeniana is one of 20
extremely rare ancient plant species found in a small area
in the Nightcap National Park, north of Lismore.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-01-18/gondwana-
era-nightcap-oak-devastated-by-bushfire/11877770
The seedbank preserving rare native species
The Victorian Conservation Seed Bank at Melbourne's
Royal Botanic Gardens offers something of a Noah’s Ark
for rare plants. Megan Hirst, plant ecologist and seedbank
officer at the gardens explains how it all works and their
work in saving the Nematolepis wilsonii after the Black
Saturday fires in 2009.
https://www.abc.net.au/radio/melbourne/programs/
evenings/seedbank/11895642
Australian government adviser urges threatened
species overhaul after bushfires
A senior adviser to the federal government on threatened
species has backed calls for the creation of a national
scientific monitoring system after the bushfire crisis to
help fix Australia’s “very uneven” record in protecting
endangered wildlife. Helene Marsh, chair of the national
threatened species scientific committee and an emeritus
professor of environmental science at James Cook
University, said the scale of the ecological tragedy had
made Australians more aware of the risks facing the
country’s unique animals and plants and provided an
opportunity to improve conservation. With fires still
burning, scientists warn it is too early to have a clear
picture of the devastation, but preliminary government
data suggests more than 100 threatened animal and
plant species have lost at least half their habitat and
more than 300 have lost more than 10%. The impact on
most species not currently listed as threatened is yet to
be assessed.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/
jan/26/australian-government-adviser-urges-
threatened-species-overhaul-after-bushfires
Post-bushfire logging makes a bad situation
even worse, but the industry Is ignoring
the science
Australians have expressed extraordinary levels of
concern about our native animals and the ability of
environments to recover from the recent catastrophic
wildfires. The bush and the animals it supports are a
core part of Australian culture and psyche. Yet, just as
the trees are sprouting green shoots and the first signs
of forest recovery are beginning to emerge, the forest
which survived the fire is threatened by post-fire logging.
Multiple independent, peer reviewed studies show
logging forests after bushfires increases future fire risk
and can render the forest uninhabitable for wildlife for
decades or even centuries.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-01-29/logging-
bushfire-affected-areas-australia-increases-fire-
risk/11903662
After the fires, are we invited to moral
community with trees?
Over the summer months, Australia has witnessed the
devastation of forests and the immolation of wildlife
on an unimaginable scale. Across Australia, more
than 10 million hectares have burned — including at
least 80 percent of the Blue Mountains world heritage
area and more than half of the world heritage listed
Gondwana rainforest. These are all areas that have,
historically, simply been too wet to burn. More than a
hundred threatened species have been brought closer to
extinction because of these fires, and it’s estimated that a
billion animals burnt to death in these summer infernos....
It’s no wonder so many of us found ourselves grieving
deeply. The emotional or even the tragic content of these
fires has been — understandably — reserved for the loss
of human life and home and livelihood, and for the loss of
some non-human animals. But why do we grieve fauna
and not flora? Why do we not grieve the trees — not
because of what they do for us (or what they cannot now
do for us), but because of a depth of relationship that we
have with trees?
https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/
theminefield/after-the-fires,-are-we-invited-to-moral-
community-with-trees/11901494
Why Australia’s severe bushfires may be bad
news for tree regeneration
Blackened tree stems are all that remain in many post-
fire images of eastern Victoria. The charred, often leafless
trees are a testament to the severity of this season’s
bushfires, which have had a devastating impact on
the state’s biodiversity. How the trees respond to the
fires is crucial to environmental recovery since most of
the burned ecosystems are forests, and trees are the
backbone of forests. Until recently, we could be confident
that most of the trees in our forests would recover from
most fires, but that confidence is wavering.
https://phys.org/news/2020-01-
australia-severe-bushfires-bad-news.ht
ml?fbclid=lwAR2wpD6Ue6IWeiDDONT _
KmXBim0kQ9bLIpI1 UKhiIRSM9OUtLfOEkxabVtQ7E
Bushfires: eligibility rules relaxed for
threatened species
Due to the overwhelming number of plants and animals
that have already perished in bushfires this summer,
the Federal Environment Department has moved to
make it easier to get species listed as “threatened”.
Normally, nominations for the official threatened species
list only happen once a year. But the Threatened Species
Commissioner has confirmed to Saturday AM that the
department will now welcome any new nominations, at
any time, as an emergency measure.
https://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/am/
bushfires:-eligibility-rules-relaxed-for-threatened-
species/11920436
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 45
Waking up - Australian bush begins its long
bushfire recovery
Fire has sent some of Australia’s most popular national
parks into an eerie slumber, but new growth is breaking
through the blackness. When plants burn, a few things
can happen. Some are killed by fire. Others lose their
leaves, or become branded with scorch marks, their
spindly branches seemingly without life, but that does
not mean they are dead. Under the blackened bark and
ashen soil, the plants grow on, and eventually, green
emerges. In the Australian bush, “resprouters” have all
the ingredients they need to come back from fire on their
own. While the bushfire season is far from over, in the
New South Wales Blue Mountains, nature’s recovery is
already underway.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-01/natural-
bushfire-recovery-underway-binna-burra,-blue-
mountains/11916742
The Plant Messiah - reviewed by Peter Bernhardt
Carlos Magdalena is a botanical horticulturalist at Kew
Gardens in London. He propagates rare and endangered
plants to maintain living and scientific collections.
In his book he describes his numerous collecting
trips and his attempts to care for and propagate his
specimens. The Plant Messiah is the inspirational story
of aman who has devoted and risked his life to saving
biodiversity. Professor of Botany Peter Bernhardt reviews
The Plant Messiah.
https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/
scienceshow/the-plant-messiah-%E2%80%93-
reviewed-by-peter-bernhardt/11918346
NSW wildlife recovery plan to stress protection of
unburnt areas
The Berejiklian government is stepping up food drops
for endangered species and aerial shooting of some
feral animals as part of efforts to help save dozens of
native plants and animals brought closer to extinction
by the state’s unprecedented bushfires. The Wildlife and
Conservation Bushfire Recovery plan, obtained by the
Sun-Herald, also updates the impact of fires that have
scorched 5.3 million hectares so far. Blazes have hit the
habitat of 84 of the most vulnerable animals, while 46
threatened plant species have more than 90 per cent
of their recorded range in fire zones, it said. Energy
and Environment Minister Matt Kean said staff are still
46 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
assessing the full effect but it was clear fires have had
“a devastating impact”, with 37 per cent of the national
parks estate burnt.
https://www.smh.com.au/environment/conservation/
nsw-wildlife-recovery-plan-to-stress-protection-of-
unburnt-areas-20200131-p53wp6.html
Non-native marine algae detected in Botany Bay
NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) has recently
detected two non-native marine seaweed pests in NSW
waters for the first time, and community members have
been asked to report any sightings. The species are the
red macroalga Grateloupia turuturu and Pachymeniopsis
lanceolata. This is the first detection of Grateloupia
turuturu in NSW waters and the first detection of
Pachymeniopsis lanceolata in Australia. Pachymeniopsis
lanceolata is a large, flesh-pink to dull muddy red, sheet-
like plant (50-200 cm long, 30—-50 broad) with a very
small attachment to the rocks and a broadly forked blade
which gets battered over time...Grateloupia turuturu is a
long, narrow, large and wavy, crimson red seaweed, (up
to 150 cm long, and 20 cm broad) with a tiny attachment
and stalk. https://www.nationaltribune.com.au/non-
native-marine-algae-detected-in-botany-bay/
Self Improvement: How plants respond
to bushfires
The recent bushfires have had a devastating impact on
plants, how can they ever recover? Take a listen to this
week’s lesson with Dr Brett Summerell, Chief Botanist at
the Royal Botanic Garden.
https://www.abc.net.au/radio/sydney/programs/
drive/self-plants/11933998
Not all weeds are villains. After a fire, some
plants —- even weeds - can be better than none
The Invasive Species Council and other observers have
argued for weed control as a major priority following
bushfires, to promote the recovery of wildlife and
damaged ecosystems. The time is right, some say, to
wage a serious offensive against weeds before they
re-establish and this opportunity is lost. But perhaps
we shouldn't be so hasty to villainise all weeds. There is
growing recognition that weeds can, in some cases,
support a range of critical ecological functions.
https://theconversation.com/not-all-weeds-are-
villains-after-a-fire-some-plants-even-weeds-can-be-
better-than-none-130702
‘Immortal clones’: Plea for recovery plan to aid
ancient rainforests
This season’s bushfires damaged Gondwana rainforests,
including trees with lineages dating back tens of millions
of years, placing at risk the highest concentrations of
threatened species in NSW. Robert Kooyman, an ecologist
and honorary research fellow at Macquarie University,
said the unprecedented fires in northern NSW had likely
killed at least 10 per cent of the world’s only wild stand
of nightcap oak. Other endangered species such as
peach myrtles - possibility the oldest organisms on the
planet with the “immortal clones” living a thousand years
or more - and minyon quandongs were also badly hit,
he said. “We have serious issues in this forest,” said Dr
Kooyman, who discovered and documented the nightcap
oak two decades ago. “Recovery action will need to be
planned very carefully, and given a reasonable amount
of funding.”
https://www.smh.com.au/environment/conservation/
immortal-clones-plea-for-recovery-plan-to-aid-
ancient-rainforests-20200209-p53z3f.html
Impact of fires on World Heritage Areas
On Thursday 13 February, the Department released
maps of the impacts of the 2019-20 Bushfires on three
World Heritage Areas: Greater Blue Mountains (NSW),
the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia (NSW/QlId) and
the Old Great North Road (NSW, part of the Australian
Convict Sites World Heritage Area). The maps indicate
that bushfires have had the following impact on
these properties:
¢ Gondwana Rainforests of Australia (NSW, Old) —
approximately 54 per cent affected
¢- Greater Blue Mountains Area (NSW) - approximately
81 per cent affected
Other World Heritage Areas (Budj Bim Cultural Landscape
(Vic), Fraser Island (K’gari) (Qld), Wet Tropics (Qld) and
Tasmanian Wilderness) have also been affected
https://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/
bushfire-recovery/research-and-resources.
Australia’s major botanic gardens united to
assist ecosystem restoration in response to
recent bushfires
The impact of the recent bushfires on our native plants
and animals has been severe. Millions of hectares of
native habitat have been burnt, putting at risk the survival
of plant and animal species. While much of the Australian
bush and its plants are well adapted to fire, the ferocity
and extent of the bushfires this summer, and predicted
frequency for coming years due to climate change, are
unprecedented. Some plants will recover depending
on the timing and extent of rains, but some ecosystems
require carefully managed intervention. For those animals
that did not perish in the fires, loss of plant habitat and
food presents a particular risk. However, it is critical that
any reintroduction of native species to the environment
delivers the right plant species, in the right place, at the
right time, in a manner that has no detrimental impacts
on the environment.
https://www.seedpartnership.org.au/wp-content/
uploads/2020/02/CHABG-statement-bushfire-
recovery-capability.pdf
Seven Billion Burnt Trees
Horrific statistics ricochet around the world, sparked by
the Australian bushfires. Half a billion animals, now likely
to be closer to a billion. Millions of acres, thousands of
homes, 33 human lives. | follow these, | feel these, and
a voice in the back of my head asks ‘how many trees,
how many shrubs? How many plants?’ | can’t help but
feel a sense of incomprehension. Why is the impact of
fires on plants not making the news; rarely the subject of
fundraising campaigns; not being spoken of as anything
other than habitat or hazard? Why, when nothing exists
without plants, does our society continue to choose not
to pay serious attention to their existence?
https://theplanthunter.com.au/botanica/seven-
billion-burnt-trees/?fbclid=lwAR3btSbrzLMV9W61S2
40zQUCr9LhACmS0d8jdwCby11521aDMkLnvH-HYPo
A peek inside Canberra’s hidden bank
While other were packing precious photos and
mementos during the summer bushfires, ready to
evacuate if necessary, there was one person in Canberra
packing eskies full of seeds. These seeds are the
insurance policy against the massive loss of vegetation
(8.4 million hectares across NSW, Victoria, Queensland,
South Australia, Western Australia and Tasmania) we’ve
witnessed this summer due to climate change-related
bushfires. Tom North is Curator of the National Seed
Bank (NSB), a small but vital service tucked away in the
Australian National Botanic Gardens (ANBG). The NSB is a
quiet achiever. While worldwide climate change protests
have been growing larger and louder, employees and
volunteers at the NSB have been diligently collecting
seed for conservation and research.
https://hercanberra.com.au/cpcity/a-peek-inside-
canberras-hidden-bank/?fbclid=IwAR2RZHo2X _
Pu_FRvy_EB3SAj_LbxGnp4ajjxMTo-
oP98LRYOTd40SH9X4xzw
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 47
‘Don’t waste a crisis’: bid to rebuild national
seedbanks gathers pace
Restoring 10 per cent of the vegetation destroyed
in this season's bushfires would require more than
$800 million in new seeds — “magnitudes” more than the
funding available so far. Paul Della Libera, the director
of seed services at Greening Australia, said 18 million
hectares had burnt this fire season across the country.
Even though much regeneration would happen naturally,
the challenge for restoring especially threatened species
remained huge, he said. “You can’t have bushfire
recovery without seed, just as you can’t build a national
road network without concrete,” Mr Della Libera said.
The national capacity to produce seed “doesn’t exist at
the moment in the way that we need it to”. https://www.
smh.com.au/environment/sustainability/don-t-waste-
a-crisis-bid-to-rebuild-national-seedbanks-gathers-
pace-20200217-p541kn.html
The plan to create a 1000km continuous corridor
of bushland known as the ‘Gondwana Link’
Conservationists, property owners and community
groups are working side by side in southern Western
Australia to create a 1000km continuous corridor
of bushland. It conjures an ancient time when
Earth’s supercontinents were being rearranged;
when Gondwana- the great southern landmass that
eventually broke into Australia, Africa, South America,
Antarctica, Arabia and the Indian subcontinent — was
covered in lush rainforests; and when the evolutionary
paths of the plants and wildlife of the Northern and
Southern hemispheres diverged. It is fitting, then, that the
word features in the name of one of Australia’s biggest
conservation projects: Gondwana Link.
https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/topics/
science-environment/2020/02/the-plan-to-create-a-
1000km-continuous-corridor-of-bushland-known-as-
the-gondwana-link/
Over 100 eucalypt tree species newly
recommended for threatened listing
The Threatened Species Recovery Hub has undertaken
a conservation assessment of every Australian
eucalypt tree species and found that over 190 species
meet internationally recognised criteria for listing as
threatened: most of these are not currently listed as
threatened. Associate Professor Rod Fensham at the
University of Queensland said the team assessed all
822 Australian eucalypt species against the criteria
set by the International Union for the Conservation
of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species™.
48 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020
The results have just been published in the scientific
journal Biological Conservation. “Our assessment found
that 193 species, which is almost one quarter (23%)
of all Australian eucalypt species, meet criteria for a
threatened status of Vulnerable, Endangered or Critically
Endangered,” said Associate Professor Fensham. “This
is very concerning as eucalypts are arguably Australia’s
most important plant group, and provide vital habitat to
thousands of other species.
http://www.nespthreatenedspecies.edu.au/news/
over-100-eucalypt-tree-species-newly-recommended-
for-threatened-listing?fbclid=lwAR3-XCwBy__
UBv9atgpiQnFZigjhvej/K49BcW3utPd1tiuSITYFngz_
N95xE
Impact of fires on Threatened
Ecological Communities
On 19 February 2020, the Department released an initial
list of threatened ecological communities which have
more than 10% of their estimated distribution in areas
affected by bushfires in southern and eastern Australia
between 1 July 2019 and 11 February 2020. Preliminary
results indicate that of the 84 nationally listed threatened
ecological communities:
¢ Four have more than 50% of their estimated
distribution within the fire extent
- Three have more than 30%, but less than 50%, of their
estimated distribution within the fire extent
¢ Thirteen have more than 10%, but less than 30%, of
their estimated distribution within the fire extent.
- Another seventeen have some of their estimated
distribution within the fire extent.
This analysis compares maps of fire extent from
state fire agencies with maps of the estimated
distributions of ecological communities protected
under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity
Conservation Act 1999.
https://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/
bushfire-recovery/research-and-resources
Study finds large numbers of eucalyptus trees
are in serious decline
A study published in the journal Biological Conservation
has found close to a quarter of all eucalyptus trees
are threatened species. The paper identified Western
Australia as having the worst rate of decline. Experts
say reduced land clearing and concerted efforts at
reforestation is the only way to prevent further losses.
https://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/am/
study-finds-many-eucalypt-species-are-in-serious-
decline/11982742
Thousands of feral horses to be removed from
Kosciuszko national park after bushfires
About 4,000 feral horses will be removed from
Kosciuszko national park in New South Wales as part of
an emergency response to protect the alpine ecosystem
after large areas were devastated by bushfires. The move
would be the largest removal of horses in the park’s
history, said the NSW environment minister, Matt Kean.
Announcing an agreement between “horse lovers and
national-park lovers”, Kean said a priority would be to
catch and remove the animals, but he would not rule
out that some might have to be killed. The NSW National
Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) said three areas in the
north of the park covering about 57,000 hectares would
be targeted — Nungar plain, Cooleman plain and parts of
Boggy and Kiandra plains. https://www.theguardian.
com/environment/2020/feb/20/thousands-of-feral-
horses-to-be-removed-from-kosciuszko-national-
park-after-bushfires
Eucalyptus trees in our suburbs spark safety
debate among scientists and citizens
Downed trees have caused widespread disruption for
thousands of residents recovering from severe storms
in recent weeks, fuelling renewed debate about how to
better protect communities from the elements. As the
clean-up continues, concerns around the planting of
eucalyptus trees in urban areas are being voiced. But
experts have warned that, despite the hype, the risk to
lives and property would be even greater if the gum trees
were gone. Royal Botanic Gardens chief botanist Brett
Summerell has noticed an increase in anxiety around
eucalypts in recent months.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-21/eucalyptus-
trees-scientists-unpack-anxiety-over-widow-
maker/11984280
Nature’s ‘first responders’ go for green
Blackened and burnt trees and shrubs throughout two
conservation parks devastated in the Cudlee Creek fires
have begun re-sprouting following recent rains. Both
Charleston and Porter Scrub Conservation Parks were
completely burnt during the December fires, leaving
trunks charred and the ground black and bare, with the
parks currently closed for safety reasons. But after just
six weeks, these parks are revealing that nature’s ‘first
responders’ are throwing out shoots and bursting from
the ground as the process of forest recovery begins.
https://www.naturalresources.sa.gov.au/
adelaidemtloftyranges/news/200225-regenerating-
bushland-charleston-porter
Want to help save wildlife after the fires? You can
do it in your own backyard
..Despite the focus on animals, it is plants, making up
1,336 of the 1,790 species listed as threatened, that
have been hit hardest. Early estimates are that the fires
had severe impacts on 272 threatened plant species.
Of these, 100 are thought to have had more than half of
their remaining range burnt. The impacts on individual
plant species is profoundly saddening, but the impacts
on whole ecosystems can be even more catastrophic.
Repeated fires in quick succession in fire-sensitive
ecosystems, such as alpine-ash forests, can lead to loss
of the keystone tree species. These trees are unable to
mature and set seed in less than 20 years....It is difficult
to know how best to “rescue” threatened plants,
particularly when we know little about them. Seed banks
and propagation of plants in home gardens can be a
last resort for some species. You can help by growing
plants that are indigenous to your local area. Look for
an indigenous nursery near you that can provide advice
on their care. Advocate for mainstream nurseries, your
council and schools to make indigenous plants available
to buy and be grown in public areas.
https://theconversation.com/want-to-help-save-
wildlife-after-the-fires-you-can-do-it-in-your-own-
backyard-131896
Call to end logging of ‘protective’ native forests
in wake of bushfire crisis
A group of forestry and climate scientists are calling for
an immediate and permanent end to the logging of all
native forests across Australia as part of a response to
climate change and the country’s bushfire crisis. In an
open letter, the group said forestry workers involved
in logging in native forests should be redeployed to
support the management of national parks. A briefing
document to back the letter, coordinated by The Australia
Institute thinktank, argues logging in wet eucalypt forests
promotes more flammable regrowth.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/
feb/26/call-to-end-logging-of-protective-native-
forests-in-wake-of-bushfire-crisis
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 49
Travelling Stock Reserves (TSR) State-wide Plan
of Management released after consultation
with stakeholders
The release of the Plan of Management is the final stage
of the TSR review which commenced as a result of the
Crown Lands Management Review. The review recognised
that TSRs may no longer be used for their original purpose
and recommended a review to identify where TSRs are,
what they are used for, by whom and how often. This
plan responds to those review findings. This is the first
state-wide Plan of Management for TSRs. It recognises
them as a single resource of State significance and
provides for a consistent management approach, in
line with community expectations. The plan establishes
the need for shared responsibility and collaborative
funding to raise the revenue needed to manage TSRs for
these purposes.
https://www.Ils.nsw.gov.au/news-and-events/news/
statewide/2020/travelling-stock-reserves-state-wide-
plan-of-management
Do you have data to shape Australia’s
Threatened Species Index for 2020?
The Threatened Species Index (TSX), launched in
2018, is calling for new data on threatened and near-
threatened plants. Do you count threatened creatures
in a standardised way? Your data may be gold for us
and Australia! We are collecting monitoring data for the
TSX until 31 May 2020. The TSX tells us how Australia’s
threatened species are faring overall and which groups of
species and where are most in need of our help.
https://tsx.org.au/2020/03/02/do-you-have-data-to-
shape-australias-threatened-species-index-for-2020/
Logging is due to start in fire-ravaged forests this
week. Here’s why that’s a bad idea
David Lindenmayer explains why logging in fire-ravaged
forests will harm Australia’s wildlife. New South Wales’
Forestry Corporation will this week start “selective timber
harvesting” from two state forests ravaged by bushfire on
the state’s south coast. The state-owned company says
the operations will be “strictly managed” and produce
timber for power poles, bridges, flooring and decking.
Similarly, the Victorian government's logging company
VicForests recently celebrated the removal of sawlogs
from burnt forests in East Gippsland. VicForests says it did
not cut down the trees — they were cut or pushed over by
the army, firefighters or road crews because they blocked
the rood or were dangerous. The company said it simply
removed the logs to put them “to good use’.
50 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/topics/
science-environment/2020/03/logging-is-due-to-
start-in-fire-ravaged-forests-this-week-heres-why-
thats-a-bad-idea/
National parks mapping to aid forest recovery
from bushfires in NSW
The NSW government is conducting a major investigation
into the damage that bushfires caused to national parks
in the Hunter and elsewhere across the state. About a
million hectares burnt in national parks in and around
the Hunter Region. Google Earth mapping, compiled by
the government and University of NSW, has revealed the
extent of bushfire damage to the canopy in national parks.
The mapping shows the damage caused by mega-fires in
Wollemi and Yengo national parks. These fires sent huge
amounts of smoke across the Hunter in December and
January during westerly winds. The notorious Wollemi
fire, known as the Gospers Mountain blaze, set a record for
being the biggest forest fire in Australian history.
https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6657678/
colour-coded-maps-show-bushfire-damage-in-
national-parks/?cs=14231
Thousands of hectares added to Queensland
national park
More than 3300 hectares of bushland including potential
koala habitat will be added to Mount Walsh National Park
outside Maryborough, Environment Minister Leeanne
Enoch said on Friday. That now makes Queensland's
national park estate roughly the size of Tasmania, Ms
Enoch said. The state government confirmed it bought
seven freehold parcels of land allowing 3392 hectares
to be added to Mount Walsh National Park. “The Mount
Walsh area contains a high number of rare native plant
species, and the new area presents potential habitat for
numerous vulnerable species including the koala,” Ms
Enoch said.
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/queensland/
thousands-of-hectares-added-to-queensland-
national-park-20200306-p547qe.html
Kangaroo Island Flora
Sophie meets two generations of Kangaroo Island women
who have dedicated their lives to the local flora in one
of Australia’s biodiversity hotspots. Kangaroo Island is
one of Australia’s biodiversity hotspots because of its
high diversity of local plant species (over 1000 species)
including 60 endemic species, and because conservation
is essential to preserve the natural values. If you want to
learn about the plants of KI, then one place you might
end up is anon-descript house in the main town, home
to Bev Overton who set up the official Kangaroo Island
Regional Herbarium in a shipping container in her
backyard. Born on KI, Bev spent the best part of her life as
a botanist in the field, documenting, collecting, mapping
and sharing her knowledge on KI plants.
https://www.abc.net.au/gardening/factsheets/
kangaroo-island-flora/12030748
Seed banking after bushfires an insurance policy
against extinction for some native plant species
The future of some of Australia’s endangered native
plants hangs in the balance following the bushfire crisis
that saw almost 5.5 million hectares of land burned
in New South Wales alone. But scientists hope seed
banking could provide hope that affected plant species
will flourish again. The chief botanist for the Australian
Botanic, Royal Botanic, and Blue Mountains Botanic
Gardens, Brett Summerell, said the bushfires posed a
real possibility that some plant species already under
threat may be lost from the landscape. “Looking at the
maps and the extent of the fires that have happened, and
judging from the intensity of some of the fires, it is likely
that there will be a number of plant species — particularly
those with restricted distribution — that may be under
threat of extinction,” Dr Summerell said.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-03-07/is-
seed-banking-an-insurance-policy-for-native-pl
ants/12021190?fbclid=lwAR3D3Z7o0VzyD4Gtb _
vIULyq9cHd55vZdrMiskYkYeV7_RPI9qaiipMuUMek
Entire hillsides of trees turned brown this
summer. Is it the start of ecosystem collapse?
The drought in eastern Australia was a significant
driver of this season’s unprecedented bushfires. But it
also caused another, less well known environmental
calamity this summer: entire hillsides of trees turned
from green to brown. We've observed extensive canopy
dieback from southeast Queensland down to Canberra.
Reports of more dead and dying trees from other regions
across Australia are flowing in through the citizen
science project, the Dead Tree Detective. A few dead
trees are not an unusual sight during a drought. But in
some places, it is the first time in living memory so much
canopy has died off. Ecologists are now pondering the
implications. There are warnings that some Australian
tree species could disappear from large parts of their
ranges as the climate changes.
https://theconversation.com/entire-hillsides-
of-trees-turned-brown-this-summer-is-it-the-
start-of-ecosystem-collapse-126107?utm_
source=twitterandutm_medium=bylinetwitterbutton
andfbclid=lwAROMT7zm5NS_PloQmnOOf2PNYhr3h_
uyHJuBK-ueL_Q6B_ZCMPInxZ3tzCk
WA Government puts a 12-month halt on logging
of mature karri forests in the South West
The Western Australian Government has placed a
12-month freeze on the logging of “two-tier” karri forests
in the state’s wooded South West region. Two-tier karri
forests are defined as mixed-age forests comprised of
mature trees and younger regrowth trees. The Forest
Products Commission (FPC) manages the logging of WA's
native forests and has excluded two-tier karri forests from
its native-timber harvest plan for 2020. The decision has
been met with celebration from conservationists and a
backlash from the local timber industry.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-03-09/wa-
government-12-month-stop-mature-two-tier-
karri-forest-logging/12037488?utm_source=abc_
newsandutm_medium=content_ sharedandutm _
content=linkandutm_campaign=abc_newsandfb
clid=IwAR2GuRtJuMaVxvzlY¥kuZDB1_iET9EAkn |
O3hfauOPW-9CjJ3ZMXUGumyY-Mhk
Namadgi extensively damaged, but showing
pockets of hope
On Friday 6th March, Maddie Clegg, biodiversity
Campaigner from the Conservation Council, attended
an assessment tour of Namadgi National Park, to see
first-hand the impact of the fires this summer. The visit
brought together representatives from local member
groups, national parks staff and the local community.
The purposes of the trip were to gain an understanding of
the impacts of the recent fires, determine what recovery
efforts are currently in place and what will be required in
the coming months. Whilst some areas remained largely
unburnt, providing crucial habitat for remaining local
species, other areas are extensively damaged.
https://conservationcouncil.org.au/namadgi-
extensively-damaged-but-showing-pockets-of-hope/
The politics of trees
Types of trees, locations of trees, numbers of trees:
everyone’s got an opinion when it comes to trees and
fire danger. Trees are also an essential part of slowing
climate change, by capturing carbon. Our guests say
Australia needs a national conversation about trees.
And there is criticism that good money, and good
opportunities, have been wasted on some tree planting
programs. Guests: Professor David Lindenmayer Ecologist
from the ANU’s Fenner School of Environment and
Society; and Assoc Professor Patrick O’Connor Ecological
economist, University of Adelaide.
https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/
latenightlive/the-politics-of-trees/12047342
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 Dal
Rare tangle orchid found in rainforest gully at
risk of local extinction due to bushfires
Kevin Heyhoe lost his house in the summer's bushfires,
but he says he is more gutted to see the destruction
of a rainforest gully on his property that contained an
unusual species of orchid. Mr Heyhoe discovered tangle
orchids (Plectorrhiza tridentata) on his property at Bete
Bolong North in East Gippsland in December, but major
fires soon struck the area. “I lost my fences and | lost
the house, but | was more gutted to lose the rainforest
gully,” he said. Trust For Nature conservation officer Paul
Harvey went to the site, making note of rocks in the area
because all of the vegetation was gone. “Sure enough,
the orchid’s gone,” Mr Harvey said. “There is no trace of it,
and their host plants, the water gums or kanookas, have
all been toasted.”
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-03-13/rare-
orchid-found-in-gippsland-rainforest-at-risk-after-
bushfire/12052458
Mount Canobolas rises from the ashes with some
new finds
Two years of work following a devastating fire have
seen Mount Canobolas State Conservation Area emerge
with 79 new species recorded, including two new plants
that exist nowhere else in the world. National Parks and
Wildlife Service Ranger Steve Woodhall said the results
captured over several surveys were largely thanks to the
efforts of local NPWS staff and volunteers of the Orange
Field Naturalist and Conservation Society. “More than
70% of Mount Canobolas State Conservation Area was
affected by an intense bushfire in February 2018. “While
this fire impacted the community and the park heavily, 2
years later we have emerged with new knowledge about
what exists in this unique ecosystem. Most exciting has
been the identification of two new ground orchid species,
the pink spider orchid and the Canobolas leek orchid.
The Canobolas leek orchid hasn't been seen since the
last major fire back in 1982 — at that time it remained an
undescribed species.
https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/news/mount-
canobolas-rises-from-the-ashes-with-some-new-finds
Dead Tree Detectives - Citizen Science
Calling all Dead Tree Detectives! It might seem a bit
grim to be searching for and recording where you
find dead trees, but this valuable work helps scientists
understand where trees are dying, why they are dying
and importantly, how to stop other trees from meeting a
similar fate! To be part of the project, visit the Dead Tree
Detective Website. All you need is a smartphone to take
photos of the trees and record their location via gps. Once
52 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020
you have taken the photo, you can submit it to the team
and help collect data for this vital project. The project is
contributing data to the Atlas of Living Australia.
https://www.abc.net.au/gardening/dead-tree-
detectives---citizen-science/12076458
How fungi’s knack for networking boosts
ecological recovery after bushfires
The unprecedented bushfires that struck the east coast
of Australia this summer killed an estimated one billion
animals across millions of hectares. Scorched landscapes
and animal corpses brought into sharp relief what
climate-driven changes to wildfire mean for Australia’s
plants and animals. Yet the effects of fire go much deeper,
quite literally, to a vast and complex underground world
that we know stunningly little about, including organisms
that might be just as vulnerable to fire, and vital to
Australia’s ecological recovery: the fungi.
https://theconversation.com/how-fungis-knack-
for-networking-boosts-ecological-recovery-after-
bushfires-132587
‘The forest is now terribly silent’: land set aside
for threatened species entirely burnt out
New photos showing the devastating impact of bushfire
in east Gippsland forests are sparking renewed calls for
the Victorian government to rethink its approach to
logging and bring forward the promised 2030 phase-out
of the native timber industry. A series of before-and-
after pictures by the photographer Rob Blakers show
the impact of last summer's fires on the slopes of Mount
Kuark, known as one of the few places in Australia where
cool and warm temperate rainforests grow together. All
shots were taken within a 48,500-hectare area that the
premier, Daniel Andrews, announced in November would
be immediately exempt from logging to protect the
greater glider and other threatened species.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/
mar/22/the-forest-is-now-terribly-silent-land-set-
aside-for-threatened-species-entirely-burnt-out
Life is coming back to Porter Scrub Conservation
Park after the Cudlee Creek fires
Burnt trees and shrubs are re-sprouting and insects and
birds are returning. This park is home to up to 23 species
of conservation significance, including the nationally
vulnerable Bassian Thrush and Clover Glycine, which is
vulnerable in SA. AMLRNRMB and National Parks and
Wildlife Service South Australia are monitoring the
impacts and the park will re-open when it’s safe.
https://www.facebook.com/
watch/?v=195627185208995
Bushfire-affected Adelaide Hills habitat to get
helping hand
Woodland bird species devastated by the Cudlee Creek
bushfire will get a $1.2 million boost thanks to a new
landscape scale habitat restoration program funded by
the State and Federal governments. A large number of
significant native trees were lost in the Cudlee Creek
fire which provided valuable habitat for declining
woodland bird species. The Woodland Bird Resilience
Program will safeguard future populations through
habitat restoration to support these unique bird species.
The planting will commence immediately and run for
two years. The project will provide for native tree and
understorey seedlings, stock proof tree guards, labour
costs, maintenance for plantings and capacity to engage
landholders.
https://minister.awe.gov.au/ley/media-releases/
bushfire-affected-adelaide-hills-habitat-get-helping-
hand
New work to support bushfire recovery and
COVID-19 impacts
On 3 March the Australian Government announced
an additional $2 million in funding to the Threatened
Species Recovery Hub to deliver research and scientific
advice to help support wildlife and habitat recovery
efforts following Australia’s bushfire crisis. The funding
comes from the Australian Government's National
Environmental Science Program. As bushfire recovery
research needs will exceed the capacity of this funding,
we will direct attention to the most strategic and pressing
needs in consultation with: the Australian Government's
Wildlife and Threatened Species Bushfire Recovery Expert
Panel; state, territory and Australian Governments and
key stakeholders.
http://www.nespthreatenedspecies.edu.au/news/
new-work-to-support-bushfire-recovery
Post-fire ecological stocktake
An outside observer leaves Australia shell-shocked
after touring burnt forest regions. And a resident
ecologist has been doing a stocktake of what's survived
and what hasn't in his region. Guests: Adam Welz,
writer, photographer, and film-maker specialising in
environmental issues Based in Cape Town. Mark Graham,
ecologist with the Nature Conservation Council, a NSW
peak body. Fire and biodiversity specialist, based on the
NSW North Coast.
https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/
programs/saturdayextra/post-fire-ecological-
stocktake/12050408
Ask Fuzzy: What is a transformational weed?
If you've travelled across the Eden Monaro districts
recently, you may have noticed great swathes of land
covered by African Lovegrass (Eragrostis curvula). It's
an attractive plant, with soft feathery seed-tops and
generic tussock round leaves. It’s an example of a
“transformational weed”, which get their name from
the drastic changes they bring to a landscape. Similar
examples are Gamba grass (Andropogon gayanus) and
Buffel grass (Cenchrus ciliaris). Transformational weeds
such as Lovegrass are early and rapid colonisers of
degraded country. As the drought has laid bare so much
land, Lovegrass has hopped in to displace other plants.
From there, it smothers competitors, turning the rich
blend of what was once there into a monoculture. The
loss of diversity disrupts the local ecology, with knock-on
effects on other plants, insects and wildlife.
https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6698210/
what-is-a-transformational-weed/?cs=14225
Farming and conservation groups call for $4b
post-pandemic jobs boost
A coalition of more than 80 landcare, environmental,
farming and conservation groups has written to state and
federal governments proposing the creation of 24,000
jobs in land rehabilitation as part of a post-pandemic
stimulus package. Under the proposal, landscapes and
infrastructure damaged by the recent drought and
bushfires would be rehabilitated in part by people who
had lost jobs as a result of the coronavirus. The jobs
package would cost $4 billion over four years, according
to the proposal that has been endorsed by groups
including the National Farmers Federation, the NSW
Farmers Federation and the Nature Conservation Council,
or about 1000 full-time jobs for each $100 million spent.
https://www.smh.com.au/environment/conservation/
farming-and-conservation-groups-call-for-4b-post-
pandemic-jobs-boost-20200402-p54gjc.html
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 53
After the Fire
Costa pays a visit to the Blue Mountains Botanic Gardens
at Mount Tomah, within the Blue Mountains World
Heritage area, to investigate how the landscape has
begun to regenerate after the bushfires of late 2019.
Incredible efforts by the team at the botanic gardens and
fire fighters saw much of the collection at the gardens
saved from the Gospers Mountain mega-fire in December
2019, the surrounding conservation area, also managed
by the gardens, was not so lucky. Around 90% of this
180-hectare space was heavily impacted, the landscape
burnt and blackened as far as the eye can see. But closer
inspection reveals smatterings of green, signs that the
bush is slowly recovering.
https://www.abc.net.au/gardening/factsheets/after-
the-fire/12115378
When Jamie fell in love with the mountains
Distinguished Professor Jamie Kirkpatrick has been
crawling across lawns for more than 70 years, it’s just that
this one is on the top of a mountain and is full of plants
from the cretaceous.
https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/
offtrack/jaimie-mountains-repeat/12059702
Fears for wildlife recovery after bushfires as
coronavirus crisis stymies scientists’ fieldwork
Scientists are being forced to shut down or scale
back fieldwork to assess the impact of last summer's
devastating bushfires on threatened species amid the
coronavirus crisis, prompting concerns it could affect
wildlife recovery. Several universities have shut down
fieldwork to comply with restrictions on travel and
physical contact and government agencies working
on the recovery have had to scale back some of their
operations. Urgent work such as feral-animal baiting
has been able to continue in many fire-hit regions, and
departments have adjusted their working methods to
use local contractors rather than fly their own teams into
locations such as Kangaroo Island, where there have been
calls for a ban on non-essential travel.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/
apr/05/fears-for-wildlife-recovery-after-bushfires-as-
coronavirus-crisis-stymies-scientists-fieldwork
54 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020
Impacts of the coronavirus pandemic on
biodiversity conservation
The COVID-19 pandemic is impacting all parts of human
society. Like everyone else, conservation biologists are
concerned first with how the pandemic will affect their
families, friends, and people around the world. But
we also have a duty to think about how it will impact
the world’s biodiversity and our ability to protect it, as
well as how it might affect the training and careers of
conservation researchers and practitioners. As editors of
Biological Conservation, we have heard first-hand from
colleagues, authors, and reviewers around the world
about the problems they are facing, and their concerns
for their students, their staff, and their research projects.
https://www.ncbi.nIm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/
PMC7139249/
‘Years of effort to be wasted’: Angst over
volunteer lockouts in forests
Coronavirus restrictions have halted volunteer monitoring
of logging industry activity and important recovery
programs for the east coast’s fire ravaged forests. Invasive
Species Council chief executive Andrew Cox said curbs
on volunteer-based programs to remove invasive weeds
could cause “years of effort to be wasted”. “Almost all the
volunteer weeding programs around the country [run by
councils and community groups] have been halted,” Mr
Cox said. “Weeding is critical now, particularly in eastern
Australia after the bushfires, particularly since we also got
a lot of rainfall in recent weeks and the weeds are going
gangbusters. Weeds thrive in disruption [from fires] and
bad land management and they're getting a free hand
during this period.”
https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/years-of-
effort-to-be-wasted-angst-over-volunteer-lockouts-
in-forests-20200409-p54ii5.html
Coastal Native Design
Josh visits a landscape designer whose coastal home
garden celebrates the local flora. Planting palate
limited to those plants found growing in the adjacent
coastal dunes.
https://www.abc.net.au/gardening/factsheets/
coastal-native-design/12136428
Growing Community
Sophie discovers how growing seedlings for revegetation
projects has brought together four families in suburban
Adelaide. As we all know, everybody needs good
neighbours, and neighbourly relations are easily achieved
when common interests are shared. In Cumberland Park,
Adelaide, a shared passion has done more than bring
residents together — it’s helped revegetate precious
bushland. Under the Trees for Life tree growing scheme,
neighbours Jasmin, Jake, Patrick and Laura Mallon, Julie
and Scoob Raynes and Nick and Sue Carboon have turned
parts of their patches into propagation stations for South
Australian indigenous trees and shrubs.
https://www.abc.net.au/gardening/factsheets/
growing-community/12136768
Wollemi Pine citizen science survey
growing global
Hundreds of people around the world are helping
Wollemi Pine researchers understand more about
Australia’s ancient pine by completing the | Spy A
Wollemi Pine citizen science survey. Since it was
discovered in 1994 growing deep in a canyon in the Blue
Mountains, the curious conifer has became available to
many parts of the world. Wollemi Pines can now be found
growing in parks, gardens and backyards across the
globe. The | Spy A Wollemi Pine citizen science survey was
launched in December 2019 by Dr Cathy Offord based
at the Australian Botanic Garden Mount Annan and
Dr Heidi Zimmer from the NSW Department of Energy,
Environment and Science. Dr Offord and Dr Zimmer are
trying to identify the hottest, coldest, wettest and driest
places where Wollemi Pines can grow to gain important
insights into the environmental tolerances of this
special tree.
https://www.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/Stories/2020/
Wollemi-Pine-citizen-science-survey-growing-global
Setting the stage for invasive species research
The old adage prevention is the best medicine applies to
many things, including invasive species — plants, animals
or even diseases that are not native to Australia, but once
they arrive can quickly become a problem. Stopping
new, environmentally harmful invasive species from
arriving and establishing in Australia is one of the most
cost-effective actions we can take to protect our native
species from invading weeds, feral animals and diseases.
With thecoronavirus now a global pandemic most people
around the world now understand the need to act hard
and fast when a dangerous new virus emerges. The same
case can be made for the arrival of invasive species.
https://invasives.org.au/blog/setting-the-stage-for-
invasive-species-research/
The rise and rise of feral deer in Australia
A group of Victorian land managers giving evidence
to a Senate inquiry into the impacts of feral deer, pigs
and goats put their case bluntly. “Feral deer do not
need managing for sustainable hunting, they need
extermination.” And this. “To call deer a ‘game’ species
is a misnomer, they are a destructive, invasive feral
pest species that are multiplying out of control.” Feral
deer are creeping across Australia and little is being
done by federal or state governments to limit their
impacts or stop their spread. But a Senate Environment
and Communications Committee is looking into the
wide-ranging issues.
https://invasives.org.au/blog/the-rise-and-rise-of-
feral-deer-in-australia/
$5 million funding boost for bushfire affected
wildlife in New South Wales
Remediation action to secure the future of the Wollemi
Pine, feral predator control, feeding support and targeted
captive breeding programs are among the NSW bushfire
recovery priorities to receive $5 million from the Morrison
Government's $50 million Wildlife and Habitat Recovery
package. The NSW Government has worked closely
with the Federal Government's Wildlife and Threatened
Species Bushfire Recovery Expert Panel to identify a
number of high priority needs following the devastating
impacts of Australia’s bushfires on native animals, plants
and ecosystems. “While some on-ground activities are
being modified in accordance with COVID-19 restrictions,
there remains a strong focus on bushfire recovery and
the challenges facing our animals and plants,” Federal
Minister for the Environment, Sussan Ley said.
https://minister.awe.gov.au/ley/media-releases/5-
million-funding-boost-for-bushfire-affected-wildlife-
In-nsw
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 55
Almost 500 Australian plant species and 200
invertebrate species need urgent help
Almost 500 Australian plant species and 200 invertebrate
species need urgent help to support their recovery after
last summer's disastrous bushfires. The list was released
yesterday by the Wildlife and Threatened Species Bushfire
Recovery Expert Panel, which had already identified
more than 100 animal species needing priority care.
The call for urgent action comes after Australia’s most
comprehensive mammal database revealed this week
that populations of key Australian mammal species
have crashed by about a third (33 per cemt) since the
mid-1990s.
https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/
breakfast/plant-and-invertebrate-species-need-
urgent-help/12179978
Buried under colonial concrete, Botany Bay has
even been robbed of its botany
The HMS Endeavour's week-long stay on the shores of
Kamay in 1770 yielded so many botanical specimens
unknown to western science, Captain James Cook
called the area Botany Bay. During this visit, the
ship’s natural history expert Joseph Banks spoke
favourably of the landscape, saying it resembled the
“moorlands of England” with “knee-high brushes of
plants stretching over gentle and treeless hills as far as
the eye could see”. Since then, Kamay has become an
icon of Australia’s convict history and emblematic of
the dispossession of Indigenous people from country.
However, memories of the pre-British flora have largely
been lost. Ongoing research drawing on ecological data,
and Indigenous and European histories, reveals what
this environment once looked like. It shows many of the
assumptions about the historical landscape we hold
today may actually be wrong.
https://theconversation.com/buried-under-colonial-
concrete-botany-bay-has-even-been-robbed-of-its-
botany-135315
56 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June-August 2020
Bushfires leave 470 plants and 200 animals in
dire straits - government analysis
More than 400 plants and nearly 200 invertebrates
need urgent attention after the bushfire crisis, new
analysis for the federal environment department has
found. Freshwater mussels, shrimps, burrowing crayfish,
land snails, spiders, millipedes, bees, dragonflies and
butterflies were among the invertebrates whose ranges
have been severely affected by the unprecedented
fires through spring and summer. The most severely
affected species have had at least 30% of their range
burned, and in some cases the figure was much higher.
Publication of the list of 471 plants and 191 invertebrates
comes as business groups and governments emphasise
the need to reduce bureaucracy around environmental
assessments as part of the economic recovery from the
coronavirus crisis.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/
apr/26/bushfires-leave-470-plants-and-200-animals-
in-dire-straits-government-analysis
Rare and shy Sticky Emu-bush likes to
be disturbed
Here’s the thing. A plant can be rare and under threat of
extinction, but also require disturbance to grow. That is,
fencing off its habitat and leaving it alone will only
exacerbate the problem. The Varnish Bush, an emubush
called Eremophila visicida, from sandy loam country
between Latham and Pindar in Western Australia, is one
such species. Despite being found over a relatively wide
area in the midwest and wheatbelt of Western Australia
and being a ‘disturbance opportunist’, the Varnish Bush is
listed as Critically Endangered in that State.
http://talkingplants.blogspot.com/2020/04/rare-and-
shy-sticky-emu-bush-likes-to.html
Updates available at
http://anpc.asn.au/other_conferences_and_events
Hands Healing the Land Booja-Moort-Kaartdijin
Community Science Conference - Alfred Cove
WA, postponed to November 2020
Be inspired! Join land care practitioners, scientists and
community volunteers come together to celebrate how
community make a difference in caring for our unique
flora and fauna, learn from traditional owners and build
community. This one day event will bring speakers from
all walks of ecological restoration land care, natural
resource management and environmental education
who will share their experiences and give you a chance to
learn, connect and build community.
https://rehabilitatingroe8.org/hands-healing-the-
land/
Ist International Plant Translocation Conference
—- Rome Italy, 22-25 February 2021
The University of Roma Tre will host the 1st International
Plant Translocation Conference from 22-25 February
2021 in Rome. The conference will be a unique occasion
for conservation biologists from around the world to
share their experiences, successes and misfortunes in
restoring threatened plant species. Many plant species
around the globe are threatened or already extirpated
from the wild as a result of habitat loss, pollution, alien
invasive species and climate change. Translocation is now
a common conservation, sometimes highly successful,
sometimes dramatically discouraging. Conservation
biologists, ecologists, taxonomists, geneticists,
practitioners, policy makers and others need a place to
share experiences improve translocation science and
practice to deliver more effective conservation outcomes.
http://host.uniroma3.it/eventi/IPTC2021/
Other conferences, courses and events
NSW Nature Conservation Council’s 2020
Bushfire Conference —- Sydney NSW, postponed
to May 2021
In light of public health advice on the Novel Coronavirus
(COVID-19) we are unfortunately postponing the Nature
Conservation Council of NSW’s Bushfire Conference
scheduled for the 19-20th May 2020 at the NSW Teachers
Federation Conference Centre in Sydney until next
May 2021 (date to be confirmed). We have made this
decision for the safety of our delegates and to assist in
safeguarding the wider community. The rationale for
deferral to May 2021 is primarily due to the uncertainty
about the ongoing impact of COVID-19 and the potential
for bushfires to cause disruption to presenters and
delegates during the 2020-21 fire season. We recognise
that many people were anticipating that this “Cool, warm,
hot: the burning questions” conference would provide an
important opportunity to discuss and learn at first hand
ways to better understand and manage the effects of
fire in our cherished environment, particularly after the
recent devastating fire season. The conference will still act
as a valuable platform, with additional time for recovery,
reflection and learnings from the fires to be shared in
May 2021.
https://www.nature.org.au/healthy-ecosystems/
bushfire-program/bushfire-conference-2020/
Global Botanic Garden Congress - Melbourne
VIC, new dates announced 27 September -
1 October 2021
Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI)’s
Global Botanic Garden Congress is the only global
congress dedicated to botanic gardens and is a key event
in the calendar for botanic garden leaders and staff. It
is an opportunity for the botanic garden community to
come together and share information and experiences.
Held every three or four years the Congress includes
internationally renown plenary speakers and sessions
covering topics relevant to botanic gardens such as
policy, education, governance, conservation and research.
https://www.bgci.org/our-work/services-for-botanic-
gardens/bgci-congresses/bgci-global-botanic-garden-
congresses/
Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 5/
2nd Australian Weeds Conference - Adelaide SA,
new dates announced 10-13 October 2021
The Weed Management Society of South Australia
(WMSSA) with the support of Council of Australasian
Weeds Societies Inc. (CAWS) have decided to postpone
the 22nd Australasian Weeds Conference (22AWC) due
to the COVID-19 Coronavirus pandemic. The WMSSA
and CAWS look forward to co-hosting the event next
year and are excited to announce a new date at our
Research round up
COMPILED BY TOM LE BRETON
University of New South Wales.
Ball, J.W., Robinson, T.P., Wardell-Johnson, G.W., Bovill, J.
and Nevill, P.G. (2020). Fine-scale species distribution
modelling and genotyping by sequencing to examine
hybridisation between two narrow endemic plant
species. Sci Rep 10: 1562. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-
020-58525-2
Blair, J. and Osmond, P. (2020). Employing green
roofs to support endangered plant species: The
Eastern Suburbs Banksia Scrub in Australia. Open
Journal of Ecology 10: 111-140. https://doi.org/10.4236/
oje.2020.103009.
Carthey, A.J., Blumstein, D.T., Gallagher, R.V., Tetu, S.G.
and Gillings, M.R. (2020). Conserving the holobiont.
Functional Ecology 34(4): 764-776. https://doi.
org/10.1111/1365-2435.13504
Catelotti, K., Bino, G. and Offord, C.A. (2020). Thermal
germination niches of Persoonia species and
projected spatiotemporal shifts under a changing
climate. Diversity and Distributions 26(5): 589-609. https://
doi/org/10.1111/ddi.13040
Clark N.F., McComb J.A. andTaylor-Robinson A.W.
(2020). Host species of mistletoes (Loranthaceae and
Viscaceae) in Australia. Australian Journal of Botany.
https://doi.org/10.1071/B1T19137
Collette, J.C. and Ooi, M.K. (2020). Evidence for
physiological seed dormancy cycling in the woody
shrub Asterolasia buxifolia and its ecological
Significance in fire-prone systems. Plant Biology https://
doi.org/10.1111/plb.13105
58 Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020
venue Adelaide Oval on 10-13 October 2021. We are now
looking forward with optimism to 2021. By delaying the
event, we will progress with confidence in our ability to
host the conference that everyone knows and loves at
a time when society is more positive and secure (note
that we will also continue to monitor all advice from the
Australian Government and heed their future directive).
http://wmssa.org.au/22awc-new-dates-announced/
Courtice, B., Hoebee, S.E., Sinclair, S. and Morgan, J.W.
(2020). Local population density affects pollinator
visitation in the endangered grassland daisy Rutidosis
leptorhynchoides (Asteraceae). Australian Journal of
Botany 67(8): 638-648. https://doi.org/10.1071/BT18243
Davies, K.W., Bates, J.D. and Clenet, D. (2020). Improving
restoration success through microsite selection: an
example with planting sagebrush seedlings after
wildfire. Restoration Ecology https://doi.org/10.1111/
rec.13139
Fensham, R.J., Laffineur, B., Collingwood, T.D., Beech, E.,
Bell, S., Hopper, S.D., Phillips, G., Rivers, M.C., Walsh, N.
and White, M. (2020). Rarity or decline: Key concepts
for the Red List of Australian eucalypts. Biological
Conservation 243: 108455. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.
biocon.2020.108455
Fernandez Winzer, L., Cuddy, W., Pegg, G.S., Carnegie, AJ.,
Manea, A. and Leishman, M.R. (2019). Plant architecture,
growth and biomass allocation effects of the invasive
pathogen myrtle rust (Austropuccinia psidii) on
Australian Myrtaceae species after fire. Austral Ecology
https://doi.org/10.1111/aec.12845
Forbes, A.S., Wallace, K.J., Buckley, H.L., Case, B.S.,
Clarkson, B.D. and Norton, D.A. (2020). Restoring
mature-phase forest tree species through enrichment
planting in New Zealand's lowland landscapes.
New Zealand Journal of Ecology 44(1): 1-9. https://doi.
org/10.2307/26872863.
Gaines, L.A.G., Olds, A.D., Henderson, C.J., Connolly,
R.M., Schlacher, T.A., Jones, T.R. and Gilby, B.L. (2020).
Linking ecosystem condition and landscape context
in the conservation of ecosystem multifunctionality.
Biological Conservation 243: 108479. https://doi.
org/10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108479
Gallego, F., Paruelo, J.M., Baeza, S. and Altesor, A. (2020).
Distinct ecosystem types respond differentially
to grazing exclosure. Austral Ecology https://doi.
org/10.1111/aec.12870
Geange S.R., Holloway-Phillips M., Briceno V.F. and
Nicotra A.B. (2020). Aciphylla glacialis mortality, growth
and frost resistance: a field warming experiment.
Australian Journal of Botany 67(8): 599-609. https://doi.
org/10.1071/BT19034
Godefroid, S., Piqueray, J., Delescaille, L.M., Monty, A. and
Mahy, G. (2020). A framework to identify constraints
to post-extinction recovery of plant species—
Application to the case of Bromus bromoideus.
Journal for Nature Conservation 54: 125802. https://doi.
org/10.1016/j.jnc.2020.125802
Han, L., Love, K., Peace, B., Broadhurst, L., England, N.,
Li, L. and Bush, D. (2020). Origin of planted Eucalyptus
benthamii trees in Camden NSW: checking the
effectiveness of circa situm conservation measures
using molecular markers. Biodiversity and Conservation
29(4):1301-1322. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-020-
01936-4
Hewitt, A. (2019). Genetic and environmental
factors in the trade-off between sexual and asexual
reproduction of a rare clonal angiosperm. Austral
Ecology 45: 187-194 https://doi.org/10.1111/aec.12846
lreland, K.B. and Pegg, G.S. (2020). Effect of
Austropuccinia psidii inoculum concentration on
myrtle rust disease incidence and severity. Australasian
Plant Pathol. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13313-020-00699-4
Johnson, D.P., Driscoll, D.A., Catford, J.A. and Gibbons,
P. (2020). Fine-scale variables associated with the
presence of native forbs in natural temperate
grassland. Austral Ecology, 45(3): 366-375. https://doi.
org/10.1111/aec.12866
Keith, D.A., Dunker, B. and Driscoll, D.A. (2020). Dispersal:
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ANPC Corporate Members
ANPC gratefully acknowledges the support of the following corporate members:
Albury Botanic Gardens, NSW Office of Environment and Heritage,
Australian National Botanic Gardens, ACT Saving Our Species, NSW
Rockhampton Regional Council -
Rockhampton Botanic Gardens
Ballarat Botanical Gardens, VIC
Botanic Gardens of Adelaide, SA
Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust, NSW
Centre for Australian National Biodiversity Research, ACT
Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria, VIC
Department of Biodiversity, Conservation
and Attractions, WA Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens, TAS
Wingecarribee Shire Council
WSP Australia Pty Ltd
Environment, Planning and Sustainable
Development Directorate, ACT
Naturelinks, VIC
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Australasian Plant Conservation | Vol29No1 June — August 2020 61
The Australian Native
Seed Survey Report
This newly launched
ANPC report highlights the
concerns of the Australian native
seed sector that future demand
will be difficult to meet.
Download your free copy
https://www.anpc.asn.au/wp-content/
uploads/2020/03/ANPC_
NativeSeedSurveyReport_WEB.pdf
: Nola Hancock
Image: Acacia terminalis subsp is (credit Gavin Phillips, Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney), oo — ae =) aul G e SON = Roy
Martin Driver
(y)) Australian Network for Diode nae Linda Broadhurst
WY Plant Conservation Inc Industries 31 January 2020
Sue MACQUARIE arr A ralia
: ” Univer SITY « : BIODIVERSITY Greening — |
SYDNEY: AUSTRALIA RESEARCH
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