geraldton regional - department of planning, lands and ...€¦ · town planning services • shire...

MARCH 2010

Western Australian Planning CommissionAlbert Facey House

469 Wellington StreetPerth, Western Australia

Prepared by the Depar tment of Planning and suppor ted by

Ecoscape (Australia) P ty Ltd

Flora and Vegetation SurveyGERALDTON REGIONAL

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Disclaimer

This document has been published by the Western Australian Planning Commission. Any representation, statement, opinion or advice expressed or implied in this publication is made in good faith and on the basis that the government, its employees and agents are not liable for any dam-age or loss whatsoever which may occur as a result of action taken or not taken, as the case may be, in respect of any representation, state-ment, opinion or advice referred to herein. Professional advice should be obtained before applying the information contained in this document to particular circumstances.

© State of Western Australia

Published by theWestern Australian Planning CommissionAlbert Facey House469 Wellington StreetPerth Western Australia 6000

Published March 2010

ISBN 0 7309 9955 6

internet: http://www.planning.wa.gov.auemail: [email protected]

tel: 08 9264 7777fax: 08 9264 7566TTY: 08 9264 7535infoline:1800 626 477

Copies of this document are available in alternative formats on application to the disability services coordinator.

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Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Summary x

1 Introduction 11.1 Projectbackground 1

1.2 Projectphases 1

1.3 Projectarea 2

1.4 Technicalreportandmapping 2

1.5 Beardvegetationassociations 3

1.6 Conservationsignificancedeterminedbypreviousstudies 4

2 Methods 52.1 Projectoutline 5

2.2 Analysisofexistingdatasets 5

2.3 Fieldverificationandsiteselection 5

2.3.1 Considerationofalternativeapproachestositeselection 6

2.4 Floristicquadratsurvey 6

2.4.1 Informationrecordedforeachquadrat 6

2.4.2 NVISdataentry 7

2.4.3 Specificquadratsiteselection 7

2.4.4 Quadratorientationandmarking 7

2.4.5 Speciesvouchercollection 7

2.5 Statisticalanalysis 8

2.6 Vegetationmapping 8

2.6.1 Desktopvegetationextentmapping 8

2.6.2 Interpretationofplantcommunities 8

2.6.3 Fieldverification 9

2.7 Botanicalsurveylimitations 9

2.7.1 Plantidentification 9

2.7.2 Plantcommunitymapping 10

3 Results 113.1 Analysisofexistingdata 11

3.2 Beardvegetationassociations 11

3.2.1 RepresentationofBeardvegetationassociations 11

3.3 Floristicquadrats 13

3.3.1 Plantspecies 14

3.3.2 Vegetationcondition 15

3.4 Plantcommunities 15

3.4.1 FloristicgroupsfromPATN©analysis 15

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3.4.2 GRFVSplantcommunities 16

3.4.3 Changestovegetationextentmapping 16

3.4.4 Plantcommunitymapping 18

4.0 Discussion 204.1 NativevegetationintheGRFVSarea 20

4.1.1 Legislativeandpolicyframeworkfornativevegetationprotection 20

4.1.2 Conservationsignificanceofnativevegetationinthe GRFVSarea 20

4.2 BeardvegetationassociationsintheGRFVSarea 21

4.2.1 RepresentationofBeardvegetationassociations 22

4.3 IdentifyinganddescribingGRFVSplantcommunities 24

4.3.1 DeterminingGRFVSplantcommunities 24

4.3.2 RelevanceofGRFVSplantcommunities 24

4.3.3 GRFVSplantcommunitymapping 24

4.3.4 Difficultieswithrecognisingplantcommunities 24

4.3.5 Historicalplantcommunities 27

4.4 GRFVSplantcommunities 27

4.4.1 Plantcommunity1Estuarine:Casuarina obesa / Tecticornia / Sarcocornia 27

4.4.2 Plantcommunity2Riparian:Eucalyptus camaldulensis / Casuarina obesa / Melaleuca rhaphiophylla 28

4.4.3 Plantcommunity3Foredune:Atriplex isatidea / Spinifex longifolius 28

4.4.4 Plantcommunity4Swale:Ficinia nodosa 29

4.4.5 Plantcommunity5Swale:Frankenia pauciflora 29

4.4.6 Plantcommunity6Coastal:Thryptomene baeckeacea 30

4.4.7 Plantcommunity7Coastal:Melaleuca cardiophylla 30

4.4.8 Plantcommunity8Coastal:Acacia rostellifera lowshrubland 31

4.4.9 Plantcommunity9Coastal:Acacia rostellifera / Eucalyptusspp. 31

4.4.10 Plantcommunity10NearCoastal:Acacia rostelliferashrubland 32

4.4.11 Plantcommunity11LimestoneRidge:Melaleuca cardiophylla / Eucalyptusspp. 32

4.4.12 Plantcommunity12LimestoneRidge: Melaleuca cardiophylla 33

4.4.13 Plantcommunity13Sandplain:Banksiaprionotes/ Acaciarostellifera 34

4.4.14 Plantcommunity14ChapmanRiverReserve:Acacia rostellifera / Melaleucaspp. 35

4.4.15 Plantcommunity15Thicket:Melaleucaspp./mixedspp. 35

4.4.16 Plantcommunity16Woodland:Acacia acuminata / Acacia tetragonophylla / Hakea preissii 36

4.4.17 Plantcommunity17Woodland:Eucalyptus loxophleba 36

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4.5 Floraspecies 37

4.5.1 Threatenedspecies 37

4.5.2 Rangeextensionsandextremities 37

4.5.3 Weeds 37

5.0 Conclusions 385.1 SummaryofGRFVSfindings 38

5.2 ConservationsignificanceofBeardvegetationassociations 38

5.3 ConservationsignificanceofGRFVSplantcommunities 39

5.4 Plantspeciesconservation 40

5.5 FutureimplementationofGRFVS 40

References 41

Appendices 45Appendixone: GISmappingmethodology 47

Appendixtwo: Fieldmethodology 49

Appendixthree: Statisticalanalysisandinterpretation 54

Appendixfour: Datasetanalysisresults 59

Appendixfive: Maps 73

Appendixsix: Floristicquadratdetails 97

Appendixseven: VascularplantspeciesinventoryandDEC conservationcodes 178

Appendixeight: GRFVSplantcommunities 191

Tables, Figures, Plates & Maps

TablesTable1: TheNVISinformationhierarchy(NationalHeritageTrust2003) 3

Table2: RepresentationofBeardvegetationassociations 12

Table3: QuadratlocationsinrelationtoBeardvegetationassociations 13

Table4: Keighery(1994)bushlandconditionratingofquadrats 15

Table5: Braun-Blanquet(1983)weedcoverabundanceoffloristicquadrats 15

Table6: Interpretationusedtodividefloristicgroupsintoplantcommunities. 17

Table7: Changesto2006nativevegetationextentmapping 18

Table8: ExtentofGRFVSplantcommunities. 19

Table9: Anticipatedpotentialmappingissues. 25

TableA2.1:NVISinformationhierarchy(NationalHeritageTrust2003). 50

TableA2.2:NVISheightclasses(NationalHeritageTrust2003). 51

TableA2.3:Keigherybushlandconditionratingscale 51

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TableA2.4:Braun-Blanquetcoverabundancescale,usedforweedcover 53

TableA4.1:Soillandscapemapunit(subsystemlevel)oftheGRFVSarea. 59

TableA7.1: Vascularplantspeciesrecordedfromfloristicquadrats 178

TableA7.2:DECconservationcodesanddefinitions 190

FiguresFigure1:GeraldtonRegionalFloraandVegetationSurvey(GRFVS)area 2

Figure2:Initialfloristicgrouphierarchy,indicatingfinalGRFVSplantcommunitynumbers. 16

Figure3:AreasdominatedbyMelaleucalanceolatathataretoosmalltobemappedasaplantcommunity. 26

FigureA3: DendogramfromPATN©Kulczynskianalysis 56

PlatesPlateA2.1: Pristineconditionvegetation,GRV0864(WokatherraGap) 52

PlateA2.2:Excellentconditionvegetation(AlbertStreet,Waggrakine) 52

PlateA2.3:Verygoodconditionvegetation(SutcliffeRoad,Waggrakine) 52

PlateA2.4:Goodconditionvegetation(CooperRoad,Waggrakine) 52

PlateA2.5:Degradedconditionvegetation(DavidRoad,Waggrakine) 52

PlateA2.6:Completelydegradedvegetation(SutcliffeRoad,Waggrakine) 52

PlateA8.1.1:ChapmanRiverGRV0859 193

PlateA8.1.2:RuddsGullyGRV0860 193

PlateA8.1.3:GreenoughRivermouth 193

PlateA8.1.4:OakajeeNatureReserve 193

PlateA8.2.1:RumJungleGRV0808 195

PlateA8.2.2:ChapmanRiver,MoonyoonookaGRV0871 195

PlateA8.3:GlenfieldBeachGRV0804 197

PlateA8.4.1:OakajeeGRV0814 199

PlateA8.4.2:nearBullerRiver 199

PlateA8.5:BullerGRV0858 201

PlateA8.6:CapeBurneyGRV0849 203

PlateA8.7.1:GreenoughRiverGRV0847 205

PlateA8.7.2:GreenoughRiver 205

PlateA8.8.1:GlenfieldBeachGRV0801 207

PlateA8.8.2:CapeBurneyGRV0846 207

PlateA8.8.3:Oakajee 207

PlateA8.8.4:TarcoolaBeach 207

PlateA8.8.5:PointMoore 208

PlateA8.9:SouthgateGRV0828 210

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PlateA8.10.2:GreenoughRiverGRV0848 213

PlateA8.10.3:GreenoughGRV0852 213

PlateA8.10.4:BullerGRV0854 213

PlateA8.10.6:GlenfieldBeach 213


PlateA8.11.1:WandinaGRV0827 215


PlateA8.11.3:RuddsGully 215

PlateA8.11.4:Wandina 215

PlateA8.11.5:Buller 215



PlateA8.12.4:JandanolParkGRV0867 218




PlateA8.13.2:WaggrakineGRV0834 221


PlateA8.13.4:NarnguluGRV0862 221

PlateA8.13.5:GlenfieldGRV0865 221

PlateA8.13.6:Karloo 221

PlateA8.14.1:ChapmanRiverReserveGRV0877 223



PlateA8.14.4:ChapmanRiverReserve 223


PlateA8.15.1:WhitePeakGRV0810 225



PlateA8.15.6:BullerRiver 226




PlateA8.16.3:HowatharraGRV0844 229




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MapsMap1: Soilsystemsandsubsystems 73

Map2: Re-interpretedBeardvegetationassociations 75

Map3: OriginalWAextentofGRFVSBeardvegetationassociations 77

Map4: FloristicquadratlocationsandBeardvegetationassociations 79

Map5: FloristicquadratvegetationconditionandBeardvegetationassociations 81

Map6: FloristicquadratweedcoverandBeardvegetationassociations 83

Map7: FloristicquadratplantcommunitiesandBeardvegetationassociations 85

Map8: Vegetationextentchanges 87

Map9a: GRFVSplantcommunities 89

Map9b: GRFVSplantcommunities(north) 91

Map9c: GRFVSplantcommunities(south) 93

Map9d: GRFVSplantcommunities(east) 95

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AcknowledgmentsTheWAPCwishestoacknowledgethefollowingorganisationsandindividualsfortheirinvolvementintheGeraldtonRegionalFloraandVegetationSurvey(GRFVS):

EnviroPlanning,LandCorpandtheCityofGeraldton-Greenoughfortheirfinancialcontributionsin2007/08and2008/09.

Ecoscape(especiallyLynAtkins,projectecologist)forundertakingdesktopandfieldassessments,mappingandpreparingearlierversionsofthetechnicalreport.

MembersoftheGRFVSprojectsteeringcommittee,including:

• DepartmentofPlanning:DanielleO’Neill,SeniorProjectOfficer–EnviroPlanning;JeromHurley,TeamLeader–StatutoryPlanning,CentralRegions;RyanTaylor,ProjectManager–EnviroPlanning;AndrewMoore,TeamLeader-StrategicPlanning,CentralRegions

• DepartmentofEnvironmentandConservation:AnthonyDesmond,RegionalLeader–NatureConservation,MidwestRegion;CatherinePage,OperationsOfficer,GeraldtonDistrict;KellyGillen,RegionalManager,MidwestRegion;AlannaChant,ConservationOfficer,GeraldtonDistrict;KellyFreeman,SeniorEnvironmentalOfficer–TerrestrialEcosystems,StrategicPolicy;KathrynSchell,EnvironmentalOfficer–PlanningandInfrastructure,EnvironmentalImpactAssessment;GerardO’Brien,EnvironmentalOfficer–PlanningandInfrastructure,EnvironmentalImpactAssessment;BridgetHyder,SeniorEnvironmentalOfficer–TerrestrialEcosystems,StrategicPolicy

• CityofGeraldton-Greenough:SimonLancaster,SeniorStrategicPlanner;MurrayConnell,ManagerTownPlanningServices

• ShireofChapmanValley:KirrileeWarr,PlanningOfficer;IanD’Arcy,ManagerPlanningandDevelopment

• LandCorp:JohnQuilty,QuiltyEnvironmental

• DepartmentofAgricultureandFood:JohnBruce,CRISResearchOfficer

Landholderswhogenerouslygavepermissiontoaccesstheirproperties,includingDarrelForth,FrankandKayVinton,BarryHumfrey,andmanyothers.

MembersoftheGeraldtonRegionalHerbarium,includingJennaBrookerforherassistancewithlocatingvariousvegetationtypes.

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SummaryTheGeraldtonRegionalFloraandVegetationSurvey(GRFVS)aimstoprovidearegionalcontextforlanduseplanningandtheenvironmentalimpactassessmentofproposalsaffectingnativevegetationintheGeraldtonregion.ThisreportprovidesinformationonvegetationtypesintheGRFVSarea,mappedanddescribedattheregionalscaleasBeardvegetationassociations,andatthelocalscaleasGRFVSplantcommunities.EachGRFVSplantcommunityisdiscussedintermsofextent,rarity,representation,diversity,presenceofwetland/streamline/estuarinefringingorcoastalvegetation,vegetationcondition,andrelationshiptoBeardvegetationassociations,inordertoassistindeterminingconservationsignificance.MapsanddatasetsproducedthroughtheGRFVSareavailablefromtheDepartmentofPlanning.

TheGRFVSareais40,737hectaresandcontainsthepartsoftheCityofGeraldton-GreenoughandtheShireofChapmanValleythatareexperiencingthemostdevelopmentpressureintheGeraldtonregion.TheGRFVScoversanareabetweenCoronationBeachRoad(northofGeraldton),DevlinPoolRoad(southofGreenoughRiver),andeasttothefoothillsoftheMoresbyRange.TheGRFVSinvolveddesktopanalysisofexistinginformationonvegetationandsoils,fieldsurveyof81floristicquadrats,statisticalanalysisofquadratdatathatidentifiedfloristicgroups,andfurtherinterpretationoffloristicgroupsthatdeterminedrecognisableplantcommunities.

TheGRFVSdeterminedthat15%ofthepre-EuropeanextentofnativevegetationremainsintheGRFVSarea,in625discreteremnants.Analysisofremainingvegetationextenthasindicatedthat,ofthenineBeardvegetationassociationsoccurringintheGRFVSarea,threeBeardvegetationassociations(371,387and675)havelessthan10%remainingintheGRFVSarea,andtwohaveapproximately10%remaininginWesternAustralia(35and371),whichisthelevelatwhichavegetationassociationisregardedas‘endangered’.TheGRFVSdoesnotaimtoreplaceBeardvegetationassociationmapping,butprovidesmoredetailonnativevegetationoccurringintheGeraldtonregion.

ThemostsignificantoutputfromtheGRFVShasbeentheidentificationof17‘GRFVSplantcommunities’,whicharemappedanddescribedatafinerscalethanBeardvegetationassociations.ThemostrestrictedoftheGRFVSplantcommunitiesare4(Swale:Ficinia nodosa)and5(Swale:Frankenia pauciflora),eachofwhichhaveonlyonemappedoccurrenceintheGRFVSarea.OtherrestrictedGRFVSplantcommunitiesinclude6(Coastal:Thryptomene baeckeacea),7(Coastal:Melaleuca cardiophylla),9(Coastal:Acacia rostellifera / Eucalyptus spp.)and11(Limestoneridge:Melaleuca cardiophylla / Eucalyptus spp.).FloraandvegetationsurveysshouldbeundertakenoverawidergeographicareainordertodeterminetheregionalsignificanceoftheGRFVSplantcommunities.

TheGRFVSrecordedatotalof376species,includingtwodeclaredrareflora,eightpriority-listedspecies,andthreespeciesattheextentoforbeyondtheirusualrange.Basedonthequadratssurveyed,theGRFVSplantcommunitiesthatexhibitthegreatestspeciesdiversityinclude15(Thicket:Melaleuca spp. / mixed spp.),16(Woodland:Acacia acuminata / A. tetragonophylla / Hakea preissii),14(ChapmanRiverReserve:Acacia rostellifera / Melaleuca spp.)and13(Sandplain:Banksia prionotes / Acacia rostellifera).

Lessthan2%oftheremainingnativevegetationintheGRFVSarea,containingonlytwoGRFVSplantcommunities(15and16),isprotectedinDepartmentofEnvironmentandConservation(DEC)reserves.Furthermore,themajorityofvegetationintheGRFVSareaisthreatenedbydevelopment,weedinvasion,grazing,fire,orrecreationaluse.Hence,itislikelythatmuchofthevegetationingoodorbetterconditionintheGRFVSareawillbeconsideredimportantforconservation.

InformationcollectedthroughtheGRFVSandpresentedinthisreportwillassistlanduseplanningbytheDepartmentofPlanning(DoP)andlocalgovernments,environmentalimpactassessmentsbytheEnvironmentalProtectionAuthority(EPA),andconservationplanningbyDEC.Thereport,associatedmapsanddataprovideusefulinformationforlandownersanddevelopers,butdonotprecludetherequirementforsite-basedecologicalassessmentsofareaslikelytobeimpactedbydevelopment.Importantly,theGRFVSwillinformconservationandregionalplanningintheGeraldtonregion,includingthepreparationofalocalbiodiversitystrategythatwillidentifyprioritynaturalareasforconsiderationinfuturelanduseplanning.

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1 Int roduct ion

1.1 Project background

In1998theEnvironmentalProtectionAuthority(EPA)releasedBulletin891,asubmissiontotheWesternAustralianPlanningCommission(WAPC)onthedraftGeraldtonRegionPlan.TheGeraldtonRegionPlanisaframeworkforstrategicregionallanduseplanning,andincorporatestheGreaterGeraldtonstructureplanwhichidentifiesfutureareasforresidential,industrial,transport,recreationandconservation.Initsadvice,theEPAhighlightedtheneedfortheidentification,retentionandconservationofremnantvegetationintheGeraldtonregion,includingtheretentionandextensionofconservationareasinregionalparksandopenspace.TheEPAalsosupportedtheproposalintheGeraldtonRegionPlantocompileaninventoryof,andtoconserve,regionallysignificantremnantvegetationinprivateandgovernmentownership.

TheGeraldtonRegionalFloraandVegetationSurvey(GRFVS)wasinitiatedin2007bytheDepartmentforPlanningandInfrastructure(nowDepartmentofPlanning,DoP),DepartmentofEnvironmentandConservation(DEC),DepartmentofAgricultureandFoodWesternAustralia(DAFWA),CityofGeraldton-GreenoughandShireofChapmanValley.TheaimoftheGRFVSistoprovidearegionalcontextforlanduseplanningandenvironmentalimpactassessmentofproposalsaffectingnativevegetationintheGeraldtonregion.ThefirstphasewastoidentifyanddescribenativevegetationassociationsinGeraldtonandsurroundingareas,withafocusonmappingtheextentofthosevegetationassociationswheresignificantlandusechangeordevelopmentisproposed.

1.2 Project phases

ItwasproposedthattheGRFVSbeundertakeninthreephases:

Phaseone(initialvegetationmapping):

• regionalvegetationassociationmapping,interpretedfromregionalfloristicplotscoveringtypical,rareandothersignificantplantcommunities,andstatisticalanalysisoffloristicdata;

• extrapolationofexistingmapping,includingnativevegetationextent,soilandlandform,andBeardvegetationassociationmappingtoestimatetheoriginalextentofvegetationassociationswithinthearea;

• calculationoftheproportionofeachvegetationassociationremainingwithintheregion;and

• thisreport,whichdefinesrepresentationandsignificanceofthefloraandvegetationassociationsintheregion.

Phasetwo(conservationandregionalplanning):

• identifypriorityreservation/conservationareasincludingdeterminingthreatstoconditionofvegetationandmaintenanceofecologicallinkages;

• usevegetation,soilandlandforminformationtointerpretfaunahabitatandidentifypriorityareasforfaunaconservation;

• identifypriorityareasrequiringrestoration/revegetation;and

• usethisinformationtoinformstrategicregionallanduseplanning.

Phasethree(furtherregionalfloraandvegetationsurveys):

• extendthemethodologytootherareasoutsidetheinitialprojectarea.

GRFVSphaseonehasbeencompletedfortheareagenerallycoveredbytheGreaterGeraldtonstructureplan.Phasestwoandthreearesubjecttofurtherfunding.

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1.3 Project area

TheGRFVSareaislocatedapproximately424kmnorthofPerthontheIndianOceancoast,intheMid-WestregionofWesternAustralia(figure1).TheGRFVSareais40,737hectaresandcontainsthepartsoftheCityofGeraldton-GreenoughandtheShireofChapmanValleythatareexperiencingthemostdevelopmentpressureintheGeraldtonregion.TheGRFVScoversanareabetweenCoronationBeachRoad(northofGeraldton),DevlinPoolRoad(southofGreenoughRiver),andeasttothefoothillsoftheMoresbyRange.

1.4 Technical repor t and mapping

Thereportdiscussesthemethodsandresultsofanalysisofexistingdatasets,fieldsurveysiteselection,floristicquadratsurveys,statisticalanalysisandvegetationmapping.Theresultsarediscussedintermsofvegetationextent,vegetationconditionandconservationsignificanceofthevegetation,bothinrelationtoBeardvegetationassociations(Beard1976a;DAFWA2005)andGRFVSplantcommunitiesidentifiedthroughthisproject.Plantcommunitiesandspeciesofconservationsignificancearealsodiscussed.

ThetargetaudienceforthetechnicalreportincludesorganisationsandindividualsinvolvedinlanduseplanningandtheenvironmentalimpactassessmentofproposalsaffectingnativevegetationintheGeraldtonregion.ThereportprovidesabasisfordescribingvegetationthatoccursintheGRFVSarea,andshouldbereferredtoduringfloraandvegetationsurveysforspecificsites,whichwillgenerallybeundertakenatafinerscalethanthisproject.

Figure 1: Geraldton Regional Flora and Vegetation Survey (GRFVS) area

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Level Description NVIS structure/f loristic components required

1 Class Dominantgrowthformfortheecologicallydominantstratum

2 StructuralFormation Dominantgrowthform,coverandheightfortheecologicallydominantstratum

3 BroadFloristicFormation

Dominantgrowthform,cover,heightandbroadfloristiccodeusuallydominantlandcovergenusfortheuppermostordominantstratum

4 Sub-Formation Dominantgrowthform,cover,heightandbroadfloristiccodeusuallydominantgenusandfamilyforthethreetraditionalstrata(upper,midandground)

5 Association Dominantgrowthform,height,coverandspecies(3species)forthethreetraditionalstrata(upper,midandground)

6 Sub-Association Dominantgrowthform,height,coverandspecies(5species)foralllayers/strata

Table 1: The NVIS information hierarchy (National Heritage Trust 2003)

1.5 Beard vegetation associations

AsystematicsurveyofnativevegetationinWesternAustraliawasundertakenduringthe1970s,whichdescribedvegetationsystemsinWesternAustraliaatascaleof1:250,000inthesouth-westofWesternAustraliaandatascaleof1:1,000,000inthelessdevelopedareasofthestate.ThevegetationsurveyofWesternAustraliamapsandexplanatorymemoirs(1974-1981)arecreditedtoJ.S.Beard(orBeardwithvariousco-authors).

Beard’svegetationmapsattemptedtodepictthevegetationasitmighthavebeenatthetimeofsettlement,iepre-Europeanvegetationtypeandextent(Beestonetal.2001).TheBeardvegetationassociationdataset(alsoreferredtoasthepre-Europeannativevegetationextentdataset)hassincebeendevelopedindigitalformbyShepherdetal.(2002).Thisdatasethasbeencriticaltosettingandmeetingtargetsforbiodiversityconservation(CommonwealthofAustralia2001)asitistheonlyWesternAustralian-widedatasetthatcanbeusedtocalculateclearingagainsthistoricalextentofnativevegetation.

TheEPAadvisesthatnativevegetationshouldbeassessedatinternational,national,regionalandlocallevels.TheBeardvegetationassociationdatasetisusedoutsideoftheareacoveredbyEPAGuidanceStatement10asadeterminationofregionalsignificanceofvegetationtosupportstudiesundertakenatalocalscale.

BeardvegetationassociationshavebeendescribedtoaminimumstandardofLevel3‘BroadFloristicFormation’fortheNationalVegetationInventorySystem(NVIS).TheGRFVShasdescribedplantcommunitiestoNVISLevel5‘Association’,whichisinmoredetailandatafinerscalethanBeardvegetationassociations(refertotable1).

TheGRFVSplantcommunitiesareconsideredtorepresentvegetationtypesmappedanddescribedatthesub-regionaltolocalscale,betweenthelevelofBeardvegetationassociations(statewidetoregionalscale)andsite-specificecologicalassessments(usuallyundertakentosupportdevelopmentproposals).OtherexamplesofvegetationmappingundertakenatafinerscalethanBeardvegetationassociationsinclude:

• thevegetationcomplexesoftheSwanCoastalPlainandDarlingRange(Heddleetal.1980),whicharebasedonlandformandsoilunitsandprovidethepre-Europeanextentofvegetationtypes;

• theFloristic Survey of the Southern Swan Coastal Plain(Gibsonetal.1994),whichinvolvedfloristicquadratsurveyandanalysistoidentifyfloristiccommunitytypes.Thesetypeshavenotbeenmapped,butthefloristicquadratshavebeenusedtodefinethreatenedecologicalcommunitiesandsomepriorityecologicalcommunitiesontheSwanCoastalPlain;and

• theAlbanyregionalfloraandvegetationsurvey,whichiscurrentlyunderwayinastudyareaofapproximately100,000hainthevicinityofAlbany,withapproximately37%remnantvegetation.PlantcommunitiesarebeingassessedanddescribedtoNVISLevel5standard,toprovidearegionalcontextfordecision-making,inasimilarprocesstotheGRFVS.

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1.6 Conservation significance determined by previous studies

Native Vegetation Management Plan Nor thern Agricultural Region

TheNativeVegetationManagementPlan(DEC2008)identifiesstrategicprioritiesfortheprotectionoftheregion’snativevegetationandknowledgegapsthatshouldbefilledtomaximisetheefficiencyofstrategicvegetationmanagementintheNorthernAgriculturalRegion.

TheNativeVegetationManagementPlanprioritisesvegetationintheNorthernAgriculturalRegion,usingBeardvegetationassociations,intofourclasses:

• laststandsites;

• rareandrestricted(orrareandendangered)vegetationassociations;

• representativesamplesoftheregion’svegetation;and

• allremainingvegetationintheregion.

Laststandsitesarethemostspatiallyrestrictedvegetationassociationsintheregionandareatriskofregionalextinction,andrareandrestrictedvegetationassociationsaredescribedassomeofmostthreatenedecosystemsintheregion.

TheNativeVegetationManagementPlanrecommendsfurtherscrutinyofconservationprioritiesbasedonBeardvegetationassociation.AlthoughBeard’smappingisimportantfordeterminingthesignificanceofvegetationataregionalscale,conservationsignificanceshouldalsobesupportedbyevidenceatalocalscale.TheGRFVSaimstomapanddescribeplantcommunitiesatafinerscalethanBeardvegetationassociations.

Australian National Resources Atlas

TheAustralianNationalResourcesAtlasstatesnumerousvegetationassociationsand‘atrisk’ecosystemsneedtobereserved,listingseveraloftheBeardvegetationassociations(35,359,371,431,675)andMoresbyRangescommunitieswithrareplantsas‘naturalvalues’intheareacoveredbytheGRFVS.AlthoughtheMoresbyRangeitselfisnotincludedintheGRFVSarea,vegetationoftheMoresbyRangefoothillssupportssimilarspecies.

Biodiversity Audit

Thenationalbiodiversityauditconductedin2002providesusefulinformationontheGeraldtonSandplains2(GS2–GeraldtonHillssub-region)(refertoDesmondandChant2002).TheGeraldtonSandplains2reportidentifiesallBeardvegetationassociations(exceptfor129)occurringintheGRFVSareaashighprioritiesforreservation.TheGeraldtonSandplains2reportalsohighlightstheneedforvegetationandregionalecosystemmappingandfloristic

data,whichwouldassisttheidentificationofbiodiversityvaluesandmanagementresponses.TheGRFVSaimstoaddressthesedatagapsfortheportionoftheGeraldtonregionexperiencingmostdevelopmentpressure.

Threatened and Priority Ecological Communities

TherearenoDEC-listedorCommonwealth-listed(Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999)threatenedecologicalcommunitiesintheGRFVSarea.However,thepriorityone(P1)priorityecologicalcommunity‘PlantassemblagesoftheMoresbyRangesystem’isconsideredtobesynonymouswithBeardvegetationassociation675,whichoccurswithintheGRFVSarea.

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2 Methods

2.1 Project outline

Themethodologyfortheprojectinvolvedthreecomponents.

ComponentoneoftheprojectincludedadesktopstudyandliteraturereviewtoidentifyandmaptheextentofBeardvegetationassociationsinterpretedtoexistintheGRFVSarea,particularlyinareasproposedforfuturedevelopment.ProposedlocationsforfloristicquadratswereidentifiedfromBeardvegetationassociationmappingandwithinputfromtheprojectsteeringcommittee.

Componenttwoinvolvedfieldsurveystogroundtruththevegetationinterpretedfromthedesktopstudyandcollectquadrat-basedfloristicdatasuitableforstatisticalanalysisandinterpretation.ThefieldsurveyscommencedinJuly2008,andthemainfloristicsurveyswereundertakeninAugustandOctober2008.

Componentthreewasthestatisticalanalysisandinterpretationoffloristicquadratdata,productionofmapsandreportwriting.GroundtruthingandmappingthevegetationoftheGRFVSareausingplantcommunitiesidentifiedfromthestatisticalanalysiswasundertakeninJune2009.

2.2 Analysis of existing datasets

Existingdatasetswereassessedandinterpreted,andavailableliteraturewasreviewedpriortofieldassessment.

Thefollowingmapdatasetswereused:

• Beardvegetationassociations(DAFWA2005);

• soillandscapemapunits(subsystemlevel)(DAFWA2007a,2007b);

• vegetationextent(DAFWA2006);and

• topography(Landgate2001).

MappingwasundertakenusingArcGISv9software.TheBeardvegetationassociationboundarieswerere-interpretedtoproduceanupdatedmapfortheprojectareatoreflectthefinerscalesoil-landscapemappingundertakenbyDAFWA(2006).Furtherdetailonmappingmethodologyisprovidedinappendix1.DEC’s‘comprehensiveandadequatereserveanalysis’data(‘CAR’data,2007)wasusedforrepresentationofBeardvegetationassociationsinWesternAustralia.

RelevantliteraturewasreviewedtoprovideinformationonhistoricandcurrentvegetationoftheGRFVSarea,andtoidentifyareasofparticularinterestforsurveys.Theprojectsteeringcommitteemembersidentifiedliteraturetoassistwiththisstageoftheproject.Relevantliteratureisincludedinthereferencessectionofthisreport.

2.3 Field verification and site selection

Priortothemainfloristicquadratsurvey,asurveywasundertakentoverifyBeardvegetationassociationboundariesidentifiedfromanalysisofexistingdatasets,identifyplantcommunitiesnotidentifiedatthescaleofBeardvegetationassociationmapping,andassistwithlocatingfloristicquadrats.

Theverificationsurveywasconducted8-10July2008.Duringthesurvey,asmuchoftheGRFVSareawasvisitedaspossible,andtheobservedvegetationwascomparedtothemappedBeardvegetationassociationdescriptionstodeterminethedescriptionvalidity.AreasoutsideoftheGRFVSwerealsovisitedtodeterminewhetherthevegetationoutsidetheprojectareawasrepresentedwithinit.Duetotimeandaccessconstraints,fewareasnorthoftheprojectareaweresurveyed,howeverareasasfarsouthasWalkawaywerevisited.

Manyoftheproposedsiteswereinpoorcondition(grazed)ornotaccessible,soalternativesiteswereidentified.QuadratswerealsoaddedinareaswherethevegetationdidnotmatchBeardvegetationassociationdescriptions.

Theapproximatelocationsoffieldsurveysiteswereselectedonthebasisthattheyencompassedtheexpectedvegetationtypesidentifiedfromdatasetanalysisandthefieldverificationsurvey.Thesiteswere:

• scatteredspatiallyfromnorthtosouthandeasttowest,tocoverthegeographicalrangeoftheprojectarea;

• representativeofvariationsinthecatenarysequencefromcoasttouplands;

• inproportiontothepercentageoftheexpectedBeardvegetationassociationsextents,tosampletherangewithinthem;

• locatedinareasthatdidnotappeartobecoveredatthescaleoftheBeardvegetationassociationmapping,includingriparianandforeduneareas;

• representativeandinthebestobservedconditionforthevegetationtypeselected;and

• accessibleforsurvey.

Seventyproposedquadratlocationswereidentifiedandselectedonthebasisoftheresultsofthedatasetanalysisandverificationsurvey.Anadditional15siteswereselectedinareaswherethereisexpectedtobedevelopmentpressure.OnequadratwaslocatedintheWokatherraGapatthefootoftheMoresbyRanges,outsidetheGRFVSarea.ThisareawasassessedtoprovidecomparativeinformationonthevegetationoftheMoresbyRangesinrelationtopotentiallysimilarvegetationtothewest.Theapproximatepositioningofallquadratlocationswasapprovedbytheprojectsteeringcommitteepriortoconductingthefieldsurvey.

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Allsiteswereinareasmappedas‘nativevegetation’inthesuppliedvegetationextent(DAFWA2006)dataset,exceptimmediatelysouthoftheGreenoughRiverwhichwasnotincludedbutwasobviouslynativevegetation.Urbanparks(exceptChapmanRiverReserve)werenotsampledduetothehighdegreeofdisturbanceandtheprospectofpermanentquadratmarkersbeingremovedbymembersofthepublic.Onlysitesonpubliclandsorwherelandholdershadgivenpermissionforaccessweresurveyed.

2.3.1 Consideration of alternative approaches to site selection

ThelocationsofthefloristicquadratswereselectedtorepresentthegeographicrangeoftheGRFVSarea.Otherpossibleapproachestofloristicquadratlocationsincludetransectorgrid-basedsurveysandselectionofsitesbasedonsoilsubsystems.

Surveysbasedontransectsorgrids,locatingquadratsinalineararrangementfromthecoasttoinland(westtoeast)and,foragrid-basedsurvey,northtosouthwouldhaveprovideddetailedinformationonthelandscapeoftheGRFVSarea.Thissurveymethodwasnotusedbecauseoftheneedtoselectsitesthatareinthebestconditionandrepresentativeofthevegetationofthearea.Havingfloristicquadratsiteslocatedinparticularareaspurelybecauseoftheirgeographiclocationwithinapredeterminedpatternwouldhaveresultedinmanyquadratsbeingrecordedfrompoorconditionvegetation,thusprovidinglessusefulinformation,includingalowernumberofnativeplantspeciesrecordedfromthearea.Thisapproachwouldhaveprovidedadditionalinformationifalargernumberofquadratscouldbesurveyed,howeverlogisticalconstraintslimitedthenumberofquadratsthatcouldberecorded.

AnalysisofexistingdatasetsandtheverificationsurveyidentifiedsoilsubsystemsasbeinganimportantfactorintheoccurrenceofsomevegetationtypesintheGRFVSarea,particularlyriparianvegetationandMelaleuca cardiophylla-dominatedshrublandsonexposedlimestone.However,fieldobservationsanddiscussionswiththeprojectsteeringcommitteeindicatedthat,formostofthevegetationtypesknowntooccurintheGRFVSarea,soilsystem,catenarypositionandlandusehistoryweremorelikelytodeterminethecurrentvegetationthansoilsubsystems.

Thedatasetanalysisdeterminedthattherewere52soilsubsystemswithintheGRFVSarea.However,notallhadvegetatedareas.Logisticalconstraintsassociatedwithidentifyingvegetationfromeachofthesesubsystems,thenverifyingtheirconditiontoconfirmtherequirementofsurveyingvegetationinthebestpossiblecondition,precludedthisapproach.However,theselectionofquadratlocationsbasedonacombinationoffactorshasincluded23ofthesoilsubsystems,andmostofthevegetationvariationwiththeGRFVSarea.SoilsubsystemsintheGreenoughAlluvial(221Ga_)and

Greenough(225Ge_)systemswerenotwellrepresentedbyfloristicquadrats,mostlikelyasaresultofthelackofnativevegetationontheGreenoughAlluvialplains.SoilsubsystemsintheMoresby(225Mo_)systemwerealsounder-representedbyfloristicquadratsduetoinaccessibilityorlackofnativevegetation.

2.4 Floristic quadrat survey

Thefloristicquadratfieldsurveywasconductedduring11-22August2008and1-3October2008.ThefieldsurveywasundertakenaccordingtotheEPA’srequirementsasoutlinedinGuidanceStatementNo.51–Terrestrial Flora and Vegetation Surveys for Environmental Impact Assessments in Western Australia,aswellasusingNVISLevel5‘association’mapping.Level5mappingdescribesandmapsvegetation,recordingdominantgrowthform,height,coverandspeciesforthreetraditionalstrata:upper,midandground.

2.4.1 Information recorded for each quadrat

Thefloristicquadratsurveyusedpermanentlymarked10mx10mfloristicquadratstorecordNVISdescriptiondata(detailedinappendix2),andidentifyandrecordallvascularplantspecieswithinthequadrat,withcovervalue,heightandlifeformforthedominantspecies.

AdditionalinformationincludingGPSlocation,aspect,slope,topographicposition,soiltypeandcolour,exposedrockdetails,littercoveranddepth,extentofbareground,disturbancetypeandextentandrelevantnoteswererecorded.Weedinvasion,whichisaprimarycauseofvegetationdegradation,wasrecordedasapercentcoverineachofthefloristicquadratsandgroupedintoBraun-Blanquet(1983)CoverAbundanceClasses.TheGPSlocationwasrecordedusingahand-heldGarminGPS72,withpositionalaccuracyofapproximately5m(exceptwheredetailedontheindividualquadratrecordingsheet).

AKeighery(1994)bushlandconditionscore(detailedinappendix2)wasrecordedforeachquadrat.AdetailedvegetationconditionsurveyfortheGlenfieldandWaggrakinelocalstructureplanareaswasundertakenduringthesurveytoprovideinformationtoassisttheCityofGeraldton-Greenough.Resultsspecifictothissurveyarenotpresentedinthisreport;however,thesurveyhaspermitteddiscussioninrelationtothevegetationofthisarea.

Adigitalphotographofeachquadratwastakenfromapproximately5mfromthenorth-westcornerofthequadrat(exceptwherevegetationobscuredthecornermarker,wherethephotographwastakencloser),lookingdiagonallyacrossthequadratinasouth-easterlydirection.

Allvascularplantspeciesoccuringinquadratsduringthefieldsurvey,withtheexceptionofweeds,werecollectedforvoucheringwiththeWesternAustralianHerbarium,withaduplicatespecimencollectedfortheGeraldtonRegionalHerbarium.

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2.4.2 NVIS data entry

TheNVISisastandardisednationallyconsistentmethodofrecordingvegetationthatincludescommondescriptionsofvegetationusingstandardisedformats.ThispermitsdirectcomparisonofvegetationbetweendifferentregionsinAustralia.

AtthisstagethereisnoformalWesternAustraliadatabaseformanagingandstoringNVISdata.However,thedatacustodianistheDepartmentofAgricultureandFoodWesternAustralia(DAFWA)GeographicInformationServiceswhichshouldbecontactedforallenquiries.

NVISdataiscollectedusingstandardisedmethodologydetailedinappendix2andtheNVISAustralianVegetationAttributeManualVersion6.0.Thereisnostandardisedformforrecordingtheinformationandnostandardisedformatfordataentry.DataisenteredusingaMicrosoftExcelspreadsheetwithappropriatefieldnames,andthedatacustodianentersthedataontotheexistingOracledatabaseatDAFWA.

StandardisedvegetationdescriptionswereproducedfromtheNVISdatabase,usingformatsdetailedintheattributemanual,egM+^Stylobasium spathulatum,Acacia rostellifera\^shrub\3\i;G^Tetragonia implexicoma,Acanthocarpus preissii,Rhagodia preissii subsp.obovata\^shrub,forb,chenopodshrub\2\i.Thelongdescriptionofthisquadratwouldbe:dominantmid-stratumopenshrubland1-2mhigh,characterisedbyStylobasium spathulatumshrub,withAcacia rostelliferashrub,overgroundstratum0.5-1mhigh,characterisedbyTetragonia implexicomashrub,withAcanthocarpus preissiiforbandRhagodia preissiisubsp.obovata chenopodshrub.Thedominantstructuralformationwouldbe‘openshrubland’,with‘openforbland’and‘openchenopodshrubland’applyingtothenondominantstratum(strata,ifmorethanoneotherispresent).

Standardisedstructuralformationterminologyisusedtointegrategrowthform,heightandcoverwithineachstratum,egtheterm‘shrubland’isspecifictoshrubs,cycads,grasstreesandtree-fernswithstratumcovervalueof30-70%,whereasifthecovervaluewas10-30%thecorrectterminologyis‘openshrubland’.

2.4.3 Specific quadrat site selection

Thepositionofthequadratswererandomlylocatedtobegenerallyrepresentativeofthevegetationtypeselectedforsamplingduringthedatasetanalysisandverificationsurvey,butrepresentingthe‘best’(ieleastdisturbed)conditionvegetationavailableinthelocation.Theactualpositionofthequadratwasnotchosentodeliberatelyincludeorexcludeanyparticularspecies,butdidendeavourtoavoidbareorweedyareasasthesewerenotconsideredtobeinthe‘best’conditionareas.Despiteeffortstoselectthe‘best’conditionvegetation,somequadrats,particularlyinriparianareas,wereindegraded

conditionvegetation,accordingtotheKeighery(1994)bushlandconditionratingscale,asthiswasthe‘best’conditionavailableinthetargetvegetationtype.

2.4.4 Quadrat orientation and marking

Thequadratswereall100m2inarea,withallbuttwobeing10mx10mindimension.The10mx10mquadratswere:

• orientednorth/southandeast/west;

• permanentlymarkedonthenorth-westcornerwithafencedropperangledsotheopensidewastowardsthequadrat;and

• labelledwitharoundaluminiumtagstamped‘GRV08xx’,where‘GRV‘isanabbreviationfor‘GeraldtonRegionalVegetation’,‘08’referstotheyear(2008)andthefinaltwodigitsrefertothequadratnumber(01-81).

Twoofthequadratswerelinear(transects),20mx5mindimensionduetothelinearnatureoftheriparianvegetationinwhichtheywerelocated.Inbothcasesthetransectdirection(ofthe20mdimension)isdetailedonthequadratdescription,includingthecompassbearingofthetransect(recordedbywalkingthetransectlengthwithahand-heldGPS),andthemarkingstake(fencedropper)waspositionedwiththeopensidefacingtowardsthelongestdimension,inthecentreoftheshortestdimension.Onetransectwasalongtheriverbank,andtheotheracrosssteepbanksandanarrowstream.

2.4.5 Species voucher collection

Withfewexceptions,avoucherspecimenwascollected,pressedanddriedforeverynativevascularplantspeciesrecordedwithinthefloristicquadrats,andsubmittedtotheWAHerbariumwithcollectiondata.BysubmittingvoucherspecimenstotheWAHerbarium,accurateidentificationusingcurrenttaxonomyisensuredandanytaxonomicchangesareupdated.Wherepossible,aduplicatespecimenwascollectedforlodgingwiththeregionalherbarium.Sterilespecimensandsomecommonspeciesalreadywellrepresentedinthecollectionwereexcluded.

Wheretherewerefewindividualplantswithinaquadrat,voucherspecimenswerecollectedimmediatelyadjacenttothequadrat.Inafewcaseswheretherewerefewindividualswithinornearthequadrat,anditwasunlikelythattheycouldbeidentified(mostlynon-floweringorchids),theplantwasnotcollectedbutwasidentifiedtoatleastgenuslevelwherepossible.Inonecircumstanceasinglefloweringspecimenofanorchidspecieswaslocatedwithinthequadrat,butwasnotfoundoutsideit.Aphotographoftheflowerwastakentoassistwithidentificationoftheplant.

Plantsrecordedbutnotconfidentlyidentifiedbythesurveybotanistwereidentifiedusingreferencetaxonomictexts,andcomparisonwithdescriptions,distributionand

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photographsinFloraBase(WAHerbariumandDEC2009).Wheretherewasanyuncertainty,thespecimenwastakentotheHerbariumReferenceCollectionforcomparisonwithknownspecies,andonoccasion,specialisttaxonomistswereconsulted.Somespecimenscouldnotbeidentifiedastheyhadnoreproductivematerial.Wherepossiblethesewereidentifiedbycomparisonwithknownspecies;however,insomecasestheiridentitycouldnotbeconfirmed.Despitetheinabilitytonamesomeplantstospecieslevel,theyhavebeendeterminedtobediscretespeciesandhavebeennamedas‘sp.A’orequivalentinthisreport.

2.5 Statistical analysis

PATN©software(BelbinandCollins2006)wasusedtoundertakestatisticalanalysisandgeneratefloristicgroupsusingthedatacollectedfromthefloristicquadrats.PATN©analysishasbeenusedforseverallocalfloristicanalysesincludingGibsonet al(1994)fortheSwanCoastalPlain,Markey(1997)forthenorthernDarlingScarp,andinitiallybyCraiget al.(2008)fortheRavensthorpeRanges.ThesestudiesprovidedmethodologicalguidancefortheGRFVSproject.

PATN©isamultivariateanalysistoolthatgeneratesestimatesofassociation(resemblance,affinity,distance)betweensetsofobjectsdescribedbyasuiteofvariables(attributes),andclassifiestheobjectsintogroupsandcondensestheinformationanddisplaysthepatternsinthedatagraphically.

PATN©offersachoiceofdatatransformationspriortomultivariateanalysis.Inthiscase,becausetheanalysisusedpresence/absencedata,theKulczynskisimilaritycoefficientwastheappropriateassociationtouseasithasproventobeagoodestimationofassociationforecologicalapplications(BelbinandCollins2006).ThiswasfollowedbyFlexibleUPMGA(un-weightedpairgroupusingarithmeticaveraging)fusiontoproduceclustersofrelatedobjects(species);thesearethefloristicgroups,whicharedisplayedasadendogram.

Interpolationofthesepurelyfloristicgroupsintorecognisableunitson-groundwas,insomecases,notobviousorappearedtobeartificial.Therefore,furtherinterpretationwasundertakentorefinethefloristicgroupsintovegetationassociationsthatdescribethevegetationoftheGRFVSarea.

Detailsofstatisticalanalysis,includingPATN©,andothermeasuresusedtointerpretthevegetationpatternsoftheprojectarea,areincludedinappendix3.

2.6 Vegetation mapping

PlantcommunitieswithintheGRFVSareaweremapped,basedonthegroupingsfromthestatisticalanalysisofthefloristicdataandinterpretationoftheresults.Thismappingexercise,whichincludedgroundtruthing,wasconductedinJune2009.

2.6.1 Desktop vegetation extent mapping

Priortothevegetationmappingandgroundtruthingfieldsurvey,expectedboundariesofplantcommunitiesweredelineatedusingaerialphotographyandotheravailableinformation,detailedbelow,anddigitisedusingArcGISsoftware.Thedigitisinglargelyusedexistingvegetationextentmappingtodetermineremnantboundaries.

Someadditionalareaswereincludedwheresignificantareasofremnantvegetationhadnotbeenincludedinthevegetationextentmapping(egsouthoftheGreenoughRiver).Otherareaswereexcludedwheretheywerenotnativevegetationorhadbeenclearedsincethemapping.ClearedareaswerelargelyidentifiedthroughGoogleStreetView(GoogleInc2009),althoughboundariesofthesewereapproximateonly.

2.6.2 Interpretation of plant communities

Interpretationofaerialphotographyincludedinterpolationofvegetationboundarychangesbasedonchangesincolour,textureanddensityofvegetation,aswellasusingfield-basedexperiencetodelineateprobableplantcommunities.GoogleStreetView(GoogleInc2009)wasusedtoassistwithinterpretationinurbanareas.Areasthatcouldnotbesatisfactorilyidentifiedusingthistechniqueweregroundtruthed.

Existingmappingwasalsousedtoassistindeterminingvegetationboundarychanges,andincluded:

• partoftheareasouthoftheGreenoughRiver(Tauss2002);

• Southgate/CapeBurney(ATAEnvironmental2008);

• ChapmanRiverReserve(McCotterandEcoscape1993);

• GlenfieldBeach(CardnoBSD2006);

• Oakajee(MaunsellAustralia2008);

• Karloo(Ecoscape2007);and

• Buller(GHD2008).

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Soilsubsystemboundarieswereusedtoprovideanindicationofplantcommunityboundariesassomeplantcommunitieswereobservedtorespondtosoilchangesduringthefloristicsurvey.Theseincluded:

• theTamalaSouth5shallowsandPhase(221Ta_5Ts),whichwasthemostcommonsoilforthelimestoneridgeplantcommunities(11and12);

• theboundarybetweentheTamala(221Ta)andNorthampton(225No)soilgroups,whichwastheboundaryfortheSandplainplantcommunities(13and14)andtheThicket/Woodlandplantcommunities(15,16and17);and

• ripariansoilsplantcommunities(1and2).

TopographicmappingwasusedintheChapmanRiverReservetodeterminethelocationofriverbanks,whichformedtheboundarybetweenplantcommunity2(Riparian:Eucalyptus camaldulensis / Casuarina obesa / Melaleuca rhaphiophylla)andplantcommunity14(ChapmanRiverReserve:Acacia rostellifera / Melaleucaspp.).IntheOakajeecoastalarea,topographicmappingwasalsousedtoassistindelineatingboundariesbetweenthelimestoneridgeplantcommunities(11and12)andplantcommunity10(NearCoastal:Acacia rostelliferashrubland).

Plantcommunitiesidentifiedfromthefloristicquadratsdatawerealsoextrapolatedintoadjacentareas.

2.6.3 Field verif ication

Followingaerialphotographyinterpretationandpreparationoffieldmapsforthestudyarea,accessibleremnantsweregroundtruthedtodelineateplantcommunityboundariesduring16-19June2009.

Theplantcommunityverificationsurveydidnotincludeestablishmentandrecordingoffurtherfloristicquadrats,oraccessingprivatepropertyfordetailedassessment.Themappedvegetationboundarieswereassessedforaccuracyandcorrectedonfieldmapswherenecessary.Additionalplantspecies(whereobserved)wererecordedforinclusionintheplantcommunitydescriptions,plantcommunityrecognitionwasassessedandasearchforhistoricalplantcommunitieswasundertaken.

WherevegetationdidnotmatchanyGRFVSplantcommunitydefinition,acommunitydescriptionwasrecordedandaphotographtaken.Thedecisiontoeitherincludetheplantcommunityvariantwithinexistingplantcommunitiesorcreateanewcommunitywasmadethroughfurtherinterpretationofthedataanddiscussionwiththeprojectsteeringcommitteeattheconclusionofthefieldsurvey.

Followingthegroundtruthingsurvey,plantcommunityboundariesandattributesweredigitallycorrectedusingArcGISsoftware,andareasofplantcommunitieswerecalculated.

2.7 Botanical survey limitations

Asummarytableofbotanicalsurveylimitationsisincludedinappendix2.

TheGRFVSprojectecologistLynAtkinshasover20yearsofbotanicalsurveyandplantidentificationexperienceinWesternAustralia.Thereforeitisconsideredtherearenoconstraintsinrelationtothesurveyor’scompetence.

InaccordancewithEPAGuidanceStatement51,thefieldsurveywasundertakeninspring2008,whichiswithintheoptimalperiodtorecognisefloraspeciesinthesouth-westbotanicalprovince.Thirty-seven(approximately10%)ofthe375collectedvoucherspeciescouldnotbeidentifiedtospecieslevel;inmanycasesthiswasduetolackofdiagnosticfloweringmaterialatthetimeofsurvey.Poaceaeandotherherbaceousspeciesformedthemajorityofspecimensthatcouldnotbeidentifiedtospecieslevel,astheyhavealaterflowingperiod.Itisunlikelythatanyoftheunidentifiedspeciesweredeclaredrareflora.Itisconsideredthatthefloristicquadratsurveywasconductedatanoptimaltimetorecogniseasmanyspeciesaspossiblefromasinglesurveyandthereforetherearenegligiblelimitationsinrelationtotheabilitytorecognisespecies.

Thefloristicquadratsurveywasconductedover1510-hourdaysbytwosurveyors.Eachquadratwassurveyedforbetween40minutesand2hours,dependingonvegetationdensityandnumberofspecies.Itisconsideredthatthetimespentassessingeachquadratwasadequatetoidentifythepresenceofapproximately95-100%ofspeciespresent,andthereforetherearenegligiblelimitationsintermsofthetimespentsurveyingeachquadrat.

Intermsofthefloristicquadrats’representationofthevegetationoftheGRFVSarea,itisconsideredthatthesurveyadequatelyrecordedmostofthevariationwithintheareaatthescaleofasub-regionalsurvey.Thereforetherearenegligiblelimitationsinrelationtotherepresentationofthesurveythatarediscussedinsection2.3,anditisnotconsideredthatfurtherworkisrequired.

The2008winter-springrainfallforGeraldtonAirportwasapproximately64%ofthelong-termaveragefortheseason(May-Septemberaveragerainfall359.7mm,2008rainfall231.9mm(BOM2008)).Despitethelowerthanaveragerainfall,therewerenodiscernibleeffectsontheseasonalhealthandfloweringofanyspeciesobservedinthestudyarea.Therefore,therearenegligiblelimitationsinrelationtothepresenceofephemeralspeciesortheabilitytorecognisethem.

2.7.1 Plant identif ication

Exceptfortheoccasionalnon-floweringspecimensthatcouldnotbedeterminedtospeciesorgenuslevel,andwheretherewasmorethanonepossiblespeciesinthearea(egRhagodiasp.seedling,whichcouldhavebeeneitherofthetwospeciescommoninthearea),allvoucherspecimenswereidentifiedtospecieslevel.Thereforesome

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ofthese‘discrete’speciesareactuallynotdiscrete,butcouldnotbedeterminedtobeaspecificspeciesandcouldnotbecombinedaccuratelywithidentifiedspecies.

2.7.2 Plant community mapping

Theaccuracyofplantcommunityboundariesvariedaccordingtotheplantcommunity.Forthepurposeofthisstudy,theaccuracyofcommunitieswithdistinctboundaries(egriparianandestuarinecommunities)wasestimatedtobeapproximately20m.However,wherevegetationcommunitiesgradedfromonetoanother(egthecatenarysequenceofplantcommunities3Foredune:Atriplex isatidea / Spinifex longifolius,8Coastal:Acacia rostelliferalowshrublandand10NearCoastal:Acacia rostelliferashrubland),theactualplantcommunityboundarymaybeupto50mfromthemappedboundary.Ingeneral,accuracyofthemappedplantcommunityboundariesisbetween20mto50m.

Plantcommunitiescoveringlessthan100m2werenotmappedunlesstheyoccupiedanareamappedasanentirepolygoninthevegetationextentmapping,forwhichaplantcommunitywasattributed.

AlthoughasmuchaspossibleoftheGRFVSareawasgroundtruthed,privatelyownedareasnotvisiblefromroads(generallyoccurringinthesouth-easternandnorth-easternportionsoftheGRFVSarea),areaswithnoroadaccess(egalongthecoastbetweenCoronationBeachandtheOakajeeRiver),andburntareasinChapmanRiverReservewerenotgroundtruthedandweremappedandattributedusingavailableinformation.Therefore,theconfidenceofattributingplantcommunitiesintheseareasislowerthaningroundtruthedareas,butisstillveryhigh(estimatedas90%confidence).

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3 Resul ts

3.1 Analysis of existing data

ThereviewofexistingdataindicatedthatwithintheGRFVSareathereare:

• nineBeardvegetationassociations(table1);

• sevenDAFWAsoilsystemsand52subsystems(tablea4.1inappendix4,displayedonmap1inappendix5);and

• thecurrent(2006)vegetationextentis6,112hafromwithin625discreteremnants,whichisapproximately15%oftheoriginalpre-Europeanvegetationextent.

3.2 Beard vegetation associations

TheGRFVSareacontainsBeardvegetationassociations35,129,359,371,387,413,431,440and675.TheBeardvegetationassociationboundariesfortheGRFVSareawerere-interpretedusingsoilsystemandsubsystemdata,asdetailedinappendix1.Therecommendedboundariesareshownonmap2inappendix5.There-interpretedBeardvegetationassociationboundariesareusedthroughoutthisreport.

3.2.1 Representation of Beard vegetation associations

RepresentationofBeardvegetationassociationsisshownintable2,asaproportionofthepre-EuropeanextentandtheareainDECestate,bothintheGRFVSareaandforthewholeofWesternAustralia(DEC2007).Dataprovidedinthetableisbasedonvegetationextentmapping(DAFWA2006)andthenewlyre-interpretedBeardvegetationassociationboundaries.Itdoesnotincludechangestovegetationextentmappingdescribedinsection3.3.3.

Colouredcellsintable2indicateBeardvegetationassociationswithapproximatelylessthan10%oftheoriginal(pre-European)extentremaining(red)andlessthan30%remaining(orange).The10%and30%ecologicalthresholdsaredefinedinnationalandstatepoliciesonnativevegetationprotectionandbiodiversityconservation(EnvironmentAustralia2001;EPA2000,2008).

Thegreencolouredcellsintable2highlightBeardvegetationassociationsthathadmorethan30%oftheirtotal(WA)originalextentoccurringintheGRFVSarea,andthosethathavemorethan30%oftheirtotal(WA)remainingextentoccurringintheGRFVSarea.Map3inappendix5showsthetotal(WA)extentofBeardvegetationassociationsoriginallyoccurringintheGRFVSarea.

Mappingerrors,largelyasaresultofdifferencesinscale,aregenerallyrecognisedasanissueassociatedwithBeardvegetationassociationmapping,soareasandpercentagesshouldberegardedasapproximateratherthandefinitivevalues.Hence,Beardvegetation

associationswithslightlymorethan10%oftheoriginalextentremaininginWA(35and371)havebeencolouredredintable2.MappingisfurthercomplicatedbytheuseofreinterpretedBeardvegetationassociationareas(withintheGRFVSarea)inthisreportandexistingmapping.Forexample,Beardvegetationassociation359isreinterpretedashaving1.41hainsecuretenureintheGRFVSareaandonly1.25hainsecuretenureinallofWesternAustralia.Minordiscrepanciesofthissortdonotimpactontheoverallconservationsignificanceattributedtovegetationassociations.

Original and current extent of Beard vegetation associations

Beard vegetation association 35(Shrublands;jamscrubwithscatteredYorkgum)originallyoccupied7.16%ofthepre-EuropeanextentoftheGRFVSarea,and18.8%ofthepre-EuropeanextentremainsintheGRFVSarea.WithinWAapproximately10.56%oftheoriginalextentofthisvegetationassociationremains.

Beard vegetation association 129(Bareareas;driftsand)originallyoccupied2.49%ofthepre-EuropeanextentoftheGRFVSarea,and40%ofthepre-EuropeanextentremainsintheGRFVSarea.WithinWAapproximately63.57%oftheoriginalextentofthisvegetationassociationremains.

Beard vegetation association 359(Shrublands;AcaciaandBanksia scrub)originallyoccupied43.71%ofthepre-EuropeanextentoftheGRFVSarea,and17.3%ofthepre-EuropeanextentremainsintheGRFVSarea.WithinWAapproximately18.8%oftheoriginalextentofthisvegetationassociationremains.

Beard vegetation association 371(Lowforest;Acacia rostellifera)originallyoccupied29%ofthepre-EuropeanextentoftheGRFVSarea,and2.9%ofthepre-EuropeanextentremainsintheGRFVSarea.WithinWAapproximately10.1%oftheoriginalextentofthisvegetationassociationremains.

Beard vegetation association 387(Shrublands;Melaleuca cardiophyllathicket)originallyoccupied0.29%ofthepre-EuropeanextentoftheGRFVSarea,and1.4%ofthepre-EuropeanextentremainsintheGRFVSarea.WithinWAapproximately89.6%oftheoriginalextentofthisvegetationassociationremains.

Beard vegetation association 413(Shrublands;Acacia neurophyllathicket)originallyoccupied4.17%ofthepre-EuropeanextentoftheGRFVSarea,and18.6%ofthepre-EuropeanextentremainsintheGRFVSarea.WithinWAapproximately46.62%oftheoriginalextentofthisvegetationassociationremains.

Beard vegetation association 431(Shrublands;Acacia rostelliferaopenscrub)originallyoccupied1.71%ofthepre-EuropeanextentoftheGRFVSarea,and52.7%ofthepre-EuropeanextentremainsintheGRFVSarea.WithinWAapproximately73.76%oftheoriginalextentofthisvegetationassociationremains.

MARCH 201012


Bea

rd v

eget

atio

n as

soci

atio

n

GR

FVS

are

aC

ompa

riso

n of

GR

FVS

area

and

WA

In W

A

Ori

gina

l ex

tent

(ha)

Cur

rent

ex

tent

(ha)

%

R

emai

ning

1

Cur

rent

ex

tent

in

DEC

est

ate

(ha)

Ori

gina

l pr

opor

tion

of

GR

FVS

ar

ea (

%)2

Cur

rent

pr

opor

tion

of

GR

FVS

ve

geta

tion

(%

)3

Ori

gina

l pr

opor

tion

of

WA

exte

nt i

n G

RF

VS (

%)4

Cur

rent

pr

opor

tion

of

WA

exte

nt i

n G

RF

VS (

%)5

Ori

gina

l ex

tent

(ha)

Cur

rent

ex

tent

(ha)

%

R

emai

ning

1

Cur

rent

ex

tent

in

DEC

est

ate

(ha)

35S

hrub

land

s;ja

ms

crub

w

iths

catt

ered

Yor

kgu

m29

1554

918

.83

45.8

27.

168.

981.

582.

8218

4502

1948

610

.56

655.

85

129

Bar

ear

eas;

drif

tsan

d10

1540

640

.00

02.

496.

641.

070.

6795

286

6057

063

.57

2837

2.2

359

Shr

ubla

nds;

Aca

cia

and

Ban

ksia

scr

ub17

805

3077

17.2

81.

4143

.71

50.3

540

.02

36.7

844

493

8366

18.8

01.

25

371

Low

fore

st;A

caci

a ro

stel

lifer

a11

812

348

2.95

029

.00

5.69

30.4

310

.50

3881

633

1510

.10

199.

65

387

Shr

ubla

nds;

Mel

aleu

ca

card

iop

hylla

thic

ket

117

1.6

1.37

00.

290.

030.

790.

0114

898

1334

889

.60

393.

71

413

Shr

ubla

nds;

Aca

cia

neur

ophy

llath

icke

t16

9831

618

.61

04.

175.

1748

.88

19.5

134

7416

2046

.62

24.3

5

431

Shr

ubla

nds;

Aca

cia

rost

ellif

era

open

scr

ub69

636

752

.73

01.

716.

0011

.51

8.23

6047

4460

73.7

646

.75

440

Shr

ubla

nds;

Aca

cia

ligul

ata

open

scr

ub15

3180

752

.71

03.

7613

.20

36.3

734

.77

4209

2321

55.1

520

2.28

675

Shr

ubla

nds;

Mel

aleu

ca

and

Hak

eam

ixed

thic

ket

3148

240

7.62

79.4

27.

733.

936.

072.

1851

850

1099

221

.20

328.

05

Tota

l are

a40

737

6111

.615

.00

126.

6515

.00

4435

7512

4478

28.0

630

224.

1

Tabl

e 2:

Rep

rese

ntat

ion

of B

eard

veg

etat

ion

asso

ciat

ions

1 % R

emai

nin

g (c

urre

nte

xten

t/o

rigin

ale

xten

t):th

ep

rop

ortio

nof

the

orig

inal

ext

ento

fthi

sas

soci

atio

nre

mai

ning

.2 O

rig

inal

pro

po

rtio

n o

f G

RF

VS

are

a (%

)(or

igin

ale

xten

t/to

tala

rea)

:the

pro

por

tion

ofth

eG

RFV

Sa

rea

that

was

orig

inal

lyo

ccup

ied

byth

isa

ssoc

iatio

n.3 C

urr

ent

pro

po

rtio

n o

f G

RF

VS

veg

etat

ion

(%)(

curr

ente

xten

t/to

talc

urre

nte

xten

t):th

ep

rop

ortio

nof

the

tota

lrem

aini

ngv

eget

atio

nin

the

GR

FVS

are

aoc

cup

ied

byth

isa

ssoc

iatio

n.4 O

rig

inal

pro

po

rtio

n o

f W

A e

xten

t in

GR

FV

S (%

)(or

igin

alG

RFV

Se

xten

t/o

rigin

alW

Ae

xten

t):th

ep

rop

ortio

nof

WA’

sex

tent

oft

his

asso

ciat

ion

orig

inal

lyo

ccur

ring

with

inth

eG

RFV

Sa

rea.

5 Cu

rren

t p

rop

ort

ion

of

WA

ext

ent

in G

RF

VS

(%)(

curr

entG

RFV

Se

xten

t/c

urre

ntW

Ae

xten

t):th

ep

rop

ortio

nof

WA’

sex

tent

oft

his

asso

ciat

ion

curr

ently

occ

urrin

gw

ithin

the

GR

FVS

are

a.

MARCH 2010


13

Beard vegetation association 440(Shrublands;Acacia ligulatascrub)originallyoccupied3.76%ofthepre-EuropeanextentoftheGRFVSarea,and52.7%ofthepre-EuropeanextentremainsintheGRFVSarea.WithinWAapproximately55.15%oftheoriginalextentofthisvegetationassociationremains.

Beard vegetation association 675(Shrublands;MelaleucaandHakeamixedthicket)originallyoccupied7.7%ofthepre-EuropeanextentoftheGRFVSarea,and7.6%ofthepre-EuropeanextentremainsintheGRFVSarea.WithinWAapproximately21.2%oftheoriginalextentofthisvegetationassociationremains.

RepresentationofBeardvegetationassociations,bothwithintheGRFVSareaandWA,isdiscussedinsection4.2.

3.3 Floristic quadrats

ThefieldsurveysconductedduringAugustandOctober2008assessed81ofthe85proposedquadratsites.Mostfloristicquadratswerelocatedclosetotheproposedlocations.Logisticalconstraintspreventedthreesitesfrombeingsurveyed.

Actualquadratlocationsinrelationtoproposedquadratlocationsaredisplayedonmap3inappendix5.Thedatacollectedfromthequadratsisprovidedinappendix6.

Table3indicatesthenumberofquadratssampledineachBeardvegetationassociation.ThenumberofquadratsineachBeardvegetationassociationisapproximatelyinproportiontothepercentoftheGRFVSareaoccupiedbyeachassociation(eg6%ofthefloristicquadratswerelocatedinareasmappedasBeardvegetationassociation371,whichformerlyoccupiedapproximately5.69%oftheGRFVSarea).TherewerenoquadratssampledfromtheoneremnantmappedasBeardvegetationassociation387asthesitewasnoteasilyaccessible.Twoquadratswereinareasnotincludedinthe‘vegetationextent’mapping(ietheareasweremappedasnothavingnativevegetation),althoughnativevegetationwasclearlypresent.

ThefollowingvegetationcommunitiesidentifiedduringthesurveydifferedfromthebroadscaleBeardvegetationassociationdescriptions:

• riparianareas,dominatedbyEucalyptus camaldulensis, Casuarina obesaorMelaleuca rhaphiophylla;

Beard vegetation association

Number of quadrats

Propor tion of quadrats (%)

Current propor tion of GRFVS vegetation (%)

35Shrublands;jamscrubwithscatteredYorkgum 5 6 8.98

129Bareareas;driftsand 3 4 6.64

359Shrublands;Acacia and Banksiascrub 44 54 50.35

371Lowforest;Acacia rostellifera 5 6 5.69

387Shrublands;Melaleuca cardiophyllathicket 0 0 0.03

413Shrublands;Acacia neurophyllathicket 5 6 5.17

431Shrublands;Acacia rostelliferaopenscrub 4 5 6

440Shrublands;Acacia ligulataopenscrub 9 11 13.2

675Shrublands;Melaleuca and Hakeamixedthicket 4 5 3.93

Notincludedinvegetationextentmapping 2 2 0

Totals 81 100 100

Table 3: Quadrat locations in relation to Beard vegetation associations

MARCH 201014


• estuarineareasdominatedbysamphire;

• foreduneareasdominatedbyAtriplex isatidea, Tetragonia decumbensandSpinifex longifolius;

• Frankenia paucifloradominatedswale;

• Ficinia nodosasedgedominatedswale;and

• Melaleuca cardiophyllaandDiplolaena grandifloradominatedshrublandsonexposedlimestone(notwithinareasmappedasBeardvegetationassociation387).

Thesedifferingvegetationtypesarediscussedinrelationtostatisticalanalysisinappendix3.

3.3.1 Plant species

Therewere469voucherspecimenscollectedduringthesurvey.Theseweredeterminedtorepresent372discretespecies(299nativeand73non-native),fromapproximately81families.Somespecimenscouldonlybedeterminedtogenus(10species)orfamily(19species)level,withsevenspecimensnotidentifiabletoanylevel.Thespecieslistforeachquadratisincludedwiththequadratdescriptionsinappendix6,andthecompletespeciesinventoryisprovidedinappendix7.

ThemostcommonlyrepresentedfamilieswerePoaceae(41species,including22introducedspecies,althoughsomespeciescouldnotbeidentifiedtogenus/specieslevelastheyhadnoreproductivematerial),Asteraceae(36species,including11introducedspecies),Myrtaceae(28species),Papilionaceae(16species,including8introducedspecies),Proteaceae(15species)andCyperaceae(14species).

ThemostfrequentlyrecordednativespecieswasAcacia rostellifera,occurringin43ofthe81sampledquadrats.OthercommonnativespeciesincludedAustrostipa elegantissima(in37quadrats),Dioscorea hastifolia(28quadrats),Acanthocarpus preissii(26quadrats),Thysanotus manglesianus(23quadrats),Desmocladus asper(20quadrats)andZygophyllum fruticulosum(20quadrats).

Introducedspecies(weeds)werealsowellrepresentedinthequadrats,with73speciesrecorded.CommonspeciesincludedbeardedoatAvena barbata(in42quadrats),wildturnipBrassica tournefortii (37quadrats),flatweedHypochaeris glabra(36quadrats)andannualveldtgrassEhrharta longiflora(33quadrats).Africanboxthorn(Lycium ferocissimum)wasrecordedfrom13quadrats,butisfarmorecommonthanisindicatedbyitsoccurrenceinfloristicquadrats.

Tenfloraspeciesofconservationsignificancewererecordedfromthequadrats,includingtwodeclaredrareflora(R),oneprioritytwo(P2),fiveprioritythree(P3)andonepriorityfour(P4)species:

• Anthocercis intricata(P3),recordedfromtwoquadrats

• Caladenia hoffmanii(R),recordedfromonequadrat

• Diuris recurva(P4),recordedfromthreequadrats

• Eucalyptus blaxellii(R),fromonequadrat

• Grevillea triloba(P3),recordedfromthreequadrats

• Hibbertia glomerosavar.bistrata(P3),fromonequadrat

• Leucopogonsp.MoresbyRange(P3),fromonequadrat

• Thryptomenesp.MoresbyRange(P3)fromtwoquadrats

• Thryptomene stenophylla(P2),fromonequadrat.

DECconservationcodesandtheirdefinitionsareintableA7.2inappendix7.Ingeneral,prioritylistedspeciesarepoorlyknownfromfewpopulations.

Anadditionalthreespecieswererecordedattheextentoforbeyondtheirusualrange(rangeextension):

• Hibbertia glomerosavar.bistrata(rangeextension),whichhaspreviouslybeenrecordedfrombetweenMorawaandMullewa.

• Linum marginale(rangeextremity),whichhaspreviouslybeenrecordedfromHowatharrabuttheusualrangeisconsiderablysouthoftheprojectarea.

• Drosera porrecta(rangeextension).ThecollectedspecimenhadnoreproductivepartsandwasidentifiedbycomparingvegetativestructurewithallotherDroseraspeciesintheWAHerbariumreferencecollection.TheonlysimilarspecieswasDrosera porrecta,whichisknownfromasfarnorthasEneabba.

MARCH 2010


15

Condition Degraded Good Very Good Excellent Pristine

Numberofquadrats 7 19 35 19 1

Table 4: Keighery (1994) bushland condition rating of quadrats

3.3.2 Vegetation condition

Vegetationcondition,assessedusingtheKeighery(1994)bushlandconditionratingmethodologydetailedinappendix2,wasrecordedforeachfloristicquadrat.Theresultsareshownonmap4inappendix5,andtable4.Representativephotographsofeachvegetationconditionratingareincludedinappendix2.

Nosurveyedfloristicquadratswereconsideredtobeincompletely degradedconditionasthisratingwouldindicateminimalnativevegetation.

Despitelocatingfloristicquadratsintheleastdisturbedconditionvegetationavailableforthevegetationtypebeingassessed,thereweremorequadratsrecordedfromdegraded or good conditionvegetationthanfromexcellent orpristineconditioncategories.

ThedegradedconditionquadratswereatBuller(intheswale)orassociatedwithriparianareas,includingthediscontinuousRumJungledrainageline.TheonlypristineconditionquadratwasintheWokatherraGapoutsidetheGRFVSarea,wheretherewasnoevidenceofdisturbance.TheWokatherraGapquadratwassurveyedtodeterminesimilaritywithvegetationtothewestoftheMoresbyRange,withintheGRFVSarea.

Weedcoverisshownonmap5inappendix5,andtable5.Mostquadratsweremoderatelyweedy(5-25%cover);however,11hadmorethan50%weedcover.Thesequadratswerelargelyassociatedwithriparianareas,butalsoincludedagrazedsitenearMoonyoonookaandaquadratlocatedintheswaleatBuller.

WeedinessR:

(rare)1:00 <5%

2 5-25%

3 25-50%

4 50-75%

5 >75%

Numberofquadrats 12 13 33 12 6 5

Table 5: Braun-Blanquet (1983) weed cover abundance of floristic quadrats

3.4 Plant communities

3.4.1 Floristic groups from PATN © analysis

PATN©statisticalanalysisofcollectedfloristicdataproducedadendogramshowinggroupsoffloristicsimilarity,displayedinappendix3.Theseinitialfloristicgroups,asidentifiedinthedendogram,aredisplayedhierarchicallyinfigure2.

Thenamesdisplayedonthehierarchyaredescriptiveonly,toindicatearelationshipbetweenthequadratsthatgroupedtogether.Thecolourcodingindicatesdifferentlevelswithinthedendogramandhierarchy:

• whiteindicatesadescriptivenameonly;

• orangeindicatesasupergroup,beingthemostsimilarfloristicgroups(andalsoincludetwofloristicgroups:estuarineandforedune);

• blueindicatesbroadfloristicgroupsthataredividedfurtherinthedendogram,howeverthesegroups,basedpurelyonfloristicsimilarity,requirefurtherinterpretationtotranslateintorecognisableon-groundvegetationcommunities(discussedinappendix3);

• greenindicatesafloristicgroupasidentifiedfromthefloristicanalysis;and

• thenumberbeforethenameofthefloristicgroupreferstothefinalisedplantcommunitygroupnumber.

MARCH 201016


Figure 2: Initial floristic group hierarchy, indicating final GRFVS plant community numbers

Greenough,Ficinia &GRV0805

Thickets

Coastal

Sandplain

NearCoastal

Limestoneridge

Limestoneand Peat

NearCoastal &Riparian

NearCoastal &

Inland

GRVS

3. Foredune

2. Riparian Near Coastal

1. Estuarine Sandplain &Thickets

5. Swale:Frankenia

MoresbyRange

13. Banksiaprionotes/Acacia

rostellifera

12. Melaleucacardiophylla

11. Melaleucacardiophylla/

Eucalyptus spp.

14. ChapmanRiver Reserve

4. Swale:(Ficinianodosa)

6, 7.Greenough

plus

8, 9, 10. Acaciarostellifera

15, 16, 17. Thicket

(2 �oristic groups)

(2 �oristic groups)

3.4.2 GRFVS plant communities

UsingthePATN©analysistodeterminebroadfloristicgroups,theninterpretingthesegroupsusingsoildata,dominantspeciesandvegetationstructuretoidentifyusableandrecognisablegroupings,thefollowingplantcommunitieshavebeenidentified.Eachofthesevegetationcommunities,denotedastheGRFVSplantcommunities,aredescribedindetailinappendix8,andthefloristicquadrats,mappedastheGRFVSplantcommunities,aredisplayedonmap7.EachGRFVSplantcommunity,asdetailedinappendix8,liststheNVISstructuralformationnameornamesrecordedduringthesurvey(egOpen Woodland or Woodlandforplantcommunity16)forthevariousstratawithinthecommunity.

Table6outlinesthemethodologyusedtodividethefloristicgroupsintotheGRFVSplantcommunities.TheMoresbyRangeshrublandswereidentifiedfromtheWokatherraGapquadrat.AsthisplantcommunityisnotwithintheGRFVSarea,andisbasedononlyonequadratofalargeanddiversearea,itwouldbeinappropriatetoassignacommunitydescription.Forfurtherinformation,seethequadratdataforGRV0864inappendix6.

3.4.3 Changes to vegetation extent mapping

Areaswherethevegetationextentmappinghaschangedisillustratedonmap8inappendix5.Someofthevariationinvegetationextentmappingisduetothescaleoftheoriginalmappingandrecentclearing.

Someareasofnativevegetationwerenotincludedinthevegetationextentmapping,andhavebeenaddedfortheplantcommunitymapping.Theseinclude:

• samphire(estuarineareas,plantcommunity1),whicharefrequentlynotincludedinvegetationextentmapping;

• southoftheGreenoughRivermouth;

• isolatedvegetatedareaswithindunefields;and

• someforeduneareas(plantcommunity3)weredetectedontheaerialimagery,althoughthefullextentofthisplantcommunityisstilllikelytobeunderestimated.Mostforeduneareasarenarroworandsparselyvegetated.

MARCH 2010


17

Floristic supergroup

Floristic groups (and interpretation into plant communities)

Plant community

Estuarine Estuarine 1 Estuarine: Casuarina obesa / Tecticornia / Sarcocornia (Co/Te/Sa)

Foredune Foredune 3 Foredune: Atriplex isatidea / Spinifex longifolius (Ati/Spl)

Riparian Riparian2 Riparian: Eucalyptus camaldulensis / Casuarina obesa /

Melaleuca rhaphiophylla (Ec/Co/Mr) RumJungleisincludedinthisplantcommunity

NearCoastal

Swale: Ficinia nodosa 4 Swale: Ficinia nodosa (Fin)

Swale: Frankenia pauciflora 5 Swale: Frankenia pauciflora (Frp)

Greenough plus floristicgroup:twoofthequadratshavebeenincludedinoneoftheAcacia rostellifera groups,theothersareseparatedusingdominantspeciesandstructure

6 Coastal: Thryptomene baeckeacea (Thb) GRV0849

7 Coastal: Melaleuca cardiophylla (cMc) GRV0847

Acacia rostellifera groupshavelargelybeenseparatedusingvegetationstructure

8 Coastal: Acacia rostellifera low shrubland (cAr) IncludesGRV0805andGRV0850whichwereincludedintheGreenoughplusgroupbasedonfloristicanalysis.

9 Coastal Acacia rostellifera / Eucalyptus spp. (Ar/Espp)

10 Near Coastal: Acacia rostellifera shrubland (ncAr)

Limestone ridge: Melaleuca cardiophylla /Eucalyptus spp

11 Limestone ridge: Melaleuca cardiophylla / Eucalyptus spp. (Mc/Espp) IncludesGRV0861thatwasincludedinthelimestoneridgeMelaleucacardiophyllagroupbasedonfloristicanalysis.

Limestone ridge: Melaleuca cardiophylla 12 Limestone ridge: Melaleuca cardiophylla (rMc)

SandplainandThickets

Sandplain groupshavebeenseparatedintotwogroupslargelybasedonfloristics,withsomeinterpretationusingsoilandgeography

13 Sandplain: Banksia prionotes / Acacia rostellifera (Bp/Ar)IncludesGRV0976fromChapmanRiverReserve

14 Chapman River Reserve: Acacia rostellifera / Melaleuca spp. (Ar/Mspp) Theremainingfloristicquadratsonshallowsoil.

Thicketshavebeendividedintogroupsbasedondominantspecies,structureandsoils(althoughthefloristicgroupsarelargelythesame)

15 Thicket: Melaleuca spp. / mixed spp. (Mspp/mx) OccursonsandstonesoilsofthefoothillsandlowerslopesoftheMoresbyRange.

16 Woodland: Acacia acuminata / A. tetragonophylla / Hakea preissii (Aa/At/H) WoodlandsandshrublandsontheloamysoilsoftheNorthamptonsoilsystem.

17 Woodland: Eucalyptus loxophleba (El) YorkgumwoodlandsoftheNorthamptonsystem.

Moresby Range shrublands OutsidetheGRFVSarea.

Table 6: Interpretation used to divide floristic groups into plant communities

MARCH 201018


Intotal,approximately6041.21haisincludedinthevegetationextentmappedforplantcommunities,whichisapproximately70.39halessthanthe2006nativevegetationextentmappingsuppliedforthisproject.Intotal,approximately102.19haor1.65%havebeenincludedasadditionalnativevegetation,and135.85haor2.2%havebeenexcluded,havingbeenclearedordeterminedtonotbenativevegetation(table7).

3.4.4 Plant community mapping

MapsoftheGRFVSplantcommunitiesareincludedinappendix5.Table8displaystheextent(inhectares)andpercentofnativevegetationintheGRFVSareaoccupiedbyeachGRFVSplantcommunity.

Thetwoswaleplantcommunities(4and5)aretheleastextensiveplantcommunitiesintheGRFVSarea,withonlyoneoccurrenceofeachcommunityrecordedduringthesurveys,occupyingrespectively0.01%and0.08%ofthenativevegetationextent.Plantcommunity10NearCoastal:Acaciarostelliferaisthemostfrequentlyencounteredcommunity,occupying36.63%ofthenativevegetationextentintheGRFVSarea.

Theimplicationsoftheplantcommunitymappingarediscussedinsection4.4.

Vegetation extent Hectares Per cent

GRFVSadditional 102.19 1.65%

GRFVSexcluded 135.83 2.20%

2006extent 5938.97 96.15%

Table 7: Changes to 2006 native vegetation extent mapping

MARCH 2010


19

GRFVS plant

communityDescription Area (ha)

Propor tion of GRFVS

area mapped as native

vegetation (%)

1 1Estuarine:Casuarina obesa / Tecticornia / Sarcocornia 33.22 0.54

2 2Riparian:Eucalyptus camaldulensis / Casuarina obesa / Melaleuca rhaphiophylla 388.36 6.30

3 3Foredune:Atriplex isatidea / Spinifex longifolius 96.52 1.57

4 4Swale:Ficinia nodosa 0.58 0.01

5 5Swale:Frankenia pauciflora 4.78 0.08

6 6Coastal:Thryptomene baeckeacea 11.08 0.18

7 7Coastal:Melaleuca cardiophylla 62.71 1.02

8 8Coastal:Acacia rostelliferalowshrubland 546.26 8.86

9 9Coastal:Acacia rostellifera / Eucalyptus spp. 12.47 0.20

10 10NearCoastal:Acacia rostelliferashrubland 2258.87 36.63

11 11Limestoneridge:Melaleuca cardiophylla / Eucalyptusspp. 19.95 0.32

12 12Limestoneridge:Melaleuca cardiophylla 865.80 14.04

13 13Sandplain:Banksia prionotes / Acacia rostellifera 754.39 12.23

14 14ChapmanRiverReserve:Acacia rostellifera / Melaleucaspp. 47.50 0.77

15 15Thicket:Melaleucaspp./mixedspp. 469.57 7.61

16 16Woodland:Acacia acuminata / A. tetragonophylla / Hakea preissii 452.11 7.33

17 17Woodland:Eucalyptus loxophleba 17.06 0.28

Non native vegetation

Area not occupied by native vegetation (e.g. planted vegetation) 125.57 2.04

Total native vegetation Area occupied by native vegetation 6041.21 97.96

Table 8: Extent of GRFVS plant communities

MARCH 201020


4 Discussion

4.1 Native vegetation in the GRFVS area

WithintheGRFVSarea,15%ofthepre-Europeanextentofnativevegetationremains.Muchoftheremainingvegetationisdisturbed,fragmented,andsubjecttoongoingthreatsandtheimpactsassociatedwithclimatechange.Only2%oftheremainingnativevegetationoftheGRFVSareaiswithinIUCNI-IVreserves.IUCNI-IVreservesareconsideredtobetrueconservationreserves(forfurtherdescriptionofthesecategoriesseeDudley(2008)).AllIUCNI-IVreservesintheGRFVSareaareDEC-managedlandsvestedwiththeConservationCommissionofWesternAustralia.

TheGRFVSprojecthasidentifiedanddescribedplantcommunitiesoccurringintheGeraldtonregion,focusingonareaswheresignificantlandusechangeordevelopmentisproposedoranticipated.InformationcollectedthroughtheGRFVSprojectwillassiststrategicregionalplanningfornativevegetationprotection,aswellasassessmentofproposalslikelytoimpactonnativevegetation.

4.1.1 Legislative and policy framework for native vegetation protection

WA environmental legislation

NativevegetationprotectioninWesternAustraliaislegislatedbytheEnvironmental Protection Act 1986(GovernmentofWesternAustralia)andtheWildlife Conservation Act 1950 (GovernmentofWesternAustralia).Specifically,theEnvironmental Protection Act 1986providesalegalbasistoassessproposalsthatarelikelytohaveanimpactontheenvironmentandtoassessnativevegetationclearing.TheWildlife Conservation Act 1950providesprotectiontospeciesthatarethreatenedorlikelytobecomeextinctwithoutintervention.

National Strategy for Biodiversity Conservation

Anumberofstrategieshavealsobeendevelopedtoaddressbiodiversityconservation,bothnationallyandwithinthestate.TheNational Strategy for the Conservation of Australia’s Biological Diversity(CommonwealthofAustralia1996)isparticularlyrelevanttonativevegetationprotectionasitsetstargetsfortheretentionandprotectionofbiodiversityatecosystem,speciesandgeneticlevels.ThestrategytargetshavebeenadoptedinWesternAustraliaandareusedintheassessmentofenvironmentalimpacts(EPA2000,2008).

EPA Posit ion Statement 2

TheEPAdevelopspositionandguidancestatementstoadviseproponentsonitsviewinregardstoenvironmentalmattersinWesternAustralia.Duetothehighclearingintheagriculturalareas,theEPApublishedPosition

Statement2Environmental Protection of Native Vegetation in Western AustraliatoclarifyitsviewofclearingintheWheatbelt(includingtheGeraldtonregion),andalsostateitspositiononclearinginareasoutsidethefocusarea.PositionStatement2statesthat“…the EPA is of the view that it is unreasonable to expect to be able to continue to clear native vegetation from land within the agricultural area other than relatively small areas and where alternative mechanisms for protection biodiversity are addressed.”Therefore,accordingtoEPAPositionStatement2,clearingintheGRFVSareawouldonlybesupportedbytheEPAwherealternativemechanismsaddressbiodiversityprotection.

Importantly,EPAPositionStatement2adoptstwocriteriafromtheNational Objectives and Targets for Biodiversity Conservation 2001-2005(EnvironmentAustralia2001)whicharetakenintoconsiderationintheassessmentofclearingproposals:

(i) 30%oftheoriginalextentofeachvegetationtypeisregardedasthethresholdlevelbelowwhichspecieslossappearstoaccelerateexponentiallyatanecosystemlevel;

(ii) 10%oftheoriginalextentofeachvegetationtypeisregardedasthelevelrepresenting‘endangered’.

EPA Bulletin 891: Geraldton Region Plan

ThestatedobjectiveoftheEPAfornativevegetationistomaintaintheabundance,speciesdiversity,geographicdistributionandproductivityofvegetationtypesandcommunities.InassessingtheGeraldtonRegionPlanundersection16oftheEnvironmental Protection Act 1986(EPABulletin891,1998)theEPAsupportedthedevelopmentofaremnantvegetationinventoryintheGeraldtonregionandtheconservationofregionallysignificantvegetationinbothprivateandgovernmentownership.

4.1.2 Conservation significance of native vegetation in the GRFVS area

EPAGuidanceStatement33Environmental Guidance for Planning and Development(2008)liststhetypesofnaturalareasthattheEPAconsidersareofhighconservationsignificanceandrequireahighlevelofprotectioninWA,including:

• stateandregionalconservationareas;

• areaswhereclearingwouldbeatvariancewiththenativevegetationclearingprinciplesinschedule5oftheEnvironmental Protection Act 1986;

• threatenedecologicalcommunities;

• significantfloraandfauna;

• wetlandsand buffers;

• riversandforeshores;

• importantlandscapesandlandforms;

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• naturalareasofheritagesignificance;and

• othernaturalareas,suchasecologicallinkages.

EPAGuidanceStatement33alsooutlinescriteriadevelopedbygovernmentagenciesandacceptedbytheEPAfortheidentificationofregionallysignificantnaturalareasforacomprehensive,adequateandrepresentative(CAR)systemofconservationareasinSouthwestAustralia,includingtheGeraldtonsandplain.ThesecriteriawereusedinselectingnaturalareasforaregionalsystemofconservationareasinthePerthmetropolitanandGreaterBunburyregionschemeareas.ItisreasonabletoexpectthatthefollowingcriteriashouldbetakenintoconsiderationwhendeterminingtheconservationsignificanceofGRFVSplantcommunities:

• representationofecologicalcommunities;

• diversity;

• rarity;

• maintainingecologicalprocessesornaturalsystems;

• scientificorevolutionaryimportance;and

• protectionofwetland,streamlineandestuarinefringingvegetationandcoastalvegetation.

ThisreportprovidesinformationontherepresentationofvegetationtypesintheGRFVSarea,mappedattheregionalscalebyBeard(1976a)andatthelocalscalethroughtheGRFVSproject.Thereportalsoprovidesinformationondiversity,rarity,andvegetationcondition,toassistindeterminingtheconservationsignificanceofnativevegetationintheGRFVSarea.AcomprehensiveanalysisoftheconservationsignificanceofplantcommunitiesintheGeraldtonregionisexpectedtooccurthroughphase2‘Conservationandregionalplanning’oftheGRFVSproject.

InrelationtotheGRFVSplantcommunitiesdocumentedinthisreport,someareuncommonorrestrictedinarea,atleastwithintheGRFVSarea.Itisdifficulttodiscusshowwidespreadorcommon,intermsofareaorproportion,theseplantcommunitiesareoutsidetheGRFVSareaasthedescriptiononlyapplieswithintheGRFVSarea.

UnlessthereisadirectcorrelationbetweenBeardvegetationassociationsandGRFVSplantcommunities,theplantcommunitiescannotbediscussedintermsofremainingvegetationextentasthereisnohistoricinformationavailable.However,thecurrentplantcommunityextent(withintheGRFVSarea)doesindicatethecurrentextentoftheplantcommunity(iein2009),andprovidesinformationforfuturereference.

Vegetation condit ion

WithintheGRFVSarea,vegetationconditionvariesgreatly.Althoughnofloristicquadratswererecordedinareaswherethevegetationconditionisregardedascompletely degraded(havingvirtuallynonativevegetationremaining,seeappendix2fordefinitions),vegetationexistsinallthe

Keighery(1994)ratingscores,althoughtheonlyquadratrecordedinpristine conditionvegetationwasoutsidetheGRFVSarea(GRV0864,intheWokatherraGap).

Manyoftheareaswithhighweedcoverareassociatedwithriparianareas,whereweedcoverisusuallyaresultofacombinationoffertilesoilfavouringweedcolonisation,frequentorhistoricgrazing(asriparianareasprovidethebestgrazingland),andfrequentdisturbancefromfloodsandstocktrampling.

Recentregionaldroughtconditionsappeartohaveresultedinshrubandtreedeathsandlossofvigourinsomeareas,mainlyassociatedwithplantcommunity13sandplain:Banksia prionotes / Acacia rostellifera.However,thecausecouldnotbedefinitivelydeterminedandsomequadratsmayhavehadtheircondition‘downgraded’asaresultofdroughtratherthandisturbance.

Ingeneral,mostvegetationwouldbeconsideredtobeingoodtovery goodcondition,asinmostareasthereisweedinvasionfrompreviousandcurrentlanduses.Conservationpriorityshouldbegiventovegetationinbettercondition,althoughthereareotherfactorsthatinfluencehowsignificantanareaofnativevegetationis,andhowimportantitistopreserveitwithinthelandscape(egremnantsize,landscapelinkages,andrarityofspecies,ecosystemsandvegetationtypes).

4.2 Beard vegetation associations in the GRFVS area

TheBeardvegetationassociationboundariessuppliedatthecommencementoftheGRFVSprojecthavebeenmodifiedduringthisassessmenttomoreaccuratelyreflectthesmallerscalesoilmapping,asdetailedinappendix1.ItisrecommendedthattheseamendedboundariesbeadoptedforassessmentswithintheGRFVSarea.

DescriptionsofBeardvegetationassociationsoccurringintheGRFVSareaareprovidedinappendix4.InterpretationofBeardvegetationassociationswithintheGRFVSareashouldtakethefollowingintoconsideration:

• Beard vegetation association 35(Shrublands;jamscrubwithscatteredYorkgum)isusuallyreadilyrecognisableasavegetationtypewithintheGRFVSarea.

• Beard vegetation association 129(Bareareas;driftsand)containsmostlybareareas;however,thereisvegetationlocatedbetweenandontheedgesofthesandyareas.WithintheGRFVSarea,thevegetationisgenerallythesameasfoundinthesurroundingBeardvegetationassociations440(Shrublands;Acacia ligulataopenscrub)and431(Shrublands;Acacia rostellifera openscrub).

• Beard vegetation association 359(Shrublands;AcaciaandBanksiascrub)isreadilyrecognisableasAcacia rostelliferaandBanksiaprionotesdominated

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shrublands,andthegeneraldescriptionisapplicableformostareasintheGRFVSarea,althoughthereareextensiveareaswhereBanksia prionotesnolongeroccurs.

• Beard vegetation association 371(Lowforest;Acacia rostellifera)isnotreadilyrecognisableasauniquevegetationtype,andisdifficulttodifferentiatefromotherAcaciadominatedBeardvegetationassociationsintheGRFVSarea.

• Beard vegetation association 387(Shrublands;Melaleuca cardiophyllathicket)isreadilyrecognisablefromitsdescription,andoccupiesextensiveareasofexposedlimestoneonridgesandescarpments.However,fieldsurveyshaveindicatedthatvegetationmatchingthedescriptionofthisassociationismorewidespreadthanBeardvegetationassociationmappingindicates.Melaleuca cardiophylla-dominatedvegetationisdescribedfromwithinthecatenarysequenceofotherAcacia-dominatedshrublands(Beard1976a),anditisreasonabletoassumethatthescaleofBeardvegetationassociationmappingisresponsibleforthisperceivedextentanomaly.

• Beard vegetation association 413(Shrublands;Acacia neurophyllathicket)isrecognisablefromitsgeographiclocation,occurringintheBullercatchment.However,asaspeciesAcacia neurophyllawasonlyoccasionallyobservedduringthefieldsurvey,andthereforethiscommunityisnotreadilyrecognisablebyitsspeciesdescriptor.

• Beard vegetation association 440(Shrublands;Acacia ligulataopenscrub)ismappedasoccurringincoastalareasnorthofTarcoolaBeach,althoughAcacia ligulatawasnotidentifiedwithintheGRFVSarea.Beard(1976a)statesthat‘atsomestagenorthofGeraldtonA. rostelliferaisreplacedinthishabitatbythecloselysimilarspeciesA. ligulata’.Thereforeitisconcludedthatthisvegetationassociationisanamalgamofthesetwospecies,withA. rostelliferaoccurringintheGRFVSarea.ThisvegetationassociationisnoteasilydistinguishedfromotherAcacia rostelliferadominatedBeardvegetationassociations.

• Beard vegetation association 675(Shrublands;MelaleucaandHakeamixedthicket)occursadjacenttotheMoresbyRange,ontheeasternedgeoftheGRFVSarea.Thedescriptionofmixedthicketisambiguous,howeveritisrecognisablefromitsgeographiclocationadjacenttotheMoresbyRange.

4.2.1 Representation of Beard vegetation associations

TherepresentationofeachoftheBeardvegetationassociationsoccurringintheGRFVSareaisdiscussedbelow,intermsofextentandconservationsignificanceinrelationtothe10%and30%thresholdsappliedatthestateandGRFVSarealevels.Table2showspre-EuropeanandcurrentextentsofBeardvegetationassociationsintheGRFVSarea.

TheBeardvegetationassociationsarediscussedintermsofthepre-EuropeanextentremainingandprotectedwithinWAandwithintheGRFVSarea.ItisimportanttoconsidertherepresentationofvegetationtypesintermsoftheirtotalextentinWA,aswellastheirlocalextentwithintheGRFVSarea.Considerationof‘localbiodiversity’representationassistsintheconservationofgenetic,speciesandecosystemdiversity.

ForthepurposesofdeterminingconservationprioritiesintheGRFVSarea,Beardvegetationassociationsmaybecategorisedaccordingtothefollowing:

• Regionally significant – endangered:Beardvegetationassociationsthathavelessthan10%oftheirpre-EuropeanextentremaininginWA.

• Regionally significant – vulnerable:Beardvegetationassociationsthathavemorethan10%butlessthan30%oftheirpre-EuropeanextentremaininginWA.

• Locally significant:Beardvegetationassociationsthathavemorethan30%oftheirpre-EuropeanextentremaininginWA.Beardvegetationassociationsthathadmorethan30%ofthetotal(WA)extentoriginallyoccurringwithintheGRFVSareamaybeprioritisedoverothervegetationassociations.

Regionally significant – endangered

Beard vegetation association 35(Shrublands;jamscrubwithscatteredYorkgum)andBeard vegetation association 371(Lowforest;Acacia rostellifera)areconsideredtohavelessthan10%oftheirpre-EuropeanextentremaininginWA.AccordingtocriteriaestablishedbytheCommonwealthgovernmentandadoptedinstatepolicy,thesevegetationtypesareregardedas‘endangered’ecosystems.Furthermore,thesevegetationtypesareinadequatelyreservedwithinWA,with0.355%oftheoriginalextentofBeardvegetationassociation35and0.015%oftheoriginalextentofBeardvegetationassociation371withinIUCNI-IVreserves.

WithintheGRFVSarea,Beardvegetationassociation371alsohaslessthan10%(348ha,equivalentto2.95%)ofitspre-Europeanextentremaining,andnoneiswithinIUCNI-IVreserves.Beardvegetationassociation35hasmorethan10%butlessthan30%(549ha,equivalentto18.83%)ofitspre-EuropeanextentremainingintheGRFVSarea,and45.82haiswithinIUCNI-IVreserves(OakajeeNatureReserve).

Beardvegetationassociation371originallyoccupiedalmostone-third(29%)oftheGRFVSarea,andwasthereforeoneofthemainvegetationtypesoccurringinthearea.Originally,almostone-third(30.43%)ofWA’stotalextentofBeardvegetationassociation371waslocatedwithintheGRFVSarea,whichhighlightsthesignificanceoftheareaforrepresentationofthisvegetationtype.TheGRFVSareanowcontains10.5%ofthetotalremainingWAextentofBeardvegetationassociation371.

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TheGRFVSareaislesssignificantforitsrepresentationofBeardvegetationassociation35.Thisvegetationtypeoriginallyoccupied7.16%oftheGRFVSarea;however,only1.58%ofWA’stotalextentofthisvegetationtypeoriginallyoccurredintheGRFVSarea.TheGRFVSareanowcontains2.82%ofWA’stotalremainingextentofthisvegetationtype.

Regionally significant – vulnerable

Beard vegetation association 359(Shrublands;AcaciaandBanksiascrub)andBeard vegetation association 675(Shrublands;MelaleucaandHakeamixedthicket)havemorethan10%butlessthan30%oftheirpre-EuropeanextentsremaininginWA.AccordingtothecriteriaestablishedbytheCommonwealthgovernmentandadoptedinstatepolicy,thesevegetationtypeshavebeenclearedbelowthethresholdatwhichspecieslossappearstoaccelerateexponentiallyattheecosystemlevel.Furthermore,thesevegetationtypesareinadequatelyreservedinWA,withonly0.003%ofthecurrentextentofBeardvegetationassociation359and0.006%ofthecurrentextentofBeardvegetationassociation675withinIUCNI-IVreserves.

WithintheGRFVSarea,Beardvegetationassociation675haslessthan10%(240ha,equivalentto7.62%)ofitspre-Europeanextentremaining,with79.42hainIUCNI-IVreserves(OakajeeandWokatherraNatureReserves).Beardvegetationassociation359hasmorethan10%butlessthan30%(3077ha,equivalentto17.28%)ofthepre-EuropeanextentremainingintheGRFVSarea,with1.41hawithinIUCNI-IVreserves(WokatherraNatureReserve).

Beardvegetationassociation359originallyoccupiedalmosthalf(43.71%)oftheGRFVSarea,andwasthereforethemainvegetationtypeoccurringinthearea.Originally,overone-third(40.02%)ofWA’stotalextentofBeardvegetationassociation359waslocatedwithintheGRFVSarea,whichhighlightsthesignificanceoftheareaforrepresentationofthisvegetationtype.TheGRFVSareanowcontains36.78%ofthetotalremainingWAextentofBeardvegetationassociation359,whichalsohighlightstheimportanceoftheareaforconservationofthisvegetationtype.

TheGRFVSareaisnotsosignificantforrepresentationofBeardvegetationassociation675.Thisvegetationtypeoriginallyoccupied7.73%oftheGRFVSarea,howeveronly6.07%ofWA’stotalextentofthisvegetationtypeoriginallyoccurredintheGRFVSarea.TheGRFVSareanowcontains2.18%ofWA’stotalremainingextentofthisvegetationtype.Beardvegetationassociation675isalsoconsideredtobesynonymouswiththeP1priorityecologicalcommunity‘PlantassemblagesoftheMoresbyRange’(DEC2009b).

Locally significant

Beard vegetation associations 129(Bareareas;driftsand),387(Shrublands;Melaleuca cardiophyllathicket),413 (Shrublands;Acacia neurophyllathicket),431(Shrublands;Acacia rostelliferaopenscrub),and440

(Shrublands;Acacia ligulataopenscrub)havemorethan30%ofthepre-EuropeanextentofnativevegetationremaininginWA.Mostofthesevegetationtypesareinadequatelyreserved,asBeardvegetationassociation387has2.643%,413has0.701%,431has0.773%,440has4.806%,and129has0.049%ofthecurrentextentofnativevegetationwithinIUCNI-IVreserves.

Intermsofnationalandstatepolicycriteriaforrepresentation,thesevegetationtypesarenotconsideredtobehighconservationprioritiesforWA.However,theextenttowhichtheyhavebeenclearedalsoneedstobeconsideredatthelocallevel.WithintheGRFVSarea,Beardvegetationassociation387haslessthan10%(1.6ha,equivalentto1.37%)ofthepre-Europeanextentremaining,withnonewithinIUCNI-IVreserves.Beardvegetationassociation413hasmorethan10%butlessthan30%(316ha,equivalentto18.61%)ofthepre-Europeanextentremaining,andnonewithinIUCNI-IVreservesintheGRFVSarea.

Beardvegetationassociations129,431and440havemorethan30%ofthepre-Europeanextentremaining,bothinWAandtheGRFVSarea;however,noneiswithinIUCNI-IVreservesintheGRFVSarea.Intermsofnationalandstatepolicycriteria,thesevegetationtypes,mappedattheBeardvegetationassociationscale,arenotconsideredtobehighconservationpriorities.However,theGRFVSplantcommunitiesmappedatafinerscaleintheseBeardassociationsmaybeconsideredtohavehighconservationsignificance.TheGRFVSplantcommunities,includingtheirrelationship(spatialandfloristic)toBeardvegetationassociations,arediscussedinsection4.3.

Originally,theGRFVSareawasoccupiedby2.49%ofBeardvegetationassociations129,0.29%of387,4.17%of413,1.71%of431,and3.76%of440.AlthoughnoneofthesevegetationtypeswereoriginallywidespreadintheGRFVSarea,theareaisconsideredsignificantintermsofthestate’srepresentationofBeardvegetationassociations413and440.Originally,almosthalf(48.88%)ofWA’stotalextentofBeardvegetationassociation413waslocatedintheGRFVSarea,andnow19.51%ofthetotalremainingWAextentofthisvegetationtypeiscontainedintheGRFVSarea.Similarly,overone-third(36.37%)ofWA’stotalextentofBeardvegetationassociation440waslocatedintheGRFVSarea,andnow34.77%ofthetotalremainingWAextentofthisvegetationtypeiscontainedintheGRFVSarea.

TheGRFVSareaisnotconsideredtobesignificantintermsofthestate’srepresentationofBeardvegetationassociations129,387and431.Originally,1.07%ofWA’stotalextentofBeardvegetationassociation129,0.79%of387,and11.51%of431occurredintheGRFVSarea.TheGRFVSareanowcontains0.67%ofWA’stotalremainingextentofBeardvegetationassociation129,0.01%of387,and8.23%of431.

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4.3 Identifying and describing GRFVS plant communities

TheGRFVSdoesnotaimtoreplacetheBeardvegetationassociationmapping,butprovidesmoredetailaboutthevegetationoftheGRFVSareatopermitreasonableplanningdecisionstobemade.Tothisend,anewsetofsupplementalplantcommunities(theGRFVSplantcommunities)havebeendevelopedusingcollectedfloristicquadratdata,statisticalanalysisandinterpretation.Thesehavebeendescribedearlierinthisreport,andwillbediscussedinfurtherdetailinsection4.4.

4.3.1 Determining GRFVS plant communities

DeterminingGRFVSplantcommunitieswasamulti-stageprocess,thatbeganwithdesktopinterpretationofexistingmapping(Beardvegetationassociationsandsoilmapping),andcontinuedwithfieldverificationofthevalidityofthevegetationtypesandthemappingboundaries.

Desktop and field survey

Itwasapparentthatthescale,and,attimesthemappedboundariesoftheBeardvegetationassociationdata,wasinsufficienttodescribethevegetationoftheGRFVSarea.Thiswasparticularlythecaseinrelationtoimportantbutsmallscalevegetationtypesincludingriparianandforeduneareas,limestonecommunities,andvariationinvegetationstructure.

ThenextstageindeterminingGRFVSplantcommunitieswastoundertakeafloristicsurvey,recordingallspecieswithin10mx10mfloristicquadrats,vegetationcommunitydescriptionsandenvironmentalattributesofthequadratlocations.

Statist ical analysis and interpretation

Althoughsomeplantspeciescouldnotbedeterminedtospecieslevel,mostlybecauseoftheabsenceofdiagnosticreproductivematerial,PATN©statisticalanalysiswasundertakentogroupthefloristicquadratsintofloristicgroups.Broadly,theresultinghierarchyrepresentedtheplantcommunitiesoftheGRFVSarea;however,somefloristicgroupsrequiredinterpretation,andrearrangement,torepresenttheobservedon-groundplantcommunities.Havingrecognisableon-groundplantcommunitiesisvitalbecausetheobjectivesfortheprojectincludedproductionofmappableplantcommunitiesthatadequatelydescribethevegetationoftheGRFVSarea,toenablesoundenvironmentalplanningincludingrecognisingsignificantplantcommunities.

FollowingdiscussionwiththeGRFVSprojectsteeringcommittee,the15floristicgroupsidentifiedusingthestatisticalanalysishavebeeninterpretedandmodifiedtoform17GRFVSplantcommunities,detailedinvarioussectionsofthisreportanddescribedinappendix8.AnadditionalgroupfromtheMoresbyRange(Wokatherra

Gap)wasseparatedbystatisticalanalysis.Asdiscussedinsection2.3thisquadratwasnotwithintheGRFVSarea,thereforeithasnotbeenexaminedfurtherinthisreport.

4.3.2 Relevance of GRFVS plant communities

TheGRFVSplantcommunitiesareonlyapplicabletotheGRFVSprojectarea.TheGRFVSplantcommunitiesmayalsoberelevanttoareasoutsidetheGRFVSarea;however,carewouldberequiredwithcommunityinterpretationandextrapolation,particularlyinrelationtorarityandcommonalityofvariouscommunities.

AdoptionoftheGRFVSplantcommunitiesbytheDEC,EPA,otherstateauthoritiesandlocalgovernmentswillnotreplacetherequirementfordetailedsite-specificfloraandvegetationsurveys,includingthoserequiredforenvironmentalimpactassessments,clearingpermitsorrezoningapplications.

4.3.3 GRFVS plant community mapping

Allplantcommunitieswererecognisableason-groundvegetationunits;however,someoftheserequireinterpretationandtherearesomepotentialmappingissues,detailedinsection2.7.2,andshownintable9.

4.3.4 Dif f iculties with recognising plant communities

Themajorityoftheplantcommunitiesdeterminedfromthisprojectwereallrecognisableinthefield,andcouldbeimmediatelyidentifiedwithoutconfusion.Theexceptionswhichrequiredinterpretationwere:

• AnareaofMelaleuca huegelii / Acacia rostelliferashrublandnearGlendinningRoad,TarcoolaBeach(mappedbyATAEnvironmental2008),whichwasdeterminedinthefieldtobemostsimilartoplantcommunity8CoastalAcacia rostelliferalowshrubland,basedonthepresenceofunderstoreyspecies.Afloristicquadratwasnotestablishedinthisarea;however,thissitewasvisitedduringthecommunitymappingsurveyandnineperennialandsixidentifiableannual(weed)specieswererecorded.PATN©analysis,usingspeciesidentifiedfromanapproximate10mx10marea,indicatedthatthiscommunitywasfloristicallymostsimilartoplantcommunity8.Theplantcommunitydescriptionhasbeenbroadenedtoincludethisvariant.

• AreasoflowheathatKarlooandUtakarradominatedbyMelaleucaspp.recordedbyEcoscape(2007).Theseinitiallyappearedtobeanewcommunitybutoncloserexaminationweredeterminedtobepartofplantcommunity13(Sandplain:Banksia prionotes / Acacia rostellifera)asthespeciespresentconstitutedtheunderstoreyspeciesofthisplantcommunity.Itislikelythattheshallowsoilofthisarea,whichincludedlimestoneoutcropping,limitedthepresenceofthe

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GRFVS plant community Discrete or merging: boundary accuracy Other potential mapping issues

1 Estuarine: Casuarina obesa / Tecticornia / Sarcocornia (Co/Te/Sa)

Discrete;boundaryaccuracyc.20m

Oftenoccupiesareasnotincludedin‘vegetationextent’mapping;potentialforsalineareasthatarenotestuarinetobethisplantcommunity

2 Riparian: Eucalyptus camaldulensis / Casuarina obesa / Melaleuca rhaphiophylla (Ec/Co/Mr)


FringeorpocketsofAcacia rostelliferavegetationcommonbutusuallytoonarrowtobemappedseparately

3 Foredune: Atriplex isatidea / Spinifex longifolius (Ati/Spl)

Mergeswithplantcommunity8:boundaryaccuracy20-50m

Oftenoccupiesareasnotincludedwithin‘vegetationextent’mapping

4 Swale: Ficinia nodosa (Fin) Discrete;boundaryaccuracyc.20m

MostoccurrencesofFicinia nodosahavelessthan2%groundcoverandcannotbemappedasacommunity

5 Swale: Frankenia pauciflora (Frp)


6 Coastal: Thryptomene baeckeacea (Thb)


7 Coastal: Melaleuca cardiophylla (cMc)

Discrete;boundaryaccuracyc.20m Mosaiccommunity(usuallywithcommunity10).

8 Coastal: Acacia rostellifera low shrubland (cAr)

Mergeswithplantcommunities3and10;boundaryaccuracy20-50m

Broadboundarywithplantcommunity10;uncommonvariantdominatedbyMelaleuca huegelii

9 Coastal: Acacia rostellifera / Eucalyptus spp. (Ar/Espp)


Dominantmallee(E. oraria)hassamefoliagecolourasA. rostellifera,andmaybedifficulttodifferentiatefromadistance;afewisolatedmalleesmayoccurinadjacentareas

10 Near Coastal: Acacia rostellifera shrubland (ncAr)


Broadboundarywithplantcommunity8;variantcommunityco-dominatedbyAlyxia buxifoliaandPittosporum ligustrifoliumnearGreenoughRiver;plantcommunity10isoftenaresultofdisturbancebutsomeelementsofpreviouscommunityremainingmaymakeinterpretationdifficult

11 Limestone ridge: Melaleuca cardiophylla / Eucalyptus spp. (Mc/Espp)


Althoughthesecommunitiesarestructurallydistinct,thescaleofplantcommunity11maymakethesecommunitiesdifficulttomapasseparateunits;isolatedmalleeswithinplantcommunity12shouldnotbeinterpretedasplantcommunity11

12 Limestone ridge: Melaleuca cardiophylla (rMc)

Discrete;boundaryaccuracyc20m

13 Sandplain: Banksia prionotes / Acacia rostellifera (Bp/Ar)

Mergeswithplantcommunity14inChapmanRiverReserve:boundaryaccuracyc20m

UncommoncommunityvariantsincludelowheathandAllocasuarina huegelianawoodland;degradationofthiscommunityleadstoitbecomingplantcommunity10

14 Chapman River Reserve: Acacia rostellifera / Melaleuca spp. (Ar/Mspp)

Mergeswithplantcommunity13;boundaryaccuracyc20m

Unabletoaccuratelymapextentduetorecentfirepriortosurvey

15 Thicket: Melaleuca spp / mixed spp. (Mspp/mx)


Degradedexamplesofthiscommunitybecomeplantcommunity16,butmaybedifficulttointerpretbetweenthesecommunities

16 Woodland: Acacia acuminata / A. tetragonophylla / Hakea preissii (Aa/At/Hp)


LessdegradedexamplesincludeAcacia acuminatabutmoredegradedexamplesarealmostentirelyAcacia tetragonophyllaormorecommonlyHakea preissii

17 Woodland: Eucalyptus loxophleba (El)


Table 9: Anticipated potential mapping issues

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overstoreyspeciesandrestrictedthedevelopmentofallspeciestoformalowheathcommunityratherthanatallershrubland.

• SmallareasdominatedbyMelaleuca lanceolata.AnecdotalandhistoricalrecordsindicateaM. lanceolatadominatedcommunityoccurredwithintheGRFVSarea,neartheroadtotheGreenoughRivermouth(O’Connor2001),andnearthemouthoftheChapmanRiver(JennaBrooker,pers.comm.).Fourareaswereidentifiedwherethiscommunityhadpreviouslyexisted;however,onlysmallareasdissectedbyroadsremained(twowerealongBrandHighwaybetweenDevlinPoolRoadandGreenoughRiverRoad,andatPointMooreandCathedralAvenue,illustratedinfigure3).Nonewereofsufficientsizetomapasseparatecommunitiesandhavebeenincludedintheadjacentplantcommunitydescriptionsinappendix8.AfewindividualM. lanceolatawerealsolocatedintheChapmanRiverReserveadjacenttotheSpaldingParkplayingfields;however,theirscatterednatureindicatedthatthesewereunlikelytohaveformedacommunityinthepast.

• Areasofdisturbance,wheresomeelementsofthepreviouscommunityremainedbuthadlargelybeenreplacedbyAcacia rostellifera.Thiswasmostapparentonyellowsandplainsoils,whereoccasional

Banksia prionotesorothertypicalsandplainspeciesoccurredsparselywithinotherwisedegradedareas.Inthiscase,whereherbaceousspeciesnolongeroccurredorweresparselydistributedwithinthecommunity(exceptAcanthocarpus preissii,Austrostipa elegantissima, Pimelea microcephala, Rhagodia spp.andStylobasium spathulatum),thecommunitywasassessedasbeingplantcommunity10(NearCoastal:Acacia rostelliferashrubland).Thedescriptionofthiscommunityincludesreferencetoitsoftendisturbednature.

• AreasclosetotheGreenoughRiverdominatedbyAcacia rostellifera, Alyxia buxifolia and Pittosporum ligustrifoliumhavebeenassessedasbeingassociatedwithplantcommunity10(NearCoastal:Acacia rostelliferashrubland).

• ChapmanRiverReservewherearecentfireontheeasternsideoftheparkmadethedeterminationoftheplantcommunity14(ChapmanRiverReserve:Acacia rostellifera / Melaleucaspp.)boundarydifficulttointerpret.Itispossiblethatthiscommunityoccupiesalargerareathanismapped.

• WithinOakajeeNatureReserve,adjacenttothesouthernedge,isapatchofsamphire.Analysisofthisareadeterminedittobeavariantofplantcommunity

Figure 3: Areas dominated by Melaleuca lanceolata that are too small to be mapped as a plant community

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1(Estuarine:Casuarina obesa / Tecticornia / Sarcocornia).ThisareawithinOakajeeNatureReservedoesnotmatchthe‘estuarine’descriptionofplantcommunity1;however,itformsaverysmallproportionofthiscommunity.Asthemajorityoftheoccurrencesforthisplantcommunityarewellsuitedtothedescriptivenameof‘estuarine’,thedecisionwasmadenottochangethecommunityname.Hadsimilarareasoccurredmorefrequentlywithinthisplantcommunity,itwouldhavenecessitatedanamechangeto‘saltmarsh’.

4.3.5 Historical plant communities

Plantcommunitiesthatwereknownfromhistoricalrecords,thatweresearchedforandnotfound,were:

• Verticordia chrysantharecordedfromChapmanRiverReserve(McCotterandEcoscape1993).Althoughthisplantcommunitywasnotfoundandispresumedtonolongerexistinthepark,itisassumedtohavebeenaformervariantwithinplantcommunity13(Sandplain:Banksia prionotes / Acacia rostellifera)andisnotedinthedescriptioninappendix8.Astheareaofitsformerlyreportedoccurrencehadbeenrecentlyburnt,itisalsopossiblethatitmayhavebeenavariantwithinplantcommunity14(ChapmanRiverReserve:Acacia rostellifera / Melaleucaspp.);however,thiscouldnotbedetermined.

• Themeda triandragrasslandswerepreviouslyrecordedfromtheGreenoughAlluvialFlats(O’Connor2001),ofwhichasmallareaisincludedintheGRFVSarea.Itispossiblethatthiscommunitymaystillexistintheareabutmaynothavebeenmappedasnativevegetation.IfitdoesoccurwithintheGRFVSarea,itwouldbeadiscreteplantcommunityandwouldrequireacommunitydescriptiontobedeveloped.

• Yorkgum(Eucalyptus loxophleba)woodlandwithAcacia rostelliferaandThemeda triandraunderstorey,formerlyknownfromtheGreenoughAlluvialFlats.O’Connor(2001)suggestedthatthiscommunityhasprobablybeencompletelycleared.Althoughthedescriptionofthiscommunitydoesnotcompletelymatchthatofacritically endangeredthreatenedecologicalcommunityfromtheGreenoughRiverFlats(42:Acacia rostelliferalowforestwithscatteredEucalyptus camaldulensisonGreenoughAlluvialFlats),thereisadegreeofsimilaritytothedescriptionofthe‘backflats’thatindicatethattheYorkGumwoodlandisincluded.ThiscommunityhasbeennominatedforachangeinconservationstatustoPresumed Totally Destroyed(CatherinePage,DECpers. comm.)asallpreviouslyknownoccurrencesarecompletelydegraded.ThischangeinstatusiscurrentlyawaitingendorsementfromtheWesternAustralianMinisterfortheEnvironment.

Despiteattemptstosurveythecompleterangeofvegetation,thereisthepotentialthatotherdiscreteplantcommunitiesmayalsooccurwithintheGRFVSarea.

4.4 GRFVS plant communities

ThissectiondiscusseseachGRFVSplantcommunityintermsofitsoccurrenceintheGRFVSarea,spatialandfloristicrelationshiptoBeardvegetationassociations,conservationsignificance(rarity,representation,diversity,andpresenceofwetland,streamline/estuarinefringingorcoastalvegetation),andvegetationconditionandthreats.

4.4.1 Plant community 1 Estuarine: Casuarina obesa / Tecticornia / Sarcocornia

Description and occurrence

Plantcommunity1isdominatedbyCasuarinaobesaandsamphire,andoccursinestuarineareasonwetsalinealluvialsoilatrivermouthsandalongsalineriveredgesclosetothecoast.Plantcommunity1ismostextensiveatthemouthofChapmanRiverandRuddsGullynearDevlinPool.ItalsooccursalongtheedgeofGreenoughRiverneartherivermouth,andinsmallareasnearthemouthsofotherrivers.Plantcommunity1isconsideredtobeequivalenttovegetationunit6‘riverfringe’definedthroughtheSWALEprojectfortheareasouthofGreenoughRiver(Tauss2002).

Relationship to Beard vegetation associations

Plantcommunity1islocatedinpartsofBeardvegetationassociations371and431withintheGRFVSarea.Floristically,plantcommunity1doesnotcorrespondtoanyparticularBeardvegetationassociation,duetotheplantcommunitybeingrestrictedtoestuarineareaswhicharepresentatafinerscalethanBeardvegetationassociationsweremapped.

Rarity

Plantcommunity1occupies33.22haor0.54%ofthenativevegetationoftheGRFVSarea,andisoneofthemostrestrictedGRFVSplantcommunities.

Representation

Noneofthemappedextentofplantcommunity1occurswithinIUCNI-IVreservesintheGRFVSarea.InformationisnotavailabletodeterminethedistributionofthisplantcommunityoutsidetheGRFVSarea.

Diversity

Plantcommunity1wasidentifiedfromtwoquadratsintheGRFVSarea(GRV0859and60),whereuptoeightnativespecieswererecorded.Avariantofplantcommunity1occursonOakajeeNatureReserve,andwouldbedescribedas‘saltmarsh’ratherthanestuarine.AnarrowareaofMelaleucalanceolataoccursupslopeofplantcommunity1alongBrandHighway,RuddsGully.

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Wetland, streamline/estuarine fringing or coastal vegetation

Plantcommunity1containsestuarinefringingvegetation.

Vegetation condit ion and threats

Plantcommunity1isnotthreatenedbyclearing,grazingorweedinvasion.However,itmaybethreatenedbyhydrologicalchange,includingchangesinsalinity,watertableriseandchangesinriverflows.

4.4.2 Plant community 2 Riparian: Eucalyptus camaldulensis / Casuarina obesa / Melaleuca rhaphiophylla


Plantcommunity2isdominatedbyEucalyptus camaldulensissubsp.obtusa, Casuarina obesaandMelaleuca rhaphiophylla,andoccursinriparianareasalongdrainagelinesuntilmergingwithanestuarineplantcommunity(plantcommunity1).Plantcommunity2occursalongallriversandstreamsintheGRFVSarea,andincludestheareainformallyknownas‘RumJungle’.Eucalyptus camaldulensis andCasuarina obesa occuralongthelengthoftherivers,whereasMelaleuca rhaphiophyllaonlyoccursinthefresherandwetterreachesoftherivers.Acacia rostelliferaoftenoccursatthetopofriverbanks,orinraisedareaswithinthedrainagelinesassociatedwiththisplantcommunity.Salineareasofplantcommunity2aresimilartoplantcommunity1.


WithintheGRFVSarea,plantcommunity2traversesBeardvegetationassociations35,359,371,413and675.Floristically,plantcommunity2doesnotcorrespondtoanyBeardvegetationassociationwithintheGRFVSarea,duetotheplantcommunitybeingrestrictedtoriparianareaswhicharepresentatafinerscalethanBeardvegetationassociationsweremapped.

Rarity

Plantcommunity2occupies388.36haor6.3%ofthenativevegetationoftheGRFVSarea.

Representation

Noneofthemappedextentofplantcommunity2occurswithinIUCNI-IVreservesintheGRFVSarea,butitoccursinChapmanRiverReserve.InformationisnotavailabletodeterminethedistributionofthisplantcommunityoutsidetheGRFVSarea.

Diversity

Plantcommunity2wasidentifiedfrom10quadratsintheGRFVSarea(GRV0806,07,08,09,15,24,45,71,72and80),wherearangeof3-11nativespecieswererecorded.


Plantcommunity2containsstreamlinefringingvegetation.


WithintheGRFVSarea,thisplantcommunityislargelyindegradedorgoodcondition,usuallyasaresultofweedinvasionandgrazing.Itisanticipatedthattheconditionwouldbesimilarthroughmuchofthepotentialrangeoftheplantcommunityasmuchoftheareaiswithintheagriculturalzone.ThemainthreatstothisplantcommunitywithintheGRFVSareaaregrazing,weedinvasion,stocktrampling,fire,clearingandincreasingsalinity,anditislikelythatthesethreatsarecommonthroughoutthepotentialareainwhichthisplantcommunitymayoccur.Althoughmostrepresentativesofthisplantcommunityaredegraded(weedyandoftengrazed),theplantcommunityisimportanttomaintainecologicalfunctionandlinkagesinthelandscape.

4.4.3 Plant community 3 Foredune: Atriplex isatidea / Spinifex longifolius


Plantcommunity3isdominatedbyAtriplex isatideaandSpinifex longifolius,andoccursonforedunesalongthecoast.Atriplex isatideaisonlyfoundonforedunes,whereasotherspeciesinthisplantcommunityalsooccurinthelowcoastalshrubland(plantcommunity8)behindtheprimarydunes.Plantcommunity3isconsideredtobeequivalenttovegetationunit1‘foredune’definedthroughtheSWALEprojectfortheareasouthofGreenoughRiver(Tauss2002).


WithintheGRFVSarea,plantcommunity3islocatedwithinpartsofBeardvegetationassociations129,371,431and440(iethecoastalvegetationtypes).Floristically,plantcommunity3doesnotspecificallycorrespondtoanyoftheseBeardvegetationassociations,butisincludedinthebroaderdescriptionsusedbyBeard(1976a).Theplantcommunityisrestrictedtoforeduneareas,whicharepresentatafinerscalethanBeardvegetationassociationsweremapped.

Rarity

Plantcommunity3occupies96.52haor1.57%ofthenativevegetationoftheGRFVSarea;however,itislikelytobemorewidespreadasitoccupiesareasnotincludedinnativevegetationextentmapping.

Representation


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Diversity

Plantcommunity3wasidentifiedfromtwoquadratsintheGRFVSarea(GRV0804and26),whereuptofivenativespecieswererecorded.


Plantcommunity3containscoastalvegetation.


Plantcommunity3iswidespreadalongthecoast.However,mostoccurrencesarethreatenedbyurbandevelopment,stormerosion,andtheimpactsofrecreationalvehicleusealongbeaches.

4.4.4 Plant community 4 Swale: Ficinia nodosa


Plantcommunity4isdominatedbyFicinia nodosa,andoccursinasmallpocketinthedeflationbasinswalebehindanadvancingdunefield.TheonlyoccurrenceofthisplantcommunityissouthoftheOakajeeRivermouth,althoughasaspeciesFicinia nodosaissparselyscatteredthroughouttheshallowsandareasbehindadvancingdunesbetweenDrummondsCoveandtheOakajeeRiver.


WithintheGRFVSarea,plantcommunity4islocatedwithinBeardvegetationassociation129.Floristically,plantcommunity4doesnotspecificallycorrespondtothisBeardvegetationassociation,butisincludedinthebroaderdescriptionusedbyBeard(1976a).TheplantcommunityhasalocalisedoccurrencepresentatafinerscalethanBeardvegetationassociationsweremapped.

Rarity

Plantcommunity4occupies0.58haor0.01%ofthenativevegetationoftheGRFVSarea,andisthemostrestrictedofalltheGRFVSplantcommunities.Whileitispossiblethatthisisasuccessionalstage,andnotalong-livedcommunity,itisrareasacommunity(althoughnotrareasaspecies)intheGRFVSarea.Despiteintensivesearchesduringthefieldsurveys,onlyoneexampleofthisplantcommunitywaslocated.IthasbeenobservedasaplantcommunityelsewhereinWesternAustraliabythesurveyor,mostnotablynearPortGregory,buthasnotbeencommonlyobservedinanyareanorcoveringanygreatextent.Furthersurveyswouldberequiredtodetermineitsregionalandstatewidesignificance.

Representation


Diversity

Plantcommunity4wasidentifiedfromonequadrat(GRV0814)wherefournativespecieswererecorded.




IntheGRFVSarea,plantcommunity4isprimarilythreatenedbydegradationfromrecreationalvehicleuseandpotentiallybyclearingfortheOakajeePortandRaildevelopment.ElsewhereinWesternAustraliathemainthreatsarelikelytobehydrologicalchangeasthecommunityisoftenassociatedwithdampareas,includingdeeperduneswales.

4.4.5 Plant community 5 Swale: Frankenia pauciflora


Plantcommunity5isdominatedbyFrankenia paucifloraandoccursinasinglepeat-soilswaleinthecoastaldunesoftheBullerlocality.


WithintheGRFVSarea,plantcommunity5islocatedwithinBeardvegetationassociation359.Floristically,plantcommunity5doesnotcorrespondtoanyparticularBeardvegetationassociationwithintheGRFVSarea,duetotheplantcommunityhavingalocalisedoccurrencepresentatafinerscalethanBeardvegetationassociationsweremapped.

Rarity

Plantcommunity5occupies4.78haor0.08%ofthenativevegetationoftheGRFVSarea,andisthesecondmostrestrictedGRFVSplantcommunity.ElsewhereinWesternAustraliathiscommunityisassociatedwithareasclosetosaltlakesorneartheshore.TheGRFVSoccurrenceappearstobeuniqueinitsassociationwithapeat-soilduneswaleratherthansaltlakeorcoastalareas;however,furthersurveyswouldberequiredtodetermineitsregionalandstatewidesignificance.

Representation


Diversity

Plantcommunity5wasidentifiedfromtwoquadratsintheGRFVSarea(GRV0818and58),whereuptosevennativespecieswererecorded.

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WithintheGRFVSarea,thelandoccupiedbythisplantcommunityisprivatelyowned,withmultipleowners,andisthreatenedbygrazingandtrampling(bydomesticandferalanimals),rubbishdumping,vehicleuse,andperhapsbywateruseandincreasingsalinity.FuturethreatsincludelanddevelopmentintheBullerLocality.OutsidetheGRFVSarea,thisplantcommunityislikelytobesimilarlythreatened,withhydrologicalchange(increasingwatertableandhighersalinity)beingthemostseriousthreat.

4.4.6 Plant community 6 Coastal: Thryptomene baeckeacea


Plantcommunity6isdominatedbyThryptomene baeckeacea andoccursinaportionofthecoastaldunessouthofGreenoughRiver.Floristically,plantcommunity6issimilartoplantcommunities7and8,whichoccurnearby.Plantcommunity6isconsideredtobeequivalenttovegetationunit4‘Thryptomene baeckeaceaclosedheath’definedthroughtheSWALEprojectfortheareasouthofGreenoughRiver(Tauss2002).


WithintheGRFVSarea,plantcommunity6islocatedwithinBeardvegetationassociation431.Floristically,plantcommunity6doesnotspecificallycorrespondtothisBeardvegetationassociation,butitisincludedinthebroaderdescriptionusedbyBeard(1976a).TheplantcommunityhasalocalisedoccurrencepresentatafinerscalethanBeardvegetationassociationsweremapped.

Rarity

Plantcommunity6occupies11.08haor0.18%ofthenativevegetationoftheGRFVSarea,andisthethirdmostrestrictedGRFVSplantcommunity.ThereisonlyonerepresentativeofthisplantcommunityintheGRFVSarea,whichindicateslocalconservationsignificance.Furthersurveyisrequiredtodetermineitsregionalandstatewidesignificance.

WhilstthisplantcommunityisnotdirectlycomparabletoanyBeardvegetationassociations,Beard(1976a)describedandphotographedsimilarareasinEdelLandthatappeartocorrespondwithBeardvegetationassociation1100(Hummockgrassland;dwarfshrubsteppe;mixedericoidshrubsandspinifex).SuchareashavebeenobservedonPeronPeninsulabytheassessor.

Representation


Diversity

Plantcommunity6wasidentifiedfromonequadrat(GRV0849)where13nativespecieswererecorded.Theplantcommunitywasobservedtoreachgreaterheightinprotectedswalesthanonexposeddunes.


Plantcommunity6maybethreatenedbyfuturedevelopment(clearing),andbyrecreationalvehicleuseintheGRFVSarea.



4.4.7 Plant community 7 Coastal: Melaleuca cardiophylla


Plantcommunity7isdominatedbyMelaleuca cardiophylla,andoccurssouthoftheGreenoughRiveronshallowcoastalsandswithlittleornoexposedlimestone,usuallyinamosaicassociatedwithplantcommunities8and10.Floristically,plantcommunity7issimilartoplantcommunities6and8.Plantcommunity7isconsideredtobeequivalenttovegetationunit8‘closedscrubMelaleuca cardiophylla’definedthroughtheSWALEprojectfortheareasouthofGreenoughRiver(Tauss2002).


WithintheGRFVSarea,plantcommunity7islocatedwithinBeardvegetationassociation431.Floristically,plantcommunity7doesnotspecificallycorrespondtothisBeardvegetationassociation,butitisincludedinthebroaderdescriptionusedbyBeard(1976a).TheplantcommunityhasalocalisedoccurrencepresentatafinerscalethanBeardvegetationassociationsweremapped.

Rarity


Representation


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Diversity

Plantcommunity7wasrecordedfromonequadratintheGRFVSarea(GRV0847)where15nativespecieswererecorded.


Plantcommunity7doesnotcontaintypicalwetland,streamlineorestuarinefringingorcoastalvegetation.


Plantcommunity7maybethreatenedbyfuturedevelopment(clearing),andiscurrentlythreatenedbyweedinvasion,grazingbyferalanimals,fireandrecreationalvehicleuse.

4.4.8 Plant community 8 Coastal: Acacia rostellifera low shrubland


Plantcommunity8isdominatedbyAcacia rostelliferaandoccursalongtheentirecoastlineoftheGRFVSarea.Theplantcommunityoccursclosetothecoast,frombehindtheforedunestovariousdistancesinlandbutgenerallyonprimarydunes.Floristically,thisplantcommunityissimilartoothercoastalandnearcoastalGRFVSplantcommunities,andcanbedifferentiatedbythegenerallylowstature(<2mhigh)ofthedominantspecies(Acacia rostellifera)andthefrequentoccurrenceofMyoporum insulare, Olearia axillaris, Carpobrotus virescens, Scaevola crassifoliaandSpinifex longifolius,whicharegenerallynotfoundfurtherinland.Inareaswithoutthepresenceofthesecharacteristicspecies,thevegetationismorelikelytobeplantcommunity10.Plantcommunity8isconsideredtobeequivalenttovegetationunit2‘closedheathtoscrubonseawardslopes’definedthroughtheSWALEprojectfortheareasouthofGreenoughRiver(Tauss2002).


WithintheGRFVSarea,plantcommunity8islocatedwithinBeardvegetationassociations129,371,431and440(iethecoastalvegetationtypes).Floristically,plantcommunity8doesnotcorrespondtoanyoftheseBeardvegetationassociationsinparticular,butisincludedinthebroaderdescriptionsusedbyBeard(1976a).

Rarity


Representation

Noneofthemappedextentofplantcommunity8occurswithinIUCNI-IVreservesintheGRFVSarea.ItiswidespreadoutsidetheGRFVSarea,andisnotdissimilartothevegetationfoundontheequivalentlandformatleastasfarsouthasPerth,butisnotdirectlycomparablewith

anyoneorsmallgroupofBeardvegetationassociations.ThereforethereisnoinformationavailableinrelationtopreviousorcurrentextentofAcacia rostelliferalowshrubland.

Diversity

Plantcommunity8wasrecordedfromsixquadratsintheGRFVSarea(GRV0801,03,05,16,46and50),wherearangeof5-14nativespecieswererecorded.Avariantofthiscommunity,dominatedbyMelaleuca huegelii,occursnearthesouthernendofTarcoolaBeach.AnothervariantwithinthisplantcommunityincludessmallareasofMelaleuca lanceolata.




Plantcommunity8isthreatenedbyfuturedevelopment(clearingforhousing)asitoccursclosetothecoast.Otherthreatsincludeweedinvasion,grazing,fireandrecreationalvehicleuse,withhigherpotentialforthreateningprocesstooccurinareasclosertohumanhabitation.

4.4.9 Plant community 9 Coastal: Acacia rostellifera / Eucalyptus spp.


Plantcommunity9isdominatedbyAcacia rostelliferaandEucalyptus orariaandE. obtusiflora,andoccursoncoastalsand.Floristically,plantcommunity9issimilartootherAcacia rostelliferacommunities,butisdifferentiatedonstructure,beingdominatedbymalleeeucalypts.Plantcommunity9wasobservedbetweenTarcoolaBeachandGreenoughRiver,whereitisrestrictedtotwosmallareas.


WithintheGRFVSarea,plantcommunity9islocatedwithinBeardvegetationassociations371and431.Floristically,plantcommunity9doesnotcorrespondtoanyparticularBeardvegetationassociationwithintheGRFVSarea,duetotheplantcommunityhavinglocalisedoccurrencespresentatafinerscalethanBeardvegetationassociationsweremapped.

Rarity

Plantcommunity9occupies12.47haor0.2%ofthenativevegetationoftheGRFVSarea,andisthefourthmostrestrictedGRFVSplantcommunity.Despiteextensivesurvey,thisplantcommunityhasonlybeenfoundinonepartoftheGRFVSarea,betweenTarcoolaBeachandGreenoughRiver.Thetwomalleespeciesinthisplantcommunity(Eucalyptus obtusifloraandE. oraria)aresparselydistributedthroughthevegetationsurroundingthemostsouthernoccurrence,butwerenotobserved

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elsewhereinthecoastalarea.Therearenootherreportedobservationsofvegetationmatchingthisdescriptionfromnearbycoastalareas.Theplantcommunityisunlikelytobeabundantintheregion,andmaybeunique.However,amorewidespreadsurveywouldberequiredtoconfirmthis.

Eucalyptus oraria,whichisoneofthemalleespeciesassociatedwithplantcommunity9,isadefinitivespeciesinBeardvegetationassociation1107(Openlowwoodland;Eucalyptus oraria)intheSharkBayarea.

Representation

Noneofthemappedextentofplantcommunity9occurswithinIUCNI-IVreservesintheGRFVSarea.AsthisplantcommunitydoesnotcorrespondwithanyBeardvegetationassociations,thereisnoinformationinrelationtothisplantcommunity’sdistributionoutsidetheGRFVSarea.

Diversity

Plantcommunity9wasrecordedfromonequadratintheGRFVSarea(GRV0828)where11nativespecieswererecorded.




Thecurrentthreatsareclearing,fire,weedinvasion,rubbishdumpingandrecreationalvehicleuse.

4.4.10 Plant community 10 Near Coastal: Acacia rostellifera shrubland


Plantcommunity10isusuallydominatedbyAcacia rostellifera.Acacia xanthina, Alyxia buxifolia or Chamelaucium uncinatummaybedominantorco-dominantspeciesinthisplantcommunity.Plantcommunity10occursontallersecondarydunes,andonexposedlimestoneandsandplainsoilstotheeastasaresultofdisturbancetootherplantcommunities.Onthesandplainsoils,theplantcommunitymayhaveformerlyincludedBanksia prionotesbuthassincebeenreducedtoasimplercommunitydominatedbyAcacia rostellifera.Plantcommunity10mergeswithplantcommunity8closertothecoast,andplantcommunity13onthesandplaintotheeast.

Plantcommunity10isconsideredtobeequivalenttovegetationunit3‘closedAcacia rostelliferascrub’definedthroughtheSWALEprojectfortheareasouthofGreenoughRiver(Tauss2002).


WithintheGRFVSarea,plantcommunity10islocatedwithinBeardvegetationassociations129,359,371,413,431and440.Floristically,plantcommunity10doesnotcorrespondtoanyoftheseBeardvegetationassociationsinparticular,butitisincludedinthebroaderdescriptionsusedbyBeard(1976a).

Rarity

Plantcommunity10occupies2258.86haor36.63%ofthenativevegetationoftheGRFVSarea,andisthemostwidespreadoftheGRFVSplantcommunities.

Representation

Noneofthemappedextentofofplantcommunity10occurswithinIUCNI-IVreservesintheGRFVSarea.InformationisnotavailabletodeterminethedistributionofthisplantcommunityoutsidetheGRFVSarea.

Diversity

Plantcommunity10wasrecordedfrom14quadratsintheGRFVSarea(GRV0802,12,17,19,30,31,32,48,51,52,54,57,73and74),wherearangeof2-18nativespecieswererecorded.Oneofthequadratsites,closetoGreenoughRiver,hadsurfacesoilconsistingofasignificantproportionofsnailshells.Acacia rostelliferaisacolonisingspecies,whichexplainswhyitdominatesindisturbedareas.




GRV0857wasconsideredtobeaparticularlygoodexampleofplantcommunity10butcouldnotberatedhigherthanverygoodconditionduetothepresenceoftheveryaggressiveweedLycium ferocissimumthroughoutthevegetation.Plantcommunity10isthreatenedbydevelopment(clearing),grazing,fire,weedinvasionandrecreationalvehicleuse.

4.4.11 Plant community 11 Limestone ridge: Melaleuca cardiophylla / Eucalyptus spp.

Description and extent


Plantcommunity11isdominatedbyMelaleuca cardiophyllaandEucalyptusspecies,andoccursonlimestoneridgesandslopesbetweenMountTarcoolaandRuddsGully,andonthelimestonescarpbetweentheOakajeeandBullerrivers.Floristically,plantcommunity

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11issimilartoplantcommunity12,butisstructurallydifferentduetothepresenceofmalleesincludingE. obtusifloraandE. oraria,whichinplacesformdensestands,andE. zopherophloia.


WithintheGRFVSarea,plantcommunity11islocatedwithinBeardvegetationassociations359and387.Floristically,plantcommunity11isrelatedtoBeardvegetationassociation387.TheplantcommunityalsohasalocalisedoccurrenceinBeardvegetationassociation359,whichispresentatafinerscalethanBeardvegetationassociationsweremapped.

Rarity

Plantcommunity11occupies19.95haor0.32%ofthenativevegetationoftheGRFVSarea,andisoneofthemostrestrictedGRFVSplantcommunities.Plantcommunity11isalsoknowntooccursouthoftheGRFVSarea,whereitmaybemorecommon.Onoccasion,themalleesinthiscommunityalsooccurasscatteredindividualswithinplantcommunity12.AlthoughthemostcommonmalleespeciesfoundinthisplantcommunityareEucalyptus obtusifloraandE. oraria,thePriority4speciesE. zopherophloiawasalsorecorded.AnadditionalsurveymayalsoberequiredtodeterminethelocaldistributionofEucalyptus zopherophloiaandpreserveareasofitsoccurrence.

Representation

Noneofthemappedextentofofplantcommunity11occurswithinIUCNI-IVreservesintheGRFVSarea.InformationisnotavailabletodeterminethedistributionofthisplantcommunityoutsidetheGRFVSarea.

Diversity

Plantcommunity11wasrecordedfromtwoquadratsintheGRFVSarea(GRV0827and61),whereupto15nativespecieswererecorded.




Plantcommunity11isthreatenedbyclearing,weedinvasionandgrazing.Thebestrepresentativeofplantcommunity11isnorthoftheBullerRiveronthelimestonescarp,whichmaybethreatenedwithclearingassociatedwiththeOakajeeindustrialdevelopment.

4.4.12 Plant community 12 Limestone Ridge: Melaleuca cardiophylla


Plantcommunity12isdominatedbyMelaleuca cardiophylla,andoccursfromtheBullerLocalitynorthwards,highonthefirstandsecondridgesfromthecoastwherethereisexposedlimestonecapping,andonthelimestoneridgesofMountTarcoolaandsouth-eastthroughRuddsGullyandJandanolPark.ThisplantcommunitywouldhavebeenthemostcommonplantcommunityonexposedTamalalimestoneridges,butsomeareashavebeenreducedtoasimplercommunitydominatedbyAcacia rostellifera.Plantcommunity12canbedifferentiatedfromplantcommunity7duetothecharacteristiclimestonecapping,anditscharacteristicspeciesincludingDiplolaena grandifloraandGrevillea argyrophylla.


WithintheGRFVSarea,plantcommunity12islocatedwithinareasmappedas,andisfloristicallyrelatedto,Beardvegetationassociation387.Theplantcommunityoftenoccupiesnarrowbandsonlimestoneridgetops,whicharepresentatafinerscalethanBeardvegetationassociationsweremapped.

Rarity

Plantcommunity12occupies865.8haor14.04%ofthenativevegetationoftheGRFVSarea,andisoneofthemorewidespreadGRFVSplantcommunities.

Representation

Noneofthemappedextentofplantcommunity12occursinIUCNI-IVreserveswithintheGRFVSarea.InformationisnotavailabletodeterminethedistributionofthisplantcommunityoutsidetheGRFVSarea.

Diversity

Plantcommunity12wasrecordedfromninequadratsintheGRFVSarea(GRV0813,20,21,29,43,56,66,67and68),wherearangeof11-23nativespecieswererecorded.FloristicquadratGRV0867,nearthesouthernedgeoftheGRFVSarea,hadlower-heightvegetationthanotherrepresentativesofplantcommunity12(Limestoneridge:Melaleuca cardiophylla),generallylessthan1.2mhigh,andwasdominatedbyMelaleuca campanae(canopycoverof50%ofthearea),withMelaleuca cardiophyllaoccasionallyemergentto2mhigh,butwithonly2%canopycover.Sedgesandherbsalsocontributedtogroundcoverinthisquadrat(30-70%canopycover),whichwasuncommonforthisvegetationtype.

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Manyareasofthisplantcommunityaregrazed,andinmostcasesthishasledtoalowcoverofshrubspeciesandahighweedcover.Thegreatestthreattothisplantcommunityisclearingforurbandevelopment,especiallyasitoccursonthelimestonescarpwithuninterruptedviewstowardsthecoastinareasclosetocurrentdevelopment,andintheOakajeeinareasassociatedwiththeportandraildevelopment.Otherthreatstothisplantcommunityaregrazing,weedinvasionandfire.

4.4.13 Plant community 13 Sandplain: Banksia prionotes / Acacia rostellifera


Plantcommunity13isdominatedbyBanksia prionotesandAcacia rostellifera,andoccursonsandplainsoilsinlandfromthecoast.CharacteristicspeciesareGrevillea candelabroides, Melaleuca depressa, Hibbertiaspp.,Conostylisspp.andsedgesandrushes.Floristically,thisplantcommunityismostsimilartoplantcommunity14,whichoccursonthemorerockysoilsclosetoChapmanRiver.MostofChapmanRiverReserveisoccupiedbyplantcommunity13,althoughfrequentfireappearstohavereducedthenumbersofB. prionotesandtherearelargeportionsoftheareawherethischaracteristicspeciesdoesnotoccur.Othercharacteristicspeciesindicatethepresenceofplantcommunity13inChapmanRiverReserve.


Plantcommunity13isanalogouswith,butnotcompletelyinclusiveof,Beardvegetationassociation359.WithintheGRFVSarea,Beardvegetationassociation359occupies3077ha,howevertheGRFVSprojectonlyrecorded754.39haofthisareaashavingBanksia prionotes-dominatedvegetation(orsimilarplantcommunity,asdescribedinappendix8).Thereforeonlyapproximately24.52%ofBeardvegetationassociation359correspondswithplantcommunity13withintheGRFVSarea.

Rarity

Plantcommunity13occupies754.39haor12.23%ofthenativevegetationoftheGRFVSarea,andisoneofthemorewidespreadGRFVSplantcommunities.ItisconsideredthatBeardvegetationassociation359anditsconstituentGRFVSplantcommunity13haveconservationsignificance.

Representation

Only1.25haofBeardvegetationassociation359iswithinIUCNI-IVreserves(DEC2007),andnoneofthisareaismappedasplantcommunity13.BanksiaprionotesoccursasadominantorcommonspeciesonmanyareasoftheGeraldtonSandplain;howeverfurthersurveysincludingfloristicanalysiswouldberequiredtodetermineifthereisanydegreeofsimilaritybetweentheseareasandGRFVSplantcommunity13,andtherebyprovideadditionalregionalinformationonextentandreservationstatusofthisplantcommunity.

Diversity

Plantcommunity13wasrecordedfrom13quadratsintheGRFVSarea(GRV0822,33,34,35,36,37,38,62,65,69,70,75and76),wherearangeof4-30nativespecieswererecorded.Indegradedareas,plantcommunity13isreplacedbythelessspecies-richplantcommunity10,althoughtheremaybeafewofthecharacteristicsandplainspeciesremaining.Avariantofplantcommunity13isalowheath,whichoccursonshallowsoilwithinthesandplain.AnotheruncommonvariantoftheplantcommunityisdominatedbyAllocasuarina huegeliana.

FloristicquadratGRV0875inKarlooisnottheusualvegetationforthisarea,whichisgenerallyAcacia rostellifera shrubland.TherearepatchesofBanksia prionotes / Acacia rostelliferavegetationscatteredthroughthearea.VegetationsouthoftherailwaycorridorpreviouslymappedbyEcoscape(2007)asmixedheathinexcellentcondition,hasbeenincludedinplantcommunity13.Nofloristicquadratswererecordedforthisarea;howeverthevegetationisdescribedasalowheathvariantinthecommunitydescriptioninappendix8.




Thelargestthreattothisplantcommunityisclearingfordevelopment,asitoccursintheGlenfieldandWaggrakinestructureplanareasandthebufferareanorthoftheOakajeeportandraildevelopment.Othersignificantthreatsincludegrazing,weedinvasion,potentialforsoil-bornediseases(egPhytophthoraandotherspecies)andfire.Banksia prionotesappearstobeindeclineintheGRFVSarea.Itissuspectedthatthisisduetoprolongeddroughtanditbeingnearthenorthern(rainfall)limitofitsdistribution.Hence,reducedrainfallduetoclimatechangemaybeathreattothisplantcommunity.

ThevegetationoftheGlenfieldandWaggrakineareaislargelyGRFVSplantcommunity13,withtheexcellentconditionportionsbeingthebestconditionandbestrepresentationofthisvegetationidentifiedduringtheGRFVSsurvey.Thevegetationappearedtobehealthier,lessdisturbedandmorediverse(havingmoreplant

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species)thansimilarvegetationintheChapmanRiverReserve,wherefireandhumandisturbance,includingrubbishdumping,haveprobablycontributedtothedeclineinvegetationcondition.

4.4.14 Plant community 14 Chapman River Reserve: Acacia rostellifera / Melaleuca spp.


Plantcommunity14isdominatedbyAcacia rostelliferaandMelaleucaspecies,andoccursontheslightlyrocky(limestone)orshallowsoilsclosetotheriverinChapmanRiverReserve.Itismostsimilartoplantcommunity13,butincludeselementsofplantcommunity12(onthewesternsideofChapmanRiver)andplantcommunity15(ontheeasternsideoftheriver).


WithintheGRFVSarea,plantcommunity14islocatedwithinBeardvegetationassociation359.Floristically,plantcommunity14doesnotspecificallycorrespondtothisBeardvegetationassociation,butitisincludedinthebroaderdescriptionusedbyBeard(1976a).TheplantcommunityhasalocalisedoccurrencepresentatafinerscalethanBeardvegetationassociationsweremapped.Itslocalisedoccurrenceisprobablyduetounderlyinggeologyandtoitspositiondownstreamfromthicketcommunities.

Rarity

Plantcommunity14occupies47.5haor0.77%ofthenativevegetationoftheGRFVSarea,althoughtheextentmaybeupto30halargerduetoarecentfirethatmadeboundaryinterpretationdifficult.Plantcommunity14isoneofthemostrestrictedGRFVSplantcommunities,asitonlyoccursintheChapmanRiverReserve.Duetoitsextremelylocaloccurrence,thisplantcommunitymustbeconsideredtohavehighconservationsignificanceasauniquecommunity.

Representation

Noneofthemappedextentofplantcommunity14occurswithinIUCNI-IVreservesintheGRFVSarea;howevertheentireplantcommunityoccursinChapmanRiverReserve.

Diversity

Plantcommunity14wasrecordedfrom4quadratsintheGRFVSarea(GRV0877,78,79and81),wherearangeof19-31nativespecieswererecorded.




Thethreatstoplantcommunity14arefire,weeds,humandisturbanceanddrought.

4.4.15 Plant community 15 Thicket: Melaleuca spp. / mixed spp.


Plantcommunity15isoftendominatedbyoneofanumberofMelaleucaspecies,includingM. megacephala, M. concreta, M. coronicarpaandM. fulgens subsp. steedmanii,butisusuallyamixedthicketconsistingofmanyspecies.ItoccursonthefootslopesandisolatedmesastothewestoftheMoresbyRange,andincludesthesteepslopesoftheOakajeeandBullerriverstotheeastoftheNorthWestCoastalHighway.


WithintheGRFVSarea,plantcommunity15islocatedwithinBeardvegetationassociations35,413and675.Floristically,plantcommunity15largelycorrespondswithBeardvegetationassociations413and675.Significantnumbersofdeclaredrarefloraandpriority-listedspecieswererecordedinthisplantcommunityduringthefloristicsurvey.Plantcommunity15mayalsoincludethe‘naturalvalue’ecosystem‘MoresbyRangescommunitieswithrareplants’(AustralianNaturalResourcesAtlas2009)andtheP1priorityecologicalcommunity‘PlantassemblagesoftheMoresbyRangesystem’(DEC2009a).

Rarity

Plantcommunity15occupies469.57haor7.61%ofthenativevegetationoftheGRFVSarea,andisoneofthemorewidespreadGRFVSplantcommunities.ThelowmalleeEucalyptus blaxellii,adeclaredrarefloraspecies,isanoccasionalcomponentofthiscommunity.

Representation

OakajeeandWokatherranaturereservescontainareasmappedasplantcommunity15(approximately103.00haand1.84ha,respectively).InformationisnotavailabletodeterminethedistributionofthisplantcommunityoutsidetheGRFVSarea.

Diversity

Plantcommunity15wasrecordedfromeightquadratsintheGRFVSarea(GRV0810,25,39,40,41,53,55and63),wherearangeof21-48nativespecieswererecorded.QuadratGRV0825,locatednearNorthWestCoastalHighwayinOakajee,exhibitedthegreatestspeciesrichness(48nativespecies)ofallquadratsrecordedthroughtheGRFVS.

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Wheregrazinghasoccurred,themorepalatablespecieshavebeenremovedandAcacia tetragonophylla,Hakea preissiiandotherhardleavedorpricklyspeciesremain,andthevegetationislessdense.Plantcommunity16ischaracterisedbyareaswhereonlytheunpalatablespeciesremain.




Plantcommunity15isoftengrazedbutisunlikelytobeaffectedbyfurtherclearingasitoccursonrockyslopesthatarenotsuitableforcultivation,andlittleiswithinareasassociatedwithurbanorindustrialdevelopment(exceptintheWokatherraGap,whichiswithinthemaininfrastructurecorridorfortheOakajeeportandraildevelopment).Themainthreatsarelikelytobegrazing,weedinvasionandfire.

ThereareseveralrepresentativesinexcellentconditionwithintheGRFVSarea,includingtheareasassociatedwithfloristicquadratsGRV0810,25,39,40and(especially)55,andtheseareashavehighconservationsignificance.Therearealsoareasassociatedwithcreeklinesthatarefenced.Thesemayhaveconservationsignificanceduetotheirlikelyexcellentconditionandtheirvalueaslandscapelinkages.

4.4.16 Plant community 16 Woodland: Acacia acuminata / Acacia tetragonophylla / Hakea preissii


Plantcommunity16isdominatedbyAcacia acuminata, A. tetragonophylla and Hakea preissii,andoccursonloamysoilsoftheNorthamptonsoilsystem,intheBullerandOakajeecatchments.Thethreelistedcharacteristicspeciesmaynotallbepresent,withthetwolesspalatablespecies(Acacia tetragonophyllaandHakea preissii)dominatingingrazedareas.Plantcommunity16isdominatedbytreeandtallshrubspecies,climbers,grassesandherbs,withfewlowormid-shrubs.Floristically,itismostsimilartoplantcommunities15and17,butisdifferentiatedbyvegetationstructureanddominantspecies.


WithintheGRFVSarea,plantcommunity16islocatedwithinBeardvegetationassociations35,413and675.Floristically,plantcommunity16correlateslargelywithBeardvegetationassociation35.ItincludesareasofotherBeardvegetationassociationsthathavelargelybeendegradedduetograzing,leavingAcacia tetragonophyllaandHakea preissiiasthedominantspecies.

Rarity

Plantcommunity16occupies452.11haor7.33%ofthenativevegetationoftheGRFVSarea,andisoneofthemorewidespreadGRFVSplantcommunities.SimilarplantcommunitiesarecommonthroughoutWesternAustralia,althoughAcacia tetragonophyllaisnotpresentinthewetterandcoolerareas(WAHerbariumandDEC2009).However,becausethesespeciesusuallygrowonloamysoilthatishighlyregardedforagriculture,thisplantcommunityanditsequivalentselsewherearegenerallydegradedbygrazingandweedinvasion,aswasobservedintheGRFVSarea.

Representation

OakajeeNatureReservecontainsapproximately14.35haofplantcommunity16.Only655.85haofthemostequivalentBeardvegetationassociation(35)arewithinDECestateinWesternAustralia.

Diversity

Plantcommunity16wasrecordedfromthreequadratsintheGRFVSarea(GRV0811,23and44),wherearangeof22-34nativespecieswererecorded.OccassionallyEucalyptus loxophlebatreesoccurwithinthisplantcommunity.




Mostoftheextentofthisplantcommunityhasbeengrazed,andthereforeareasingoodorbetterconditionareofconservationsignificance;howeververylittlewasobservedintheGRFVSarea.TheareaassociatedwithGRV0844isanexception,which,althoughgrazed,wasinvery goodcondition.Themainthreatsaregrazing,weedinvasion,fireandclearing.

4.4.17 Plant community 17 Woodland: Eucalyptus loxophleba


Plantcommunity17isdominatedbyEucalyptus loxophleba andoccurslargelyintheOakajeecatchment.Itisseparatedfromplantcommunity16bydominantspeciesandlifeform,butoccursonthesamesoilsystem.Occasionallyitoccursonsoil-filledpocketsonrockyslopesthatareotherwiseplantcommunity15.


WithintheGRFVSarea,plantcommunity17islocatedwithinandisfloristicallyrelatedtoBeardvegetationassociation35.

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Rarity

Plantcommunity17occupies17.06haor0.28%ofthenativevegetationoftheGRFVSarea,andisoneofthemostrestrictedGRFVSplantcommunities.

Representation

Althoughplantcommunity17isrestrictedintheGRFVSarea,frompreviousstudiesofthisvegetationtype,itappearstobeverycommonoutsideit.Furthersurveyisrequiredtodetermineitsregionalsignificance.

Diversity

Plantcommunity17wasrecordedfromonequadratintheGRFVSarea(GRV0842),where21nativespecieswererecorded.




AlthoughthisplantcommunityismostsimilartoBeardvegetationassociation35,itoccupiesonlyasmallproportionofitsextentintheGRFVSarea.Theplantcommunity,oronessimilartoit,arecommonthroughoutmuchofthesouthwestofWesternAustralia,althoughthey,too,arelargelydegradedbygrazingandweedinvasion.ThebestrepresentativeofthisplantcommunitywasintheOakajeeNatureReserve(approximately4.38ha),butallotherobservationsofitwereweedyanddegraded.Therefore,anyoccurrenceofthisplantcommunitythatisingoodorbetterconditionisofconservationsignificance.

4.5 Flora species

4.5.1 Threatened species

Tenfloraspeciesofconservationsignificance,includingtworarespecies,wererecordedfromthequadratssampledwithintheGRFVSarea(listedinsection3.3.1).RareflorareportformswillbesubmittedtoDECwithadditionaldetailswhenthevoucherspecimensaresubmittedtotheWesternAustralianHerbarium.

Significantly,tworare,oneP3andoneP4floraspecieswererecordedfromonefloristicquadrat,determinedtobeGRFVSplantcommunity15.TheP3speciesThryptomenesp.MoresbyRangewasadominantspeciesinthisquadrat,covering10%ofthearea.Thesiteappearstohavebeenlightly,butnotintentionally,grazedbylivestock.

4.5.2 Range extensions and extremities

Threerecordedspecies,listedinsection3.3.1,arerangeextensionsorontheedge(extremity)oftheirknownrange,includingoneP3species.Completerecordsofoccurrencesofthreatenedfloraspecieshavenotbeenexaminedastheyarenoteasilyaccessible,buttheP3species(Hibbertia glomerosavar.bistrata)isknownfrombetweenMullewaandMorawa,approximately100kmeastofGeraldton,thereforethisrangeextensionmaybesignificant.

4.5.3 Weeds

Atotalof73weedspecieswererecordedduringthefloristicquadratsurvey,sevenofwhichareratedashighriskbytheEnvironmentalWeedStrategyforWesternAustralia(CALM1999),butnoneofwhicharelistedasdeclaredplantsrequiringcontrol(DAFWA2009).Weedsthatarehighriskarethosethathavetheabilitytoinvadebushlandthatisingoodtoexcellentcondition,haveawidecurrentorpotentialdistribution,andhavetheabilitytochangethestructure,compositionandfunctionofecosystems,oftenformingmonocultures(CALM1999).

ThesevenhighriskweedsareBrassica tournefortii (wildturnip),Bromus diandrus(bromegrass),Cenchrus ciliaris(buffelgrass),Ehrharta calycina(perennialveldtgrass),Euphorbia terracina(Geraldtoncarnationweed),Lupinus cosentinii(Sandplainlupin)andLycium ferocissimum(Africanboxthorn).Whileitisimpracticaltoconsiderbroad-scaleweedcontrolofanyofthesespecies,theyshouldbeconsideredprioritiesforlocalisedcontrol.

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5 Conclusions

5.1 Summary of GRFVS findings

Thedesktopassessmentdeterminedthat,withintheGRFVSarea(40,737ha),therearenineBeardvegetationassociations,sevensoilsystemsand52soilsubsystems.Approximately6,112haofnativevegetationremainswithin625discreteremnants,equivalenttoapproximately15%oftheoriginalextentofnativevegetationintheGRFVSarea.

Thefieldassessmentdeterminedthatapproximately6,041.21haofnativevegetationcurrentlyexistsintheGRFVSarea.Someareaspreviouslymappedasnativevegetationhavebeenclearedordonotcontainnativevegetation(egplantedvegetation),sotheseareashavebeenremovedfromthenativevegetationextentdatasetfortheGRFVSarea.Otherareasofnativevegetationhadbeenoverlookedinpreviousmapping,sotheseareashavebeenaddedtothenativevegetationextentdatasetfortheGRFVSarea.

BeardvegetationassociationmappinghastraditionallybeenusedasbaselineinformationfordeterminingconservationprioritiesthroughoutWesternAustralia,asitprovidesbroad-scalevegetationdescriptionsandmapping,aswellashistoricalcontextforvegetationextents.However,Beardvegetationmappingdoesnotprovideadequateinformationatalocalscale.TheGRFVSplantcommunitieshavebeendevelopedinresponsetothisneed.

5.2 Conservation significance of Beard vegetation associations

TheGRFVSplantcommunitiesdevelopedthroughthisprojectprovidemoredetailedandaccuratedescriptionsofthevegetationtypeswithintheGRFVSareathanBeardvegetationassociationsmappedatabroadscale.SomeGRFVSplantcommunitiescloselycorrespondwithBeardvegetationassociations.However,thedescriptionsoftheBeardvegetationassociationsandscaleofmappingdoesnotadequatelydescribesomeofthevegetationtypes,representtherangeofvegetationtypeswithinthearea,orprovideaccuratedelineationofvegetationboundaries.Hence,conservationsignificanceshouldbeconsideredbothintermsofBeardvegetationassociationsandGRFVSplantcommunities.

Regionally significant – endangered

Beardvegetationassociation35(Shrublands;jamscrubwithscatteredYorkgum)andBeardvegetationassociation371(Lowforest;Acacia rostellifera)havelessthan10%oftheirpre-EuropeanextentremaininginWA.

Beard vegetation association 35correspondswelltoGRFVSplant community 16(Woodland:Acacia acuminata / Acacia tetragonophylla / Hakea preissii)andplant community 17(Woodland:Eucalyptus loxophleba).

Beard vegetation association 371doesnotcorrespondtoanyparticularcommunity,insteadthedescriptionofthecommunitycanbeappliedoveralargerareathatincludesGRFVSplant community 8(Coastal:Acacia rostelliferalowshrubland)andplant community 10(NearCoastal:Acacia rostelliferashrubland).Beardvegetationassociation371thereforerequiresinterpretationusingGRFVSplantcommunitymappingtodetermineconservationsignificance.

Regionally significant – vulnerable

Beardvegetationassociation359(Shrublands;Acacia and Banksiascrub)andBeardvegetationassociation675(Shrublands;Melaleuca and Hakeamixedthicket)havemorethan10%butlessthan30%oftheirpre-EuropeanextentremaininginWA.

Beard vegetation association 359correspondswelltoGRFVSplant community 13(Sandplain:Banksia prionotes / Acacia rostellifera)andplant community 14(ChapmanRiverReserve:Acacia rostellifera / Melaleucaspp.).Plantcommunity13occupiesapproximately25%ofthespatialextentofBeardvegetationassociation359withintheGRFVSarea.Plantcommunity14appearstobealocalisedoccurrenceduetotheunderlyingsoilsinChapmanRiverReserve.

Beard vegetation association 675correspondswelltoGRFVSplant community 15(Thicket:Melaleucaspp./mixedspp.)andisequivalenttotheP1priorityecologicalcommunity‘PlantassemblagesoftheMoresbyrangesystem’.

Locally significant

Beardvegetationassociation129(Bareareas;driftsand),Beardvegetationassociation387(Shrublands;Melaleuca cardiophyllathicket),Beardvegetationassociation413(Shrublands;Acacia neurophyllaandA.speciesthicket),Beardvegetationassociation431(Shrublands;Acacia rostelliferaopenscrub)andBeardvegetationassociation440(Shrublands;Acacia ligulataopenscrub)havemorethan30%oftheirpre-EuropeanextentremaininginWA.

Beard vegetation association 129doesnotcorrespondtoanyparticularcommunity;insteadthedescriptionofthecommunitycanbeappliedoveralargerareathatincludesGRFVSplant community 3(Foredune:Atriplex isatidea / Spinifex longifolius),plant community 8 (Coastal:Acacia rostelliferalowshrubland)andplant community 10(NearCoastal:Acacia rostelliferashrubland).Beardvegetationassociation129thereforerequiresinterpretationusingGRFVSplantcommunitymappingtodetermineconservationsignificance.

Beard vegetation association 387isidentifiedasarare and endangeredvegetationassociationintheNativeVegetationManagementPlanNorthernAgriculturalRegion.Beardvegetationassociation387isconsideredtobetheequivalentofGRFVSplant community 11(Limestoneridge:Melaleuca cardiophylla / Eucalyptusspp.)andplant community 12(Limestoneridge:

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Melaleuca cardiophylla).Plantcommunity12occupies14.04%oftheGRFVSarea,andisthesecondmostwidespreadplantcommunity.Therefore,Beardvegetationassociation387maynotberegardedasanendangeredcommunitywithintheGRFVSarea,althoughthereisnoneinsecuretenure.However,plantcommunity11,whichhasonly19.95haintheGRFVSarea,shouldbeconsideredtohavelocalconservationsignificance.

Beard vegetation association 413correspondswelltoGRFVSplantcommunity15(Thicket:Melaleucaspp./mixedspp.).Beardvegetationassociation413isidentifiedasa last standvegetationassociationintheNativeVegetationManagementPlanNorthernAgriculturalRegion.Furthersurveyandscrutinyisrequiredpriortothedefinitionoflast standbeingadoptedforthisBeardvegetationassociationintheGRFVSarea.

Beard vegetation association 431doesnotcorrespondtoanyparticularcommunity,insteadthedescriptionofthecommunitycanbeappliedoveralargerareathatincludesGRFVSplant community 3(Foredune:Atriplex isatidea / Spinifex longifolius),plant community 6(Coastal:Thryptomene baeckeacea),plant community 7(Coastal:Melaleuca cardiophylla),plant community 8(Coastal:Acacia rostelliferalowshrubland)andplant community 10(NearCoastal:Acacia rostelliferashrubland).Beardvegetationassociation431thereforerequiresinterpretationusingGRFVSplantcommunitymappingtodetermineconservationsignificance.

Beard vegetation association 440doesnotcorrespondtoanyparticularcommunity,insteadthedescriptionofthecommunitycanbeappliedoveralargerareathatincludesGRFVSplant community 3(Foredune:Atriplex isatidea / Spinifex longifolius),plant community 8(Coastal:Acacia rostelliferalowshrubland)andplant community 10(NearCoastal:Acacia rostelliferashrubland).Beardvegetationassociation440thereforerequiresinterpretationusingGRFVSplantcommunitymappingtodetermineconservationsignificance.

5.3 Conservation significance of GRFVS plant communities

SeveraloftheGRFVSplantcommunitiesidentifiedfromthisprojectaregeographicallyrestricted,andarethereforenaturallyrareoruncommon.Theproposedphasetwoofthisprojectwillinvolvetheidentificationofpriorityconservationareas.PlantcommunitiesthatarerestrictedinextentintheGeraldtonregionarecurrentlyconsideredtoberegionallysignificant.Furtherinvestigationoutsidethesurveyareamayestablishalternatelevelsofsignificanceforplantcommunities.

TheGRFVSplantcommunitiesarediscussedinorderofconservationsignificance,basedoncurrentextent:

• Plant community 5(Swale:Frankenia pauciflora)appearstobetherarestandmostthreatenedplantcommunityintheGRFVSarea,beinggeographically

restricted,threatenedbygrazingandpotentialfuturedevelopmentandperhapssalinisation.Alsogivenitssizeanddisturbednature,itmaynotbeasustainablecommunity.ItisrecommendedthatfurthersurveysoutsidetheGRFVSareabeundertakentodeterminetheregionaldistributionandsignificanceofthiscommunity.

• Plant community 4(Swale:Ficinia nodosa)islikewiseveryrestrictedwithintheGRFVSareawithonlyasingle0.58haoccurrence,andfurthersurveyoutsideoftheGRFVSareawouldberequiredtodetermineitsregionaldistributionandconservationsignificance.

OtherplantcommunitiesthatarerestrictedindistributionthatshouldbeinvestigatedoutsidetheGRFVSareatodeterminetheirconservationsignificanceare:

• Plant community 6(Coastal:Thryptomene baeckeacea),whichisrestrictedtoan11.08haareasouthoftheGreenoughRiverwithintheGRFVSarea.Surveyofawiderareashouldbeundertakentodetermineregionalsignificanceanddistribution.

• Plant community 7(Coastal:Melaleuca cardiophylla),occupying62.71ha,isalsorestrictedinitsdistributionwithintheGRFVSarea,andwouldrequiresurveyofawiderareatodetermineregionalsignificance.

• Plant community 9(Coastal:Acacia rostellifera / Eucalyptusspp.)occursinsmallpocketsbetweenTarcoolaBeachandtheGreenoughRiver,occupying12.47ha.Thisplantcommunityshouldbeconsideredtohaveconservationsignificanceasitisdistinctiveandrestrictedtothisarea.

• Plant community 11(Limestoneridge:Melaleuca cardiophylla / Eucalyptusspp.)occupies19.95haintheGRFVSarea.TheareassouthofMountTarcoolaaremoredegradedthanthosetothenorthontheOakajeescarp.AsaconsequencetheareastothenorthoftheOakajeeRivershouldbeconsideredtohaveconservationsignificance.

• Plant community 15(Thicket:Melaleucaspp./mixedspp.)occupies469.57ha.Itincludestheareawhichmatchesthedescriptionofthe‘naturalvalue’ecosystem‘MoresbyRanges’(AustralianNaturalResourcesAtlas2009)andtheP1priorityecologicalcommunity‘PlantassemblagesoftheMoresbyRangesystem’(DEC2009a).Consequently,thisareaisconsideredtohaveconservationsignificance.

Thefollowingplantcommunitiesarealsoconsideredtohaveconservationsignificancebecause,althoughtheyhaveagreaternaturalextent,theyarelargelydegradedorthreatened:

• Plant community 1(Estuarine:Casuarina obesa / Tecticornia / Sarcocornia),whichisgeographicallyrestricted.

• Plant community 2(Riparian:Eucalyptus camaldulensis / Casuarina obesa / Melaleuca rhaphiophylla),whichisrestrictedtoriverchannels

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andriverbanks(includingtheformerriverchannelatRumJungle).Thisplantcommunityisgenerallydegraded,withthebestconditionobservedbeinggood.

• Plant community 3(Foredune:Atriplex isatidea / Spinifex longifolius)isgeographicallyrestrictedtotheprimarydune,andisthreatenedinareasassociatedwithcloseproximitytoareasofurbanisation,butiswidespreadindistributionandhasanimportantroleindunestabilisation.

• Plant community 12(LimestoneRidge:Melaleuca cardiophylla)occupies865.8ha;howevermostareasaregrazedanddegraded.TheareasnorthandsouthoftheOakajeeRiver,associatedwithsampledquadratsGRV0813,GRV0820andGRV0821,areclassifiedasbeinginverygoodandexcellentcondition,andwereinthebestconditionobservedforthiscommunity.

• Plant community 13(Sandplain:Banksia prionotes / Acacia rostellifera)occupies754.39ha,howevermuchofthisareaisdegraded.ThebetterrepresentativesofthisplantcommunityoccurintheGlenfieldandWaggrakineareas.AlowheathvariantofthisplantcommunityoccursinKarlooandUtakarra.

• Plant community 14(ChapmanRiverReserve:Acacia rostellifera /Melaleucaspp.),whichisrestrictedtoshallowsoilsclosetotheChapmanRiverintheChapmanRiverReserve.Itisnotcurrentlyconsideredtobeunderthreatfromdevelopmentastheentireareaiscontainedwithinanexistingreserve.

• Plant community 16(Woodland:Acacia acuminata / A. tetragonophylla / Hakea preissii)isrestrictedtotheNorthamptonsoilsystemwithintheGRFVSarea,whereitisgenerallythreatenedbyagriculturalactivitiesandassociatedwithhighlevelsofweedinfestation.Itislikelytobewidelydistributedoutsidethisarea,howeverrepresentativesinverygoodconditionorbetter,bothwithinandoutsidetheGRFVSarea,areuncommon.

• Plant community 17(Woodland:Eucalyptus loxophleba)isrestrictedwithintheGRFVSarea,and,wherenotrepresentedwithintheconservationestate,isgenerallygrazedanddegraded.OutsidetheGRFVSareaitismorewidespread.Therefore,areasofthisplantcommunityinpoorconditionwithintheGRFVSareaarenotconsideredtobeofhighconservationsignificance.

GRFVSplant community 8(Coastal:Acacia rostelliferalowshrubland)andplant community 10(NearCoastal:Acacia rostelliferashrubland)aremorewidespreadintheGRFVSarea;howeverbetterconditionrepresentativeshavelocalconservationsignificance.

5.4 Plant species conservation

Fromthe81floristicquadratssampled,376specieswereidentified.Tenfloraspeciesofconservationsignificance,includingtwodeclaredrareflorataxa,wereidentifiedfrom10quadrats.Threespecieswererecordedattheextremerangeoftheirknownextentorwererangeextensions.

FiveoftheeightquadratsassessedasbeingGRFVSplantcommunity15(Thicket:Melaleucaspp./mixedspp.)hadfloraspeciesofconservationsignificance.Significantly,onequadratcontainedtwodeclaredrarefloraandtwopriorityspecies,andanothercontainedtwopriorityspecies.Onlyoneofthequadratswithfloraofconservationsignificanceiswithintheconservationestate.Asthereareanumberofthreatenedfloraspeciesassociatedwiththisplantcommunity,itisrecommendedthatisolatedhilltopstothewestoftheMoresbyRangearesurveyedforthreatenedfloraandfencedtoexcludefromgrazing.

5.5 Future implementation of GRFVS

AlldatacollectedthroughtheGRFVS,includingfloristicquadratdata,GISshapefilesandvoucherspecimens,willbemadeavailableforusebyothersin thefuture.Thiswillallowstategovernmentagencies,localgovernments,landownersanddeveloperstomakeinformeddecisionsinrelationtosettingconservationprioritiesfornativevegetationintheGRFVSarea.

TheEPAsupportedtheproposalintheGeraldtonRegionPlantocompileaninventoryof,andtoconserve,regionallysignificantremnantvegetationacrosstheGeraldtonregion,whichencompassesthelocalgovernmentsofNorthampton,ChapmanValley,Geraldton-Greenough,MullewaandIrwin.PhaseoneoftheGRFVShasbeencompletedfor theareagenerallycoveredbytheGreaterGeraldtonStructurePlan(ieportionsoftheCityofGeraldton-GreenoughandtheShireofChapmanValley).

Furtherconsiderationshouldbegiventoimplementationofphasetwo(conservationandregionalplanning)andphasethree(furtherregionalfloraandvegetationsurveys)oftheGRFVS.Thisincludesthepreparationofaconservationplantoassistregionalstrategicplanning,andextensionoftheGRFVSprojecttootherpartsoftheGeraldtonregionexperiencingdevelopmentpressure.

References

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AustralianGovernment(1999),Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Actfromhttp://www.environment.gov.au/epbc/about/index.html

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