PRIORITISATION OF RABBIT CONTROL WITHIN ...

PRIORITISATION OF RABBIT CONTROL WITHIN THE PARKS VICTORIA ESTATE: Reducing Risks to Environmental Values A REPORT FOR THE NATIONAL PARKS DIVISION, PARKS VICTORIA

ARTHUR RYLAH INSTITUTE FOR ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH DEPARTMENT OF SUSTAINABILITY AND ENVIRONMENT 123 Brown Street, HEIDELBERG, Victoria 3084

NOVEMBER 2003

PRIORITISATION OF RABBIT CONTROL WITHIN THE PARKS VICTORIA ESTATE; Reducing Risks to Environmental Values

November 2003

Prepared for National Parks Division Parks Victoria by Kirstin Long, Alan Robley, David Cheal, Matt White, Oberon Carter, Arn Tolsma and Alison Oates

Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research Department of Sustainability & Environment 123 Brown Street, HEIDELBERG, Victoria 3084

Long et al. 2003

DISCLAIMER: This publication may be of assistance to you but the State of Victoria and its officers do not guarantee that the publication is without flaw of anything or is wholly appropriate for your particular purposes and therefore disclaims all liability for any error, loss or other consequences which may arise from you relying on ant information in this publication.

CITATION: Long, K., Robley, A., Cheal, D., White, M., Carter, O., Tolsma, A. and Oates, A. (2003). Prioritisation of Rabbit Control within the Parks Victoria’s Estate; Reducing Risks to Environmental Values. Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, Department of Sustainability and Environment, Melbourne. Report to Parks Victoria.

Cover photo taken by Tim Bloomfield, Environment First, Melbourne.

Prioritisation of Rabbit Control within the Parks Victoria Estate

TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................................. I EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ........................................................................................................... 1 1

BACKGROUND TO THE REPORT .................................................................................. 3

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INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................... 3 2.1 BACKGROUND: THE RABBIT PROBLEM ............................................................................... 3

3

AIMS .................................................................................................................................. 6

4

METHODS ......................................................................................................................... 7 4.1 DISTRIBUTION OF RABBITS IN PARKS................................................................................. 7 4.2 ASSESSING VEGETATION COMMUNITIES AT RISK FROM RABBIT DISTURBANCE .................... 7 4.2.1

Ecological Vegetation Divisions ............................................................................. 7

4.2.2

Assessing the Susceptibility of Ecological Vegetation Divisions to Rabbit

Disturbance ........................................................................................................................ 8 4.2.3

Ecological Vegetation Division Descriptions ........................................................ 10

4.2.4

Ecological Vegetation Division Weightings .......................................................... 20

4.3 RANKING PARKS ............................................................................................................ 21 4.4 STOCHASTIC EVENTS ..................................................................................................... 22 4.5 THREATENED SPECIES ................................................................................................... 22 4.6 CONTROL PROGRAMS IN PARKS ..................................................................................... 24 5

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION ........................................................................................ 25 5.1 DISTRIBUTION OF RABBITS IN PARKS............................................................................... 25 5.2 SUSCEPTIBLE ECOLOGICAL VEGETATION DIVISIONS ........................................................ 25 5.3 PARK RANKINGS ............................................................................................................ 26 5.3.1

Additional Factors Influencing Park Susceptibility and Priorities ......................... 46

5.4 THREATENED SPECIES ................................................................................................... 47 5.5 ALIGNMENT OF CONTROL PROGRAMS AND PRIORITY PARKS ............................................ 55 5.6 STOCHASTIC EVENTS ..................................................................................................... 68 5.7 KNOWLEDGE GAPS ........................................................................................................ 70 5.8 SUMMARY OF RESULTS .................................................................................................. 71 6

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................... 73

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REFERENCES ................................................................................................................ 73

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TABLES TABLE 1. CLASSIFICATION OF ECOLOGICAL VEGETATION DIVISIONS INTO RABBIT SUSCEPTIBILITY CATEGORIES. .......................................................................................................................

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TABLE 2. SYSTEM FOR SCORING THE THREAT TO AN EVD BASED ON THE INTERACTION BETWEEN STOCHASTIC EVENTS AND RABBIT GRAZING. .........................................................................

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TABLE 3. VICTORIAN PARKS RANKED ACCORDING TO THEIR RABBIT SUSCEPTIBILITY ...................... 39 TABLE 4. REGIONAL DISTRIBUTION OF PARK RANKS. .................................................................... 45 TABLE 5. SPECIES AND COMMUNITIES IDENTIFIED AS BEING AT RISK FROM RABBIT DISTURBANCE.... 49 TABLE 6. RANKED PARKS THAT HAVE CONDUCTED RABBIT CONTROL PROGRAMS IN THE LAST FOUR FINANCIAL YEARS ...............................................................................................................

55

TABLE 7. HIGH TO MEDIUM PRIORITY PARKS FOR WHICH THERE ARE NO RECENT RECORDS OF RABBIT CONTROL................................................................................................................

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TABLE 8. LEVEL OF RISK POSED TO EVDS BY THE FREQUENCY OF STOCHASTIC EVENTS AND THE VEGETATION’S SUSCEPTIBILITY TO RABBITS FOLLOWING SUCH EVENTS ..................................

69

FIGURES 2

FIGURE 1. W EIGHTED SCORES FOR THE 15 RABBIT SUSCEPTIBILITY CATEGORIES ( /3 WEIGHTING FACTOR).. ..........................................................................................................................

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FIGURE 2. THE DISTRIBUTION OF EUROPEAN RABBITS RELATIVE TO THE PARKS VICTORIA ESTATE.... ......................................................................................................................................... 27 FIGURE 3A. THE LOCATION OF THE FIVE HIGHEST VEGETATION SUSCEPTIBILITY CATEGORIES IN THE W EST REGION .....................................................................................................................29 FIGURE 3B. THE LOCATION OF THE FIVE HIGHEST VEGETATION SUSCEPTIBILITY CATEGORIES IN THE CENTRAL REGION ................................................................................................................31 FIGURE 3C. THE LOCATION OF THE FIVE HIGHEST VEGETATION SUSCEPTIBILITY CATEGORIES IN THE MELBOURNE METROPOLITAN REGION ...................................................................................33 FIGURE 3D. THE LOCATION OF THE FIVE HIGHEST VEGETATION SUSCEPTIBILITY CATEGORIES IN THE CITY & BAYS REGION............................................................................................................35 FIGURE 3E. THE LOCATION OF THE FIVE HIGHEST VEGETATION SUSCEPTIBILITY CATEGORIES IN THE EAST REGION ......................................................................................................................37 FIGURE 4. PRIORITY PARKS WITH AND WITHOUT RABBIT CONTROL.................................................59 FIGURE 5. DISTRIBUTION OF RABBIT CONTROL EFFORT ACROSS THE PRIORITY CATEGORIES. ......... 66 FIGURE 6. AVERAGE COST OF RABBIT CONTROL PER PARK FROM JULY 1999 TO JULY 2003 WITHIN EACH PRIORITY CATEGORY. ................................................................................................

67

FIGURE 7. REGIONAL DISTRIBUTION OF HIGH TO MEDIUM PRIORITY PARKS COMPARED WITH THE DISTRIBUTION OF RECENT (1999-2003) RABBIT CONTROL FUNDING. ..............................................68

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APENDICES APPENDIX 1 – CLASSIFICATION OF EVCS INTO EVDS .................................................................. 77 APPENDIX 2 - EVDS WITHIN PARKS........................................................................................... 109 APPENDIX 3 - PARK RANKINGS ................................................................................................ 181 APPENDIX 4 – PARKS W ITHOUT MAPPED EVCS ........................................................................ 245 APPENDIX 5 – LOCATIONS OF EVDS (>20HA) IN THE FIVE HIGHEST SUSCEPTIBILITY CATEGORIES ....................................................................................................................................... 253 APPENDIX 6 - PARKS CONTAINING SPECIES IDENTIFIED AS BEING 'AT RISK' FROM RABBIT DISTURBANCE....................................................................................................273

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY When Parks Victoria develops its natural values management programs a key principle is to achieve the greatest risk reduction in areas of high environmental value.

This report

documents the strategic effectiveness of Parks Victoria’s rabbit control programs in reducing risk to susceptible vegetation communities and flora and fauna species. Rabbits are widespread throughout Victorian parks. In 2001/2002 Parks Victoria conducted 122 rabbit control programs. However, it is not known if these programs targeted areas in which rabbits pose the greatest risk to flora and fauna communities and therefore whether benefits to biodiversity conservation were maximised. To determine priority areas for rabbit control, we assessed the susceptibility of vegetation within the Parks Victoria estate in terms of its susceptibility to rabbit disturbance. A team of flora ecologists divided the State’s vegetation communities into 32 categories, known as Ecological Vegetation Divisions (EVDs), and then made an expert assessment of the susceptibility of these to rabbit disturbance.

Each EVD was weighted to represent the

magnitude of this susceptibility. The distribution of the most susceptible EVDs was mapped across the Parks Victoria estate. The areas of each EVD within a park were multiplied by their relevant susceptibility weightings and the sum of these formed the park score by which all parks were ranked. Parks were then divided into four priority categories based on their rank: High, High-medium, Medium and Low. Parks without mapped vegetation could not be ranked. Rabbit control programs conducted in parks over the last four financial years were mapped to determine their alignment with the identified park priority categories. Flora and fauna species recognised as being at risk from rabbit disturbance were also mapped across the Parks estate to highlight the parks within each priority category that have the greatest complement of ‘atrisk’ species. Over the last four financial years, rabbit control programs have been conducted in 12 of the 22 High Priority parks (55%), 31 of the 87 High-medium Priority parks (36%), 36 of the 109 of Medium Priority parks (33%) and 114 of the 1963 Low Priority parks (6%). Proportionally more funding has been allocated to parks in the High Priority category compared to all other categories; the Low Priority category has also received proportionally more funding than the High-medium and Medium priority categories. On a regional basis the West region has the largest proportion of High Priority parks, followed by the East and Central regions, with very few parks from the City & Bays and 1

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Melbourne Metropolitan regions occuring in the top priority categories.

The resources

allocated to rabbit control programs in the West, Central and City & Bays regions reflect the number of Medium to High Priority parks there. However, the Melbourne Metropolitan region receives more resources, and the East region less resources, than is dictated by their complement of Medium to High Priority parks. Following stochastic events such as fires, floods and droughts, the susceptibility of some EVDs will be heightened.

Those most at risk are the Coastal, Granitic Hillslopes and

Freshwater Wetland (ephemeral) EVDs.

Although this cannot be incorporated into the

ranking process, it highlights that it may be pertinent to maintain some flexibility in the allocation of rabbit control funding to ensure the protection of these communities should the need arise. One hundred flora species, 19 fauna species, 1 flora community and 1 fauna community are identified as being potentially threatened by rabbit disturbance. These species/communities occur in 86% of the High Priority parks, 77% of the High-medium Priority parks, 42% of the Medium Priority parks, and 8% of the Low Priority parks. The higher proportion of High Priority parks containing ‘at risk’ species is partially a reflection of the bias inherent in the ranking process (large parks typically rank higher than smaller ones). There are a number of other factors such as current rabbit densities, the susceptibility of adjacent vegetation, the park boundary to area ratio, the conservation status and condition of the vegetation, the degree of cross-tenure control program collaboration, and the capacity for rabbit control programs to compliment fox control, that should be considered when assessing the validity of conducting rabbit control programs in parks. These are discussed in this report, although it is beyond the scope of this study to incorporate such factors into the prioritisation process. There are also a number of limitations to this report due to knowledge gaps. The first of these is the lack of data available on rabbit distribution within parks (and within Victoria as a whole). Parks Victoria’s capacity to prioritise and monitor the effectiveness of rabbit control would be greatly improved if a systematic method of surveying rabbit distribution and abundance in parks were implemented. Our knowledge of rabbit impacts is incomplete and inexact, particularly in terms of the effects rabbits have on threatened flora and fauna species and their long-term effects on vegetation communities. The results of this report should be interpreted accordingly and continued efforts should be made by all land managers to monitor rabbit impacts so that we can collectively improve our ability to identify high-risk areas.

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1 BACKGROUND TO THE REPORT This report has been prepared for the National Parks Division, Parks Victoria. Parks Victoria aims to ensure that resources allocated to their environmental management programs are directed efficiently so as to maximise conservation benefits. In an effort to achieve this aim, Parks Victoria commissioned the Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research (ARIER) to assess and report on the strategic effectiveness of rabbit control programs on Parks Victoria’s estate.

2 INTRODUCTION Parks Victoria manages 16% of (terrestrial) Victoria and in doing so plays a crucial role in ensuring the protection of the natural values within this area. Legislation governing the protection of these natural values includes the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988, which ensures that threats to all native flora and fauna occurring in the parks and reserves system are managed, and the National Parks Act 1975 and Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994, which specifically legislate for the eradication or control of exotic fauna in parks and reserves. A survey of 124 parks managed by Parks Victoria found that only six parks, all in metropolitan areas, were free of rabbits, and that rabbits were impacting on threatened species in a third of all parks (Anon 2000). In 2001/2002 Parks Victoria conducted 122 rabbit management projects. These projects undoubtedly contributed to the localised control of rabbit numbers, however, it is not known whether they targeted areas in which rabbits pose the greatest risk to flora and fauna communities. As such, it is not known if Parks Victoria’s investment in rabbit control maximised the benefit to biodiversity conservation.

2.1 Background: The rabbit problem The first rabbits brought to mainland Australia were released at ‘Barwon Park’ near Geelong in Victoria on Christmas Day 1859 and a second release occurred later in South Australia. These two populations spread across Australia at a rate of between 10 and 100 kilometres per year (Williams et al. 1995), making rabbits the fastest colonising mammal anywhere in the world (Caughley 1977). Rabbits are now widespread in Australia south of the Tropic of Capricorn and are listed under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act

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1999 as a threatening process, making landholders obliged to control them (Environment Australia 1999). Rabbits are generally dependent on burrows to provide them with shelter from climatic extremes, protection from predators and a place in which to rear young; this reliance has the ability to restrict their distribution. The soil depth, hardness and permeability to water are major factors that determine the suitability of the substrate for burrowing (Williams et al. 1995). Deep, friable, elevated, sandy soils are optimal for burrowing while cracking clays and soils that are difficult to dig in, readily waterlogged (i.e. those with greater than 40% clay content or 50% silt and clay), or shallow (providing lttle protection from climatic extremes or predators), are rarely used (Myers and Parker 1965, Parer and Libke 1985, Williams et al. 1995). In some cases it appears that rabbits may have only been able to inhabit areas with hard soils because they exploited existing marsupials burrows (Myers and Parker 1965, Parer and Libke 1985). Often, particularly in regions where extremes of temperature are not an issue (Williams et al. 1995), dense vegetation provides adequate harbour for rabbits (Wheeler et al. 1981) although they remain dependent on burrows, or at least ‘stops’ (shallow burrows), for breeding (Myers 1958). When the vegetation density is high, burrows are often small and scarce, but as vegetation density decreases the number and size of burrows increases as does the rabbits’ dependence on them (Williams et al. 1995). Rabbit grazing has the potential to substantially reduce agricultural productivity (Wood et al. 1987), with annual losses in South Australia alone in 1993/94 estimated to be around $20 million (Williams et al. 1995). Estimating the ecological cost of rabbits is much more complex and is largely unquantifiable. It is generally acknowledged that rabbits pose threats to native flora through grazing, browsing and ringbarking plants (Williams et al. 1995) and sometimes, usually in dry years, feeding on plant roots (Wood et al. 1987).

The soil

disturbance caused by the digging of burrows and scrapes also affects vegetation and promotes the establishment of weeds over native species (Wood et al. 1987).

Rabbits

selectively consume the most palatable plants, which leads to changes in the floristic composition of vegetation communities (Newsome et al. 1999). This essentially reverses the usual process of succession in some habitats, with annual species and weeds replacing perennial grasses and shrubs (Williams et al. 1995). Although rabbits are predominantly grazers, they also browse the seedlings and vegetative suckers of some trees and shrubs (Lange and Graham 1983, Foran et al. 1985, Wimbush and Forrester 1988, Auld 1993). While the immediate effects of this are unlikely to be obvious, the long-term structural changes that will occur by the non-replacement of mature plants is likely to result in serious ‘trickle-down’ effects by reducing habitat suitability for fauna (Sandell and Start 1999).

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Most of the research that has been conducted on the impacts of rabbit grazing on vegetation communities in Australia has been focussed in arid and semi-arid areas, in particular, on the rangelands (Cochrane and McDonald 1966, Cooke 1981, 1982, Lange and Graham 1983, Foran et al. 1985, Leigh et al. 1989, Auld 1993). This is presumably due, at least in part, to the large economic drain that rabbits cause to the agricultural production of these areas (Foran 1984, Williams et al. 1995), but also because rabbits pose serious threats to the indigenous vegetation communities. Regeneration events for trees and shrubs in arid and semi-arid areas follow the irregular, infrequent rainfall patterns, and if rabbits are present in sufficient numbers they can potentially eliminate an entire generation of palatable seedlings (Lange and Graham 1983, Cooke 1987). There are less data on the susceptibility of temperate Australian vegetation to rabbit damage, but the research that is available tells similar stories of seedling and regrowth suppression (Cooke 1987, Wimbush and Forrester 1988) and reductions in vegetation biomass and diversity (Leigh et al. 1987, Norman 1988). No native mammal has become extinct north of the range of the rabbit since European settlement (Williams et al. 1995). Although it is acknowledged that the rabbit is unlikely to have been the sole cause of the faunal extinctions within its range, it has almost certainly been a significant contributor to the loss of native wildlife (Morton 1990). Rabbits compete with native fauna for food and shelter (Dawson and Ellis 1979, Martin and Sobey 1983, Priddel et al. 1995). This is particularly prevalent in times of drought when fauna in arid areas rely on the remaining vegetation in fertile run-on areas (Morton 1990). In high densities, rabbits have the capacity to reduce vegetation structure and cover, potentially exposing native fauna to predators (Newsome et al. 1999, Sandell and Start 1999). Additionally, because rabbits are the principal prey of foxes and feral cats (Williams et al. 1995), high rabbit populations support high populations of predators which opportunistically prey on native fauna (Seebeck 1978). It follows that fluctuations in rabbit populations are usually proceeded by a similar (lagged) response in predator numbers (Sandell and Start 1999, Holden and Mutze 2002), and therefore it is predicted that predation pressure on native fauna increases when rabbit numbers decrease (Williams et al. 1995). Biological controls continue to depress rabbit numbers in some parts of the State, particularly in semi-arid areas where Calicivirus has eliminated the cyclic eruption in numbers following good seasons and is keeping rabbit numbers low (P. Sandell pers. comm.). Despite this these controls have not proved to be a panacea. Rabbits still occur in almost every Victorian park (Anon 2000) and the threats they pose to native flora and fauna warrant the implementation of continuing control measures. However, the level of threat posed by rabbits will vary between parks (and between vegetation communities within parks), as will the resources required to

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undertake control programs. In the national Threat Abatement Plan for Competition and Land Degradation by Feral Rabbits (Environment Australia 1999) it is acknowledged that the elimination of rabbits from Australia is not feasible given the control techniques and resources currently at our disposal, and instead we must prioritise our threat abatement efforts to maximise their effect. Currently, Parks Victoria uses a number of broad criteria to assess the validity of rabbit control funding requests made by park managers.

These criteria

determine whether proposed control programs will: protect threatened species and/or biodiversity values, meet legislative obligations or obligations to neighbouring landholders, and whether the control program will have the capacity to contain or eradicate rabbits from an area. While these are important considerations they do not provide the capacity to assess the broad-scale potential impacts rabbits may have on a park’s biodiversity values nor can they quantify the scale of this impact between parks.

3 AIMS The general aim of this report is to establish priority areas for rabbit management within the Parks Victoria estate according to the threats rabbits pose to native flora and fauna assemblages. Additionally the report aims to assess the alignment between these priority areas and Parks Victoria’s current rabbit control programs. More specifically the report aims to: •

Aggregate flora communities into ecologically similar units, Ecological Vegetation Divisions (EVDs), and determine the susceptibility of these to rabbits.

•

Identify those parks that contain the largest areas of highly susceptible EVDs, putting them at greatest risk from rabbit disturbance, and assess these in relation to the current distribution of rabbits.

•

Identify flora and fauna species and communities that are at risk from rabbit disturbance and map these across the Parks Victoria estate to further identify priority areas for rabbit control.

•

Map and analyse the spatial association between Parks Victoria’s current rabbit management activity and parks and reserves with the highest ranked complement of susceptible EVDs.

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4 METHODS

4.1 Distribution of Rabbits in Parks The distribution of rabbits in Victoria was mapped using data from the Atlas of Victorian Wildlife, Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE). To ensure these data best reflect the current distribution of rabbits, records older than 1980 were not used. Distribution data from Parks Victoria’s State of the Parks survey were used to supplement the Wildlife Atlas records. Pest management personal within DSE and the Catchment Manangement Authorites were contacted in an atempt to locate additional databases that detail the current distribution and abundance of rabbits across Victoria. Only a few regional databases were found – these have not been used.

4.2 Assessing Vegetation Communities at Risk from Rabbit Disturbance 4.2.1 Ecological Vegetation Divisions To rank vegetation communities according to their susceptibility to rabbit disturbance, it was first necessary to determine the level at which this assessment would be made. For example, it would not be feasible or biologically meaningful to evaluate the risk posed to each Ecological Vegetation Class, EVC (of which there are over 800), especially given that rabbits are unlikely to distinguish between similar EVCs. Instead, we grouped EVCs according to the ecological similarities they show in terms of their likely susceptibility to rabbits. This process was carried out by a panel of flora ecologists (David Cheal, Matt White, Obe Carter, Alison Oates, Arn Tolsma), who possess an extensive knowledge of the State’s vegetation communities. In the past, EVCs have been grouped to allow the production of simplified vegetation maps (David Parkes, DSE, unpublished data), however these groupings are often partially delimited by geographic boundaries and therefore could not be used in this report. Thirty-two new vegetation groups were defined (Table 1); from here on these groups will be referred to as Ecological Vegetation Divisions, EVDs. The names assigned to EVDs aim to broadly reflect the vegetation communities they encompass. A list of EVDs with their constituent EVCs is provided in Appendix 1. It should be noted that although every effort was made to allocate each EVC to an appropriate EVD there are several inconsistencies in the original EVC mapping that may result in some

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vegetation communities being incorrectly classified. As an example, the Plains Grassland EVC (EVC number 132), which incorporates grasslands across the Basalt Plains was placed in the Basalt Grassland EVD. It was later discovered that this EVC has also been used to map ecologically dissimilar grasslands in the Mallee. As a consequence of this mapping error, EVC 132 has now been manually split between the Basalt Plains and the Alluvial Plains Grassland EVDs. This was an obvious and easily detectable error, however other minor mapping errors are likely to have been missed due to the magnitude of the EVC dataset, which receives no formal curation.

4.2.2 Assessing the Susceptibility of Ecological Vegetation Divisions to Rabbit Disturbance Vegetation communities are differentially susceptible to over-browsing/grazing, dependent on many features of the landscape - features endogenous to the vegetation community (such as the palatability of the accessible plant material, its seasonality and its nutritional quality) and features exogenous to the vegetation community (such as the accessibility of soils suitable for burrows, the likelihood of flooding, the temperature régime and the accessibility of other vegetation communities with more suitable forage).

In addition, EVDs are large scale

vegetation units, incorporating perhaps many EVCs.

As such, they are not internally

homogeneous in each EVD’s susceptibility to rabbit impacts. Frequently, some components of an EVD will be particularly susceptible, whereas other components will exhibit little rabbit impact.

Nevertheless, EVDs have enough internal consistency that a useful summary

statement as to their susceptibility to rabbit impact can be made. Each member of the flora panel individually scored EVDs from 1-5 with one indicating a high susceptibility to rabbit impact and five indicating rabbits rarely impact on the vegetation. When the scores were viewed collectively, outlying scores were discussed. In most cases, outlying scores were the result of an incomplete understanding of the EVCs encompassed by each EVD (remembering that the EVDs were newly defined at this stage), or lesser expertise in the vegetation type in question. After discussion, panel members were permitted to review outlying scores if they believed it was justified. EVDs were then ordered by their mean score and divided into susceptibility categories. Category boundaries were established where mean scores differed, creating 15 categories in all (Table 1).

The flora panel is confident that these category boundaries reflect real

differences in the susceptibilities of the EVDs. Each category represents a level of threat and therefore EVDs within a category are believed to be similarly susceptible to rabbit impacts.

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Table 1. Classification of Ecological Vegetation Divisions into rabbit susceptibility categories. The classification of EVDs into categories is based on differences in the mean scores. Category 1 is the highest susceptibility category and Category 15 the lowest. EVDs within a category are believed to have the same susceptibility. The differences between the mean scores does not reflect the magnitude of the susceptibility differences between the categories. Susceptibility Category

Ecological Vegetation Division

Mean Score

Semi-arid Woodland (non-eucalypt)

1.0

Chenopod Shrubland

1.0

2

Granitic Hillslopes

1.5

3

Riverine Woodland / Forest

1.8

Coastal

1.8

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland

1.8

Forby Forest

2.0

Basalt Grassland

2.0

Chenopod Mallee

2.0

Alluvial Plains Woodland

2.3

Alluvial Plains Grassland

2.3

Freshwater Wetland (ephemeral)

2.3

Grassy / Heathy Dry Forest

2.8

Saline Wetland

2.8

Western Plains Woodland

2.8

7

Foothills Forest

3.0

8

Ironbark / Box

3.3

9

Spinifex Mallee

3.5

Siliceous Mallee

3.5

10

Broombush Whipstick

3.8

11

Heathland (sands)

4.0

12

Treed Swampy Wetland

4.3

Riparian (higher rainfall)

4.3

High Altitude Shrubland / Woodland

4.3

Swampy Scrub

4.3

13

Lowland Forest (Eastern)

4.5

14

Damp Forest

4.8

Alpine Treeless

4.8

Wet Forest

5.0

Rainforest

5.0

High Altitude Wetland

5.0

Freshwater Wetland (permanent)

5.0

1

4

5

6

15

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4.2.3 Ecological Vegetation Division Descriptions Below is a description of each EVD along with a description of the factors that were inherent in determining their susceptibility to rabbits.

EVDs are ordered from most to least

susceptible; these susceptibility differences will be quantified in section 4.2.4.

4.2.3.1 Highly Susceptible EVDs Semi-arid Woodland (non eucalypt) – category 1. This is perhaps the most susceptible EVD to impacts by rabbits. Mean annual rainfalls are not high and droughts are relatively common. The soils are typically loams and clay loams (or at least solonetz in aspect), fairly deep and relatively fertile. As a result, the ground layer is usually dominated by grasses, forbs and non-sclerophyllous subshrubs, and the sclerophyll component is uncommon to lacking - making for a relatively perennial (aseasonal) ground layer composed of nutritious species with few chemical or physical defences against browsing/grazing. Taller shrubs are frequently rare and the dominant trees are scattered - both features tending to relatively abundant forage at ground level. The typical tree dominants (spp of Callitris and Casuarina; and other non-myrtaceous and often non-sclerophyllous genera, such as Alectryon, Myoporum, Santalum) are also palatable, but, when mature, inaccessible to rabbits. Nevertheless, such communities are rarely burnt and thus regeneration is not primarily episodic, but continuous. This renders the canopy susceptible to elimination by rabbits as the typical seasonal drought concentrates their browsing on tree seedlings. Every stratum is susceptible to rabbits and every stratum is dominated by palatable species. Chenopod Shrubland – category 1. This is an uncommon EVD in Victoria and restricted to the most arid parts of the state, leading to low growth-rates. The soils are relatively fertile and the dominant shrubs are thus not sclerophyllous but relatively palatable. They are also aseasonal, providing forage throughout the year. The ground layer (mostly herbs and annual subshrubs) is seasonal in occurrence, but also palatable. As this community is rarely, if ever, burnt, regeneration is not dependent on fires. Soils may be deep and highly suitable in which to burrow, or, if shallow, the stands are usually relatively small in extent and thus rabbits find highly suitable burrow sites in the deeper soils of nearby vegetation. Every stratum is susceptible to rabbits and every stratum is dominated by palatable species. Granitic Hillslopes – category 2.

The open forests typical of lower altitude granitic

hillslopes occur scattered wherever suitable geological landforms occur, although not in areas with high rainfall (such as Donna Buang and Wilsons Promontory). The canopy is typically

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eucalypts and thus not notably susceptible to rabbit browsing, but the ground stratum is dominated by perennial palatable herbs.

There are ample opportunities for rabbits to

construct deep burrows amongst the rocks and in the deep skeletal soils (which do not waterlog), such that even the sclerophyllous shrubs have trouble regenerating adequately to cope with the heavy rabbit browsing.

Moderate rainfalls lead to replacement of the

susceptible perennial native herbs and subshrubs with introduced annuals, thus concentrating rabbit impact on the remaining shrub seedlings during late summer to early autumn. All the lower strata are susceptible to rabbits and most of the native species are palatable. The soils are suitable for burrows.

4.2.3.2 Susceptible EVDs Riverine Woodland / Forest – category 3 A strip of riverine woodlands or forests fringes rivers throughout lowland Victoria. Flooded forests are poor burrowing habitat, but most of Victoria’s lowland rivers now rarely flood, and even when they do flood peaks are greatly reduced. Abundant fallen logs provide harbour, enabling rabbits to occupy riverine forests that are not currently flooded, even though the typical clay loams are not particularly suitable for burrow construction. The eucalypts that dominate the canopy are largely unaffected by rabbit browsing (the foliage is inaccessible to rabbits and mass flood-cued regeneration ensures that some individuals escape being browsed), but the more or less dense shrub layer is composed of palatable species (particularly during their seedling stage). The perennial and palatable herbs that dominate the ground flora further heighten suitability as rabbit habitat. All the lower strata are susceptible to rabbits and most species are highly palatable at some stage of their life cycles. Fallen timber and dense shrubs provide rabbit harbour, even though the soils are not suitable for burrows. Coastal – category 3 Most of the coast is fringed with a variety of vegetation communities. Some of the most characteristic of these show little evidence of rabbit impacts, notably dense shrublands dominated by sclerophyllous (hence low quality browse) tall shrubs. However, some constituent communities are highly susceptible as they’re composed of palatable herbs and low shrubs (including succulent species that reduce the requirement for free water for rabbits), as can be seen on exposed cliffs and strand vegetation adjoining beaches. Interdune swales are often dominated by palatable herbs and thus, although the dominant adjoining shrublands are not particularly susceptible to rabbits, localised sites are very heavily impacted, particularly as the frequently sandy soils are highly suitable for burrow construction.

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Rabbit impact is localised, but can reach excessively high levels in suitable vegetation communities scattered through a matrix of largely unaffected shrublands and shrubby woodlands. Rocky Outcrop Shrubland – category 3. The shallow soils and highly insolated declivities of rocky outcrops are a unique and distinctive habitat. Although usually dominated by sclerophyllous shrubs or small trees (and hence low quality browse), the optimal harbour provided by the exposed rocks enables large numbers of rabbits to establish. They have a heavy impact on the herb layer, which is particularly fragile as the soils may be very shallow and dry rapidly in late spring, forcing the rabbits to concentrate more heavily on the few taller herbs and low shrubs. Rocky outcrops in the ranges, surrounded by sclerophyll forest, are usually less affected by rabbits than the rocky outcrops of the plains and northern slopes. Rabbit impact is often very heavy as the ground strata are notably fragile and the rocky habitat provides prime habitat for rabbit burrows or other harbour during the dry months. Forby Forest – category 4. The lower slopes of the ranges often support an open-forest dominated by eucalypts (themselves little-affected by rabbits), above an open shrub layer of sclerophyllous shrubs (which may be leguminous and thus somewhat susceptible to rabbit impact, as the foliage is relatively high in nitrogen). Perhaps the most characteristic stratum is a largely continuous and species-rich ground layer, dominated by perennial grasses and herbs. Soils are often deeper and more fertile than nearby more sclerophyllous forests and their more open (loamy) structure permits better water-holding characteristics, encouraging or maintaining the forb dominance - a highly palatable and relatively aseasonal forage for rabbits. Soils, while somewhat loamy and not as attractive as deep sands, still enable burrow construction. Rabbit impact is not often heavy but may be so in localised patches. The characteristic ground layer is particularly susceptible to species elimination from heavy rabbit browsing. Basalt Grassland – category 4. Although the heavy loams that characterise the basalt plains are poor prospects for rabbit burrows, most grasslands also have scattered rocky knolls that are highly suitable for rabbit burrows.

The surrounding grasslands are dominated by

perennial grasses (with few chemical defences to grazing, as is typical of most grasses) interspersed with highly palatable forbs. The lack of shrubs and trees probably assists in keeping rabbit numbers lower than they would otherwise be (little shelter from predators), but rabbit numbers may be locally very high. Where rabbit browsing/grazing pressure is high the native forbs are quickly eliminated, although a framework of native tussock grass dominance

12


may remain. In extreme situations, even the native tussocks may be removed in favour of introduced annuals. Rabbit impact is not often heavy but may be so in localised patches. Browsing by rabbits selectively and preferentially removes the native forbs. Rabbit abundance is substantially dependent on the distribution of nearby sites more suitable for burrows than the heavy clay loams of the open grasslands. Chenopod Mallee – category 4. Much of the far north-west supports Chenopod Mallee. The soils are more or less stabilised weakly calcareous earths over dense clay subsoils, hence providing suitable conditions for burrow construction (depending on the depth to the compacted B horizon). The eucalypt canopy only very rarely regenerates in response to the very rare wildfires and thus is largely immune from rabbit impacts, as regeneration is coordinated. Surface water is rare (absent in summer) and this restricts rabbit numbers. However, the characteristic shrub and large herb layer is composed of long-lived palatable species no more than 1 metre tall. Rabbit impact is obvious and long-lasting, leading to invasion by introduced annuals and local elimination of the characteristic shrubby layer (chenopods and Zygophyllum spp). Alluvial Plains Woodland – category 5. The dense clay loams of the alluvial plains of northern Victoria are not particularly conducive to burrow construction, but they retain moisture at depth (assisting water balance for rabbits during the dry summer months). In good condition, these woodlands comprised an open tree layer, an open shrub layer (the seedlings of which were also often palatable) and a relatively dense herbaceous layer of largely palatable perennial species (heavy rabbit browsing may eliminate these, in favour of introduced annuals). They also include much rabbit harbour in the form of fallen timber. Rabbit impact may be notably severe in woodlands on better-drained soils. However, most of these woodlands have been significantly disturbed following European settlement and in many cases there has been intensive regrowth of woody species. These disturbed versions of Alluvial Plains Woodland are less attractive to rabbits (the herb layer is greatly reduced). Alluvial Plains Grassland – category 5. Where the clay loams of the northern plains were particularly dense, seasonal soil waterlogging contributed to the inability of trees to establish and the resultant grasslands were dominated by perennial tussock grasses and largely perennial forbs with relatively high foliar nitrogen content – hence very suitable fodder for rabbits. However the soils are not conducive to burrow construction (as they’re very dense

13

Long et al. 2003

and subject to winter waterlogging) and the lack of shrubs and trees provided little protection against predation. Where grasslands abut other soils or vegetation communities more suitable to burrow construction, rabbit numbers and impact may be considerably higher than in broad swathes of grassland. Rabbit impact is not heavy, but may be so in localised patches near suitable burrow sites and in grassland margins. Freshwater Wetland (ephemeral) – category 5.

Hydrated wetlands obviously do not

provide suitable burrow sites, but wetlands that have dried may provide highly nutritious fodder as the alluvial/colluvial soils are very fertile and more moist than the surrounding landscape. Lake beds are usually dominated by herbs with high foliar nitrogen content, interspersed amongst a few taller species (usually large forbs, sometimes shrubs such as Muehlenbeckia spp) which may be protected from browsing by alkaloids or other defences. Even when dry, lake beds and ephemeral swamps are highly unsuitable for burrow construction, but such wetlands are usually fringed by lunettes or high ground that is very suitable for burrow construction (deep, loose material with moisture at depth). Rabbit impact is nil when the lakes have free water, but can become very heavy when the lakebeds are drying, decreasing to negligible when the lake beds have thoroughly dried. Heavy rabbit browsing/grazing as lake beds dry rapidly leads to dominance by introduced annuals.

4.2.3.3 Less Susceptible EVDs Grassy/Heathy Dry Forest – category 6. Although occurring in similar situations to Forby Forest (discussed above), Heathy Dry Forest is more sclerophyllous (hence lower quality forage) and regeneration is more episodic (and dependent on fires). Regeneration en masse decreases community susceptibility to rabbit browsing/grazing. Although the regenerants are usually peculiarly susceptible to browsing (few dormant buds laid down and foliage which is markedly less sclerophyllous and with fewer chemical defences than mature foliage of the same species), the abundance of regenerating vegetation ‘swamps’ the browsers and many individuals escape severe browsing. In a few situations, particularly near vegetation which is far more attractive to rabbits, Grassy/Heathy Dry Forest may be heavily browsed/grazed. against predators and suitable soils for burrow construction.

14

It provides good protection


Saline Wetland – category 6. As most Saline Wetlands are at a very low altitude (usually the lowest in the landscape; near or even below the water table), they do not usually present suitable sites for burrow construction. The dominant vegetation is largely unsuitable as browse as it contains high concentrations of salt and rarely is there ample free (fresh) water to ‘offload’ the high salt concentrations. As a result, inland saline wetland is rarely inhabited by rabbits (with the exception of isolated rises within the saline wetland which are less saline and may provide suitable sites for burrow construction). Coastal saline wetland is tidal and thus unsuitable for occupation by rabbits.

However, the landward margins, although still

noticeably saline, may suffer localised heavy damage from rabbits, as freshwater may be available nearby and the vegetation contains few chemical defences. Although largely immune from adverse impacts by rabbits, localised sites within saline wetland, particularly on the landward margins (the less saline parts), may be heavily grazed/browsed. Western Plains Woodland – category 6. The fertile loams of the plains of western Victoria support woodlands dominated mostly by eucalypts and, occasionally, Casuarina spp. Unless in extremely high numbers, rabbits have little impact on the tree layer (eucalypt foliage is not high quality browse), particularly if regeneration is episodic (following fires). The open shrubby storey tends to consist of shrubs with broad habitat tolerances and there is a vigorous ground stratum incorporating mainly perennial tussock grasses and perennial forbs. Bracken may be common. The heavy loams are not conducive to burrowing and may waterlog at moderate depth in winter. It is difficult to understand why rabbits are not more abundant in this habitat of relatively assured rainfall, relatively high nutrient foliage not noticeably protected by chemical defences (except for Bracken, which may be locally dominant) and consistent (aseasonal) foliage. Where suitable burrow sites can be found in nearby landscape units (such as scoria cones or incised stream banks) rabbit browsing/grazing may be a localised but severe impact. Foothills Forest – category 7. Higher rainfall sites on better quality loams support a tall open-forest dominated by eucalypts where regeneration is strongly tied to immediately postfire. Episodic mass regeneration ensures that some seedlings escape browsing (usually far more than is necessary merely to replace the dead canopy trees) and thus rabbits have little to no impact on the canopy species. The understorey, shrub layer(s) and even much of the ground layer(s) are also episodic in regeneration (post-fires) and often either sclerophyll or chemically defended against being browsed. The accessible herb layer(s) are slow-growing (without a high quality foliage flush - even in spring) and many are also chemically protected.

15

Long et al. 2003

The soils may be suitable for burrow construction, but are usually fine-grained clays and clay loams which are difficult to dig and often overlie a more or less impervious B horizon. Where the canopy is disturbed (opened), herbs may be a more important component of the community and such sites may support higher rabbit densities, which may keep the shrubby species from actively recruiting and thus maintain the herbaceous abundance. In such grassy sites, rabbits may have a pronounced impact. Ironbark / Box – category 8. Open-forests of Ironbarks (notably Eucalyptus sideroxylon or Eucalyptus tricarpa with Eucalyptus leucoxylon and/or Eucalyptus melliodora - all closelyrelated taxonomically) dominate the sodic, fine clays of central Victoria (and less commonly elsewhere in the state).

These fine-grained clays are very difficult to dig and burrow

construction seems to be restricted to isolated rocky rises or disturbed sites. Community regeneration is probably more or less continuous (depending on seasonal conditions, ie. not notably episodic) but most species are either highly sclerophyllous or replete with chemical defences, providing a poor quality diet for rabbits. Palatable herbs are rare. The ground strata are usually sparse. Rabbits are characteristically rare in these forests. However, palatable habitat components (such as the orchids) are heavily and selectively browsed, to the extent of elimination and in dry years even unpalatable species may be locally-eliminated by rabbits. Box-Ironbark Forests usually adjoin far more suitable rabbit habitat (such as Alluvial Plains Woodland) and in such situations may be heavily affected by rabbits. Spinifex Mallee – category 9. The mallee vegetation of low consolidated dunes is strongly episodic in regeneration - being dependent on infrequent fires for the regeneration of most component species.

In mature condition the ground strata are strongly dominated by

unpalatable Triodia spp and palatable spp are either inaccessible or have retreated to a soil seed store. This community occurs at the drier end of the rainfall spectrum in Victoria (in the far north-west) where free water is generally lacking. The low dunes may be suitable for rabbit burrows, although they often have a clay core and it is difficult for rabbits to dig deep enough to reach any significantly moister soil. As such, rabbit impacts are usually low. Intermediate states (around 5-15 years post-fire) are suitable rabbit habitat (Triodia has not yet assumed dominance and there is a diverse array of herbs and shrubs, some of which are palatable), but the lack of nearby refuges from which rabbits may invade usually precludes significant impact from rabbits. Where Spinifex Mallee adjoins other habitats, with more

16


suitable soils for burrowing, rabbit impacts are higher and soon degrade the community, leading to fewer shrub species and an invasive component of introduced annuals. Siliceous Mallee – category 9. A strongly sclerophyll mallee community occurs on deep siliceous sands of low fertility. Although the deep sandy soils are highly suitable for burrow construction, the vegetation is strongly sclerophyllous (very low foliar nutrient levels) and thus provides very poor forage. Non-sclerophyllous herbs are rare as the lower strata are dominated either by highly sclerophyllous shrubs or herbs, or Triodia spp. Regeneration is strongly episodic (thus reducing rabbit impact, as the short-term flush of low sclerophyll foliage enables most of the accessible species to escape browsing when at their most susceptible). Where Spinifex Mallee occurs close to highly suitable and susceptible vegetation, such as Semi-arid Woodland (non-eucalypt) or Freshwater Wetland (ephemeral), and particularly if these nearby communities provide high quality forage but lack suitable burrow sites, rabbits may heavily impact Spinifex Mallee. In such situations, weeds may soon dominate the ground strata, with the canopy little-affected.

4.2.3.4 Resistant EVDs Broombush Whipstick – category 10. The strongly duplex clay soils (often laterized at the surface), with a very shallow A horizon, characteristic of Broombush and Gravelly-sediment Mallee, are decidedly unsuitable for burrow construction. The ground strata are highly seasonal, with little forage available in drier seasons. vegetation bulk (quantity) is very low.

Even in winter, the accessible

As a result Broombush Whipstick is largely

unoccupied by rabbits, although stands that adjoin vegetation with soils more suited to burrow construction, may be sporadically occupied, though with little impact, apart from some weed establishment and some of the more susceptible species (such as ground orchids) being locally eliminated. Heathland (sands) – category 11.

The strongly podsolized sands of heathlands are

decidedly nutrient-poor, leading to a vegetation community dominated by highly sclerophyllous (and thus poor quality forage) obligately slow-growing perennials. Although heathlands with more free-draining sands may be suitable for burrow construction, the extremely poor quality diet offered by the vegetation usually precludes rabbit occupation. In sites where heathlands adjoin other vegetation communities with more suitable forage, such as Coastal and Semi-arid Woodland (non-eucalypt), rabbit impact may be higher, particularly

17

Long et al. 2003

affecting the few palatable heathland species, such as ground orchids, and enabling a few herbaceous weeds to establish. Treed Swampy Wetland – category 12. Poorly-drained sites that are waterlogged in winter yet support an open canopy of swamp tolerant trees (such as Eucalyptus camphora or Eucalyptus ovata) are scattered throughout southern Victoria. As the soils are seasonally waterlogged, they are unsuitable for burrow construction. The canopy and larger shrubs are largely inaccessible to rabbits (regeneration is largely, but not exclusively, episodic dependent on fires). The ground strata are strongly herbaceous and may support some intrusive rabbit grazing/browsing. The surrounding vegetation is often strongly shrubby and sclerophyllous and so offers little opportunity for rabbit occupation. Exceptionally, and notably where the surrounding vegetation has been cleared and the taller strata opened, rabbits may feed in Treed Swampy Wetland and have a strong but localised impact, leading to small lawns of cropped vegetation. Riparian (higher rainfall) – category 12.

Although not consistently poorly-drained,

Riparian forests are frequently inundated for short periods, and thus unsuitable for burrow occupation. In addition, much of the accessible ground flora consists of species unsuitable as diet, either sclerophyllous or high in tannins (such as ferns). Conditions here mimic those of Wet Forests and Rainforests, communities unoccupied by rabbits. Nevertheless, disturbed sites (where the canopies have been thinned or adjacent to cleared areas) may provide suitable forage and rabbits may have a localised impact, leading to small lawns of cropped vegetation and weed invasion. High Altitude Shrubland / Woodland – category 12. The tree canopies of High Altitude Woodland are strongly episodic in regeneration (and thus rabbits have little impact). The usually dense shrub strata are not only strongly episodic in regeneration but also markedly sclerophyllous and many species are protected chemically (eg Tasmannia spp) – thus also providing low quality browse. Soils are often shallow, with consolidated, clay B horizons and poor sites in which to construct burrows. However, the herb layer often consists of relatively palatable species and in disturbed sites, particularly with long histories of cattle grazing, rabbits may find suitable forage and a few locations in which to construct useful burrows, resulting in localised impacts (cropped ‘lawns’) and selective plant species removal. Swampy Scrub – category 12. The somewhat organic soils of Swampy Scrub are frequently waterlogged for extended periods (and thus unsuitable for burrows). Young stands tend to have very sparse ground strata (thus little forage), but older stands may support a more or less continuous herbaceous ground stratum of palatable grasses and forbs. Young stands generally

18


do not support rabbits, but suitability for rabbits gradually accumulates as the stands age and very old stands may support significant numbers of rabbits. However, the dominant shrubs are relatively flammable and most stands do not mature to be suitable for rabbit foraging, as fire intervenes.

4.2.3.5 Unoccupied EVDs Vegetation communities within the following EVDs are largely unoccupied by rabbits and rabbit browsing, or other damage from rabbits, is not an issue in their management. The reasons rabbits do not occupy these communities are sometimes obvious (see below), but for other communities not so (there may be reasons to do with rabbit physiology, immune systems or other aspects of rabbits as functioning organisms that are not yet understood). Lowland Forest (Eastern) – category 13. These are highly sclerophyllous communities that are strongly episodic in regeneration. Damp Forest – category 14. These are sclerophyllous communities that are episodic in their regeneration. Alpine Treeless – category 14. The shallow soils of these communities are not conducive to burrow construction and the plants have short growing seasons. Wet Forest - category 15. Th accessible forage in wet forests is high in tannins and other chemical defences. Rainforest – category 15. Like Wet Forest, the accessible forage in Rainforest is high in tannins and other chemical defences. The ground forage is also sparse (low in bulk). High Altitude Wetland – category 15. Soils are consistently waterlogged and unsuitable for burrow construction. Vegetation is strongly sclerophyllous (poor quality forage) or high in tannins or other chemical defences and growing seasons are short. Freshwater Wetland (permanent) – category 15. Soils are permanently waterlogged and therefore are unavailable for burrows. Additionally the vegetation is too dense for ease of movement by rabbits.

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Long et al. 2003

4.2.4 Ecological Vegetation Division Weightings We used a weighting factor to quantify the differences in susceptibility between the vegetation categories.

These differences do not follow a linear trend as the distinction

between categories decreases as the susceptibility decreases. For example, amongst the high risk EVDs, Chenopod Shrubland (category 1) is considered substantially more susceptible than Granitic Hillslopes (category 2), whereas Wet Forest (category 15), Damp Forest (Category 14) and Lowland Forest (Eastern) (category 13) are all considered extremely unsusceptible to rabbits with Wet Forest being only marginally less susceptible than the other two. As indicated by the EVD descriptions above, the EVD categories fall into five main levels of susceptibility: highly susceptible (categories 1 and 2), susceptible (categories 3-5), less susceptible (categories 6-9), resistant (categories 10-12) and unoccupied (categories 1315). After trialing several weighting factors a 2/3 factor was chosen in the belief that it best reflects the true magnitude of the differences in susceptibility between each vegetation category. In essence this means that each category is 2/3 as susceptible as the one above it (Figure 1). The weighting scores for categories 1 to 15 are 30.0, 20.0, 13.3, 8.9,5.9, 3.9, 2.6, 1.8, 1.2, 0.78, 0.52, 0.34, 0.23, 0.15 and 0.10 respectively. It is important to remember that these scores represent the relative susceptibilities of the vegetation categories; there is no data currently available to quantify these susceptibilities or to translate this knowledge into a practical recommendation regarding the rabbit densities each EVD could safely tolerate.

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Weighted susceptibility score

35.0 30.0 25.0 20.0 15.0 10.0 5.0 0.0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Rabbit susceptibility category 2

Figure 1. Weighted scores for the 15 rabbit susceptibility categories ( /3 weighting factor). The relative susceptibility of each category is reflected by the magnitude of the susceptibility score and the degree of distinction between the categories.

4.3 Ranking Parks Park rankings were determined by multiplying the area of each EVD within a park by its rabbit susceptibility weighting and then adding these results together (EVD information was extrapolated from the ‘Parks Victoria EVC Park Analysis 12/07/02’ database, which was supplemented with EVC data obtained for the major new or modified parks, as defined by the park boundary layer dated April 2003). These scores were then used to rank parks in order from highest (number 1) to lowest (number 2182) priority. Non-vegetated areas such as quarries and waterbodies were excluded from all analyses, as were vegetated areas without EVC mapping (including severely degraded areas, and areas of private land within the park boundary). Ranked parks were divided into four categories: High Priority (top 1% of ranked parks), High-medium Priority (top 2-5%), Medium Priority (top 6-10%) and Low Priority (bottom 90%).

These categories were chosen on the basis that Parks Victoria usually conducts

between 90 and 150 rabbit control programs each year, and therefore most control programs should fall into the top 10% (218) of ranked parks. Park ranks represent the relative position 21

Long et al. 2003

of each park along a continuum of park susceptibility. Therefore, parks at the bottom of the High Priority category are similarly susceptible to those at the top of the High-medium Priority category.

4.4 Stochastic Events EVDs were assessed for their susceptibility to rabbit impacts under ‘average conditions’. However, conditions are not always ‘average’ and some vegetation communities are particularly susceptible to rabbit grazing following extreme stochastic events such as fires, floods and droughts. Vegetation regeneration and recruitment events typically follow these stochastic events and the resulting new shoots and seedlings are often extremely palatable to rabbits (Dr. David Cheal, DSE, pers. comm.). In some cases rabbits are able to eat almost an entire generation of new seedlings (Lange and Graham 1983, Cooke 1987). To ensure that our ranking system doesn’t understate the need for rabbit control in these situations, the flora panel gave each EVD a score from 1-4 based on: •

its likelihood of experiencing a stochastic event, and

•

the likely impact of rabbits on the vegetation if such an event occurs (Table 2).

Scoring was based on the flora panel’s expert knowledge of the State’s vegetation communities and does not contribute to the overall prioritisation of parks for rabbit control.

Table 2. System for scoring the threat to an EVD based on the interaction between stochastic events and rabbit grazing. Impact of rabbits following event Risk of event

negligible

low

moderate

high

very rare

1

1

2

3

rare

1

2

3

4

occasional

1

2

3

4

relatively frequent

1

3

4

4

4.5 Threatened Species By ranking parks according to the proneness of their vegetation communities to rabbit disturbance, we are acknowledging that rabbits are capable of having a broad-scale effect on the environment. However, rabbits require a high protein, low fibre diet (Cooke 1974 cited in Williams et al. 1995) and consequently, are selective grazers (when food resources are

22


plentiful). This means that their impact on some elements of the community/habitat is much greater than on others. It is therefore necessary to consider the distribution of individual flora and fauna species that are threatened by rabbits. Several methods were used for identifying native species at risk from rabbit disturbance. •

Action Statements for species and communities listed under the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 were systematically searched to identify those species or communities for which rabbit disturbance specifically, or grazing in general, is a recognised threat.

•

A list of those species that occur on the Endangered Species Protection Act 1992 for which rabbits are a known or perceived threat (Environment Australia 1999) was checked for Victorian species.

•

The State of the Parks survey data (Parks Victoria unpubl. data) were used to obtain lists of predominantly threatened flora species (Department of Sustainability and Environment 2002) that park managers consider as being at risk from rabbit grazing in their park.

•

Databases documenting details of rabbit control programs conducted by Parks Victoria over the last four financial years were reviewed. Species known by park managers to be threatened by rabbits are frequently listed as justification for obtaining rabbit control funding; these species were noted.

Species identified by the latter two methods were reviewed by flora and fauna ecologists at the Arthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research (DSE) before inclusion in the final species list. We have assumed that species identified as being at risk from rabbits in one park are also likely to be at risk in other parks, although this may not be correct in every instance. Distribution records of all identified ‘at-risk’ species/communities were mapped using data from the Department of Sustainability and Environment’s Corporate Geographic Data Library. State-wide distributional data is not available for flora species that are not threatened therefore these species are only listed as occurring in those parks that recognised them as being at risk from rabbit grazing. All flora and fauna records have been included regardless of their date but species records of less than 1 minute grid accuracy were discarded as their true location may have fallen outside the park boundary. The date of the most recent record for each species within a park is provided. For particularly old records park managers will need to verify whether the species still occurs within the park. If more recent records than those provided are known by park managers every effort should be made to submit these to the Atlas of Victorian Wildlife or the Flora Information System.

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4.6 Control Programs in Parks Data detailing rabbit control programs carried out on the Parks Victoria estate over the last four financial years (1999-2003) were obtained to examine the alignment between recent control and the park ranking scheme. These data were extracted from Parks Victoria’s Environmental Information System (EIS) and from an electronic environmental programs database (also owned by Parks Victoria). In some cases control programs spanned multiple parks but the names of these had not been recorded. Therefore, these data could only be used in the assessment of rabbit control at a regional level and not at an individual park level. In these situations, the park-specific data will have been detected if it was also mapped in the EIS system (because data between the two systems are not transferable there is no way of telling how often this occurred). Parks were mapped to show both their priority status for rabbit control and the presence or absence of recent rabbit control. For example, High Priority parks that have conducted recent rabbit control programs are distinguished from High Priority parks that have not conducted recent rabbit control.

We have not identified the locations or extent of rabbit control

programs within parks as these data are not documented for all control programs, and measures of control effort, such as the number of hectares treated or the number of warrens destroyed, are not consistent across parks (measures of effort vary according to the control method employed). Instead the quantity of rabbit control funding allocated to a park was used as an indication of the level of effort placed into control across park priority categories and the five park regions (funding allocated to ‘Good Neighbour’ and ‘Rabbit Busters’ projects was included). The rabbit control funding data is set up such that each control program is recorded under a single park name, despite the fact that in some cases these programs may cover multiple parks. Since it was not possible to determine how the project funding was dispersed amongst these parks, the primary, listed park, was allocated the entire project budget for the purposes of this analysis. This listed park is likely to be the largest of the parks covered by the control program, and consequently probably received a majority of the control funding. Nevertheless this will result in some bias towards larger parks (which are also more likely to be higher priority parks) in the funding analysis; this bias dissolves when the distribution of funding is analysed at a regional level.

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5 RESULTS and DISCUSSION

5.1 Distribution of Rabbits in Parks The Atlas of Victorian Wildlife, DSE, shows the general distribution of rabbits in Victoria, confirming they are ubiquitous throughout the State (Figure 2). These data cannot be used to extrapolate data on rabbit densities because atlas records (for common species in particular) tend to be biased towards more urban areas where people observe them frequently (see quantity of records surrounding Melbourne, Figure 2) and also because sightings of very common species, are often not reported to the Atlas (Barbara Baxter, DSE, pers. comm.). Data from the State of the Parks survey can also be used to indicate the presence of rabbits from surveyed parks but, again, rabbit abundance data were lacking with only a few parks recording rabbit density estimates. Data from the Atlas of Victorian Wildlife show that there are 1791 parks with no recent formal records (since 1980) of rabbits - included in this are four High Priority parks (Avon Wilderness Park, Discovery Bay Coastal Park, Wabba Wilderness Park and Lake Tyrrel Wildlife Reserve), 12 High-medium Priority parks and 46 Medium Priority parks. It is extremely unlikely that these parks are all free of rabbits, in fact 11 of them are recorded in the State of the Parks Survey data as containing rabbits and 76 of them have recently conducted rabbit control programs. Instead, this is probably a reflection of the paucity of records that are submitted to the Atlas for common and pest species. This situation would be improved if a program of systematic surveys for rabbit presence (and preferably abundance) were conducted in parks. This information would need to be collected and stored in a manner that allowed it to be centrally managed and accessed.

5.2 Susceptible Ecological Vegetation Divisions Of the 15 susceptibility categories, the first two are considered to contain ‘highly susceptible’ EVDs (Semi-arid Woodland (non-eucalypt), Chenopod Shrubland and Granitic Hillslopes) and the next three categories contain ‘susceptible’ EVDs (Riverine Woodland/Forest, Coastal, Rocky Outcrop Shrubland, Forby Forest, Basalt Grassland, Chenopod Mallee, Alluvial Plains Woodland, Alluvial Plains Grassland and Freshwater Wetland (ephemeral)).

The lower

susceptibility of the remaining EVDs makes them of lesser concern. The category 1 EVDs, Semi-arid Woodland (non-eucalypt) and Chenopod Shrubland, are regarded as the most susceptible vegetation communities because every stratum of their

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vegetation is accessible to rabbits and is dominated by palatable species. These EVDs are restricted to the northwest of the State (Figure 3a) and occupy approximately 98 300 ha and 10 200 ha respectively, or a total of 3.4% of mapped vegetation within the Parks Victoria estate. The majority of this vegetation (86%) is found in four parks, Murray Sunset National Park, Wyperfeld National Park, Hattah-Kulkyne National Park and Lake Tyrrell Wildlife Reserve. The remaining ‘highly susceptible’ EVD, Granitic Hillslopes, occupies 26 200 ha and is found predominantly in the Alpine and Murray Central districts (Figure 3b,e). Ninety four percent of this vegetation can be found in Burrowa - Pine Mountain National Park, Mount Lawson State Park, Chiltern- Mt Pilot National Park, Wilsons Promontory National Park, Warby Range State Park, and Mount Mitta Mitta Regional Park. The ‘susceptible’ EVDs cover 614 650 ha and are widely dispersed (Figure 3a-e). Together the ‘highly suscpetible’ and ‘susceptible’ EVDs constitute 23.8% of the mapped vegetation within the Parks Victoria estate. A breakdown of EVDs within each park is provided in Appendix 2.

5.3 Park Rankings Murray Sunset National Park outscores all other parks. It contains 64% (69 800 ha) of the vegetation from the highest susceptibility category (ie. Semi-arid Woodland (non-eucalypt) and Chenopod Shrubland) and 224 000 ha (3%) of vegetation from the top five susceptibility categories. Along with Murray-Sunset National Park, the Alpine National Park, Wyperfeld National Park, Grampians National Park, and Hattah-Kulkyne National Park make up the top five ranked parks. The 22 parks that make up the High Priority category encompass 93% of the vegetation within the top susceptibility category and 84% of the vegetation in the top five susceptibility categories. The highest ranked parks for each region are Murray Sunset National Park in the West region, the Alpine National Park in the East region, Lake Eildon National Park in the Central Region, the Mornington Peninsula National Park in the City & Bays Region, and Bunyip State Park in the Melbourne Metropolitan region. Table 3 lists the top 10% of ranked parks while a complete ranking of all parks can be found in Appendix 3. A complete listing of the EVDs within each park, and the areas they encompass, is provided in Appendix 2. There are 682 parks without mapped EVCs that could therefore not be ranked (Appendix 4). These constitute 162 368 ha or approximately 4% of the Parks Victoria (terrestrial) estate.

26


27

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INSERT FIGURE 2

28


INSERT FIGURES 3A-E HERE

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30


Table 3. Victorian parks ranked according to their rabbit susceptibility The top 10% of ranked parks are shown in this table. Four priority categories have been established, the highest priority category has been defined as the first 1% of ranked parks, the second category as the next 2-5%, the third category as top 6-10%, while the final category (bottom 90% of ranked parks) is not shown here. Park ID

Park name

Rank

Region

High Priority - Top 1% of ranked parks 3320

Murray - Sunset National Park

1

West

3319

Alpine National Park

2

East

3309

Wyperfeld National Park

3

West

3316

Grampians National Park

4

West

3296

Hattah - Kulkyne National Park

5

West

3313

Snowy River National Park

6

East

3308

Wilsons Promontory National Park

7

East

3310

Burrowa - Pine Mountain National Park

8

East

3322

Big Desert Wilderness Park

9

West

3284

River Murray Reserve

10

West

3294

Lake Eildon National Park

11

Central

3314

Chiltern- Mt Pilot National Park

12

Central

3344

Mount Lawson State Park

13

East

3323

Avon Wilderness Park

14

East

3360

Discovery Bay Coastal Park

15

West

3324

Wabba Wilderness Park

16

East

3303

Mount Buffalo National Park

17

East

3300

Lower Glenelg National Park

18

West

3350

Warby Range State Park

19

Central

3311

Croajingolong National Park

20

East

Annuello Flora & Fauna Reserve

21

West

Lake Tyrrell Wildlife Reserve

22

West

7 529

High-medium Priority - Top 2-5% of ranked parks 3395

Nooramunga Marine & Coastal Park

23

East

3327

Barmah State Park

24

Central

3317

Coopracambra National Park

25

East

3292

Kinglake National Park

26

Central

3328

Black Range State Park

27

West

352

Yarrara Flora & Fauna Reserve

28

West

3367

Murray - Kulkyne Park

29

West

39

Long et al. 2003

Park ID

Park name

Rank

Region

4492

Greater Bendigo National Park

30

Central

3337

Kooyoora State Park

31

Central

3295

Mitchell River National Park

32

East

3364

Lake Albacutya Park

33

West

3362

Gippsland Lakes Coastal Park

34

East

3245

Mount Mitta Mitta Regional Park

35

East

3363

St . Arnaud Range National Park

36

Central

3339

Lerderderg State Park

37

Central

3346

Mount Samaria State Park

38

Central

Bronzewing Flora & Fauna Reserve

39

West

3335

Kamarooka State Park

40

East

3355

Mount Granya State Park

41

West

3315

Otway National Park

42

West

291

Timberoo Flora & Fauna Reserve

40

East

3371

Cape Liptrap Coastal Park

43

East

4493

Heathcote-Greytown National Park

44

Central

2924

Grant Historic Area

45

East

3288

Brisbane Ranges National Park

46

Central

4659

Castlemaine Diggins National Heritage Park

47

Central

519

Koorangie (The Marshes & Avoca Floodway) Wildlife

48

Central

37

Reserve

40

512

Kings Billabong Wildlife Reserve

49

West

3304

Mount Eccles National Park

50

West

2928

Mount Wills Historic Area

51

East

3343

Mount Buangor State Park

52

West

535

Mullroo Creek Wildlife Reserve

53

West

326

Wathe Flora & Fauna Reserve

54

West

3321

Yarra Ranges National Park

55

Central

3342

Mount Arapiles - Tooan State Park

56

West

2938

Avon - Mt Hedrick Natural Features Scenic Reserve

57

East

3290

Mornington Peninsula National Park

58

City & Bays

2927

Cassilis Historic Area

59

East

3338

Langi Ghiran State Park

60

West

3359

Cape Conran Coastal Park

61

East

150

Lake Timboram Flora & Fauna Reserve

62

West

2991

Mount Stanley Scenic Reserve

63

Central

3356

Enfield State Park

64

West

3332

Cathedral Range State Park

65

Central


Park ID

Park name

Rank

Region

3307

Port Campbell National Park

66

West

3237

Lower Ovens Regional Park

67

Central

3325

Angahook - Lorne State Park

68

West

3333

Dergholm State Park

69

West

3349

Terrick Terrick National Park

70

Central

3238

Mount Alexander Regional Park

71

Central

152

Lambert Island Flora Reserve

72

West

3242

Baranduda Regional Park

73

Central

208

Mount Wombat-Garden Range Flora & Fauna

74

Central

Reserve 168

Mallanbool Flora & Fauna Reserve

75

West

3228

Hepburn Regional Park

76

West

3194

San Remo - Pt Smythe Coastal Reserve

77

East

3354

Leaghur State Park

78

Central

3368

Reef Hills Park

79

Central

196

Mount Bolangum Flora & Fauna Reserve

80

Central

3189

Lorne - Queenscliff Coastal Reserve

81

West

3591

Goulburn River H.R

82

Central

3345

Mount Napier State Park

83

West

3647

Blond Bay Wildlife Reserve

84

East

3297

The Lakes National Park

85

East

456

Ewing Morass Wildlife Reserve

86

East

301

Towan Plains Flora & Fauna Reserve

87

West

3318

Errinundra National Park

88

East

3229

Macedon Regional Park

89

Central

3301

French Island National Park

90

City & Bays

237

Dering Racecourse Flora & Fauna Reserve

91

West

2636

Maldon Historic Area

92

Central

1357

Mystic Park Bushland Reserve

93

Central

2600

Koorlong Education Area

94

West

3244

Jarvis Creek Plateau Regional Park

95

East

234

Paradise Flora & Fauna Reserve

96

West

125

Jilpanger Flora & Fauna Reserve

97

West

2598

Timberoo Education Area

98

West

76

Lianiduck Flora & Fauna Reserve

99

West

532

Lakes Powell and Carpul Wildlife Reserve

100

West

2606

Bumbang Island Historic Area

101

West

212

Mullungdung Flora & Fauna Reserve

102

East

41

Long et al. 2003

Park ID

Rank

Region

Lake Lalbert Wildlife Reserve

103

West

Moss Tank Flora & Fauna Reserve

104

West

153

Landsborough Flora & Fauna Reserve

105

West

509

Dartagook Wildlife Reserve

106

Central

552

Lake Connewarre Wildlife Reserve

107

City & Bays

3334

Holey Plains State Park

108

East

2917

Mount Tambo Natural Features Scenic Reserve

109

East

525 8

Park name

Medium Priority - Top 6-10% of ranked parks 2601

Darling Junction Education Area

110

West

3305

Mount Richmond National Park

111

West

3419

Lake Tyers

112

East

638

Reedy Lake, Nagambie Wildlife Reserve

113

Central

3199

Marlo Coastal Reserve

114

East

1159

Yellimjip Bushland Reserve

115

West

1043

Tomahawk Creek Bushland Reserve

116

West

668

Jack Smith Lake Wildlife Reserve

117

East

116

Inverleigh Flora Reserve

118

Central

321

Wandella Flora & Fauna Reserve

119

Central

2995

Powers Lookout Scenic Reserve

120

East

524

Lake Heywood Wildlife Reserve

121

West

3230

Wandong Regional Park

122

Central

701

Tooloy-Lake Mundi Wildlife Reserve

123

West

3394

Corner Inlet Marine & Coastal Park

124

East

340

Wychitella Flora & Fauna Reserve

125

Central

3232

Echuca Regional Park

126

Central

Chinkapook Flora & Fauna Reserve

127

West

3235

Cobram Regional Park

128

Central

3220

Ballarat-Creswick Regional Park

129

West

3348

Paddys Ranges State Park

130

West

248

Providence Ponds Flora & Fauna Reserve

131

East

81

Fryers Ridge Flora Reserve

132

Central

828

Kanyapella Basin Wildlife Management Co-operative

133

Central

75

Area

42

2526

Dundas Range Scenic Reserve

134

West

329

Wemen Flora & Fauna Reserve

135

West

3226

Green Lake Regional Park

136

West

2922

Macalister Gorge Natural Features Scenic Reserve

137

East


Park ID

Park name

Rank

Region

3190

Port Phillip Bay Coastal Reserve

138

City & Bays

1329

Toltol I263 Bushland Reserve

139

West

2634

Percydale Historic Area

140

West

526

Leaghur Wildlife Reserve

141

Central

3064

Lakes Coorong & Lascelles Lake Reserve

142

West

14

Barrabool Flora & Fauna Reserve

143

West

195

Mount Black Flora Reserve

144

Central

3187

Port Fairy - Warrnambool Coastal Reserve

145

West

1220

Balmers Tank Bushland Reserve

146

West

3227

You Yangs Regional Park

147

Central

107

Hat Hill Flora & Fauna Reserve

148

Central

305

Towma (Lake Marlbed) Flora & Fauna Reserve

149

West

314

Cooriemungle Creek Flora Reserve

150

West

3358

Bay of Islands Coastal Park

151

West

214

Bolton Flora & Fauna Reserve

152

West

2923

Howqua Hills Historic Area

153

East

215

Narrawong Flora Reserve

154

West

3357

Beechworth Park

155

Central

1126

Mamengoroock I72 Bushland Reserve

156

West

3044

Mountain Creek Education Area

157

East

3329

Bunyip State Park

158

Melb. Metro.

1123

Tutye Bushland Reserve

159

West

226

Torrita Flora & Fauna Reserve

160

West

3248

Ararat Hills Regional Park

161

West

35

Brodribb Flora Reserve

162

East

322

Wandown Flora & Fauna Reserve

163

West

361

North Western Port Nature Conservation Reserve

164

City & Bays

1302

Mamemgorook I236 Bushland Reserve

165

West

2637

Moliagul Historic Area

166

Central

Birdcage Flora & Fauna Reserve

167

West

3396

Deep Lead Flora & Fauna Reserve

168

West

143

Koonda Flora Reserve

169

West

2939

Mount Elizabeth Natural Features Scenic Reserve

170

East

3312

Baw Baw National Park

171

East

201

Mount Ida Flora Reserve

172

Central

205

Mount Meg Flora & Fauna Reserve

173

Central

3393

Shallow Inlet Marine & Coastal Park

174

East

1122

Drendles Bushland Reserve

175

West

23

43

Long et al. 2003

Park ID

Rank

Region

1352

Wewin Bushland Reserve

176

West

1646

Maintongoon G105 Bushland Reserve

177

Central

Chillingollah Flora & Fauna Reserve

178

West

3291

Dandenong Ranges National Park

179

Melb. Metro.

3331

Carlisle State Park

180

West

253

Red Bluff Flora & Fauna Reserve

181

West

1348

Ryanby Bushland Reserve

182

West

350

Yarck Nature Conservation Reserve

183

Central

3047

Tallangallook-Dry Creek Historic Area

184

Central

2532

Glenelg River, Fulham SScenic Reserve

185

West

1328

Bumbang I262 Bushland Reserve

186

West

1232

Albacutya I171 Bushland Reserve

187

West

188

Moormurng Flora & Fauna Reserve

188

East

3195

Waratah Bay - Shallow Inlet Coastal Reserve

189

East

280

Tarnagulla Flora Reserve

190

Central

1321

Dattuck Bushland Reserve

191

West

2900

Murrindindi River Natural Features Scenic Reserve

192

Central

2525

Black Range Scenic Reserve

193

West

101

Turriff Flora & Fauna Reserve

194

West

59

Murrayville Flora Reserve

195

West

652

Dowd Morass Wildlife Reserve

196

East

3120

Lake Wahpool Lake Reserve

197

West

57

Dalyenong (1) Flora Reserve

198

Central

368

Warrandyte - Kinglake Nature Conservation Reserve

199

Melb. Metro.

3197

McLoughlins Beach - Seaspray Coastal Reserve

200

East

Gnarr Flora Reserve

201

West

3188

Elliot River - Addis Bay Coastal Reserve

202

West

3642

Clydebank Morass Wildlife Reserve

203

East

115

Inglewood Flora Reserve

204

Central

3042

Mount Barambogie Education Area

205

Central

170

Manangatang (Lulla) Flora & Fauna Reserve

206

West

18

Ben Major Flora Reserve

207

West

3041

Lima South Education Area

208

Central

240

Ovens River Flora Reserve

209

Central

2725

Heathcote Scenic Reserve

210

Central

446

Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve

211

West

98

Gobur Nature Conservation Reserve

212

Central

Woornack I110 Bushland Reserve

213

West

52

96

1164

44

Park name


Park ID

Park name

Rank

Region

2712

Eppalock Education Area

214

Central

2724

Mount Beckworth Scenic Reserve

215

West

3043

Lockhart Creek Education Area

216

East

3247

Crawford River Regional Park

217

West

506

Brimy Bill (5 Mile Lake) Wildlife Reserve

218

West

The distribution of ranked parks is not even across the five administrative regions of Parks Victoria (Table 4). The West region contains the highest number of parks and dominates each of the priority categories. The East region is the next greatest contributor to the top priority categories, followed by the Central region. By contrast, the Melbourne Metropolitan region and the City & Bays region contain very few parks in the top priority categories, however, these regions contain just 5% and 3% respectively of all ranked parks. Table 4. Regional distribution of ranked parks City &

Melb.

Bays

Metro

41%

0%

0%

31%

24%

4%

0%

51%

27%

17%

2%

3%

43%

32%

17%

3%

5%

Region

West

Central

East

High

45%

14%

High-medium

41%

Medium Low

In determining the best method for prioritising parks, we made a conscious decision to factor the area of each EVD within a park into the prioritisation process. This was done because we logically place more value in large areas over smaller areas, as large reserves contain more species and are generally more effective conservation units than smaller reserves (Diamond 1975). Therefore, controlling rabbits in larger reserves is likely to maximise long-term biodiversity gains. Since large parks usually contain the largest areas of a given vegetation type, they typically score higher in the overall ranking scheme. In some cases, the sheer size of these large parks means that they score highly despite containing vegetation that is predominantly of low to medium susceptibility to rabbits. This results in the park rankings being biased towards larger parks (see Table 3). For example, the Snowy River National Park is ranked 6th despite it having only 7% of it’s vegetation in the top five EVD threat categories (see Appendix 2). However this 7% translates to nearly 7000 ha – an order of magnitude greater than over 90% of all other Victorian parks. This raises the question of whether a park

45

Long et al. 2003

such as the Snowy River National Park should rate higher than a smaller park such as the Timberoo Flora and Fauna reserve (1 200 ha, ranked 40th), that predominantly contains vegetation in the highest risk category.

The weighting of the susceptibility categories

partially addresses this issue in that vegetation categories that are substantially more susceptible are weighted accordingly and therefore smaller areas of very susceptible vegetation will generally rank higher than larger areas of less susceptible vegetation. However, parks which are an order of magnitude larger than most other parks will inevitably rank higher even if they don’t contain high proportions of susceptible vegetation. Whether or not these large parks receive rabbit control funding over other smaller parks may be partially dependent on a number of other criteria that are discussed in section 5.3.1 below. To ensure that the areas of highest risk, particularly those that are small to medium in size, are not masked by the overall ranking process, EVDs in the top five susceptibility categories (those classed as ‘Highly Susceptible’ and ‘Susceptible’) have been mapped for each Parks Victoria region independently of the overall park rankings (Figure 3a-e, see Appendix 5 for a listing of these areas). This will assist park managers in identifying priority areas for rabbit control because the vegetation within a park will not be uniformly susceptible to rabbits; even highly ranked parks may contain very large areas of unsusceptible vegetation and vice versa.

5.3.1 Additional Factors Influencing Park Susceptibility and Priorities It is important to remember that the ranking system presented here works on the basis of assessing broad-scale vegetation susceptibility and aims to provide assistance to Parks Victoria in prioritising control operations to maximise biodiversity gains. However, there are a number of factors that could not be considered in this ranking scheme that may either alter the susceptibility of a park to rabbit impacts, or that may alter the way parks are prioritised for rabbit control. Factors that may influence the susceptibility of a park (or an area within a park) include: •

current rabbit densities - which will be affected by climatic conditions, the disease status of the population, the impact of previous control programs, the management of rabbit populations by surrounding landholders and the abundance of predators.

•

the susceptibility of adjacent vegetation – rabbits may impact heavily on vegetation that is normally relatively unsusceptible if it is surrounded by, or is adjacent to, highly susceptible vegetation that supports large rabbit populations. The reverse is also true.

46


•

the boundary to area ratio of the park - which will influence the rate of rabbit invasion from adjacent land.

Factors that may influence the prioritisation of rabbit control programs include: the conservation status of vegetation communities, the condition of the vegetation, the presence of rare or threatened taxa that rabbits impact, the degree of cross-tenure collaboration on rabbit control, or the capacity for rabbit control programs to complement fox control programs (or vice versa). The inclusion of these factors (besides the presence of threatened taxa which will be discussed later, see section 5.4) is well beyond the scope of this report and in many cases the data required to model them are not available. Careful planning should also be undertaken to ensure the timing of control programs maximises their effectiveness. Again, consideration of this issue is beyond the scope of this report.

5.4 Threatened Species After review by flora and fauna ecologists at the ARIER, a list of 100 flora species, 19 fauna species, 7 flora communities and 1 fauna community were identified as being at risk from rabbit disturbance (Table 5). This does not form a comprehensive list of all species that are negatively impacted by rabbits nor does it necessarily include only those species that are most severely impacted by rabbits, as there is insufficient data available to confidently compile such a list. The methods used to identify species at risk from rabbit disturbance were chosen to highlight those highly threatened species that rabbits impact as well as those species that are affected to the extent that the impact is noticeable to park managers. It is important to remember that the species records for a given park will partially reflect the intensity of survey effort in that park. Well-surveyed parks may therefore appear to contain more threatened species than parks that have received little survey effort. For all of the above reasons, the distributions of ‘at-risk’ species were not incorporated into the park prioritisation process. One fauna species and 11 flora species are not recorded on the relevant flora and fauna databases (DSE Corporate Geospatial Data Library) as occurring within the Parks Victoria estate (Table 5). However, these species have been left on the final list in the event that they do occur within parks but records of their occurrence have not been formally submitted. Nineteen of the 22 High Priority parks (86%) contain identified ‘at-risk’ species or communities, the exceptions being Chiltern-Pilot National Park, Wabba Wilderness Park and Warby Range State Park. ‘At-risk’ species/communities are also found in 67 (77%) HighMedium Priority parks, 46 (42%) Medium Priority parks, 156 (8%) Low Priority parks and in 103 unranked parks (see Appendix 6 for full species distribution details). The high proportion 47

Long et al. 2003

of High to Medium Priority parks containing ‘at-risk’ species and communities is likely to be an artefact of park size; larger parks typically contain more species and the ranking scheme is biased towards larger parks (see section 5.3). In accordance with this, Victoria’s largest park, the Alpine National Park, contains the highest number of species (17) identified as being at risk from rabbit disturbance. A consideration not often made when conducting rabbit control is the potentially adverse impacts that control programs may have on some native species. Rabbits are eaten in varying proportions by a number of large, native predators such as raptors, owls, and goannas (Newsome et al. 1997, Sandell and Start 1999). While it is assumed that reducing rabbit numbers will in turn reduce the numbers of native predators, preliminary research on raptors (the native predators most reliant on rabbits) suggests that rabbit declines are unlikely to threaten them (Newsome et al. 1997, Sandell and Start 1999). Rabbit control can also adversely affect native species if foxes, which are often supported in high numbers by rabbit populations, resort to alternative prey when rabbit numbers decline.

48


Table 5. Species and communities identified as being at risk from rabbit disturbance. Columns 4-7 indicate the method by which the species was identified as being at risk from rabbit disturbance. FFG = species/communities listed under the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1998 for which grazing is a listed threat; a ‘

’ indicates the species/community is listed under the FFG Act but grazing is not

identified in the Action Statement as a threat (these species were identified as being ‘at risk’ by one of the other three methods). The communities to which this applies do not yet have Action Statements. ESPA = species listed under the Endangered Species Protection Act 1992 and recognised as at risk, or potentially at risk, from rabbit disturbance (Environment Australia 1999). SOP = species/communities listed by Parks Victoria staff in the State of the Parks (2000) surveys as being threatened by rabbits. ‘Control Justification’ = species identified by Parks Victoria staff as requiring protection from rabbit disturbance hence justifying rabbit control. AROT = Australian conservation status (Fauna status based on Australian Endangered Species Protection Act 1992, flora status based on Briggs and Leigh (1995) and the ANZECC Threatened Flora List (1997)). VROT = Victorian conservation status (Fauna and Flora status based on DSE/DPI Advisory Victorian Threatened Fauna/Flora Lists (May 2002). Codes for the latter two columns are CE = Critically Endangered, E = Endangered, V = Vulnerable, R = Rare, L = Lower risk near threatened, K = Poorly known. Recognised threats were obtained from Action Statements and State of the Parks survey data (Growth/regeneration = growth and regeneration inhibition). Species with italicised common names are not recorded within the Parks Victoria estate. Common Name Community Forest Red Gum Grassy Woodland Limestone Pomaderris Shrubland Northern Plains Grassland Rocky Chenopod Open Scrub Semi-arid Herbaceous Pine-Buloke Semi-arid Shrubby Pine-Buloke Western (Basalt) Plains Grassland Butterfly Community No. 1

Scientific Name

N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

Species ID Code

FFG ESPA SOP

Control AROT VROT Recognised Threats Justification Community degradation Community degradation Community degradation Community degradation Community degradation Community degradation Community degradation Habitat degradation

49

Long et al. 2003

Common Name Fauna Mountain Pygmy-possum Bush-stone Curlew Major Mitchell's Cockatoo Spotted Bowerbird White-browed Tree-creeper Striped Legless Lizard Malleefowl Large Ant-blue Butterfly Orange-bellied Parrot Eltham Copper Butterfly Plains wanderer Eastern Barred Bandicoot Brush-tailed Rock Wallaby Brush-tailed phascogale Baw Baw Frog Short-tailed Shearwater Golden Sunmoth Southern Lined Earless Dragon Regent honeyeater Flora Dwarf Lantern-flower Jumping-jack Wattle Hairy-pod Wattle Maiden's wattle Umbrella Wattle Spur-wing Wattle

Scientific Name

Species ID Code

Burramys parvus Burhinus grallarius Cacatus leadbeateri Chlamydera maculata Climacteris affinis Delma impar Leipoa ocellata

1156 174 270 680 561 2159 7

Lycaenidae brisbanensis Neophema chrysogaster Paralucia pyrodiscus lucida Pedionomus torquatus Perameles gunnii Petrogale penicillata Phascogale tapoatafa Philoria frosti Puffinus tenuirostris Synemon plana Tympanocryptis pinguicolla Xanthomyza phyryis

5006 305 5003 20 1098 1215 1017 3106 71 5021 2922 603

Abutilon fraseri Acacia enterocarpa

2 32

Acacia glandulicarpa Acacia maidenii Acacia oswaldii Acacia triptera

39 55 70 97

FFG ESPA SOP

Control AROT VROT Recognised Threats Justification E

E E V CE

V V

E E

E

R CE V E CE CE V CE

E E

E CE CE

E

E E

E V E V

V

V E V R

Attract predators Habitat degradation Habitat degradation Habitat degradation Habitat degradation Habitat degradation Reduce food availability, attract predators Habitat degradation Reduce food availability Habitat degradation Habitat degradation Habitat degradation Reduce food availability Habitat degradation Habitat degradation Habitat degradation Habitat degradation Habitat degradation Habitat degradation Inhibiting growth Inhibiting growth & Habitat disturbance Inhibiting regeneration Inhibiting regeneration Growth/regeneration Inhibiting regeneration

50


Common Name

Scientific Name

Cattle Bush

Alectryon oleifolius subsp. canescens Allocasuarina luehmannii Allocasuarina media

Buloke Prom Sheoak River Swamp Wallaby-grass Charming Spider-orchid McIvor Spider-orchid Southern Spider-orchid Limestone Spider-orchid Summer Spider-orchid Elegant Spider-orchid Mellblom's Spider-orchid Wimmera Spider-orchid Wine-lipped Spider-orchid Eastern Spider-orchid Frankston Spider-orchid Rosella Spider-orchid Upright Spider-orchid Rigid Spider-orchid Fringed Spider-orchid Large White Spider-orchid Candy Spider-orchid Yellow-lip Spider-orchid Shore Spleenwort Southern Shepherd's Purse Velvet Apple-berry Rock Lily

Species ID Code

FFG ESPA SOP

Control AROT VROT Recognised Threats Justification

1659 678 3648

Amphibromus fluitans Arachnorchis amoena Arachnorchis audasii Arachnorchis australis Arachnorchis calcicola Arachnorchis flavovirens Arachnorchis formosa Arachnorchis hastata Arachnorchis lowanensis Arachnorchis oenochila Arachnorchis orientalis Arachnorchis robinsonii Arachnorchis rosella Arachnorchis stricta Arachnorchis tensa Arachnorchis thysanochila Arachnorchis venusta Arachnorchis versicolor Arachnorchis xanthochila Asplenium obtusatum subsp. northlandicum Ballantinia antipoda

3623 3726 3664 743 525 541 4486 4348 676 3694 3660 586 3669 4353 338 3730 533 522 4691 291

Billardiera scandens var. brachyantha Bulbine glauca

4290

359

3657

Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration K

K

V E E

K E E K E R V E E V E E E V V X R E E V

Inhibiting regeneration Inhibiting growth Inhibiting growth Growth/regeneration Inhibiting growth Growth/regeneration Inhibiting growth Inhibiting growth Inhibiting growth Growth/regeneration Inhibiting growth Inhibiting growth Inhibiting growth Growth/regeneration Inhibiting growth Inhibiting growth Growth/regeneration Inhibiting growth Inhibiting growth

E

Inhibiting growth & habitat disturbance Growth/regeneration

V V E E K E E E E E R V E

L

R

Growth/regeneration

51

Long et al. 2003

Common Name

Scientific Name

Species ID Code

Lizard Orchid Prickly Bottlebrush White Cypress-pine Bald-tip Beard-orchid Coast Colobanth Small Milkwort Small Scurf-pea Bear's-ear Broom Bitter-pea Large Tick-trefoil Slender Tick-trefoil Yellow Hyacinth-orchid Australian Anchor Plant Warby Range Swamp-gum Kamarooka Mallee Bog Gum Omeo Gum Yarra Gum Purple Eyebright Rough Eyebright

Burnettia cuneata Callistemon brachyandrus Callitris glaucophylla Calochilus richiae Colobanthus apetalus var. apetalus Comesperma polygaloides Cullen parvum Cymbonotus lawsonianus Daviesia genistifolia s.l. Desmodium brachypodum Desmodium varians Dipodium hamiltonianum Discaria pubescens Eucalyptus cadens Eucalyptus froggattii Eucalyptus kitsoniana Eucalyptus neglecta Eucalyptus yarraensis Euphrasia collina Euphrasia scabra

798 2773 902 995 1007 4425 1067 1072 3707 1279 1290 1301 1326 1338 1343

Wilga Silky Glycine Clover Glycine Narrow Goodenia Creeping Grevillea Hooked Needlewood Bead Glasswort Mallee Hemichroa Swamp Onion-orchid

Geijera parviflora Glycine canescens Glycine latrobeana Goodenia macbarronii Grevillea repens Hakea tephrosperma Halosarcia flabelliformis Hemichroa diandra Hydrorchis orbicularis

1419 1454 1456 1513 1549 1572 3761 1655 2186

513 561 576 588 794

FFG ESPA SOP

Control AROT VROT Recognised Threats Justification R

R R

E

E

E

V E R

R L R R R R

V K E R V R R R K

K

E

V V R V

E E V V R V E E V

Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration Inhibiting regeneration Inhibiting growth

Inhibiting growth Inhibiting growth Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration Inhibiting regeneration Inhibiting regeneration

Inhibiting growth & habitat disturbance Inhibiting regeneration Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration Inhibiting growth Growth/regeneration

Growth/regeneration

52


Common Name

Scientific Name

Species ID Code

FFG ESPA SOP


Adamson's Blown-grass Purple Blown-grass

148 4206

E

V R

Inhibiting growth

Spiny Peppercress Bushy Peppercress Crimson Berry Viscid Daisy-bush Upright Adder's-tongue Orange-tip Finger-orchid Fertile Finger-orchid Grey Podolepis Concave Pomaderris Round-leaf Pomaderris Heathland Leek-orchid Gaping Leek-orchid

Lachnagrostis adamsonii Lachnagrostis punicea subsp. punicea Lepidium aschersonii Lepidium desvauxii Leptecophylla juniperina Olearia viscosa Ophioglossum polyphyllum Petalochilus aurantiacus Petalochilus prolatus Podolepis canescens Pomaderris subplicata Pomaderris vacciniifolia Prasophyllum affine Prasophyllum correctum

1897 1900 900 2331 2347 523 4448 2614 4532 2675 2726 4850

L

Inhibiting growth Inhibiting regeneration Inhibiting regeneration

E E

E R V V V R K R V V K E

Green Leek-orchid Dense Mint-bush Sikh's Whiskers Leafy Greenhood Sickle Greenhood Scaly Greenhood Prawn Greenhood Brittle Greenhood Mentone Greenhood Fragrant Saltbush Button Wrinklewort Sweet Quandong Northern Sandalwood Top Bog-sedge Large-fruit Fireweed

Prasophyllum lindleyanum Prostanthera decussata Pterostylis boormanii Pterostylis cucullata Pterostylis falcata s.l. Pterostylis hamata Pterostylis pedoglossa Pterostylis truncata Pterostylis X toveyana Rhagodia parabolica Rutidosis leptorhynchoides Santalum acuminatum Santalum lanceolatum Schoenus turbinatus Senecio macrocarpus

2702 2739 2787 2790 2797 2799 2809 2821 2820 2929 2982 3004 3005 3057 3116

V

V R R V

E

R V E V R E

L

E R E

V

Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration Inhibiting growth & habitat degradation Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration Inhibiting growth Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration Inhibiting growth Inhibiting growth Inhibiting growth Growth/regeneration Inhibiting growth Growth/regeneration Inhibiting regeneration

53

Long et al. 2003

Common Name

Scientific Name

Sand Sida Rush Lily Austral Ladies' Tresses Wiry Stackhousia Smooth Darling-pea Metallic Sun-orchid Austral Toad-flax Whipstick Westringia Whorled Zieria

Sida ammophila Sowerbaea juncea Spiranthes australis Stackhousia nuda Swainsona galegifolia Thelymitra epipactoides Thesium australe Westringia crassifolia Zieria aspalathoides

Species ID Code 3140 3207 3223 3243 3992 3367 3389 3567 3602

FFG ESPA SOP


L E V E

V R

Growth/regeneration Growth/regeneration

R E E V E V

Inhibiting growth Growth/regeneration Inhibiting growth Inhibiting growth

54


5.5 Alignment of Control Programs and Priority Parks Figure 4 provides a visual representation of where rabbit control is being undertaken relative to the priority areas identified in this report. One hundred and ninety one ranked parks were identified as having conducted control programs in the last four financial years (Table 6), comprising 12 of the 22 High Priority parks (55%), 31 of the High-medium Priority parks (36%), 36 Medium Priority parks (33%) and 114 of the Low Priority parks (6%) (Figure 5). This will be an underestimate of the number of parks and reserves that have conducted rabbit control (particularly for small parks), as programs conducted under the auspices of one major park may in fact incorporate control across several associated smaller parks. However, if control programs in the smaller parks were mapped in the EIS system, they will have been accounted for. Not shown in Figure 4 are 51 unranked parks that conducted control programs over this period and 23 programs that spanned numerous, unspecified parks and reserves. Table 7 highlights those High to Medium Priority parks that are not recorded as having undertaken rabbit control in the last four years. Table 6. Ranked parks that have conducted rabbit control programs in the last four financial years High Priority Parks

Hepburn Regional Park

Alpine National Park

Jilpanger Flora & Fauna Reserve

Chiltern-Mt Pilot National Park


Discovery Bay Coastal Park

Lake Albacutya Park

Grampians National Park

Lake Connewarre Wildlife Reserve

Hattah - Kulkyne National Park

Langi Ghiran State Park

Lake Eildon National Park

Leaghur State Park

Mount Buffalo National Park

Maldon Historic Area

Murray - Sunset National Park

Mornington Peninsula National Park

Snowy River National Park

Moss Tank Flora & Fauna Reserve

Warby Range State Park

Mount Alexander Regional Park

Wilsons Promontory National Park

Mount Arapiles - Tooan State Park

Wyperfeld National Park

Mount Buangor State Park

High-medium priority parks

Mount Eccles National Park

Barmah State Park

Mount Samaria State Park

Brisbane Ranges National Park

Nooramunga Marine & Coastal Park

Dergholm State Park

Otway National Park

Dering Racecourse Flora & Fauna

Port Campbell National Park

Reserve

Reef Hills Park

Gippsland Lakes Reserve

San Remo - Pt Smythe Coastal Reserve

55

Long et al. 2003

High-medium priority parks continued Timberoo Flora & Fauna Reserve

Wandella Flora & Fauna Reserve

Towan Plains Flora and Fauna Reserve

Wandown Flora and Fauna Reserve

Wathe Flora & Fauna Reserve

Wychitella Flora & Fauna Reserve

Yarra Ranges National Park

Yellimjip Bushland Reserve

Medium priority parks Albacutya I171 Bushland Reserve

56

Medium priority parks continued

You Yangs Regional Park Low priority parks

Ararat Hills Regional Park

Adams Creek Nature Conservation

Balmers Tank Bushland Reserve

Reserve

Baw Baw National Park

Alfred National Park

Bay of Islands Coastal Park

Bailey Plain Bushland Reserve

Beechworth Park

Baluk Willam Nature Conservation

Carlisle State Park

Reserve

Castlemaine Diggins National Heritage

Barambogie I11 Bushland Reserve

Park

Baring North I111 Bushland Reserve

Chillingolla Flora & Fauna Reserve

Beechworth Bushland Reserve

Corner Inlet Marine & Coastal Park

Bells Swamp Wildlife Reserve

Dalyenong (1) Flora Reserve

Ben More Bushland Reserve

Dattuck Bushland Reserve

Blue Hills Bushland Reserve

Drendles Bushland Reserve

Boinka Flora Reserve

Fulham Scenic Reserve

Boomers Nature Conservation Reserve

Gnarr Flora Reserve

Boweya Flora & Fauna Reserve

Howqua Hills Historic Area

Bronzewing Bushland Reserve

Inglewood Flora Reserve

Broom Hill Bushland Reserve

Inverleigh Flora Reserve

Bulls Swamp Wildlife Reserve

Jack Smith Lake Wildlife Reserve

Bungeet H93 Bushland Reserve

Koonda Flora Reserve

Bunurong Marine Park

Mount Beckworth Scenic Reserve.

Cardinia Creek Parklands

Mount Meg Flora & Fauna Reserve

Carter's Tank Bushland Reserve

Mount Richmond National Park

Chesney Vale Hills H97 Bushland

Murrayville Flora Reserve

Reserve

Paddys Ranges State Park

Chillingollah Bushland Reserve

Percydale Historic Area

Cocamba Flora & Fauna Reserve

Providence Ponds Flora & Fauna

Coolart Historic Area

Reserve

Cowangie Railway Bushland Reserve

Tooloy-Lake Mundi Wildlife Reserve

Craigieburn Grassland Nature

Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve

Conservation Reserve

Turriff Flora & Fauna Reserve

Daalko Bushland Reserve

Tutye Bushland Reserve

Deep Lead Flora & Fauna Reserve

Appendix 1 – Classification of EVCs into EVDs


Low priority parks continued

Low priority parks continued

Derrimut Grassland Nature Conservation Reserve

Nyerimilang Park G.L.R

Dunstans Flora & Fauna Reserve

One Tree Hill Nature Conservation Reserve

Frenchmans School Bushland Reserve

Ocean Grove Education Area

Fresh-water Swamp, Woodside Beach Wildlife Reserve

O'Shannessy Bushland Reserve

Giffard (Rifle Range) Flora Reserve

Plants Bushland Reserve

Giffard H30 Bushland Reserve

Plenty Gorge Regional Park.

Giffard H31 Bushland Reserve

Point Cook/Cheetham Wetlands

Gladstone Bushland Reserve

Polisbet Bushland Reserve

Gunner's Tank Bushland Reserve

Possum Flat Bushland Reserve

Holden Flora Reserve

Prange Road Bushland Reserve

Howell's Hill Scenic Reserve

Sandbelt Parklands

Hynams Bushland Reserve

Sandy Creek, Elmhurst Scenic Reserve.

Inkerman Lead Bushland Reserve

Seaham Mine Bushland Reserve

Jennings Bushland Reserve

Serendip Wetlands Education Facility

Kattyoong Bushland Reserve

Spara's Bushland Reserve

Kulwin Flora & Fauna Reserve

Speed Bushland Reserve

Lake Boort Lake Reserve

St Arnaud I52 Bushland Reserve

Lake Goldsmith Wildlife Reserve

Steiglitz Historic Park

Lake Rowan Bushland Reserve

Stony Creek Backwash

Langwarrin Flora & Fauna Reserve

Stony Creek Scenic Reserve

Leitpar Bushland Reserve

Stratford H.P.

Long Forest Flora & Fauna Reserve

Sugarloaf Reservoir Parks

Lonsdale Lakes Wildlife Reserve Lower Homebush Bushland Reserve

Swan Bay - Edwards Point Wildlife Reserve

Lysterfield Park

Syme's Bushland Reserve

Malakoff Lead, Landsborough Historic Area

The Pines Flora & Fauna Reserve

Manya Flora Reserve

Tiega I80 Bushland Reserve

Maribyrnong Valley Parklands

Timor Creek SScenic Reserve.

Maryborough Regional Park

Timor Historic Area

McLeans Bushland Reserve

Waitchie Tank Bushland Reserve

Molka H67 Bushland Reserve

Walpeup Flora & Fauna Reserve

Mount Doboobetic Bushland Reserve

Wannon Flora Reserve

Mount Korong Scenic Reserve.

Wannon Rapids

Myall Flora and Fauna Reserve

Wannon River

Narrawong Coastal Reserve

Warrandyte State Park

Nigretta Falls Flora Reserve

Warrock Scenic Reserve.

Ouyen I82 Bushland Reserve

The Spit Wildlife Reserve

57

Long et al. 2003

Low priority parks continued Wattle Creek Bushland Reserve

Menzies Block Flora & Fauna Reserve

Welshmans Plain Flora & Fauna Reserve

Mildura Flora & Fauna Reserve

Werribee Gorge State Park Werribee Park Werrimull Bushland Reserve Wilkin Flora & Fauna Reserve Wisemans Hill Bushland Reserve Wood Wood Flora & Fauna Reserve Woodlands Historic Park Woodside Flora Reserve Yarra Bend Park Yarra Valley Parklands Unranked parks Baillieu (Richardsons) Lagoon Wildlife Reserve Balmers Tank Flora & Fauna Reserve Castlemaine H.R Corack East I142 Bushland Reserve Cullens Lake Wildlife Reserve Eureka Flora & Fauna Reserve Gippsland Lakes Reserve - Blond Bay SGR / Forge Creek Reserve Glenlee Flora & Fauna Reserve

58

Unranked parks continued

Mount Gowar Scenic Reserve Mount Gowar Scenic Reserve. Mt Tarrengower Ocean Grove Nature Reserve Organ Pipes National Park Pine Plains Reserve Red Cliffs N.Flora Reserve Redcliffs Screw Creek Swan Bay Marine Reserve Teddywaddy I153 Bushland Reserve Tiega Flora Reserve Timberoo I106 Bushland Reserve Tutye I67 Bushland Reserve Two Mile Swamp Wildlife Reserve Underbool Vaughan Springs Walpeup I92 Bushland Reserve Warrenmang I72 Bushland Reserve Western District Lakes Ramsar Site Numerous, unspecified reserves

Heywood Lake Wildlife Reserve

Beechworth Conservation Reserves

Hogan Flora and Fauna Reserve

Casterton Reserves


Colac Parks & Reserves

Kerang TTNP

Hopetoun Reserves

Lady Julia Percy Island Wildlife Reserve

Numerous Reserves

Lake Corangamite Lake Reserve

Red Cliffs Reserves

Lake Corangamite Wildlife Reserve

Reserve Other

Lake Elizabeth Wildlife Reserve

Stawell Reserves

Lake Lyndger Wildlife Reserve

Swan Hill

Lake Marmal Lake Reserve

Swan Hill reserves

Lake Mundi Wildlife Reserve

Underbool Reserves

Lake Powell & Carpell Wildlife Reserve

Wangaratta Reserves

Lake Tyers Foreshore Reserve

Werrimull Reserves

Majorca Racecourse Bushland Reserve

Western District Lakes

Marlbed I189 Bushland Reserve

Wimmera Reserves



INSERT FIGURE 4 HERE

59

Long et al. 2003

60


Table 7. High to Medium Priority parks for which there are no recent records of rabbit control Only High to Medium priority park categories are shown. Recent rabbit records (since 1980) were obtained from the Atlas of Victorian Wildlife, DSE. ‘SOP’ refers to those parks that recorded the presence of rabbits as part of the State of the Parks survey (Parks Victoria, unpubl. data). A dash in this column indicates the park was not included in the SOP survey. Park ID Park Name

SOP

Rabbit Records

-

Yes

High Priority 7

Annuello F.F.R.

3323


Yes

No

3322


Yes

Yes

3310

Burrowa - Pine Mountain National Park

Yes

Yes

3311

Croajingolong National Park

Yes

Yes

529

Lake Tyrrell W.R.

-

No

3300

Lower Glenelg National Park

Yes

Yes

3344

Mount Lawson State Park

Yes

Yes

3284


-

Yes

3324


Yes

No

Yes

Yes

High-medium Priority 3325

Angahook - Lorne State Park

2938

Avon - Mt Hedrick N.F.S.R.

-

No

3242

Baranduda R.P

-

Yes

3328

Black Range State Park

Yes

No

3647

Blond Bay W.R

-

Yes

Bronzewing F.F.R

-

Yes

2606

Bumbang Island H.A

-

No

3359

Cape Conran Coastal Park

Yes

Yes

3371

Cape Liptrap Coastal Park

Yes

Yes

2927

Cassilis H.A

-

No

3332

Cathedral Range State Park

Yes

Yes

3317

Coopracambra National Park

Yes

Yes

509

Dartagook W.R

-

No

3356

Enfield State Park

Yes

Yes

3318

Errinundra National Park

Yes

Yes

456

Ewing Morass W.R

-

Yes

3301

French Island National Park

Yes

Yes

3362

Gippsland Lakes Coastal Park

Yes

Yes

3591

Goulburn River H.R

-

No

37

61

Long et al. 2003

Park ID Park Name

Rabbit Records

2924

Grant H.A.

-

No

4493

Heathcote-Greytown National Park

-

No

3334

Holey Plains State Park

Yes

Yes

3244

Jarvis Creek Plateau R.P

-

Yes

3292

Kinglake National Park

Yes

Yes

512

Kings Billabong W.R.

-

Yes

519

Koorangie (The Marshes & Avoca Floodway) W.R

-

Yes

2600

Koorlong E.A.

-

No

3337

Kooyoora State Park

Yes

Yes

525

Lake Lalbert W.R

-

Yes

150

Lake Timboram F.F.R

-

Yes

532

Lakes Powell and Carpul W.R

-

Yes

152

Lambert Island F.R

-

No

153

Landsborough F.F.R.

-

Yes

3339

Lerderderg State Park

Yes

Yes

Lianiduck F.F.R.

-

Yes

3189

Lorne - Queenscliff Coastal Reserve

-

No

3237

Lower Ovens R.P

-

Yes

3229

Macedon R.P

-

Yes

168

Mallanbool F.F.R

-

No

3295

Mitchell River National Park

Yes

No

196

Mount Bolangum F.F.R

-

Yes

3355

Mount Granya State Park

Yes

Yes

3245

Mount Mitta Mitta R.P

-

Yes

3345

Mount Napier State Park

Yes

Yes

2991

Mount Stanley S.R.

-

Yes

2917

Mount Tambo N.F.S.R.

-

Yes

2928

Mount Wills H.A

-

No

208

Mount Wombat-Garden Range F.F.R

-

Yes

535

Mullroo Creek W.R

-

Yes

212

Mullungdung F.F.R

-

No

3367


Yes

Yes

1357

Mystic Park B.R.

-

No

234

Paradise F.F.R.

-

Yes

3363

St. Arnaud Range National Park

-

No

3297

The Lakes National Park

Yes

Yes

2598

Timberoo E.A.

-

No

352

Yarrara F.F.R.

-

Yes

76

62

SOP


Park ID Park Name

SOP

Rabbit Records

Ballarat-Creswick R.P

-

No

14

Barrabool F.F.R.

-

No

18

Ben Major F.R.

-

No

23

Birdcage F.F.R.

-

Yes

2525

Black Range S.R.

-

Yes

214

Bolton F.F.R

-

No

506

Brimy Bill (5 Mile Lake) W.R

-

No

35

Brodribb F.R.

-

No

1328

Bumbang I262 B.R

-

No

3329

Bunyip State Park

Yes

Yes

75

Chinkapook F.F.R.

-

Yes

3642

Clydebank Morass W.R.

-

No

3235

Cobram R.P

-

No

314

Cooriemungle Creek F.R

-

Yes

3247

Crawford River R.P

-

No

3291

Dandenong Ranges National Park

Yes

Yes

2601

Darling Junction E.A.

-

No

652

Dowd Morass W.R

-

No

2526

Dundas Range S.R.

-

No

3232

Echuca R.P

-

No

3188

Elliot River - Addis Bay Coastal Reserve

-

No

2712

Eppalock E.A.

-

No

81

Fryers Ridge F.R

-

No

98

Gobur N.C.R

-

No

3226

Green Lake R.P

-

Yes

107

Hat Hill F.F.R.

-

No

2725

Heathcote S.R.

-

Yes

828

Kanyapella Basin W.M.C.A

-

No

524

Lake Heywood W.R.

-

No

3419

Lake Tyers

-

Yes

3120

Lake Wahpool L.R.

-

No

3064

Lakes Coorong & Lascelles L.R.

-

No

526

Leaghur W.R

-

No

3041

Lima South E.A.

-

No

3043

Lockhart Creek E.A.

-

No

2922

Macalister Gorge N.F.S.R.

-

No

1646

Maintongoon G105 B.R

-

No

Medium Priority 3220

63

Long et al. 2003

Park ID Park Name

64

SOP

Rabbit Records

1302

Mamemgorook I236 B.R

-

No

1126

Mamengoroock I72 B.R.

-

No

170

Manangatang (Lulla) F.F.R

-

Yes

3199


-

No

3197

McLoughlins Beach - Seaspray Coastal Reserve

-

No

2637

Moliagul H.A.

-

No

188

Moormurng F.F.R.

-

Yes

3042

Mount Barambogie E.A.

-

No

195

Mount Black F.R

-

No

2939

Mount Elizabeth N.F.S.R.

-

No

201

Mount Ida F.R

-

No

3044

Mountain Creek E.A.

-

No

2900

Murrindindi River N.F.S.R.

-

Yes

215

Narrawong F.R.

-

Yes

361

North Western Port N.C.R.

-

Yes

240

Ovens River F.R

-

No

3187

Port Fairy - Warrnambool Coastal Reserve

-

No

3190


-

No

2995

Powers Lookout S.R

-

Yes

253

Red Bluff F.F.R

-

No

638

Reedy Lake, Nagambie W.R

-

No

1348

Ryanby B.R.

-

No

3393

Shallow Inlet Marine & Coastal Park

Yes

Yes

3047

Tallangallook-Dry Creek H.A

-

No

280

Tarnagulla F.R.

-

Yes

1329

Toltol I263 B.R.

-

No

1043

Tomahawk Creek B.R.

-

No

226

Torrita F.F.R

-

No

305

Towma (Lake Marlbed) F.F.R

-

No

101

Turriff F.F.R

-

Yes

3230

Wandong R.P

-

No

3195

Waratah Bay - Shallow Inlet Coastal Reserve

-

No

368

Warrandyte - Kinglake N.C.R

-

Yes

329

Wemen F.F.R

-

Yes

1352

Wewin B.R.

-

No

1164

Woornack I110 B.R

-

No

350

Yarck N.C.R

-

No


Figure 5 shows the percentage of parks within each priority category that have conducted rabbit control programs in the last four financial years and the proportion of the total rabbit control funding allocated to each priority category (note that rabbit control funding data was not available for every park that conducted control programs). Proportionally more funding has been allocated to parks in the High Priority category (33% of total funding) compared to all other categories. The Low Priority category has also received proportionally more funding (23%) than the High-medium and Medium Priority categories (15% and 6% respectively). When this is examined in more detail, parks in the Low Priority category receive more resources per park than those in the Medium Priority category, and similar resources to those in the High-medium category, while High Priority parks have received over five times more funding per park than parks in all other categories (Figure 6). Nearly $699 000 (24%) of control funding (Figure 5) was either allocated to unranked parks ie. parks without EVC mapping ($354 500), or to a number of unspecified reserves ($344 100). It must be remembered that these costings do not reflect the relative effort spent per unit area, nor is it possible to calculate this because, in many cases, data detailing the area covered by control operations is not available. Because high priority parks are typically large parks it is therefore not unexpected that they would recieve proportionally more control funding.

65

Long et al. 2003

Percentage of parks within a category that have undertaken rabbit control in the last 4 yrs (number of parks in brackets)

100 90 80

Percentage of total rabbit control funding allocated to each category

Percentage

70 60

(12/22)

50 40

(31/86)

(36/109)

30 20 10

(114/1966)

0 High priority

High-med priority

Med priority

Low priority

Unranked / unspecified

Park priority category Figure 5. The distribution of rabbit control effort, represented by the percentage of parks that have recently conducted control programs within each of the four priority categories, and the proportional distribution of financial resources between the categories. Funding allocated to ‘The Unranked/unspecified’ parks category includes funding distributed across numerous unspecified parks (eg. Wimmera reserves). For this reason it is not possible to say how many parks undertook rabbit control in this category.

66

Average cost of rabbit control per park ($)


90000 80000 70000 60000 50000 40000 30000 20000 10000 0 High priority

High-med priority

Med priority

Low priority

Park priority category Figure 6. Average cost of rabbit control per park from July 1999 to July 2003 within each priority category.

On a regional basis the West region has the highest number of parks in the top three priority categories and the majority of the rabbit control funding is also being directed to this region (Figure 7). The level of effort currently being allocated to the City & Bays and Central regions also closely reflects the number of high to Medium Priority parks in these areas. In contrast there currently appears to be more effort placed in the Melbourne Metropolitan region and less effort in the East region than is indicated to be necessary.

67

Long et al. 2003

1800 High priority parks

100

$

High-med priority parks

1400

Number of parks

Medium priority parks 80

1600

$ Cost of Rabbit Control

1200 1000

60

$

800

40 20

600 400

$

200 $

$

0

0

Melb. Metro. City & Bays

Central

East

West

Parks Victoria regions

Figure 7. Regional distribution of High to Medium Priority parks compared with the distribution of recent (1999-2003) rabbit control funding. Shaded bars show the number of parks within each priority category by region, while the dollar symbol indicates the funding allocated to each region for rabbit control (this includes funding allocated to unranked parks and to control programs spanning multiple, unspecified reserves).

5.6 Stochastic Events Table 8 shows the increased threat rabbits pose to each EVD due to stochastic events such as fires, floods and drought. The EVDs Coastal, Granitic Hillslopes and Freshwater Wetland (ephemeral) are identified as being at high risk from rabbit grazing due to the relative frequency with which they are likely to experience stochastic events and the susceptibility of their vegetation to rabbits following these events. This information has not been incorporated into the overall prioritisation process, but is intended to highlight the need for some degree of flexibility to be maintained when allocating rabbit control funding. Such flexibility will ensure that, following a stochastic event, funds can be allocated or redirected to rabbit control programs in vegetation communities that are highly susceptible to grazing at this time.

68

Cost of control programs ('000s)

120


Table 8. Level of risk posed to EVDs by the frequency of stochastic events and the vegetation’s susceptibility to rabbits following such events The level of risk assigned to an EVD is a combination of the likely frequency of stochastic events in that environment and the impact of rabbits on the vegetation should that event occur (see Table 2). A score of one represents a negligible risk and a score of four represents a high risk. The stochastic event most likely to impact the EVD is listed as the ‘primary’ stochastic event and less likely impacts are listed as ‘secondary’ events. EVD

Risk

Primary Stochastic Event

Secondary Stochastic Event

Coastal

4

Fire

Freshwater Wetland (ephemeral)

4

Flood

Drought

Granitic Hillslopes

4

Fire

Drought

Alluvial Plains Grassland

3

Fire

Drought

Basalt Grassland

3

Fire

Forby Forest

3

Fire

Riverine Woodland/Forest

3

Flood


3

Fire

Semi-arid Woodland (non-eucalypt)

3

Drought

Alluvial Plains Woodlands

2

Fire

Drought

Broombush/Whipstick

2

Fire

Drought

Foothills Forest

2

Fire

Grassy/Heathy Dry Forest

2

Fire

Heathland (sands)

2

Fire

High Altitude Shrubland/Woodland

2

Fire

Lowland Forest (Eastern)

2

Fire

Spinifex Mallee

2

Fire

Swampy Scrub

2

Fire

Western Plain Woodland

2

Fire

Alpine Treeless

1

Chenopod Mallee

1

Chenopod Shrubland

1

Damp Forest

1

Freshwater Wetland (permanent)

1

High Altitude Wetland

1

Ironbark/Box

1

Rainforest

1

Riparian (higher rainfall)

1

Saline Wetland

1

Siliceous Mallee

1

Treed Swampy Wetland

1

Wet Forest

1

Drought

69

Long et al. 2003

5.7 Knowledge Gaps It was notable during this project that there are very little data available on the distribution and density of rabbits within the Parks Victoria estate or in Victoria as a whole. Although some parks routinely monitor rabbit numbers, these data have generally not been collected systematically or if they have it is not routinely stored in a central database. Additionally, those parks that do monitor rabbit numbers use different techniques (Cathy Allan, Parks Victoria, pers. comm.) and therefore there is little scope for comparison between parks. Parks Victoria are in the process of trialing a draft monitoring protocol for rabbits and that this is likely to be implemented across the Parks estate in the near future (Cathy Allan, Parks Victoria pers. comm.). Initiating a systematic method of monitoring rabbits will greatly improve Parks Victoria’s capacity to: •

monitor the success of rabbit control programs,

•

assess the impacts of disease outbreaks,

•

provide baseline data against which vegetation condition monitoring can be assessed, and

•

better highlight areas that are in need of rabbit control funding.

We also encountered difficulties attributing park data to the correct parks due to a lack of consistency in the wording of park names and in the use of park identification codes. These differences were often minor and could be easily overcome if park ID codes are always used in conjunction with park names. While the majority of the native vegetation in Victoria has been mapped, complete EVC mapping will not be available until the end of 2003. This new data will relate to only a small portion of the Parks Victoria estate and therefore does not warrant an immediate review of the rabbit control prioritisation data. However, some sections of the State are currently only mapped at a broad scale and there are plans for finer scale EVC mapping to occur in the future as funds become available (F. Ferwerda, DSE, pers. comm.). It is threrefore recommended that a review be conducted every 3-5 years to incorporate any new EVC mapping along with other information from our improved knowledge of the ecology, distribution, and impact of rabbits. The information provided in this report is largely based on expert opinion and while every effort has been made to ensure this is as accurate as possible, there remains much that is unknown about the impacts (particularly long-term impacts) of rabbits on our indigenous flora and fauna communities; consequently the results of this report should be interpreted accordingly. Continued research and monitoring is required to improve our collective knowledge of rabbits and their impacts, to ensure that, as land managers, we are better equipped to protect Victoria’s biodiversity

70


values. The implementation of systematic rabbit monitoring within the Parks Victoria estate has the potential to provide an excellent platform for such research.

5.8 Summary of Results Victorian parks with mapped Ecological Vegetation Classes were ranked according to the susceptibility of their vegetation to rabbit disturbance. The top five ranked parks are MurraySunset National Park, the Alpine National Park, Wyperfeld National Park, Grampians National Park, and Hattah-Kulkyne National Park. The West region has the highest number of highly ranked parks, followed by the East and Central regions, then City & Bays and finally the Melbourne Metropolitan region. More effort is currently being placed in rabbit control in the Melbourne Metropolitan region and less in the East region than is suggested necessary by the ranking system. Over the last four financial years, 191 ranked parks have conducted rabbit control programs as have 51 unranked parks. In 23 cases, a single control program covered multiple, unspecified parks and reserves and consequently the precise locations of these programs could not be determined. Of the 22 High Priority parks, 12 (55%) have conducted rabbit control in the last four years, with these programs securing proportionally more resources than any of the other priority categories. Of the other parks that conducted control programs, 31 were High-medium Priority parks, 36 were Medium Priority parks and 114 were Low Priority parks (constituting 33%, 36% and 6% of these categories respectively). On average the High-medium and Medium Priority parks each receive similar, or slightly fewer resources to conduct rabbit control than those in the Low Priority category. One hundred flora species, 19 fauna species, 7 flora communities and 1 fauna community are identified as being potentially threatened by rabbit disturbance. These species/communities occur in 86% of the High Priority parks, 77% of the High-medium Priority parks, 42% of the Medium Priority parks, and 8% of the Low Priority parks. The large proportion of higher priority parks that contain ‘at-risk’ species is likely to be an artefact of the ranking bias towards large parks. Three EVDs, Coastal, Granitic Hillslopes and Freshwater Wetland (ephemeral), were assessed as being at high risk from rabbit grazing following stochastic events, which are likely to occur in these communities relatively frequently. Following such events rabbit control resources may need to be redirected to these communities to protect them during this time of elevated grazing susceptibility. There are few data collected on the distribution and abundance of rabbits in Victorian Parks. It is believed that the implementation of systematic rabbit monitoring will greatly improve Parks

71

Long et al. 2003

Victoria’s capacity to identify and manage rabbit impacts. Such monitoring would also provide a valuable platform for future research into the impacts of rabbits on Victoria’s flora and fauna communities.

72


6 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We are grateful to Kelly Raymond for her administrative assistance on this project. We thank Steve McPhee and Josh Dorrough for offering scientific advise, Michael Scroggie for advise on all things numerical and Geoff Brown, Louise Grgat and Nick Clemann for providing comments on earlier drafts.

7 REFERENCES Anon (2000). State of the Parks 2000: The Parks System. Parks Victoria, Melbourne. Auld, T. D. (1993). The impact of grazing on regeneration of the shrub Acacia carnei in arid Australia. Biological Conservation 65, 165-176. Briggs, J. and Leigh, J. (1995). Rare or Threatened Australian Plants. CSIRO, Australia. Caughley, G. C. (1977). Analysis of Vertebrate Populations. John Wiley, London. Cochrane, R. G. and McDonald, E. N. H. (1966). A regeneration study in the Victorian mallee. Victorian Naturalist 83, 220-226. Cooke, B. D. (1974). Food and Other Resources of the Wild Rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus (L.). Ph.D. Thesis, University of Adelaide. Cooke, B. D. (1981). Rabbit control and the conservation of native mallee vegetation on roadsides in South Australia. Australian Wildlife Research 8, 627-636. Cooke, B. D. (1982). A shortage of water in natural pastures as a factor limiting a population of rabbits, Oryctolagus cuniculus (L.), in arid, north-eastern South Australia. Australian Wildlife Research 9, 465-476. Cooke, B. D. (1987). The effects of rabbit grazing on regeneration of sheoaks, Allocasuarina verticilliata and saltwater ti-trees, Melaleuca halmaturorum, in the Coorong National Park, South Australia. Australian Journal of Ecology 13, 11-20. Dawson, T. J. and Ellis, B. A. (1979). Comparison of the diets of yellow-footed rock-wallabies and sympatric herbivores in western New South Wales. Australian Wildlife Research 6, 245-254. Department of Sustainability and Environment (2002). Flora Information System. May 2002 version. Diamond, J. M. (1975). The island dilemma: lessons of modern biogeographic studies for the design of natural reserves. Biological Conservation 7, 129-146. Environment Australia (1999). Threat Abatement Plan for Competition and Land Degradation by Feral Rabbits. Biodiversity Group, Environment Australia, Canberra.

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Foran , B. D. (1984). Central Arid Woodlands. In Management of Australia’s Rangelands eds G. N. Harrington, A. D. Wilson and M. D. Young. CSIRO: Melbourne. Foran, B. D., Low, W. A. and Strong, B. W. (1985). The response of rabbit populations and vegetation to rabbit control on a calcareous shrubby grassland in central Australia. Wildlife Research 12, 237-247. Holden, C. and Mutze, G. (2002). Impact of rabbit haemorrhagic disease on introduced predators in the Flinders Ranges, South Australia. Wildlife Research 29, 615-626. Lange, R. T. and Graham, C. R. (1983). Rabbits and the failure of regeneration in Australian arid zone Acacia. Australian Journal of Ecology 8, 377-381. Leigh J. H., Wood, D. H., Holgate, M. D. Slee, A. and Stanger, M. G. (1989). Effects of rabbit and kangaroo grazing on two semi-arid grassland communities in central-western New South Wales. Australian Journal of Botany 37, 375-396. Martin, W. and Sobey, W. (1983). Improvement of seabird nesting habitat on Bowen Island, New South Wales by eradication of rabbits. Corella 7, 40. Morton, S. R. (1990). The impact of European settlement on the vertebrate animals of arid Australia: a conceptual model. Proceedings of the Ecological Society of Australia 16, 201-213. Myers, K. (1958). Further observations of the use of field enclosures for the study of the wild rabbit, Oryctolagus cuniculus (L.). CSIRO Wildlife Research 3, 40-49. Myers, K. and Parker, B. S. (1965). A study of the biology of the wild rabbit in climatically different regions in eastern Australia; I. Patterns of Distribution. CSIRO Wildlife Research 10, 1-32. Newsome, A., Pech, R., Smyth, R., Banks, P. and Dickman, C. (1999). Potential Impacts on Australian Native Fauna of Rabbit Calicivirus Disease. Biodiversity Group, Environment Australia, Canberra. Norman, F. I. (1988). Long-term effects of rabbit reduction on rabbit island, Wilsons Promontory, Victoria. Victorian Naturalist 105, 136-141. Parer, I. and Libke, J. A. (1985). Distribution of rabbit, Oryctolagus cuniculus, warrens in relation to soil type. Australian Wildlife Research, 12, 387-405. Priddel, D., Carlile, N., Davey, C. and Fullagar, P. (1995). The status of Gould’s petrel, Pterodroma leucoptera leucopter, on Cabbage Tree Island, New South Wales. Wildlife Research 22, 601-610.

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Sandell, P. R. and Start, A. N. (1999). Rabbit Calicivirus Disease Program Report 4: Implications for Biodiversity in Australia. A report of research conducted by participants of the Rabbit Calicivirus Disease Monitoring and Surveillance Program and Epidemiology Research Program. Prepared for the RCD Mangagement Group. Bureau of Rural Sciences, Canberra. Seebeck, J. H. (1978). Diet of the fox Vulpes vulpes in a western Victorian forest. Australian Journal of Ecology. 3, 105-108. Wheeler, S. H., King, D. R. and Robinson, M. H. (1981). Habitat and warren utilization by the european rabbit, Oryctolagus cuniculus (L.), as determined by radio-tracking. Australian Wildlife Research 8, 581-588. Williams, K., Parer, I., Coman, B., Burley, J. and Braysher, M. (1995). Managing Vertebrate Pests: Rabbits. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra. Wimbush, D. J. and Forrester, R. I. (1988). Effects of rabbit grazing and fire on a subalpine environment. II. Tree Vegetation. Australian Journal of Botany, 36, 287-298. Wood, D.H., Leigh, J. H. and Foran, B.D. (1987). The production and ecological costs of rabbit grazing. 8th Australian Vertebrate Pest Control Conference: Handbook of Working Papers. Queensland Rural Lands Protection Board.

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76


APPENDIX 1 – Classification of EVCs into EVDs EVDs are ordered by their rabbit susceptibility category (highest to lowest risk). Double lines indicate category boundaries. EVD

EVC Name

EVC Code

Semi-arid Woodland (non-eucalypt) - category 1 Pine Buloke Woodland

97

Belah Woodland

98

Savanah Woodland/Savanah Mallee/Plains Grassland

99

Mosaic Gypseous Plain Woodland

113

Savanah Woodland

118

Buloke Herb-rich Woodland

157

Savanah Woodland/Savanah Mallee Mosaic

194

Lunette Woodland

652

Pine Box Woodland

868

Semi-arid Lunette Woodland

7005

Chenopod Shrubland - category 1 Alluvial Plains Shrubland

102

Alluvial Rises Shrubland

7004

Granitic Hillslopes - category 2 Granitic Hills Woodland

72

Granitic Hills Woodland/ Rocky Outcrop Shrubland

173

Complex Granitic Hills Woodland/Rocky Outcrop

244

Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic Granitic Hills Woodland/Heathy Dry Forest Mosaic

245

Shrubby Granitic-outwash Grassy Woodland/Valley

254

Grassy Forest Complex Shrubby Granitic-outwash Grassy Woodland/Plains

274

Grassy Woodland Complex Shrubby Granitic-outwash Grassy Woodland/Plains

276

Grassy Woodland/Wetland Formation Complex Riverine Woodland / Forest - category 3 Floodplain Riparian Woodland

56

Black Box Chenopod Woodland

103


77

Long et al. 2003

Riverine Woodland / Forest - continued Riverine Grassy Forest

106

Black Box Chenopod Woodland/Plains Grassland

110

Mosaic Riverine Grassy Forest/Plains Grassland Mosaic

116

Riverine Forest

130

Gilgai Plain Woodland/Wetland Mosaic

235

Floodplain Riparian Woodland/Plains Grassy Woodland

250

Mosaic Riverine Grassy Woodland/Riverine Sedgy

255

Forest/Wetland Mosaic Floodplain Riparian Woodland/Floodplain Wetland

256

Mosaic Gilgai Plain Woodland/Wetland/Plains Grassy Wetland

259

Mosaic Gilgai Plain Woodland/Wetland/Shrubby Riverina Plains

260

Grassy Woodland Mosaic Riverine Grassy Woodland

295

Riverine Sedgy Forest

297

Black Box Chenopod Woodland/Lignum Wetland Mosaic

321

Riparian Woodland

641

Freshwater Lignum Shrubland

657

Riverine Grassy Woodland / Riverine Sedgy Forest /

658

Aquatic Herbland Plains Riparian Shrubby Woodland

659

Black Box Lignum Woodland

663

Riparian Woodland / Escarpment Shrubland

668

Floodplain Riparian Woodland/Billabong Wetland

690

Mosaic Floodplain Riparian Woodland / Plains Grassy

794

Woodland Riverina Plains Grassy Woodland/Lignum Wetland

855

Mosaic Weedy Floodplain Riparian Woodland

864

Creekline Grassy Woodland/Red Gum Wetland Mosaic

869

Riverine Grassy Woodland/Riverina Plains Grassy

870

Woodland Complex

78



Riverine Woodland / Forest - continued Riverine Grassy Woodland/Gilgai Plain

871

Woodland/Wetland/Riverina Plains Grassy Woodland Riverine Grassy Woodland/Riverina Plains Grassy

872

Woodland/Black Box Chenopod Woodland Complex Riverine Grassy Woodland/Black Box Chenopod

873

Woodland/Wetland Mosaic Riparian Woodland / Stream-bank Shrubland Mosaic

928

Floodplain Woodland

7010

Riverine Forest

7012

Coastal - Category 3 Coastal Dune Scrub Mosaic

1

Coast Banksia Woodland

2

Dry Coast Complex

51

Coast Banksia Woodland/ East Gippsland Coastal

144

Warm Temperate Rainforest Mosaic Coastal Dune Scrub

160

Coastal Headland Scrub

161

Coastal Headland Scrub/Headland Coastal Tussock

162

Grassland Mosaic Coastal Tussock Grassland

163

Bird Colony Shrubland

154

Bird Colony Succulent Herbland

155

Sedgy Swale Shrubland

199

Weedy Coast Banksia Woodland

216

Weedy Coastal Dune Scrub Mosaic

217

Bird Colony Shrubland/Depauperate Coastal Tussock

303

Grassland Mosaic Calcareous Swale Grassland

309

Berm Grassy Shrubland

311

Coastal Mallee Scrub

665

Coastal Landfill / Sand Accretion

797

Calcarenite Dune Woodland

858

Spray-zone Coastal Shrubland

876

Coastal Dune Grassland

879

Granitic Coastal Headland Scrub/Depauperate Coastal

880

Tussock Grassland Mosaic Coastal Basalt Mosaic


900

79

Long et al. 2003

Coastal - continued Coast Banksia Woodland/Swampy Scrub Mosaic

904

Coastal Dune Scrub/Bird Colony Succulent Herbland

909

Mosaic Bird Colony Succulent Herbland/Coastal Tussock

910

Grassland Mosaic Coastal Headland Scrub/Swampy Scrub Mosaic

911

Coastal Headland Scrub/Coast Banksia Woodland

919

Mosaic Coast Banksia Woodland/Coastal Dune Scrub Mosaic

921

Coastal Alkaline Scrub/Bird Colony Succulent Herbland

922

Mosaic Rocky Outcrop Shrubland - category 3 Rocky Outcrop Shrubland

28

Blackthorn Scrub

27

Metamorphic Slopes Shrubby Woodland

69

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic

73

Riverine Escarpment Scrub

82

Limestone Pomaderris Shrubland

133

Montane Rocky Shrubland

192

Rocky Outcrop Herbland

193

Wet Rocky Outcrop Scrub

310

Montane Rocky Shrubland/Rocky Outcrop

335

Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic Complex Montane Rocky Shrubland/Shrubby Foothill Forest

336

Complex Montane Rocky Shrubland/Shrubby Foothill Forest

337

Mosaic Montane Rocky Shrubland/Montane Rocky Shrubland

338

Complex Montane Rocky Shrubland/Shrubby Foothill Forest

339

Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic

340


341

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic/Shrubby

342

Foothill Forest Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic/Shrubby

343

Foothill Forest Mosaic

80



Rocky Outcrop Shrubland - continued Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic/Herb-rich

344

Foothill Forest Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic/Lowland

345

Forest Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic/Heathy

346

Woodland Mosaic Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic/Hills Herb-

347

rich Woodland/Heathy Woodland Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic/Hills Herb-

348

rich Woodland Mosaic Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic/Hills Herb-

349

rich Woodland Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic/Grassy Dry

350

Forest Mosaic Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic/Grassy Dry

351

Forest Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland

352


353

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Shrubby Foothill Forest

354

Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Lowland Forest Complex

355

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Lowland Forest/Heathy Dry

356

Forest Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Heathy Dry Forest Complex

357

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Heathy Woodland Complex

358

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Plains Grassy Woodland

359

Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Heathy Woodland/Grassy Dry

360

Forest Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Grassy Dry Forest Complex

361


362


363

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Lowland Forest Complex

364

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Heathy Dry Forest Complex

365


366


367


81

Long et al. 2003

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland - continued Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Heathy Woodland

368

Complex/Heathy Woodland Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Heathy Woodland Complex

534

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Hills Herb-rich Woodland

548

Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Heathy Woodland Complex

552


554


555

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic/Hills Herb-

563

rich Woodland Mosaic Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Valley Grassy Forest

572

Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Montane Rocky Shrubland

573

Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Sand Heathland Complex

574

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Heathy Dry Forest/Heathy

575

Woodland Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Heathy Woodland Complex

576

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic/Plains

579

Grassy Woodland Mosaic Montane Rocky Shrubland/Herb-rich Foothill Forest

594

Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic/Heathy Dry

598

Forest Mosaic Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic/Heathy

614

Woodland Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Heathy Dry Forest/Heathy

615

Woodland Complex Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Heathy Woodland Complex

616

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland Mosaic/Shrubby

618

Foothill Forest/Heathy Dry Forest Mosaic Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Heathy Dry Forest Complex

622


626

Cinder Cone Woodland

644

Stony Knoll Shrubland

649

Escarpment Shrubland / Grassy Woodland / Riparian

662

Woodland

82



Rocky Outcrop Shrubland - continued Escarpment Shrubland / Damp Sands Herb-rich

669

Woodland / Riparian Woodla Escarpment Shrubland / Damp Sands Herb-rich

675

Woodland / Swampy Scrub Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland / Heathy Woodland

726

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland / Broombush Mallee

753

Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland / Hills Herb-rich

758

Woodland Stream-bank Shrubland

851

Scoria Cone Woodland

894

Basalt Escarpment Shrubland

895

Forby Forest - category 4 Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland

3

Herb-rich Foothill Forest

23

Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland

67

Hillcrest Herb-rich Woodland

70

Hills Herb-rich Woodland

71

Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland/Plains Grassy

77

Woodland Mosaic Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland/Heathy Dry Forest

79

Mosaic Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland/Creekline Grassy

81

Woodland Mosaic Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland

129

Weedy Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland

137

Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland/Plains Grassy

152

Woodland Complex Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland/Valley Grassy

153

Forest Complex Creekline Herb-rich Woodland

164

Grassy Woodland

175

Herb-rich Foothill Forest/Shrubby Foothill Forest

178

Complex Weedy Herb-rich Foothill Forest

223

Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland/Gilgai Plain

258

Woodland/Wetland Mosaic Herb-rich Foothill Forest/Lowland Forest Complex


378

83

Long et al. 2003

Forby Forest continued Herb-rich Foothill Forest/Damp Sands Herb-rich

379

Woodland Complex Herb-rich Foothill Forest/Sedgy Riparian Woodland

380

Complex Herb-rich Foothill Forest/Grassy Dry Forest Complex

381

Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Herb-rich Foothill Forest

398

Complex Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Valley Grassy Forest Complex

399

Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Shrubby Woodland Complex

400

Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Heathy Woodland Complex

401

Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Heathy Dry Forest Complex

402

Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Damp Sands Herb-rich

403

Woodland Complex Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Shrubby Woodland Complex

404

Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Shrubby Woodland Complex

405

Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Heathy Woodland Complex

406

Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Rocky Riparian Shrubland

407

Complex Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland/Shrubby Woodland

414


415


416

Mosaic Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland/Alluvial Terraces

417

Herb-rich Woodland Complex Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland/Heathy Woodland

418

Complex Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland/Heathy Woodland

419

Complex Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland/Plains Grassy

420

Woodland Complex Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland/Sedgy Riparian

421

Woodland Complex Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland/Sedgy Riparian

422

Woodland Mosaic Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland/Dry Creekline

423

Woodland Complex

84



Forby Forest continued Shrubby Woodland/Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland

436

Mosaic Shrubby Woodland/Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich

438

Woodland Mosaic Shrubby Woodland/Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich

439

Woodland Complex Shrubby Woodland/Hills Herb-rich Woodland Complex

444

Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland/Hills Herb-rich

452

Woodland Complex Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland/Plains Grassy

453

Woodland Complex Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland/Claypan

454

Ephemeral Wetland Complex Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland/Claypan

455

Ephemeral Wetland Mosaic Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland/Plains Grassy

456

Woodland Mosaic Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland/Sedge-rich

457

Wetland Complex Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Rocky Outcrop Shrubland

542

Complex Shrubby Woodland/Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland

547

Complex Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Lowland Forest Complex

549

Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Valley Grassy Forest Complex

550

Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Sedgy Riparian Woodland

559


564

Complex Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Heathy Woodland Complex

578

Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland/Hills Herb-rich

582

Woodland Complex Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland/Hills Herb-rich

583

Woodland Mosaic Herb-rich Foothill Forest/Damp Sands Herb-rich

600

Woodland Mosaic Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland/Shrubby

612

Woodland Complex


85

Long et al. 2003

Forby Forest continued Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Heathy Woodland Complex

619

Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland/Red Gum Wetland

632

Mosaic Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland / Shrubby Woodland

672

Grassy Woodland / Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich

697

Woodland Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland / Damp Heathland /

713

Damp Heathy Woodland Grassy Woodland / Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland

719

Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland / Riparian Woodland /

725

Swampy Scrub Hills Herb-rich Woodland / Heathy Woodland

727

Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland / Plains Swampy

732

Woodland / Aquatic Herbl Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland / Plains Grassy

738

Woodland / Plains Sedgy Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland / Heathy Woodland /

740

Sand Heathland Hills Herb-rich Woodland / Plains Grassy Woodland

745

Grassy Woodland / Hills Herb-rich Woodland / Damp

752

Sands Herb-rich Wood Hills Herb-rich Woodland / Valley Grassy Forest

759

Hills Herb-rich Woodland / Lateritic Woodland Mosaic

761

Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland / Lowland Forest

770

Hills Herb-rich Woodland / Shrubby Woodland

773

Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland / Shallow Sands

779

Woodland Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland / Herb-rich Foothill

781

Forest Heathy Herb-rich Woodland / Damp Sands Herb-rich

785

Woodland Hills Herb-rich Woodland / Grassy Dry Forest

789

Herb-rich Foothill Forest/Depauperate Herb-rich Foothill

839

Forest Lowland Herb-rich Forest

877

Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland/Swampy Scrub

878

Complex Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland / Heathy Woodland

86

881



Forby Forest continued Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland / Plains Grassy

885

Woodland Herb-rich Foothill Forest - Hardwood Plantation

923

Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland/Swampy Scrub

925

Mosaic Basalt Grassland - category 4 Grassland

120

Grey Clay Drainage Line Complex

124

Plains Grassland

132

Plains Grassland / Stony Knoll Shrubland

715

Plains Grassland/Plains Grassy Woodland Complex

805

Plains Grassland/Plains Grassy Woodland Mosaic

897

Chenopod Mallee - category 4 Chenopod

85

Red-swale Mallee

95

Savanah Mallee

119

Chenopod Mallee

158

Alluvial Plains Woodland - category 5 Box Woodland

54

Plains Grassy Woodland

55

Big Mallee

96

Plains Grassy Forest

151

Plains Grassy Woodland/Floodplain Riparian Woodland

186

Complex Plains Grassy Woodland/Rainshadow Grassy Woodland

187

Complex Plains Grassy Woodland/Valley Grassy Forest Complex

188

Plains Grassy Woodland/Valley Grassy

189

Forest/Floodplain Grassy Woodland Complex Plains Grassy Woodland/Valley Grassy

190

Forest/Rainshadow Grassy Woodland Complex Weedy Gippsland Plains Grassy Woodland

221

Riverina Plains Grassy Woodland/Shrubby Granitic-

233

outwash Grassy Woodland Mosaic Plains Grassy Woodland/Creekline Grassy

237

Woodland/Floodplain Riparian Woodland Mosaic


87

Long et al. 2003

Alluvial Plains Woodland - continued Plains Grassy Woodland/Creekline Grassy

240

Woodland/Wetland Mosaic Plains Grassy Woodland/Creekline Grassy Woodland

261

Mosaic Plains Grassy Woodland/Plains Grassland/Plains

263

Grassy Wetland Mosaic Sand Ridge Woodland

264

Plains Grassy Woodland/Box Ironbark Forest Complex

287

Riverina Plains Grassy Woodland/Plains

273

Grassland/Gilgai Plain Woodland/Wetland Mosaic Plains Grassy Woodland/Gilgai Plains

294

Woodland/Wetland Mosaic Shrubby Woodland/Plains Grassy Woodland Complex

442

Shrubby Woodland/Plains Grassy Woodland Mosaic

497

Plains Grassy Woodland/Sand Heathland Complex

498

Plains Grassy Woodland/Seasonally Inundated Shrubby

557

Woodland Complex Shrubby Woodland/Plains Grassy Woodland Complex

560

Plains Grassy Woodland/Sand Forest Complex

613

Plains Woodland/Plains Grassy Wetland

660

Riverina Plains Grassy Woodland/Low Rises Grassy

661

Woodland Mosiac Gippsland Plains Grassy Woodland/Gilgai Wetland

689

Mosaic Low Rises Grassy Woodland/Riverina Grassy

696

Chenopod Woodland Mosaic Shallow Sands Woodland / Plains Sedgy Woodland

711

Plains Woodland/Plains Sedgy Woodland/Damp Sands

724

Herb-rich Woodland Sand Ridge Woodland / Damp Sands Herb-rich

729

Woodland Shallow Sands Woodland / Heathy Woodland

748

Shallow Sands Woodland / Plains Sedgy Woodland /

749

Seasonally Inundated Shallow Sands Woodland / Plains Sedgy Woodland /

750

Seasonally Inundated Plains Woodland/Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland

88

787



Alluvial Plains Woodland - continued Shallow Sands Woodland / Heathy Herb-rich Woodland

788

Plains Woodland

803

Weedy South Gippsland Plains Grassy Forest

850

Riverina Plains Grassy Woodland/Red Gum Wetland

856

Mosaic Pine Box Woodland/Riverina Plains Grassy Woodland

867

Mosaic Shallow Sands Woodland

882

Wimmera Plains Grassy Woodland/Plains Grassland

889

Mosiac Plains Grassy Woodland/Swampy Scrub Mosaic

907

Plains Grassy Woodland/Swampy Scrub/Plains Grassy

927

Wetland Mosaic Terricks Woodland

7006

Alluvial Plains Grassland - category 5 Sandplain Grassland

100

Plains Grassland/Drainage Line Grassy Forest Mosaic

112

Scree-slope Grassland/Woodland

709

Plains Grassland

132

Weedy Gippsland Plains Grassland

220

Plains Grassland/Gilgai Plain Woodland/Wetland Mosaic

267

Plains Grassy Woodland/Plains Sedgy Woodland

499

Complex Plains Grassy Woodland/Plains Grassy Woodland

545

Complex Creekline Tussock Grassland

654

Riverina Plains Grassy Woodland/Plains Grassland

693

Mosaic Sandplain Grassland

7007

Plains Grassland - (Self Mulching soils)

7008

Plains Grassland - (Red Earth surface soils)

7011

Freshwater Wetland (ephemeral) - category 5 Lignum Wetland

104

Lake Bed Herbland

107

Riverine Grassy Forest/Mallee Lake Bed Herbfield

115

Mosaic Plains Grassy Wetland

125

Plains Sedgy Woodland

283


89

Long et al. 2003

Freshwater Wetland (ephemeral) - continued Claypan Ephemeral Wetland

284

Channel Wetland

290

Cane Grass Wetland

291

Weedy Coastal Lagoon Wetland

331

Red Gum Wetland/Plains Grassy Wetland Mosaic

333

Plains Sedgy Woodland/Shrubby Woodland Complex

528

Plains Sedgy Wetland

647

Lignum Cane Grass Swamp

655

Plains Sedgy Woodland / Shallow Sands Woodland /

780

Heathy Woodland Grassy / Heathy Dry Forest - category 6 Heathy Dry Forest

20

Shrubby Dry Forest

21

Grassy Dry Forest

22

Heathy Foothill Forest

46

Shrubby Dry Forest

142

Depauperate Grassy Dry Forest

166

Depauperate Heathy Dry Forest

167

Grassy Dry Forest/Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland

174

Mosaic Heathy Dry Forest/Shrubby Granitic-outwash Grassy

176

Woodland Complex Weedy Shrubby Dry Forest

230

Grassy Dry Forest/Shrubby Granitic-outwash Grassy

243

Woodland Complex Grassy Dry Forest/Granitic Hills Woodland Complex

248

Grassy Dry Forest/Heathy Dry Forest Mosaic

286

Grassy Dry Forest/Shrubby Granitic-outwash Grassy

275

Woodland Complex Grassy Dry Forest/Heathy Dry Forest Complex

320

Shrubby Foothill Forest/Montane Rocky Shrubland

374

Complex Heathy Dry Forest/Hills Herb-rich Woodland Complex

389

Heathy Dry Forest/Valley Grassy Forest Complex

390

Heathy Dry Forest/Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland

391

Complex

90

Heathy Dry Forest/Shrubby Woodland Complex

392

Heathy Dry Forest/Heathy Woodland Complex

393



Grassy / Heathy Dry Forest - continued Heathy Dry Forest/Heathy Woodland Complex

394

Heathy Dry Forest/Sand Heathland Complex

395

Heathy Dry Forest/Sedgy Riparian Woodland Complex

396

Heathy Dry Forest/Grassy Dry Forest Complex

397

Heathy Dry Forest/Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich Woodland

540

Complex Heathy Dry Forest/Hills Herb-rich Woodland/Shrubby

541

Woodland Complex Heathy Dry Forest/Rocky Outcrop Shrubland Complex

551

Heathy Dry Forest/Sand Heathland Complex

577

Heathy Dry Forest/Heathy Woodland Complex

593

Grassy Dry Forest/Rocky Outcrop Shrubland Mosaic

599

Heathy Dry Forest/Montane Rocky Shrubland Complex

611

Heathy Dry Forest/Riparian Scrub Mosaic

634

Heathy Dry Forest / Plains Grassy Woodland

765

Heathy Dry Forest / Sand Heathland Mosaic

771

Heathy Dry Forest/Depauperate Heathy Dry Forest

837

Mosaic Weedy Heathy Dry Forest

848

Disturbed Shrubby Dry Forest

865

Grassy Dry Forest/Spring-soak Woodland Mosaic

866

Saline Wetland - category 6 Coastal Saltmarsh

9

Estuarine Wetland

10

Wet Swale Herbland

12

Brackish Sedgeland

13

Coastal Saltmarsh Complex

52

Saline Shrubland

101

Mangrove Shrubland

140

Estuarine Wetland/Coastal Saltmarsh Mosaic

143

Seasonally-inundated Sub-saline Herbland

196

Coastal Saltmarsh/Mangrove Shrubland Mosaic

302

Brackish Lake

636

Brackish Drainage Line Herbland/Sedgeland

643

Saline Lake Verge Herbland/Sedgeland

648

Brackish Wetland

656

Salt Paperbark Woodland

676

Inland Saltmarsh

677


91

Long et al. 2003

Saline Wetland - continued Semi-permanent Saline

683

Permanent Saline

684

Mangrove Shrubland/Coastal Saltmarsh/Berm Grassy

692

Shrubland/Coastal Tus Saline Lake Mosaic

717

Salt Paperbark Woodland / Inland Saltmarsh

741

Plains Saltmarsh Complex

888

Plains Brackish Sedge Wetland

891

Cane Grass-Lignum Halophyllic Herbland

898

Estuarine Flats Grassland/Coastal Saltmarsh Mosaic

901

Mangrove Shrubland/Estuarine Flats Grassland Mosaic

903

Brackish Grassland/Swampy Scrub Mosaic

906

Estuarine Flats Grassland

914

Brackish Grassland

934

Estuarine Wetland/Estuarine Swampy Scrub Mosaic

935

Water Body-Salt

991

Western Plains Woodland - category 6 Low Rises Grassy Woodland

66

Low Rises Grassy Woodland/Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich

76

Woodland Mosaic Stoney Rises Herb-rich Woodland

203

Low Rises Grassy Woodland/Alluvial Terraces Herb-rich

252

Woodland Complex Unclassified Lunette Woodland

299

Basalt Shrubby Woodland

642

Plains Swampy Woodland

651

Basalt Creekline Shrubby Woodland

705

Stony Knoll Shrubland / Plains Grassy Woodland /

714

Plains Grassy Wetland Plains Grassy Woodland / Stony Knoll Shrubland

716

Plains Grassy Woodland / Shrubby Woodland

730

Limestone Rise Grassland / Limestone Rise Woodland

736

Plains Grassy Woodland / Plains Swampy Woodland

739

Basalt Shrubby Woodland / Herb-rich Foothill Forest

742

Stony Knoll Shrubland / Basalt Shrubby Woodland

744

Plains Grassy Woodland / Damp Sands Herb-rich

791

Complex / Dam

92



Western Plains Woodland - continued Stony Rises Woodland / Stony Knoll Shrubland

792

Low Rises Grassy Woodland/Heathy Woodland Mosaic

854

Foothills Forest - category 7 Limestone Grassy Woodland

25

Rainshadow Woodland

26

Valley Grassy Forest

47

Grassy Forest

128

Valley Heathy Forest

127

Dry Valley Forest

169

Valley Slopes Dry Forest

177

Valley Grassy Forest/Box Ironbark Forest Complex

213

Valley Grassy Forest/Floodplain Grassy Woodland

214

Complex Valley Grassy Forest/Plains Grassy Woodland Complex

241

Valley Grassy Forest/Spring Soak Woodland Complex

242

Rainshadow Grassy Woodland /Valley Grassy Forest

251

Mosaic Slopes Box Grassy Woodland/Box Ironbark Forest

262

Complex Valley Grassy Forest/Grassy Dry Forest Mosaic

265

Valley Grassy Forest/Slopes Box Grassy Woodland

268

Complex Grassy Woodland/Valley Grassy Forest Complex

271

Unclassified Foothill Forest

296

Depauperate Herb-rich Foothill Forest

332

Valley Grassy Forest/Herb-rich Foothill Forest Complex

408

Valley Grassy Forest/Heathy Woodland Complex

409

Valley Grassy Forest/Sedgy Riparian Woodland

410

Complex Valley Grassy Forest/Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland

411

Complex Valley Grassy Forest/Damp Sands Herb-rich

412

Woodland/Sedgy Riparian Woodland Complex Valley Grassy Forest/Shrubby Woodland Complex

413

Valley Grassy Forest/Grassy Dry Forest Complex

587

Valley Grassy Forest/Damp Sands Herb-rich

628

Woodland/Sedgy Riparian Woodland Mosaic


93

Long et al. 2003

Foothills Forest - continued Valley Grassy Forest/Swampy Scrub Mosaic

699

Grassy Dry Forest / Heathy Woodland

783

Valley Grassy Forest / Lateritic Woodland

796

Grassy Woodland / Heathy Woodland

802

Disturbed Herb-rich Foothill Forest

840

Weedy Valley Grassy Forest

852

Grassy Woodland/Rock Outcrop Mosaic

860

Disturbed Dry Valley Forest

862

Valley Grass Forest / Creekline Grassy Woodland

890

Mosaic Grassy Woodland/Heathy Dry Forest Complex

896

Grassy Woodland/Swampy Scrub Mosaic

924

Dry Valley Forest/Swampy Scrub/Warm Temperate

695

Rainforest Mosaic Ironbark / Box - category 8 Foothill Box Ironbark Forest

24

Box Ironbark Forest

61

Rocky Chenopod Woodland

64

Weedy Gippsland Plains Box Ironbark Forest

219

Box Ironbark Forest/Shrubby Granitic-outwash Grassy

247

Woodland Mosaic Box Ironbark Forest/Heathy Dry Forest Complex

253

Box Ironbark Forest/Spring Soak Woodland Mosaic

270

Box Ironbark Forest/Heathy Woodland Complex

685

Spinifex Mallee - category 9 Woorinen Sands Mallee

86

Loamy Sands Mallee

91

Woorinen Sands Mallee/Plains Grassland Mosaic

111

Loamy Sands Mallee/Scrub-Pine Woodland Mosaic

114

Siliceous Mallee - category 9 Lowan Sands Mallee

87

Mallee Heathland

88

Scrub-pine Woodland

92

Dune-crest Woodland

7002

Broombush Whipstick - category 10

94

Sandstone-rise Broombush

62

Gravelly-sediment Mallee

63



Broombush Whipstick - continued Gravelly Sediment Broombush Mallee/Heathy Woodland

75

Mosaic Broombush Mallee

93

Gravelly-Sediment Broombush Mallee/Box Ironbark

257

Fores t Mosaic Broombush Mallee/Low Rises Grassy Woodland Mosaic

694

Sandstone Rise Broombush

7003

Gravelly Rises Mallee

7009

Heathland (sands) - category 11 Lateritic Shrubby Woodland

180

Coastal Sand Heathland

5

Sand Heathland

6

Clay Heathland

7

Wet Heathland

8

Banksia Woodland

14

Heathy Woodland

48

Wet Heathland/Swamp Heathland Complex

49

Coastal Heathland

50

Sand Plain Heathland

89

Tea-tree Scrub

90

Lowan Sands Heathy Woodland

94

Sand Forest

134

Damp Heath Scrub

165

Clay Heathland/Wet Heathland/Riparian Scrub Mosaic

159

Herb-rich Heathy Woodland

179

Weedy Heathy Woodland

222

Shrubby Woodland

282

Herb-rich Heathy Forest

278

Heathland Thicket

279

Sand Heathland/Wet Heathland Mosaic

307

Heathland Thicket/Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland

424

Complex Heathland Thicket/Seasonally Inundated Shrubby

425

Woodland Complex Heathland Thicket/Sand Heathland Complex

426

Heathland Thicket/Wet Heathland Complex

427

Shrubby Woodland/Shrubby Woodland Complex

437

Shrubby Woodland/Heathy Woodland Complex

440


95

Long et al. 2003

Heathland (sands) - continued Shrubby Woodland/Heathy Woodland Complex

441


445


446


447

Shrubby Woodland/Sand Heathland Complex

448

Shrubby Woodland/Riparian Scrub Complex

449

Heathy Woodland/Heathy Woodland Complex

459

Heathy Woodland/Sedgy Riparian Woodland Complex

460


461

Heathy Woodland/Rocky Outcrop Shrubland Complex

462

Heathy Woodland/Rocky Outcrop Shrubland/Herbland

463

Mosaic Complex Heathy Woodland/Valley Grassy Forest Complex

464


465


466

Heathy Woodland/Riparian Scrub Complex

467


468

Heathy Woodland/Sand Heathland Complex

469

Heathy Woodland/Lowland Forest Complex

470

Heathy Woodland/Shrubby Woodland Mosaic

471


472

Heathy Woodland/Plains Grassy Woodland Complex

473


474

Heathy Woodland/Sedgy Riparian Woodland Mosaic

475

Heathy Woodland/SandHeathland Complex

476


477

Heathy Woodland/Damp Heathland Complex

478

Heathy Woodland/Hills Herb-rich Woodland Complex

479

Heathy Woodland/Sand Heathland Mosaic

480

Heathy Woodland/Heathy Dry Forest Complex

481


482

Heathy Woodland/Heathy Woodland/Heathy Woodland

483

Complex

96


484


485


486

Heathy Woodland/Grassy Dry Forest Complex

487

Heathy Woodland/Grassy Dry Forest Complex

488



Heathland (sands) - continued Heathy Woodland/Shrubby Woodland Complex

489

Heathy Woodland/Shrubby Woodland Complex

490


491


492

Heathy Woodland/Plains Grassy Woodland Mosaic

493

Heathy Woodland/Seasonally Inundated Shrubby

494

Woodland Complex Heathy Woodland/Plains Sedgy Woodland Complex

495


496

Sand Heathland/Damp Heathland Complex

500

Sand Heathland/Seasonally Inundated Shrubby

501

Woodland Complex Sand Heathland/Seasonally Inundated Shrubby

502

Woodland Mosaic Wet Heathland/Sand Heathland Mosaic

503

Wet Heathland/Riparian Scrub Complex

504

Damp Heathland/Riparian Scrub Complex

505


535

Woodland Complex Heathy Woodland/Rocky Outcrop Shrubland Complex

536

Heathy Woodland/Rocky Outcrop Shrubland Complex

543


544

Woodland Complex Heathy Woodland/Sedgy Riparian Woodland Complex

556

Sand Forest/Heathy Woodland Complex

561

Heathland Thicket/Seasonally Inundated Shrubby

565

Woodland Complex Shrubby Woodland/Rocky Outcrop Shrubland Complex

567

Heathy Woodland/Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland

569

Complex Damp Heathland/Wet Heathland Complex

570

Shrubby Woodland/Riparian Scrub Mosaic

581

Heathy Woodland/Hills Herb-rich Woodland Complex

584

Heathland Thicket/Shrubby Woodland Complex

586

Damp Heathland/Riparian Scrub Mosaic

595

Heathland Thicket/Sedgy Riparian Woodland Complex

601


604


97

Long et al. 2003

Heathland (sands) - continued Heathy Woodland/Shrubby Woodland/Heathy Woodland

605

Complex Sand Heathland/Wet Heathland Complex

609

Sand Heathland/Damp Heathland Mosaic

610


620

Damp Heathland/Wet Heathland Mosaic

625

Heathy Woodland/Heathy Woodland Mosaic

627


629

Shrubby Woodland/Sand Heathland Complex

631

Sand Heathland/Floodplain Thicket Mosaic

633

Wet Heathland / Heathy Woodland

645

Heathy Woodland / Plains Grassy Woodland

646

Heathy Woodland / Damp Heathy Woodland / Damp

650

Heathland Limestone Ridge Woodland

664

Limestone Woodland

670

Wet Heathland/Damp Heathland Mosaic

686

Lateritic Woodland

704

Damp Heathland

710

Damp Heathland / Damp Heathy Woodland / Wet

734

Heathland Heathy Woodland / Limestone Woodland

737

Damp Heathland / Damp Heathy Woodland

746

Damp Heathland / Seasonally Inundated Shrubby

754

Woodland Heathy Woodland / Seasonally Inundated Shrubby

756

Woodland Lateritic Woodland / Heathy Dry Forest

760

Damp Heathland / Sand Heathland

762

Damp Heathland / Damp Heathy Woodland / Seasonally

763

Inundated Shrubby W Lateritic Woodland / Heathy Woodland

764

Shrubby Woodland / Lateritic Woodland

766

Wet Heathland / Riparian Scrub

768

Heathy Woodland / Heathy Herb-rich Woodland / Damp

786

Heathy Woodland Heathy Woodland / Heathy Herb-rich Woodland

98

790



Heathland (sands) - continued Damp Heathy Woodland

793


799

Damp Heath Scrub/Heathy Woodland Complex

836

Heathy Woodland/Sand Heath Mosaic

892

Damp Heathy Woodland/Grassy Dry Forest Complex

926

Treed Swampy Wetland - category 12 Montane Riparian Woodland

40

Montane Riparian Thicket

41

Sedge-rich Woodland

65

Creekline Grassy Woodland

68

Sedge-rich Woodland/Plains Grassy Woodland Mosaic

78

Spring Soak Woodland

80

Swampy Riparian Woodland

83

Drainage Line Grassy Woodland

105

Drainage Line Grassy Woodland/Mallee Lake Bed

108

Herbland Mosaic Drainage Line Grassy Woodland/Riverine Grassy Forest

109

Mosaic Swampy Riparian Complex

126

Drainage Line Complex

168

Perched Boggy Shrubland Complex

185

Seasonally Inundated Shrubby Woodland

195

Sedge-rich Drainage Line Shrubland

197

Sedgy Riparian Woodland

198

Swampy Riparian Woodland/Perched Boggy Shrubland

212

Mosaic Sedge-rich Woodland/Spring Soak Woodland Mosaic

266

Floodplain Thicket

280

Dry Creekline Woodland

285

Swampy Riparian Woodland/Spring Soak Woodland

272

Mosaic Floodplain Thicket/Shrubby Woodland Complex

428

Floodplain Thicket/Shrubby Woodland Complex

429

Floodplain Thicket/Riparian Scrub Complex

430

Floodplain Thicket/Sedgy Riparian Woodland Complex

431

Floodplain Thicket/Shallow Freshwater Marsh Complex

432


99

Long et al. 2003

Treed Swampy Wetland - continued Floodplain Thicket/Seasonally Inundated Shrubby

433

Woodland Complex Floodplain Thicket/Damp Heathland Complex

434

Shrubby Woodland/Seasonally Inundated Shrubby

443

Woodland Complex Shrubby Woodland/Sedgy Riparian Woodland Complex

450


451

Woodland Mosaic Sedgy Riparian Woodland/Lowland Forest Complex

514

Sedgy Riparian Woodland/Dry Creekline Woodland

516

Complex Sedgy Riparian Woodland/Rocky Riparian Shrubland

515

Complex Floodplain Thicket/Seasonally Inundated Shrubby

517

Woodland Complex Seasonally Inundated Shrubby Woodland/Heathland

518

Thicket/Wet Heathland Mosaic Dry Creekline Woodland/Sand Heathland Complex

523

Dry Creekline Woodland/Heathy Woodland Complex

524

Dry Creekline Woodland/Heathy Woodland Complex

525

Seasonally Inundated Shrubby Woodland/Heathland

529

Thicket Mosaic Seasonally Inundated Shrubby Woodland Complex

530

Seasonally Inundated Shrubby Woodland/Sedge-rich

531

Wetland Complex Seasonally Inundated Shrubby Woodland/Heathland

532

Thicket/Damp Heathland Mosaic Seasonally Inundated Shrubby Woodland/Damp

533

Heathland Complex Floodplain Thicket/Seasonally Inundated Shrubby

553

Woodland Mosaic Shrubby Woodland/Sedge-rich Wetland Complex

566


568

Woodland Complex Seasonally Inundated Shrubby Woodland/Floodplain

571

Thicket Complex

100



Treed Swampy Wetland - continued Seasonally Inundated Shrubby Woodland/Alluvial

580

Terraces Herb-rich Woodland Complex Floodplain Thicket/Wet Heathland Complex

585


621

Woodland Complex Floodplain Thicket/Wet Heathland Mosaic

624

Creekline Sedgy Woodland

640

Dune Soak Woodland

673

Sandy Stream Woodland

674

Drainage Line Woodland

679

Swampy Riparian Woodland/Swampy Scrub Mosaic

688

Sedgy Swamp Woodland

707

Seasonally Inundated Shrubby Woodland / Plains Sedgy

751

Woodland Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland / Seasonally

757

Inundated Shrubby Woodland Sedgy Riparian Woodland / Damp Sands Herb-rich

774

Woodland Floodplain Thicket / Shrubby Woodland

775

Sedgy Riparian Woodland/Riparian Scrub Mosaic

798

Spring-soak Woodland/Shrubby Granitic-outwash

887

Grassy Woodland Complex Swampy Woodland

937

Riparian (higher rainfall) - category 12 Riparian Forest

18

Riparian Shrubland

19

Riparian Thicket

59

Riparian Forest/Swampy Riparian Woodland/Riparian

84

Shrubland/Riverine Escarpment Scrub/Disturbed Mosaic Riparian Forest/Warm Temperate Rainforest Mosaic

123

Weedy Riparian Forest

228

Riparian Forest/Swampy Riparian Woodland/Riparian

236

Shrubland/Riverine Escarpment Scrub Mosaic Riparian Forest/Swampy Riparian Woodland Mosaic

238

Riparian Shrubland/Swampy Riparian Woodland Mosaic

269

Riparian Forest/Creekline Grassy Woodland Mosaic

293

Riparian Forest/Sedgy Riparian Woodland Complex

506


101

Long et al. 2003

Riparian (higher rainfall) - continued Riparian Shrubland/Riparian Scrub Complex

522

Riparian Shrubland / Escarpment Shrubland / Grassy

666

Woodland Riparian Forest/ Riparian Shrubland Mosaic

838

Disturbed Montane Riparian Woodland

844

High Altitude Shrubland / Woodland - category 12 Montane Dry Woodland

36

Montane Grassy Woodland

37

Sub-alpine Shrubland

42

Sub-alpine Woodland

43

Sub-alpine Shrubland/Sub-alpine Damp Heathland/

60

Blockstream Coniferous Heathland

156

Montane Shrubby Woodland

183

Sub-alpine Dry Heathland

205

Sub-alpine Grassy Shrubland

207

Sub-alpine Riparian Shrubland

208

Mountain Epacrid Scrub

304

Montane Herb-rich Woodland

319

Montane Grassy Woodland/Montane Grassland Mosaic

703

Disturbed Montane Herb-rich Woodland

843

Disturbed Montane Shrubby Woodland

846

Weedy Montane Dry Woodland

849

Ferny Woodland

853

Montane Grassy Woodland/Rock Outcrop Mosaic

859

Disturbed Montane Grassy Woodland

861

Swampy Scrub - category 12

102

Riparian Scrub Complex

17

Swampy Scrub

53

Melaleuca Complex

122

Riparian Scrub

191

Weedy Riparian Scrub Complex

229

Weedy Swampy Riparian Complex

326

Weedy Swampy Riparian Woodland

328

Weedy Swampy Scrub

327

Riparian Scrub/Heathy Woodland Complex

507

Riparian Scrub/Sand Heathland Complex

508

Riparian Scrub/Heathland Thicket Mosaic

509



Swampy Scrub – continued Riparian Scrub/Sedgy Riparian Woodland Complex

510

Riparian Scrub/Sedgy Riparian Woodland/Seasonally

511

Inundated Shrubby Woodland Complex Riparian Scrub/Seasonally Inundated Shrubby

512

Woodland Mosaic Riparian Scrub/Shallow Freshwater Marsh Complex

513

Riparian Scrub/Riparian Forest Complex

588

Riparian Scrub/Sedgy Riparian Woodland Mosaic

596

Riparian Scrub/Heathland Thicket Complex

607

Riparian Scrub/Sedgy Riparian Woodland/Floodplain

608

Thicket Complex Swampy Scrub/Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland/Wet

637

Heathland Swampy Scrub/Wet Heathland Mosaic

638

Swampy Scrub/Plains Grassy Forest Mosaic

639

Swampy Scrub/Plains Grassland Mosaic

687

Swampy Scrub/Plains Sedgey Wetland Mosaic

700

Swampy Scrub/Warm Temperate Rainforest/Billabong

701

Wetland Mosaic Swampy Scrub / Aquatic Herbland

720

Swampy Scrub / Plains Sedgy Wetland / Aquatic

733

Herbland Plains Swampy Woodland / Swampy Scrub

776

Lowland Forest (eastern) - category 13 Limestone Box Forest

15

Sandy Flood Scrub

141

Lowland Forest/Heathy Woodland/Plains Grassy Forest

150

Mosaic Lowland Forest/Herb-rich Foothill Forest Complex

182

Weedy Lowland Forest

325

Lowland Forest/Heathy Dry Forest Complex

382

Lowland Forest/Valley Grassy Forest Complex

383

Lowland Forest/Heathy Woodland Complex

384

Lowland Forest/Riparian Forest Complex

385

Lowland Forest/Riparian Scrub Complex

386

Lowland Forest/Riparian Shrubland Complex

387

Lowland Forest/Grassy Dry Forest Complex

388

Lowland Forest/Hills Herb-rich Woodland Complex

558


103

Long et al. 2003

Lowland Forest (eastern) - continued Lowland Forest/Shrubby Woodland Complex

590

Lowland Forest/Heathy Woodland Complex

592

Lowland Forest/Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland

623

Complex Lowland Forest/Heathy Woodland Mosaic

698

Lowland Forest/Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland

795

Mosaic Lowland Forest/Valley Grassy Forest Complex

893

Lowland Forest - Hardwood Plantation

916

Damp Forest - category 14 Lowland Forest

16

Damp Forest

29

Tableland Damp Forest

35

Montane Damp Forest

38

Shrubby Foothill Forest

45

Damp Forest/Warm Temperate Rainforest Complex

146

Mosaic Montane Damp Forest/Montane Wet Forest Mosaic

147

Coast Gully Thicket

181

Vine-rich Damp Forest

215

Weedy Damp Forest

218

Weedy Montane Damp Forest

224

Weedy Montane Forest

225

Weedy Montane Forest Complex

226

Wet Sands Thicket

234

Montane Damp Forest/Montane Wet Forest Complex

314

Shrubby Foothill Forest/Damp Forest Complex

315

Shrubby Damp Forest

316

Weedy Shrubby Foothill Forest

329

Damp Forest/Shrubby Foothill Forest Complex

370

Damp Forest/Herb-rich Foothill Forest Complex

371

Damp Forest/Lowland Forest Complex

372

Damp Forest/Riparian Scrub Complex

373

Shrubby Foothill Forest/Herb-rich Foothill Forest

375

Complex

104

Shrubby Foothill Forest/Lowland Forest Complex

376

Shrubby Foothill Forest/Heathy Dry Forest Complex

377

Damp Forest/Herb-rich Foothill Forest Mosaic

597



Damp Forest - continued Damp Forest/Riparian Scrub Complex

617

Shrubby Foothill Forest/Herb-rich Foothill Forest Mosaic

635

Gully Woodland

902

Damp Forest - Hardwood Plantation

929

Shrubby Gully Forest

938

Alpine Treeless - category 14 Treeless Sub-alpine Mosaic

44

Feldmark

170

Snow Patch Herbland

202

Sub-alpine Grassland

206

Sub-alpine Treeless Complex

209

Montane Grassland

702

Disturbed (Irrigated) Sub-alpine Grassland

841

Wet Forest - category 15 Wet Forest

30

Montane Wet Forest

39

Shrubby Wet Forest

201

Weedy Montane Wet Forest

227

Weedy Wet Forest

231

Wet Forest/Damp Forest Complex

589

Wet Forest - Hardwood Plantation

930

Rainforest - category 15 Coastal Vine-rich Forest

4

Cool Temperate Rainforest

31

Warm Temperate Rainforest

32

Cool/Temperate Rainforest Overlap

33

Dry Rainforest

34

Gallery Rainforest

135

Cool Temperate Mixed Forest

145

Dry Rainforest/Warm Temperate Rainforest/Gallery

322

Rainforest/Riparian Shrubland/Riverine Escarpment Scrub/Blackthorn Scrub Mosaic Gallery Rainforest/Riparian Shrubland/Riverine

323

Escarpment Scrub/Riparain Forest Mosaic Weedy Strzeleckis Warm Temperate Rainforest

330

Weedy East Gippsland Foothills Warm Temperate

847

Rainforest


105

Long et al. 2003

High Altitude Wetland - category 15 Montane Sedgeland

148

Fen

171

Montane Wet Heathland

184

Sub-alpine Damp Heathland

204

Sub-alpine Wet Heathland

210

Sub-alpine Wet Heathland/Fen Mosaic

211

Sub-alpine Damp Heathland/Sub-alpine Wet Heathland

301

Mosaic Sub-alpine Wet Heathland/Sub-alpine Grassland Mosaic

317

Montane Swamp

318

Freshwater Wetland (permanent) - category 15 Coastal Lagoon Wetland

11

Wetland Formation

74

Sedge Wetland

136

Unclassified Wetland

139

Floodplain Wetland Complex

172

Shallow Freshwater Marsh

200

Wetland Formation/Plains Grassy Woodland/Creekline

232

Grassy Woodland Complex Sedge-rich Wetland

281

Moira Plain Wetland

289

Red Gum Wetland

292

Lagoon Wetland/Red Gum Wetland Mosaic

297

Wetland Formation/Creekline Grassy Woodland Mosaic

277

Reed Swamp

300

Lagoon Wetland

334

Sedge Wetland/Seasonally Inundated Shrubby

435

Woodland Complex Red Gum Wetland/Shallow Freshwater Marsh Mosaic

458

Shallow Freshwater Marsh/Floodplain Thicket Mosaic

519

Shallow Freshwater Marsh/Wet Heathland Complex

520

Shallow Freshwater Marsh/Seasonally Inundated

521

Shrubby Woodland Complex Sedge-rich Wetland/Floodplain Thicket Complex

526

Sedge-rich Wetland /Seasonally Inundated Shrubby

527

Woodland Complex Sedge Wetland/Seasonally Inundated Shrubby

546

Woodland Complex

106



Freshwater Wetland (permanent) - continued Sedge-rich Wetland/Shallow Freshwater Marsh

562

Complex Sedge Wetland/Shallow Freshwater Marsh Complex

603

Sedge Wetland/Shrubby Woodland Complex

630

Aquatic Herbland

653

Freshwater Meadow

680

Deep Freshwater Marsh

681

Permanent Open Freshwater

682

Aquatic Herbland/Plains Sedgy Wetland Mosaic

691

Freshwater Lake Mosaic

718

Stoney Rises Pond

857

Floodplain Reedbed

863

Blocked Coastal Stream Swamp

875

Red Gum Wetland / Aquatic Herbland

886

Plains Freshwater Sedge Wetland

899

Aquatic Herbland/Swampy Scrub Mosaic

915


107

Long et al. 2003

108



APPENDIX 4 – Parks without mapped EVCs Park Name

Park ID

Park Name

Park ID

Chiltern West I13 B. R.

1381

Crib Point G229 B. R.

1770

Chiprick I177 B. R.

1238

Crow Swamp (Phillips Dam) W. R.

794 508

Church Swamp W. R.

691

Cullens Lake W. R.

Clarke Lagoon W. R.

646

Cunningham Gully H. A.

3052

Clear Tank B. R.

1356

Currawa H56 B. R.

2063

Clematis B. R.

1739

Curyo I295 B. R.

1361

Cloughs Waterholes W. R.

790

Dahwedarre W. R.

Cobrico Swamp W. R.

407

Darraweit Ss. R.

2832 1870

Cocamba B. R.

1340

Dart Dart Dam B. R.

Cokam B. R.

1364

Dean F. R.

Coker Dam W. R.

791

Colac Colac B. R.

795

62

Deborah Mine H. A.

3693

1469

Deep Creek K16 Ss. R.

2803

Coleraine Court House H. A.

3676


2804

Coliban Falls G. R.

2721


2805

Commeralghip F. R.

3258

Deep Lead N. F. R.

3730

Company Dam B. R.

1226

Degraves Tank F. R.

64

Congupna H50 B. R.

2057

Dimboola F. R.

66

Connan Swamp G. R.

2514

Ding-a-ding W. R.

797

Cookes Reserve W. R.

719

Dinyarrak I5 B. R.

1795

Coonooer East I157 B. R.

1947

Dinyarrak I6 B. R.

1796


1948

Doling Doling Swamp L.R.

3107


1949

Donald I146 B. R.

1936

Coorong Swamp W. R.

792

Donald I147 B. R.

1937

Corack East I138 B. R.

1928

Dookie H52 B. R.

2059


1929

Drakes B. R.

1581


1932

Drouin G215 B. R.

1756

Corack East W. R.

793

Corack I135 B. R.

1925

Dulapwhang Waterholes Ss. R.

2678

Corop B. R.

2408

Dunmunkle B. R.

1904

Corryong Creek K33 Ss. R.

3027

Dunstan B. R.

1906


3028

Edgecombe Ss. R.

2797


3029

Eldorado I84 B. R.

1448

Cowangie School B. R.

1298

Eltham Court House H. A.

2865

Coynallan B. R.

1846

Eureka N. F. R.

3634

Cressy F. R.

3255

Eureka School B. R.

1342

Everton I74 B. R.

1438

Creswick Swamp W. R.

612

A p p e n d i x 4 – P a r k s wi t h o u t m a p p e d E V C s

Duck Lake W. R.

511

245

Long et al. 2003

Park Name

Park ID

Park Name

Everton I78 B. R.

1442

Gre Gre B. R.

Faux Bridge Ss. R.

2704

Great Spectacle, Little Spectacle,

Fiery Creek Ss. R.

2591

Round Lake, Tobacco Lake,

Fingal B. R.

1774

Greens Creek Swamp W. R.

Flannery W. R.

580

Park ID 2265 538

621

Greenvale Reservoir Park

4063

Flinders G234 B. R.

1775

Greig Creek Ss. R.

2984

Foresters Spring B. R.

1797

Gum Swamp, Vectis East W. R.

Franklinford Ss. R.

2794

Gunbower H4 B. R.

2011

Freestone Creek Ss. R.

2943

Gunbower H5 B. R.

2012

Gundowring B. R.

1465

Gutcha B. R.

1325

Gymbowen Swamp B. R.

1843

Freshwater Swamp, Little River

570

W.R. Freshwater Swamp, Yarrock W. R. Gampola I55 B. R. Gaynor Swamp W. R.

798 2474 616

Haby’s Swamp W. R. Happy Valley Creek H. A.

Gerang Gerung (north) F. R.

86

Hardings Swamp (Tarranginnie

Gerang Gerung (south) F. R.

87

Swamp) W. R.

800

801 3769 802

Gerang Gerung I71 B. R.

1861

Hayanmi Ss. R.

2688

Glendhu H. A.

2641

Hindmarsh F. R.

109

Hird Swamp W. R.

583

Glenlee F. F. R.

94

Glynwylln B. R.

2256

Home Creek, Yarck Ss. R.

2766

Gnarr I75 B. R.

1129

Hopetoun Falls S. R.

2559

Gobur G48 B. R.

1589

Hopkins River, Willaura Ss. R.

2590

Godfrey Creek, Gobur Ss. R.

2774

Hurleys Bank W. R.

Goomalibee H82 B. R.

2089

Jacksons Creek Ss. R.

2819

Goomalibee H83 B. R.

2090

Jallakin I17 B. R.

2436

Goorambat H94 B. R.

2101

Jamieson Court House H. A.

2861

Goose Lagoon W. R.

411

726

Jane Duff H.P.

3180

Goroke I10 B. R.

2429

Jeffcott I144 B. R.

1934

Goschen B. R.

1355

Jeffcott I145 B. R.

1935

Goulburn River, Killingworth Rd

2775

Jeffcott W. R.

803

Johnson Swamp W. R.

586

Ss. R. Gowangardie N. F. R.

3636

Joop I84 B. R.

1874

Gowangaride H62 B. R.

2069

Julians’ B. R.

1177


2070

Junction Hill B. R.

1668


2071

Kaniva I21 B. R.

1811

Gowar I55 B. R.

2291

Kaniva I22 B. R.

1812

Goyura B. R.

1234

Kaniva I23 B. R.

1813

284

Kanyapella W. R.

379

Grassflat Swamp F. F. R.

246



Park Name

Park ID

Park Name

Park ID

Karyrie I296 B. R.

1362

Lake Elizabeth W. R.

Karyrie I297 B. R.

1363

Lake Gellie L.R.

3073

137

Lake Jil Jil W. R.

805

Kattyoong F. R.

522

Katunga B. R.

2035

Lake Kemi Kemi W. R.

738

Katyil B. R.

1871

Lake Kennedy W. R.

426

Kellalac B. R.

1890

Lake Koonangurt L.R.

3125

Kellalac Ss. R.

2521

Lake Lawloit W. R.

806

Kennedy Gully Ss. R.

2795

Lake Lyndger W. R.

588

Kerang Wetlands Ramsar Site

3756

Lake Marmal L.R.

3177

Key Dam H. A.

3703

Lake Meering L.R.

3121

Kia I242 B. R.

1308

Lake Mumblin L.R.

3171

Kiamal B. R.

1309

Lake Munderong L.R.

3081

Kiata F. F. R.

140

Kiata I68 B. R.

1858

Lake Natimuk and Natimuk Creek

Kiata I69 B. R.

1859

L.R.

Kiata I70 B. R.

1860

Lake Rosine W. R.

432

Killawarra H108 B. R.

2115

Lake Tutchewop W. R.

543

Kinimakatka I51 B. R.

1841

Lake Wahpool West B. R.

Kinimakatka I52 B. R.

1842

Lake Wandella W. R.

530

Kinipanial Creek H. A.

2656

Lake Watchem B. R.

1911

Kobyboyn B. R.

1641

Lake Watchem L.R.

3116

Kong Meng H. A.

2643

Lake Wyn Wyn W. R.

807

Kookoombo West B. R.

1196

Lake Yampitcha W. R.

742

Koonik B. R.

1844

Lake Yando W. R.

531

Lakes

399

Koonik Koonik W. R. Kotupna H23 B. R.

804 2030

Lake Murdeduke W. R.

428 3114

1346

Turangmoroke,Yuangmania,Gunja

Krause Swamp W. R.

413

l, Gnarimara, Parupa W. R.

Kulwin F. R.

149

Larundel I267 B. R.

1333

Kulwin I50 B. R.

1104

Larundel I268 B. R.

1334

Laen I128 B. R.

1918

Laverys Corner B. R.

2421

Laen I129 B. R.

1919

Lawloit I28 B. R.

1818

Laen I130 B. R.

1920

Lawloit I50 B. R.

1840

Laen I131 B. R.

1921

Lawloit Range H.P.

3179

10244

Leeor I1 B. R.

1791

418

Leeor I2 B. R.

1792

3083

Leeor I3 B. R.

1793

Lake Cogumbul W. R.

732

Leeor I4 B. R.

1794

Lake Cope Cope W. R.

622

Lemon Springs B. R.

1824

Lagoon Pier Lake Beeac W. R. Lake Boga L.R.


247

Long et al. 2003

Park Name

Park ID

Park Name

Park ID

Lil-Lil Dam B. R.

1869

Mickey Mouse Hill N. F. R.

Lillimur South B. R.

1801

Mildura F. F. R.

183

Lilliput H117 B. R.

2124

Mildura I13 B. R.

1067

Linga B. R.

1301

Mildura I220 B. R.

1286

Linga School South B. R.

1300

Mildura I220A B. R.

1371

Little Desert N. P.

3298

Mildura I222 B. R.

1288

Little Snowy Creek E.A.

3045

Mildura I223 B. R.

1289

Loch Iel (Pink Lake) L.R.

3115

Milkingyard Creek Ss. R.

2800

Logans Lake L.R.

3124

Millers Rd No.1 Pit B. R.

1832

Long Gully N. F. R.

3690

Millers Tank B. R.

1106

Longford N. F. R.

3780

Millewa F. R.

3062

Lorquon I63 B. R.

1853

Milloo B. R.

2015

Lorquon I64 B. R.

1854

Minimay I12 B. R.

1802

Loughlin Mine Site H. A.

3257

Minimay I30 B. R.

1820

Lower Homebush H. A.

2654

Minimay I31 B. R.

1821

Loyola G109 B. R.

1650

Minimay Swamp W. R.

Macalister River Ss. R.

2941

Minyip B. R.

1900

Majorca Racecourse B. R.

2321

Miralie B. R.

1339

Malakoff B. R.

2269

Miram South B. R.

1817

Mallee Dam B. R.

1839

Mirampiram F. R.

184

Manangatang B. R.

1335

Mirampiram I37 B. R.

1827

623


1828

Marlbed I189 B. R.

1250


1829

Marma I95 B. R.

1885


1830

Marma I96 B. R.

1886

Mirnee N49 L.R.

3158

Mitchell River water reserve

3763

Mansfield Swamp W. R.

Marmal F. R.

176

3688

809

Marmal H1 B. R.

2008

G.L.R.

Marmal H2 B. R.

2009

Mitre Dam L.R

Marmal I210 B. R.

1271

Mitre F. F. R.

185

Marmal I300 B. R.

1366

Mitre Lake F. F. R.

186

Marnoo B. R.

2262

Mitta Mitta River K27 Ss. R.

3021

McClure B. R.

1864

Mitta Mitta River K28 Ss. R.

3022

Mittyack B. R.

1341

McDonald Swamp W. R.

591

3113

Meering West B. R.

1365

Moira H13 B. R.

2020

Merbein South F. R.

181

Moira H15 B. R.

2022 2335

Merrinee B. R.

1281

Moliagul I99 B. R.

Merton G103 B. R.

1644

Moodie Swamp W. R.

Merwyn Swamp W. R.

248

808

Moorabbee Shoreline G. R.

592 2719



Park Name

Park ID

Park Name

Park ID

Mooree H. A.

2608

Nhill Swamp W. R.

812

Moorngag I65 B. R.

1429

Ni Ni F. R.

218

Morea I36 B. R.

1826

Ni Ni I65 B. R.

1855

Morep Dam B. R.

1878

Ni Ni I66 B. R.

1856

Mornington Pier and Jetty

11011

Ni Ni W. R.

813

Mortat I32 B. R.

1822

Nine Mile H. A.

2648

Mortat I33 B. R.

1823

Norong Central B. R.

2121

Mortat I35 B. R.

1825

Nowie B. R.

1224

Mortlake N17 L.R.

3080

Nullan I104 B. R.

1894

Mount Buckra S. R.

2518

Nullan I105 B. R.

1895

Mount Glasgow S. R.

2727

Nullan I106 B. R.

1896

Mount Gowar S. R.

2516

Nullan I107 B. R.

1897

Mount Greenock G. R.

2716

Nullan I108 B. R.

1898

210

Nullan I109 B. R.

1899

Mount Lady Franklin B. R.

1382

Numurkah Ss. R.

2742

Mount Steiglitz S. R.

2894

Nurcoung B. R.

1845

Moyston I78 B. R.

2497

Nurcoung F. R.

224

Murchison North S. R.

2731

Nurcoung L.R.

3109

Murmungee I77 B. R.

1441

Nurcoung Swamp W. R.

814

Murndal L.R.

3108

Nurnurnemal F. R.

392

Mount Hope F. F. R.

Murphy Swamp W. R.

594

Nyang I238 B. R.

1304

Murrabit B. R.

2010

Nyang I239 B. R.

1305

Murrawong B. R.

1803

O’Keefe Swamp W. R.

761

Murrawong North Road B. R.

1805

Oliver’s Lake F. F. R.

230

Murrayville B. R.

1297

Organ Pipes N. P.

3306

Ovens River J15 Ss. R.

3031

Mutton Swamp W. R.

811

Mysia B. R.

2356

Paignie B. R.

1131

Nanny Creek B. R.

1573

Panitya B. R.

1295

Naringaningalook H33 B. R.

2040

Patho W. R.

596

Narioka B. R.

2023

Peechember Swamp W. R.

815

Nar-Nar-Goon G75 B. R.

1616

Pelican Lake W. R.

536

Narracan Falls Ss. R.

2789

Pepper Plains B. R.

1873

Narraport B. R.

1926

Pheasant Creek F. R.

National Water Sports Centre

4069

Piambie B. R.

1096

Piangil – Yungera Railway B. R.

1370

Neerim F. R.

217

241

Neerim G206 B. R.

1747

Piangil B. R.

1338

Nell Gwynne Reef Headframe Site

3687

Picola B. R.

2024

Pidgeon Tank B. R.

1146

H. A.


249

Long et al. 2003

Park Name

Park ID

Park Name

Park ID

Pier Millan B. R.

1344

Sandy Creek, Red Bluff Ss. R.

3019

Piggoreet H. A.

2628

Serpentine Creek Weir H. A.

2660

Pine Lodge H54 B. R.

2061

Serviceton Railway Station H. A.

2607

Pine Lodge H55 B. R.

2062

Seven Mile Dam W. R.

Pink Lake W. R.

439

Pipemakers Park

820

Sheepwash Creek Ss. R.

2706

4071

Shingle Hill H.P.

3181

Pira B. R.

1349

Shingle Hut Swamp B. R.

1831

Pirlta B. R.

1283

Skipton Ss. R.

2567

Smiths Gully B. R.

1691

Soaks B. R.

1343

South Base Stone H. A.

3737

Portarlington (Point Richard) F. F.

247

R. Portland North Cemetery H. A. Pretty Hill F. R.

3714 31

South Warneet Jetty

10234

Rathscar B. R.

2304

Spence Bridge E.A.

2762

Red Cliffs (Ovens Av) N. F. R.

3680

Stanley I23 B. R.

1388

Red Cliffs N. F. R.

3681

Station Creek Ss. R.

2702

Red Gum Swamp, Gannawarra

597

W. R.

Stevenson Swamp W. R.

537

Stewarton B. R.

2065

Red Gum Swamp, Goroke W. R.

816

Swannee Lake L.R.

3122

Red Gum Swamp, Jallumba W. R.

764

Swanwater B. R.

2264

Red Gum Swamp, Yanac W. R.

817

Tabor (Buckleys) Swamp W. R.

Red Plains Swamp W. R.

818

Tallangatta Creek K29 Ss. R.

3023

445

Red Rock S. R.

2553

Taminick H100A B. R.

2136

Redbank Ss. R.

2945

Tamleugh H73 B. R.

2080

Rich Avon East B. R.

2263

Tankerton Jetty

10231

Rich Avon West B. R.

1922

Tanwood B. R.

2308

Richardson River Ss. R.

2669

Tarago River, Neerim South Ss.R.

2787

Tarra River Ss. R.

2983

Tarranginnie I48 B. R.

1838

Rosebud Pier Rowland W. R.

10255 601

Rupanyup I111 B. R.

1901

Tarrawingee I5 B. R.

1374

Rupanyup I112 B. R.

1902

Tarrawingee I9 B. R.

1377

Ryans B. R.

1336

Teddywaddy I152 B. R.

1942

648

Teddywaddy I153 B. R.

1943

Ryans Lagoon W. R. Rye Pier

10256

Terrick Terrick F. R.

Salt Lake, Streatham W. R.

443

Thalia B. R.

Salt Lake, Wongan W. R.

401

The Green Swamp W. R.

286 1927 771

San Remo Jetty

11017

Thomson River Ss. R.

2942

Sandringham Breakwater and

10257

Thunder Swamp W. R.

641

Hampton Jetty

250

Ti Tree Creek B. R.

1868



Park Name Tiega F. R.

Park ID

Park Name

290

Park ID

Walpeup N. F. R.

3694

Tiega I24 B. R.

1078

Wando River Ss. R.

2547

Tiega I28 B. R.

1082

Wangaratta South B. R.

2117

Timberoo I106 B. R.

1160

Wangie B. R.

1584

Timboram West Tank B. R.

1208

Warmur I117 B. R.

1907

Timor E.A.

3768

Warmur I119 B. R.

1909

Toolondo B. R.

2455

Warngar I31 B. R.

2267

Tourello Ss. R.

2583

Warra Warra N. F. R.

3764

Warracknabeal Rifle Range F. R.

3671

Warracknabeal Ss. R.

2520

603

Warraquil I57 B. R.

1847

3058

Warrenmang B. R.

2307

Watchem I120 B. R.

1910

Towaninny South F. R. Towanway N5 L.R. Tragowel Swamp W. R. Trestle Bridge, Koetong Ck (1) H.

303 3070

A. Tullaroop Creek Ss. R.

2681

Watchem I122 B. R.

1912

Tullyvea B. R.

1867

Watchem I123 B. R.

1913

Tullyvea State School H. A.

4000

Watsey's B. R.

1175

Tungumah B. R.

2135

Waurn Swamp W. R.

822

Turkeeth N46 L.R.

3155

Webb's Salt Lake L.R

3112

Turkeeth N47 L.R.

3156

Werrap I170 B. R.

1275

Turnip Creek B. R.

2084

Werribee South Jetty

Turoar I142 B. R.

1200

Werrigar B. R.

Turoar South B. R.

1204

West Wail F. F. R.

330

Turrumberry B. R.

2016

Westblades Swamp W. R.

607

Turrumberry North B. R.

2017

Westbury N.F.S. R.

2898

Turrumberry North F. R.

307

Westgate Park

4087

Turrumberry North W. R.

605

Wharparilla B. R.

2018

Two Mile Swamp W. R.

606

Wilhelmina N. F. R.

3686

Two Tree Swamp W. R.

642

Wilkur B. R.

1905

4

Willenabrina I85 B. R.

1875

Verandah Swamp W. R.

821

Willenabrina I86 B. R.

1876

Victory Swamp W. R.

774

Williamstown Precinct

11006

U.T. Creek H. A.

10262 1889

Vinelea Ss. R.

2708

Willung B. R.

2172

Wagant I37 B. R.

1091

Wimmera River, Eversley Ss. R.

2580

Wail B. R.

1872

Winter Lake W. R.

Waitchie B. R.

1221

Winton B. R.

2105

780

Wal Wal Swamp W. R.

643

Wirchilleba B. R.

2261

Wallenjoe Swamp W. R.

644

Witchipool I126 B. R.

1916

1322

Witchipool I127 B. R.

1917

Wallowa B. R.


251

Long et al. 2003

Park Name Woady Yallock River, Pitfield Ss.

Park ID 2589

R.

Park Name

Park ID

Yabba Yabba H36 B. R.

2043


2046 2026

Wodonga B. R.

1459

Yalca B. R.

Wondoomarook I58 B. R.

1422

Yanac Swamp W. R.

Woodend I95 B. R.

1565

Yanac-a-yanac I44 B. R.

1834

Woolshed Swamp Sheepwash

2728


1835


1836


1837

H.A. Woolshed Swamp, Boort W. R.

608

824

Woorak I58 B. R.

1848

Yanipy I24 B. R.

1814

Woorak I59 B. R.

1849

Yanipy I25 B. R.

1815

Woorak I60 B. R.

1850

Yanipy I26 B. R.

1816

Woorak I61 B. R.

1851

Yarrackigarra Swamp W. R.

Woorak I62 B. R.

1852

Yarragon B. R.

1758

Woorinen I284 B. R.

1350

Yarrangook B. R.

1804

Woorinen South B. R.

1351

Yarrangook F. F. R.

Woornack I109 B. R.

1163

Yarrock I18 B. R.

1808

Woornack I246 B. R.

1312

Yarrock I19 B. R.

1809

Woornack I247 B. R.

1313

Yarrock I20 B. R.

1810

Woosang I163 B. R.

1953

Yatpool F. R.

Woraigworm I72 B. R.

1862

Yea G116 B. R.

1657

Woraigworm I73 B. R.

1863

Yea G54 B. R.

1595

Woranga B. R.

2175

Yearinga I10 B. R.

1800

Wormangal B. R.

2415

Yearinga I8 B. R.

1798

Worooa B. R.

1299

Yearinga I9 B. R.

1799

Worsley B. R.

1819

Yellangip B. R.

1877

Wortongie B. R.

1216

Youanmite H37 B. R.

2044

Wycheproof B. R.

1944

Youanmite H38 B. R.

2045

Yaapeet I258 B. R.

1324

Youanmite H41 B. R.

2048


2042

Yowang Hill G. R.

2515

252

825

166

355



APPENDIX 5 – Locations of EVDs (>20ha) in the five highest susceptibility categories EVDs are sorted by susceptibility category (double lines indicate category boundaries) and EVDs within parks are sorted by area.

This list has been compiled to highlight the largest areas of

vegetation that are highly susceptible to rabbit disturbance. For practical reasons EVD areas less than 20 ha have been excluded from this list, the exceptions being the Basalt Grassland EVD and the Alluvial Plains Grassland EVD which have few areas greater than 20 ha and therefore a 5 ha size limit has been imposed instead. See Appendix 4 for the key to park type abbreviations. EVD Park/Reserve Name

Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

Semi-arid Woodland (non-eucalypt) - category 1 Murray - Sunset N. P.

3320

West

Mallee

62584

Wyperfeld N. P.

3309

West

Mallee

11790

Hattah - Kulkyne N. P.

3296

West

Mallee

9315

Yarrara F. F. R.

352

West

Mallee

1934

Timberoo F. F. R.

291

West

Mallee

1036

Lake Albacutya Park

3364

West

Mallee

508

Mullroo Creek W. R.

535

West

Mallee

454

7

West

Mallee

431

Mallanbool F. F. R.

168

West

Mallee

394

Dering Racecourse F. F. R.

237

West

Mallee

320

Lianiduck F. F. R.

76

West

Mallee

296

Timberoo E.A.

2598

West

Mallee

288


3284

West

Mallee

262


3367

West

Mallee

252

Lake Timboram F. F. R.

150

West

Mallee

251

Lake Tyrrell W. R.

529

West

Mallee

243

Moss Tank F. F. R.

8

West

Mallee

235

Koorlong E.A.

2600

West

Mallee

210

Wathe F. F. R.

326

West

Mallee

195

Yellimjip B. R.

1159

West

Mallee

183

Towan Plains F. F. R.

301

West

Mallee

181

Chinkapook F. F. R.

75

West

Mallee

178

Leaghur W. R.

526

Central

Murray Central

165

Wemen F. F. R.

329

West

Mallee

162

Balmers Tank B. R.

1220

West

Mallee

161

Mamengoroock I72 B. R.

1126

West

Mallee

144

Toltol I263 B. R.

1329

West

Mallee

131

Annuello F. F. R.

Appendix 5 – Locations of EVDs in the five highest categories

253

Long et al. 2003

EVD Park/Reserve Name

Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

Mystic Park B. R.

1357

Central

Murray Central

129

Torrita F. F. R.

226

West

Mallee

129

Bolton F. F. R.

214

West

Mallee

126

Drendles B. R.

1122

West

Mallee

122

Tutye B. R.

1123

West

Mallee

116

Bumbang I262 B. R.

1328

West

Mallee

113

Albacutya I171 B. R.

1232

West

Mallee

113

Lake Wahpool L.R.

3120

West

Mallee

106

Towma (Lake Marlbed) F. F. R.

305

West

Mallee

105

Leaghur S. P.

3354

Central

Murray Central

105

Gnarr F. R.

96

West

Mallee

101

Murrayville F. R.

59

West

Mallee

97

Paradise F. F. R.

234

West

Mallee

97

Green Lake R.P

3226

West

Mallee

95

Turriff F. F. R.

101

West

Mallee

94

Dattuck B. R.

1321

West

Mallee

93

Yaapeet B. R.

1276

West

Mallee

92

Woornack I110 B. R.

1164

West

Mallee

91

Bronzewing F. F. R.

37

West

Mallee

88

1111

West

Mallee

86

Chillingollah F. F. R.

52

West

Mallee

85

Yetmans (Patchewollock) F. F. R.

235

West

Mallee

83

Mamemgorook I236 B. R.

1302

West

Mallee

82

Manangatang (Lulla) F. F. R.

170

West

Mallee

82

Tiega I80 B. R.

1134

West

Mallee

77

Whitehorse B. R.

1176

West

Mallee

75

Lake Heywood W. R.

524

West

Mallee

68

Wewin B. R.

1352

West

Mallee

67

Pooks B. R.

1207

West

Mallee

66

Underbool I61 B. R.

1115

West

Mallee

64

Tresco West B. R.

1228

West

Mallee

63

Nurnurnemal B. R.

1292

West

Mallee

63

Walpeup F. F. R.

319

West

Mallee

62

Lang Plain B. R.

1353

West

Mallee

61

Walpeup I78 B. R.

1132

West

Mallee

59

Little Lake Charm W. R.

534

Central

Murray Central

59

Lakes Powell and Carpul W. R.

532

West

Mallee

58

Fraser's B. R.

1317

West

Mallee

58

Duddo B. R.

254




Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

25

West

Mallee

58

Carter's Tank B. R.

1133

West

Mallee

56

Baring I112 B. R.

1166

West

Mallee

56

Yarto B. R.

1182

West

Mallee

54

Welshmans Plain F. F. R.

172

West

Mallee

53

Yatpool I6 B. R.

1060

West

Mallee

53

Bailey Plain B. R.

1337

West

Mallee

52

Bronzewing B. R.

1162

West

Mallee

51

Speed B. R.

1180

West

Mallee

49

Bannerton F. F. R.

295

West

Mallee

48

Boinka B. R.

1113

West

Mallee

48

Danyo I63 B. R.

1117

West

Mallee

47

Underbool I87 B. R.

1141

West

Mallee

45

Hynams B. R.

1171

West

Mallee

45

Burupga B. R.

1218

West

Mallee

44

Darling Junction E. A.

2601

West

Mallee

41

Tullilah B. R.

1282

West

Mallee

40

Danyo I65 B. R.

1119

West

Mallee

40

Carwarp B. R.

1062

West

Mallee

39

Ouyen I82 B. R.

1136

West

Mallee

39

Koorangie (The Marshes & Avoca

519

Central

Murray Central

39

Daalko B. R.

1152

West

Mallee

37

O'Shannessy B. R.

1158

West

Mallee

36

Morkalla - Red Cliffs Railway B. R.

1368

West

Mallee

35

Annuello B. R.

1098

West

Mallee

33

Wandown F. F. R.

322

West

Mallee

32

Lake Mannaor W. R.

527

West

Mallee

32

Meringur F. R.

169

West

Mallee

32

Wood Wood F. F. R.

242

West

Mallee

31

Wangie W. R.

544

West

Mallee

31

Yatpool I10 B. R.

1064

West

Mallee

31

Chinkapook North B. R.

1195

West

Mallee

30

74

West

Mallee

30

Bellevue Tank B. R.

1240

West

Mallee

28

Kodoonong B. R.

1102

West

Mallee

27

Waitchie F. F. R.

315

West

Mallee

26

Stony Plain B. R.

1222

West

Mallee

26

Dunstans F. F. R.

Floodway) W. R.

Cocamba F. F. R.


255

Long et al. 2003


Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

Ginquam I4 B. R.

1058

West

Mallee

26

Nyah B. R.

1225

West

Mallee

25

Ouyen I34 B. R.

1088

West

Mallee

24

Yarraby F. R.

300

West

Mallee

23

Boinka F. R.

26

West

Mallee

23

Christmas Tank B. R.

1193

West

Mallee

23

Nulkwyne I22 B. R.

1076

West

Mallee

23

Underbool I88 B. R.

1142

West

Mallee

22

Tcham Lakes L.R.

3065

West

Mallee

22

Carwarp West I9 B. R.

1063

West

Mallee

22

Prooinga School B. R.

1197

West

Mallee

21

Quambatook I208 B. R.

1269

Central

Murray Central

21

Murray - Sunset N. P.

3320

West

Mallee

7195

Lake Tyrrell W. R.

529

West

Mallee

2265

Lake Timboram F. F. R.

150

West

Mallee

339

Ryanby B. R.

1348

West

Mallee

114


2601

West

Mallee

103

Lake Murphy W. R.

528

Central

Murray Central

84


3284

West

Mallee

57

Wewin B. R.

1352

West

Mallee

54

Burrowa - Pine Mountain N. P.

3310

East

Alpine

5564

Mount Lawson S. P.

3344

East

Alpine

5458

Chiltern-Pilot N. P.

3314

Central

Murray Central

4645

Wilsons Promontory N. P.

3308

Central

Murray Central

3969

Warby Range S. P.

3350

Central

Murray Central

3234


3245

East

Alpine

1891

Mount Alexander R.P

3238

Central

Murray Central

590

Mount Granya S. P.

3355

East

Alpine

512

Mount Wombat-Garden Range F. F.

208

Central

Central Highlands

268

You Yangs R.P

3227

Central

Basalt Plains

226

Mount Meg F. F. R.

205

Central

Murray Central

183

Beechworth Park

3357

Central

Murray Central

110

Chesney Vale Hills H99 B. R.

2106

Central

Murray Central

81

Mount Barambogie E.A.

3042

Central

Murray Central

72

Chenopod Shrubland - category 1

Granitic Hillslopes - category 2

R.

256




Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

Chesney Vale Hills H97 B. R.

2104

Central

Murray Central

37

Langley I12 B. R.

1482

Central

Murray Central

33

22

Central

Central Highlands

23

Grampians N. P.

3316

West

Grampians

27194

Alpine N. P.

3319

East

Alpine

11402

Heathcote-Greytown N. P.

4493

Central

Murray Central

4273

Black Range S. P.

3328

West

Grampians

3101

Snowy River N. P.

3313

East

East Gippsland

1796

Mitchell River N. P.

3295

East

East Gippsland

1729


3308

East

West Gippsland

928

Mount Buangor S. P.

3343

West

Grampians

866


3310

East

Alpine

714

Mount Arapiles - Tooan S. P.

3342

West

Grampians

693

Mount Buffalo N. P.

3303

East

Alpine

692

Kooyoora S. P.

3337

Central

Murray Central

608


3323

East

Alpine

527

Coopracambra N. P.

3317

East

East Gippsland

464


3314

Central

Murray Central

426

Lower Glenelg N. P.

3300

West

West Coast

395


3296

West

Mallee

342

Grant H. A.

2924

East

Alpine

339

Lake Tyers

3419

East

East Gippsland

312

Lerderderg S. P.

3339

Central

Basalt Plains

286

Langi Ghiran S. P.

3338

West

Grampians

285

Avon - Mt Hedrick N.F.S. R.

2938

East

West Gippsland

276

Mount Tambo N.F.S. R.

2917

East

Alpine

232

Tower Hill W. R.

446

West

West Coast

214

Croajingolong N. P.

3311

East

East Gippsland

207

Cathedral Range S. P.

3332

Central

Central Highlands

175

Wyperfeld N. P.

3309

West

Mallee

167

Mount Elizabeth N.F.S. R.

2939

East

East Gippsland

165

Inglewood F. R.

115

Central

Murray Central

130

Hepburn R.P

3228

West

Grampians

115

Mount Lawson S. P.

3344

East

Alpine

114

Macalister Gorge N.F.S. R.

2922

East

West Gippsland

105

Dundas Range S. R.

2526

West

Grampians

101

Big Hill F. R. Rocky Outcrop Shrubland - category 3


257

Long et al. 2003


Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)


3320

West

Mallee

97

Lake Albacutya Park

3364

West

Mallee

94

Macfarlane Lookout N.F.S. R.

2916

East

Alpine

91

Wychitella F. F. R.

340

Central

Murray Central

91

Tarnagulla F. R.

280

Central

Murray Central

77

Castlemaine Diggins N. P.

4659

Central

Murray Central

71

Beechworth Park

3357

Central

Murray Central

52

Mount Jeffcott F. F. R.

203

Central

Murray Central

50

Plum Gully F. R.

244

East

East Gippsland

46


208

Central

Central Highlands

44

Lake Elingamite L.R.

3170

West

West Coast

41

Errinundra N. P.

3318

East

East Gippsland

40

Red Rock B. R.

2465

West

Grampians

37

Mount Samaria S. P.

3346

Central

Central Highlands

37

Mokoan H95 B. R.

2102

Central

Murray Central

34

Terrick Terrick N. P.

3349

Central

Murray Central

34

Dattuck B. R.

1321

West

Mallee

29

Plenty Gorge R.P.

1518

Melb. Metro.

Yarra

29

Meredith E. .

2840

Central

Basalt Plains

29

Werribee Gorge S. P.

3352

Central

Basalt Plains

28

Mount Napier S. P.

3345

West

West Coast

26

Mount Stewart N.F.S. R.

2921

East

East Gippsland

25

Warby Range S. P.

3350

Central

Murray Central

25

Mount Ida F. R.

201

Central

Murray Central

22

Long Forest F. F. R.

163

Central

Basalt Plains

22


3284

West

Mallee

11821


3320

West

Mallee

10649

Barmah S. P.

3327

Central

Murray Central

5197


3296

West

Mallee

3834


3367

West

Mallee

3429

Koorangie (The Marshes & Avoca

519

Central

Murray Central

1891

Kings Billabong W. R.

512

West

Mallee

1870

Wyperfeld N. P.

3309

West

Mallee

1543

Lower Ovens R.P

3237

Central

Murray Central

1029

R.

Riverine Woodland / Forest - category 3

Floodway) W. R.

258




Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

Lambert Island F. R.

152

West

Mallee

921

Goulburn River H.R

3591

Central

Central Highlands

817

Bumbang Island H. A.

2606

West

Mallee

620

Lake Lalbert W. R.

525

West

Mallee

609

Dartagook W. R.

509

Central

Murray Central

570

Lakes Powell and Carpul W. R.

532

West

Mallee

516

Mullroo Creek W. R.

535

West

Mallee

484

Reedy Lake, Nagambie W. R.

638

Central

Murray Central

477

Mystic Park B. R.

1357

Central

Murray Central

429

Echuca R.P

3232

Central

Murray Central

415

Cobram R.P

3235

Central

Murray Central

409

Kanyapella Basin W.M.C.A

828

Central

Murray Central

397

Reef Hills Park

3368

Central

Murray Central

255

Reef Hills S. P.

3368

Central

Murray Central

255

Ovens River F. R.

240

Central

Murray Central

216

Lake Heywood W. R.

524

West

Mallee

199

Gemmill Swamp W. R.

581

Central

Murray Central

199


2601

West

Mallee

193

Brimy Bill (5 Mile Lake) W. R.

506

West

Mallee

190

Lake Moodemere L.R.

3085

Central

Murray Central

187

Goulburn River K50 Ss. R.

2668

Central

Murray Central

185

Tocumwal R.P

3234

Central

Murray Central

183

Green Lake R.P

3226

West

Mallee

175

Big Reedy Lagoon W. R.

575

Central

Murray Central

172

Wangie F. F. R.

323

West

Mallee

147

Goulburn River, Yambuna Bridge Ss.

2736

Central

Murray Central

138


3064

West

Mallee

126

Towma (Lake Marlbed) F. F. R.

305

West

Mallee

111

Arcadia Ss. R.

2748

Central

Murray Central

105

Reedy Swamp W. R.

599

Central

Murray Central

102

Karadoc F. R.

136

West

Mallee

101

Yarrawonga R.P

3236

Central

Murray Central

95

Yarra Valley Parklands

4091

Melb. Metro.

Yarra

85

Box Flat B. R.

1194

West

Mallee

83

Bellevue Tank B. R.

1240

West

Mallee

77

Glenelg River (8) Ss. R.

3219

West

Grampians

75

Waitchie F. F. R.

315

West

Mallee

67

R.


259

Long et al. 2003


Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

2737

Central

Murray Central

65

Cundare Pool (Lake Martin) L.R

3143

West

West Coast

59

Yassom Swamp F. F. R.

354

Central

Murray Central

59

Korrak Korrak B. R.

1262

Central

Murray Central

56

Wangie W. R.

544

West

Mallee

50

Box Swamp B. R.

1251

West

Mallee

47

Nyah B. R.

1225

West

Mallee

43


3314

Central

Murray Central

40

Stokes River (3) Ss. R.

3212

West

Grampians

40

Towaninny I203 B. R.

1264

Central

Murray Central

37

Yarra Bend Park

4090

Melb. Metro.

Yarra

35


3216

West

Grampians

34

Tcham Lakes L.R.

3065

West

Mallee

31

Red Cap Creek Ss. R.

2546

West

Grampians

28

Dooen Swamp B. R.

1880

West

Grampians

27

14

West

Grampians

26


3211

West

Grampians

26

Molesworth N. C. R.

359

Central

Central Highlands

25

Quambatook I204 B. R.

1265

Central

Murray Central

24

Shepparton F. F. R.

3635

Central

Murray Central

23

Torney's Tank B. R.

1257

West

Mallee

21

Towma B. R.

1253

West

Mallee

21


3308

East

West Gippsland

8541

Discovery Bay C. P.

3360

West

West Coast

8475

Croajingolong N. P.

3311

East

East Gippsland

4083

Cape Liptrap C. P.

3371

East

West Gippsland

2231

Nooramunga Marine & C. P.

3395

East

West Gippsland

2043

Otway N. P.

3315

West

West Coast

2031

Gippsland Lakes C. P.

3362

East

East Gippsland

1213

Port Campbell N. P.

3307

West

West Coast

1156

Cape Conran C. P.

3359

East

East Gippsland

1023

Mornington Peninsula N. P.

3290

City & Bays

M’ton / W’port

985

San Remo - Pt Smythe Coastal

3194

East

West Gippsland

825

3189

West

West Coast

814

Goulburn River, McCoys Bridge Ss. R.

Barrabool F. F. R.

Coastal - category 3

Reserve Lorne - Queenscliff Coastal Reserve

260




Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

Ewing Morass W. R.

456

East

East Gippsland

548


3199

East

East Gippsland

465

Port Fairy - Warrnambool Coastal

3187

West

West Coast

343

Bay of Islands C. P.

3358

West

West Coast

335


3190

City & Bays

Port Phillip

280

Angahook - Lorne S. P.

3325

West

West Coast

278

Waratah Bay - Shallow Inlet Coastal

3195

East

West Gippsland

248

3188

West

West Coast

228

Shallow Inlet Marine & C. P.

3393

East

West Gippsland

217

McLoughlins Beach - Seaspray

3197

East

West Gippsland

201

Cape Nelson S. P.

3330

West

West Coast

192

The Lakes N. P.

3297

East

East Gippsland

187

Lakes Entrance - Lake Tyers Coastal

3198

East

East Gippsland

139

Lower Glenelg N. P.

3300

West

West Coast

91

Mallacoota Coastal Reserve

3200

East

East Gippsland

90

Narrawong Coastal Reserve

3184

West

West Coast

81

Eumeralla (Yambuk) Coastal

3185

West

West Coast

75

Phillip Island Coastal Reserve

3193

City & Bays

M’ton / W’port

63

Lake Connewarre W. R.

552

City & Bays

Port Phillip

58

Flinders - Somers Coastal Reserve

3191

City & Bays

M’ton / W’port

57

Lake Tyers

3419

East

East Gippsland

57

Yambuk F. F. R.

347

West

West Coast

56

French Island N. P.

3301

City & Bays

M’ton / W’port

56

Fossil Beach G. R.

2907

City & Bays

M’ton / W’port

38

Swan Bay - Edwards Point W. R.

546

City & Bays

Port Phillip

36

Portland H47 B. R.

1986

West

West Coast

35

Corner Inlet Marine & C. P.

3394

East

West Gippsland

35

Portland H46 B. R.

1985

West

West Coast

28

Jack Smith Lake W. R.

668

East

West Gippsland

25

Derrimut Grassland N. C. R.

4008

Central

Basalt Plains

122

Laverton Grasslands F. R.

157

City & Bays

Port Phillip

51

Reserve

Reserve Elliot River - Addis Bay Coastal Reserve

Coastal Reserve

Reserve

Reserve

Basalt Grassland - category 4


261

Long et al. 2003


Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)


3190

City & Bays

Port Phillip

27

Angliss Grassland (Laverton North)

4011

Central

Basalt Plains

20

Banchory Grove Grassland N. C. R.

4012

Central

Basalt Plains

14

French Island N. P.

3301

City & Bays

M’on / W’port

13


3143

West

West Coast

10

Limeburners Lagoon (Hovells Creek)

112

City & Bays

Port Phillip

7

Kooraweera Lakes W. R.

412

West

West Coast

6

Lake Terangpom W. R.

434

West

West Coast

6

Lake Bolac L.R.

3174

West

Grampians

6


3320

West

Mallee

135648

Wyperfeld N. P.

3309

West

Mallee

17024


3322

West

Mallee

4532


3296

West

Mallee

4112

Annuello F. F. R.

7

West

Mallee

3672

Bronzewing F. F. R.

37

West

Mallee

2463

Wathe F. F. R.

326

West

Mallee

970

Paradise F. F. R.

234

West

Mallee

489

Koonda F. R.

143

West

Mallee

387

Koorlong E.A.

2600

West

Mallee

351

Towan Plains F. F. R.

301

West

Mallee

300

Toltol F. F. R.

294

West

Mallee

224

Wandown F. F. R.

322

West

Mallee

169

Yarrara F. F. R.

352

West

Mallee

168

Manya B. R.

1294

West

Mallee

163

Kulwin F. F. R.

148

West

Mallee

159

Birdcage F. F. R.

23

West

Mallee

151

Nyah B. R.

1225

West

Mallee

136

Toltol I263 B. R.

1329

West

Mallee

134

Annuello B. R.

1098

West

Mallee

130

Timberoo F. F. R.

291

West

Mallee

130

Wagant I129A B. R.

1185

West

Mallee

124

Broken Bucket Tank B. R.

1229

West

Mallee

116

Chillingollah F. F. R.

52

West

Mallee

111

Welshmans Plain F. F. R.

172

West

Mallee

103

Manya F. R.

173

West

Mallee

92

N. C. R.

F. F. R.

Chenopod Mallee - category 4

262




Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

Bannerton F. F. R.

295

West

Mallee

87

Moss Tank F. F. R.

8

West

Mallee

86

Yatpool I6 B. R.

1060

West

Mallee

85

Kulwyne Swamp B. R.

1105

West

Mallee

84

Bronzewing B. R.

1162

West

Mallee

79

Gunner's Tank B. R.

1153

West

Mallee

75

Kodoonong B. R.

1102

West

Mallee

73

Bolton F. F. R.

214

West

Mallee

73

Tutye B. R.

1123

West

Mallee

72

Bransons B. R.

1107

West

Mallee

69

Cocamba F. F. R.

74

West

Mallee

62

Chillingollah B. R.

1209

West

Mallee

55

Mildura I15 B. R.

1069

West

Mallee

49

Cowangie Railway B. R.

1120

West

Mallee

46

Purnya B. R.

1114

West

Mallee

46

Daalko B. R.

1152

West

Mallee

43

Box Flat B. R.

1194

West

Mallee

42

Clarks Tank B. R.

1201

West

Mallee

41

Boinka F. R.

26

West

Mallee

38

Wemen F. F. R.

329

West

Mallee

37

Paignie I23 B. R.

1077

West

Mallee

36

Mamemgorook I236 B. R.

1302

West

Mallee

35

Underbool I61 B. R.

1115

West

Mallee

34

Yatpool Tank B. R.

1061

West

Mallee

34

Leitpar B. R.

1187

West

Mallee

34

Bumbang I39 B. R.

1093

West

Mallee

34

Kattyoong B. R.

1130

West

Mallee

33

Morkalla - Red Cliffs Railway B. R.

1368

West

Mallee

32

Eureka West B. R.

1192

West

Mallee

32

Walpeup I101 B. R.

1155

West

Mallee

31

Turriff F. F. R.

101

West

Mallee

30

Boinka B. R.

1113

West

Mallee

29

Fraser's B. R.

1317

West

Mallee

28

Baring I252 B. R.

1318

West

Mallee

28

Timberoo E.A.

2598

West

Mallee

27

Lake Daytrap L.R

3119

West

Mallee

27

Hynams B. R.

1171

West

Mallee

27

Nulkwyne I29 B. R.

1083

West

Mallee

25


263

Long et al. 2003


Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

Manangatang (Lulla) F. F. R.

170

West

Mallee

25

Waitchie Tank B. R.

1211

West

Mallee

25

Danyo I64 B. R.

1118

West

Mallee

25

Nulkwyne I22 B. R.

1076

West

Mallee

24

Ouyen I85 B. R.

1139

West

Mallee

24

Wymlet I241 B. R.

1307

West

Mallee

24

Torrita F. F. R.

226

West

Mallee

24

Mallanbool F. F. R.

168

West

Mallee

24

Woornack I97 B. R.

1151

West

Mallee

23

Carter's Tank B. R.

1133

West

Mallee

23

Underbool I87 B. R.

1141

West

Mallee

22

Hopkins Tank B. R.

1147

West

Mallee

21

Bourka I156 B. R.

1217

West

Mallee

21

Wymlet I20 B. R.

1074

West

Mallee

21

Ouyen I83 B. R.

1137

West

Mallee

21

Yungera B. R.

1095

West

Mallee

20

Possum Flat B. R.

1108

West

Mallee

20

Alpine N. P.

3319

East

Alpine

119597

Grampians N. P.

3316

West

Grampians

15194

Lake Eildon N. P.

3294

Central

Central Highlands

11320

Lower Glenelg N. P.

3300

West

West Coast

8833


3324

East

Alpine

8603


3323

East

Alpine

7438

Kinglake N. P.

3292

Central

Central Highlands

6120

Mount Buffalo N. P.

3303

East

Alpine

5908

Snowy River N. P.

3313

East

East Gippsland

5176

Kamarooka S. P.

3335

Central

Murray Central

3579


3310

East

Alpine

3270


3395

East

West Gippsland

3026

Mount Samaria S. P.

3346

Central

Central Highlands

2998

Kooyoora S. P.

3337

Central

Murray Central

2528

Mount Lawson S. P.

3344

East

Alpine

2384

Mount Wills H. A.

2928

East

Alpine

1629

Gippsland Lakes C. P.

3362

East

East Gippsland

1565

Mount Stanley S. R.

2991

Central

Murray Central

1564

Terrick Terrick N. P.

3349

Central

Murray Central

1426

Forby Forest - category 4

264




Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

Grant H. A.

2924

East

Alpine

1033

Langi Ghiran S. P.

3338

West

Grampians

1029

Blond Bay W. R.

3647

East

East Gippsland

1018

Cathedral Range S. P.

3332

Central

Central Highlands

937

Macedon R.P

3229

Central

Basalt Plains

931

Cassilis H. A.

2927

East

Alpine

917

Yarra Ranges N. P.

3321

Central

Central Highlands

897

Mount Bolangum F. F. R.

196

Central

Murray Central

849

Mount Buangor S. P.

3343

West

Grampians

807

Mornington Peninsula N. P.

3290

City & Bays

M’ton/W’port

733

Avon - Mt Hedrick N.F.S. R.

2938

East

West Gippsland

705

Mount Richmond N. P.

3305

West

West Coast

692

The Lakes N. P.

3297

East

East Gippsland

677

Tomahawk Creek B. R.

1043

West

West Coast

670

Maldon H. A.

2636

Central

Murray Central

658

Wandong R.P

3230

Central

Central Highlands

610

Mitchell River N. P.

3295

East

East Gippsland

609


208

Central

Central Highlands

571


3308

East

West Gippsland

541

Powers Lookout S.R

2995

East

Alpine

530

Reef Hills Park

3368

Central

Murray Central

512

Cooriemungle Creek F. R.

314

West

West Coast

494

Otway N. P.

3315

West

West Coast

477

Black Range S. P.

3328

West

Grampians

474

Dergholm S. P.

3333

West

Grampians

473

Baranduda R.P

3242

Central

Murray Central

448

Providence Ponds F. F. R.

248

East

East Gippsland

439

Narrawong F. R.

215

West

West Coast

432

Mount Granya S. P.

3355

East

Alpine

428

Tallangallook-Dry Creek H. A.

3047

Central

Central Highlands

356

Mountain Creek E.A.

3044

East

Alpine

349

Tooloy-Lake Mundi W. R.

701

West

Grampians

346

Yarck N. C. R.

350

Central

Central Highlands

342

Murrindindi River N.F.S. R.

2900

Central

Central Highlands

337

Hat Hill F. F. R.

107

Central

Central Highlands

321

Black Range S. R.

2525

West

Grampians

320

Lima South E.A.

3041

Central

Central Highlands

309

R.


265

Long et al. 2003


Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

Brisbane Ranges N. P.

3288

Central

Basalt Plains

298

Holey Plains S. P.

3334

East

East Gippsland

289

Moliagul H. A.

2637

Central

Murray Central

283

Discovery Bay C. P.

3360

West

West Coast

273

98

Central

Central Highlands

272


3245

East

Alpine

269

Woodlands Historic Park

3361

Central

Basalt Plains

265

Dundas Range S. R.

2526

West

Grampians

263

Morwell N. P.

3302

East

West Gippsland

262

Mount Beckworth S. R.

2724

West

Grampians

261

Crawford River R.P

3247

West

West Coast

242

Toombullup H. A.

3046

Central

Central Highlands

236

Runnymede F. R.

258

Central

Murray Central

234

North Western Port N. C. R.

361

City & Bays

M’ton/W’port

224

Jarvis Creek Plateau R.P

3244

East

Alpine

224

Paddys Ranges S. P.

3348

West

Grampians

208

Bats Ridge W. R.

687

West

West Coast

208

Howqua Hills H. A.

2923

East

Alpine

206

Switzerland Range N. C. R.

277

Central

Central Highlands

206

Lockhart Creek E.A.

3043

East

Alpine

205

99

Central

Basalt Plains

201

Kinglake West E.A.

2844

Central

Central Highlands

190

Warramate Hills N. C. R.

325

Central

Central Highlands

186

Dandenong Ranges N. P.

3291

Melb. Metro.

Dandenongs

185

Hepburn R.P

3228

West

Grampians

183

Angahook - Lorne S. P.

3325

West

West Coast

181

Landsborough F. F. R.

153

West

Grampians

179

Carlisle S. P.

3331

West

West Coast

172

Mount Pilot Multi-purpose Park

3286

Central

Murray Central

171

Arthurs Seat S. P.

3326

City & Bays

M’ton/W’port

170

Toombon Gold-mines H. A.

2870

East

West Gippsland

169

Lake Curlip W. R.

460

East

East Gippsland

163

Ballarat-Creswick R.P

3220

West

Grampians

153

Maintongoon G105 B. R.

1646

Central

Central Highlands

149

Wychitella F. F. R.

340

Central

Murray Central

146

Mount Porepunkah S.R

2996

East

Alpine

144

Lake Ratzcastle L.R.

3095

West

Grampians

142

Wehla F. R.

328

Central

Murray Central

141

Gobur N. C. R.

Goldie F. R.

266




Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

Ocean Grove E.A.

2839

City & Bays

Port Phillip

138

Apsley B. R.

2432

West

Grampians

138

Mount Alexander R.P

3238

Central

Murray Central

136

Tarnagulla F. R.

280

Central

Murray Central

135

Colquhoun R.P

3224

East

East Gippsland

132

Nine Mile Creek H. A.

3048

Central

Murray Central

131

Woods Point Gold-mines H. A.

2864

East

Alpine

127

Dropmore G46 B. R.

1587

Central

Central Highlands

125

Joel Joel B. R.

2270

West

Grampians

123

Mount Korong S. R.

2722

Central

Murray Central

122

Molesworth B. R.

1588

Central

Central Highlands

120

Malanganee H7 B. R.

1026

West

Grampians

120

Warby Range S. P.

3350

Central

Murray Central

119

Bolwarra H44 B. R.

1983

West

West Coast

116

Wilkin F. F. R.

332

West

Grampians

114

Buchan Caves Reserve

2950

East

East Gippsland

113


3210

West

West Coast

111


3211

West

Grampians

109

Warrandyte - Kinglake N. C. R.

368

Melb. Metro.

Yarra

108

Macalister Gorge N.F.S. R.

2922

East

West Gippsland

105

Tarragal E.A.

2616

West

West Coast

105

Tylden South E.A.

2841

Central

Basalt Plains

103


3219

West

Grampians

101

Mount Doboobetic B. R.

1941

Central

Murray Central

101

Howqua River H.R

3589

East

Alpine

100

Kadnook I29 B. R.

2448

West

Grampians

97

Inverleigh F. R.

116

Central

Basalt Plains

93

Delatite E.A.

2930

East

Alpine

93

Bahgallah B. R.

1023

West

Grampians

93

Kawarren R.P

3221

West

West Coast

91

Caveat N. C. R.

51

Central

Central Highlands

91

Ararat Hills R.P

3248

West

Grampians

84

55

Central

Central Highlands

83

Kaladbro H3 B. R.

1022

West

Grampians

83

Warrandyte S. P.

3351

Melb. Metro.

Yarra

76

Wallaby Gully (Upton Hill) F. R.

316

Central

Central Highlands

75

Mount Buninyong S. R.

2577

West

Grampians

74

Mumbannar B. R.

1027

West

West Coast

73

Coranderrk N. C. R.


267

Long et al. 2003


Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

Mount Russell E.A.

2931

East

Alpine

73

One Tree Hill N. C. R.

231

Melb. Metro.

Yarra

73


3208

West

West Coast

72

Langley I96 B. R.

1566

Central

Basalt Plains

72


1649

Central

Central Highlands

72

Beechworth Park

3357

Central

Murray Central

71

Cape Otway Lighthouse Reserve

3771

West

West Coast

71

Enfield S. P.

3356

West

Grampians

67

Mount Tambo N.F.S. R.

2917

East

Alpine

67

Nerring I155 B. R.

2391

Central

Murray Central

65

Morea I4 B. R.

2423

West

Grampians

65

Mount Warrenheip F. R.

207

West

Grampians

62


1647

Central

Central Highlands

62

Balmattum Hill B. R.

1039

Central

Central Highlands

62

Lakes Entrance - Lake Tyers Coastal

3198

East

East Gippsland

62

Percydale H. A.

2634

West

Grampians

61

Balrook B. R.

1029

West

West Coast

60

The Paps N.F.S. R.

2896

Central

Central Highlands

59

Lake Gnarpurt L.R.

3135

West

West Coast

58

Main Ridge N. C. R.

167

City & Bays

M’ton/W’port

58

Drik Drik H9 B. R.

1028

West

West Coast

57

Dumbopperty Swamp & Lake

3088

West

Grampians

55


3342

West

Grampians

54

Fyans Creek B. R.

2487

West

Grampians

54


3215

West

Grampians

54

Mount Martha N. C. R.

362

City & Bays

M’ton/W’port

51

Deddick River Ss. R.

2958

East

Alpine

50

67

West

West Coast

49

Drik Drik H51 B. R.

1990

West

West Coast

46

Hotspur B. R.

1973

West

West Coast

46


3216

West

Grampians

46

The Granites/Mt Borung S.R

2723

Central

Murray Central

45

Potholes Cave Reserve

2952

East

East Gippsland

44

Mount Bute S. R.

2579

West

Grampians

43

Maryborough R.P

3241

West

Grampians

43


3212

West

Grampians

43

Reserve

Bringalbart L.R.

Drik Drik F. R.

268




Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

You Yangs R.P

3227

Central

Basalt Plains

41

Kinglake N.P. (P. Billian)

4153

Central

Central Highlands

41

Mirranatwa B. R.

2508

West

Grampians

41

Ganoo Ganoo B. R.

1021

West

Grampians

40

Marraweeny I54 B. R.

1418

Central

Central Highlands

39

Lal Lal - Bungal H. A.

2623

West

Grampians

39

Grampians N.P. (Burrah Burrah)

4150

West

Grampians

38

Mount Charlie F. R.

198

Central

Basalt Plains

37

Wash Tomorrow (Washdamorra)

776

West

Grampians

37

Myrrhee H2 B. R.

3431

East

Alpine

37


3209

West

West Coast

36

Spargo Creek E.A.

2843

Central

Basalt Plains

36

Snobs Creek W. R.

571

Central

Central Highlands

36

Adams Creek N. C. R.

154

East

West Gippsland

35

State Coal Mine H. A.

2872

East

West Gippsland

34

Bald Hill B. R.

1040

Central

Central Highlands

33

Seaton E.A.

2947

East

West Gippsland

33

Linton F. F. R.

160

West

Grampians

32

Barnawartha South I17 B. R.

1384

Central

Murray Central

32

Drumborg B. R.

1032

West

West Coast

32

Johnstone's Creek F. R.

126

West

West Coast

32

Grantville N. C. R.

104

East

West Gippsland

32

Lake Crawford W. R.

696

West

West Coast

31

McKenzie F. R.

178

Central

Central Highlands

31

Dabyminga Creek B. R.

1594

Central

Central Highlands

30

Delatite B. R.

1593

Central

Central Highlands

30

Mount Jeffcott F. F. R.

203

Central

Murray Central

29

Glenelg River, Fulham Ss. R.

2532

West

Grampians

29

Borung I119 B. R.

2355

Central

Murray Central

29

Wannon Falls S. R.

2529

West

Grampians

28

Lower Homebush B. R.

2313

West

Grampians

28

Plenty Gorge R.P.

1518

Melb. Metro.

Yarra

28

Lysterfield Park

3366

Melb. Metro. East Metropolitan

28

Western Port Intertidal Coastal

3192

City & Bays

M’ton/W’port

28

Connewirrecoo I32 B. R.

2451

West

Grampians

27

Chiltern Box-Ironbark N. P.

3314

Central

Murray Central

26

Swamp W. R.

Reserve


269

Long et al. 2003


Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

Myamyn B. R.

1977

West

West Coast

26

The Pyramids Cave Reserve

2954

East

East Gippsland

26

Mount Egbert E.A.

2715

Central

Murray Central

26

Mouzie B. R.

1030

West

West Coast

26

Erskines B. R.

2299

West

Grampians

24

Coradjil B. R.

1042

West

West Coast

24

Ben More B. R.

2212

West

Grampians

24

Meereek F. R.

179

West

Grampians

24

St Helens F. R.

273

West

West Coast

23

Coalville G219 B. R.

1760

East

West Gippsland

23

Eildon B. R.

1660

Central

Central Highlands

22

Wonthaggi Heathlands N. C. R.

367

East

West Gippsland

22

Carboor Upper E.A.

3039

East

Alpine

22

Mullagong I35 B. R.

1400

East

Alpine

22

Marong I147 B. R.

2383

Central

Murray Central

22

Lyons H12 B. R.

1031

West

West Coast

22

Ravenswood H.P.

3205

Central

Murray Central

21

Boikerbert Swamp L.R.

3087

West

Grampians

21

Bolwarra H43 B. R.

1982

West

West Coast

21

Seven Creeks W. R.

649

Central

Central Highlands

20

Daahl B. R.

2462

West

Grampians

20


3320

West

Mallee

7845


3296

West

Mallee

534


3395

East

West Gippsland

287

Wyperfeld N. P.

3309

West

Mallee

18


3342

West

Grampians

7


3342

West

Grampians

1500

Black Range S. P.

3328

West

Grampians

1368

Mullungdung F. F. R.

212

East

West Gippsland

1366

Grampians N. P.

3316

West

Grampians

944

Inverleigh F. R.

116

Central

Basalt Plains

884

Barrabool F. F. R.

14

West

Grampians

779

Dergholm S. P.

3333

West

Grampians

719

Jilpanger F. F. R.

125

West

Grampians

714

Moormurng F. F. R.

188

East

East Gippsland

534

Alluvial Plains Grassland - category 5

Alluvial Plains Woodland - category 5

270




Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)


2532

West

Grampians

416

Deep Lead F. F. R.

3396

West

Grampians

387

Brisbane Ranges N. P.

3288

Central

Basalt Plains

321

Barmah S. P.

3327

Central

Murray Central

241

Deep Lead E.A.

2713

West

Grampians

214

Woodside H28 B. R.

2165

East

West Gippsland

180

Cobra Killuc W. R.

406

West

West Coast

144

Nine Mile Creek Ss. R.

2743

Central

Murray Central

136

Glenmaggie R.P

3223

East

West Gippsland

115

Wyperfeld N. P.

3309

West

Mallee

109

Providence Ponds F. F. R.

248

East

East Gippsland

109

Meereek F. R.

179

West

Grampians

106

Yarrawonga R.P

3236

Central

Murray Central

100

Wimmera River, Marma Ss. R.

2522

West

Grampians

89

Black Waterhole E.A.

2612

West

Grampians

85

Lake Ratzcastle L.R.

3095

West

Grampians

83

Mageppa B. R.

1020

West

Grampians

75


3284

West

Mallee

71

Black Range S. R.

2525

West

Grampians

69

Lough Calvert L.R.

3147

West

West Coast

67

Stratford H.P.

3178

East

East Gippsland

66

Sandbelt Parklands

4076

Langi Ghiran S. P.

3338

West

Grampians

53

Yarra Bend Park

4090

Melb. Metro.

Yarra

49

Gresswell Forest N. C. R.

105

Melb. Metro.

Yarra

47

Apsley B. R.

2432

West

Grampians

46

Glenorchy I5 B. R.

2241

West

Grampians

46

Boosey Creek Ss. R.

2744

Central

Murray Central

45

Dumbopperty Swamp & Lake

3088

West

Grampians

43

Kanawinka F. R.

256

West

Grampians

40

Dowdle Swamp W. R.

579

Central

Murray Central

38

Doctors Swamp W. R.

613

Central

Murray Central

36

Morea I4 B. R.

2423

West

Grampians

36

Swan Bay - Edwards Point W. R.

546

City & Bays

Port Phillip

34

Warrigal Creek Ss. R.

2986

East

West Gippsland

33

Black Swamp (Black Dog Creek)

576

Central

Murray Central

31

Melb. Metro. East Metropolitan

58

Bringalbart L.R.

W.R.


271

Long et al. 2003


Park ID

Region

District

EVD Area (ha)

Boikerbert Swamp L.R.

3087

West

Grampians

31

Sheepwash, Charam W. R.

767

West

Grampians

31


3190

City & Bays

Port Phillip

31

Mount Ridley Grassland N. C. R.

4009

Central

Basalt Plains

30

Lower Ovens R.P

3237

Central

Murray Central

29


3143

West

West Coast

29

Yarra Valley Parklands

4091

Melb. Metro.

Yarra

29

Chiltern Box-Ironbark N. P.

3314

Central

Murray Central

25

Bungalally I50 B. R.

2469

West

Grampians

25

43

West

Grampians

25

Bates Lake H.P.

3182

West

Grampians

23

Beniagh Swamp W. R.

689

West

Grampians

22

Derby B. R.

2360

Central

Murray Central

21

Edenhope N. F. R.

3738

West

Grampians

21

Cherrypool H.P.

3183

West

Grampians

21

Bullawin F. R.

Freshwater Wetland (ephemeral) - category 5

272

Wyperfeld N. P.

3309

West

Mallee

6622

Lake Albacutya Park

3364

West

Mallee

4978

Leaghur S. P.

3354

Central

Murray Central

1414

Wandella F. F. R.

321

Central

Murray Central

917


3320

West

Mallee

698


3064

West

Mallee

555


3296

West

Mallee

180

Grampians N. P.

3316

West

Grampians

150

Lake Heywood W. R.

524

West

Mallee

146

Yellimjip B. R.

1159

West

Mallee

108

Jilpanger F. F. R.

125

West

Grampians

87

Quambatook F. F. R.

250

Central

Murray Central

65

Grampians N.P. (Parrie Yalloak)

4049

West

Grampians

63


2532

West

Grampians

57

Wathe F. F. R.

326

West

Mallee

44

Lake Karnak W. R.

737

West

Grampians

34

Lake Kanagulk W. R.

736

West

Grampians

30

Cambacanya F. F. R.

47

West

Mallee

27

Lalbert Creek, Towaninny South F.R.

304

Central

Murray Central

27


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