Conservation Management Zones of Australia

Australian Alps Montane Grasslands and Heathlands

Prepared by the Department of the Environment


Acknowledgements

This project and associated products are the result of a collaboration between the Biodiversity Conservation Division and the Environmental Resources Information Network (ERIN). Invaluable input, advice and support were provided by staff and leading researchers from across the Department ofthe Environment (DotE), Department of Agriculture (DoA), the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), and the academic community. We would particularly like to thank staff within the Wildlife, Heritage and Marine Division, Parks Australia and the Environment Assessment and Compliance Division ofDotE, Nyree Stenekes andRobert Kancans (ABARES), Sue McIntyre (CSIRO), Richard Hobbs (University of Western Australia), Michael Hutchinson (ANU); David Lindenmayer and Emma Burns (ANU); and Gilly Llewellyn, Martin Taylor andotherstaff from the World Wildlife Fund for their generosity and advice.

Special thanks to CSIRO staff Kristen Williams and Simon Ferrier whose modelling of biodiversity patterns enabled identification of the Conservation Management Zones of Australia.

© Commonwealth of Australia, 2015.

The Conservation Management Zones of Australia profile is licensed by the Commonwealth of Australia for use under a Creative Commons By Attribution 3.0 Australia licence with the exception of the Coat of Arms of the Commonwealth of Australia, the logo of the agency responsible for publishing the report, content supplied by thirdparties, and any images depicting people.

For licence conditions see here.

Contents

Acknowledgement of Traditional Owners and Country

Introduction

Zone at a glance

Population characteristics

Employment, volunteering and incomes

Agriculture, Natural Resource Management practices and sources of NRM advice

Land tenure, land use, Native Title andLocal Government Areas

Zone vegetation characteristics

Ramsar and Nationally Important Wetlands

World and National Heritage

Major National Reserve System properties

EPBC Act (1999) threatened ecological communities

EPBC Act (1999) threatened species

EPBC Act (1999) migratory species

Threatened endemic species

Invasive species

Vegetation profiles and management recommendations

Acknowledgement of Traditional Owners and Country

The Australian Government acknowledges Australia’s Traditional Owners and pays respect to Elders past and present of our nation’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. We honour the deep spiritual, cultural and customary connections of Traditional Owners to the Australian landscape, including Australia’s waterways, land and sea country.

Introduction

The 23 Conservation Management Zones of Australia are geographic areas, classified according to their ecological and threat characteristics. The zones are also aligned with the Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation of Australia.

The Conservation Management Zones provide a way of understanding Australia’s natural environment that will assist in long-term conservation planning and help the Australian Government to better design, deliver and report on Natural Resource Management (NRM) investments, including ensuring alignment of national NRM priorities with local action.

The Conservation Management Zones also provide a filter through which to make national environmental and socio-economic data more accessible and comprehensible, and a framework for gathering on-ground knowledge and expertise about the environment. This will improve information flow to the Australian Government about regional NRM requirements, best practice management, emerging NRM issues and knowledge gaps.

The Conservation Management Zones do not represent any change to existing administrative boundaries or governance structures, but aim to support the NRM and wider community to cooperatively manage environmental assets across boundaries, where they share common threats, ecological characteristics and stakeholders.

Each Conservation Management Zone profile contains a standard suite of nationally available ecological and socio-economicinformation. We hope that this information will enable Australians of all ages and backgrounds to engage with, understand and appreciate Australian landscapes, and support all Australians to manage our natural resources more effectively.

The profile information provides an indicative, high-level stock-take of the environmental and socio-economic landscape and it is not intended to be comprehensive. It should also be noted that, at present, the profiles contain only limited information on aquatic ecosystems, coastal assets and Indigenous land management practices. In future, consultation and comprehensive literature reviews will enable us to provide more complete information.

Zone at a glance

Source:Based on Australian Bureau of Statistics data

Rural centres / Population
Perisher Village / 148
Mount Buller / 242
Falls Creek / 225
Mount Hotham / 158
Dinner Plain / 143
Natural Resource Management (NRM) regions
Murray Local Land Services / NSW
Riverina Local Land Services / NSW
South East Local Land Services / NSW
East Gippsland Catchment Management Authority / VIC
North East Catchment Management Authority / VIC
West Gippsland Catchment Management Authority / VIC
Climate characteristics*
Mean annual temperature / 7.8 Celsius
Mean Maximum of the Hottest Month / 20.7 Celsius
Mean Minimum of the Coldest Month / -1.9 Celsius
Mean Annual Rainfall / 1387.6 mm
Dominant rainfall season / Winter

* The figures are interpolated 75-year means (1921 to 1995) representingthe period prior to the onset of rapid climatic warming. Cited in: Williams KJ, Belbin L, Austin MP, Stein J, Ferrier S (2012) Whichenvironmental variables should I usein mybiodiversity model? International Journal of GeographicInformation Sciences 26(11), 2009–2047. (DataderivedfromAustralian Climate surfaces version 2.1 fortheANUCLIM-BIOCLIM package).

For future climate projections please refer to:

Source:Based on Australian Bureau of Statistics data

National Reserve System area

Source:Based on data from the National Native Title Register; Collaborative Australian Protected Area Database (CAPAD); National Vegetation Information System (NVIS); Species’ Profile and Threats Database (SPRAT).

Population characteristics

Population

Source:Based on Australian Bureau of Statistics data

Languages spoken at home
English / 78.67%
Other languages / 7.81%
Not stated / 13.52%

Education

Source:Based on Australian Bureau of Statistics data

Employment, volunteering and incomes

Employment

Source:Based on Australian Bureau of Statistics data

Volunteering

Income

Agriculture, Natural Resource Management practices and sources of NRM advice

Australian farmers manage over 60% of the Australian continent and shoulder much of the burden of responsibility for maintaining and protecting Australia’s natural resource wealth. The information contained in this profile aims to assist the wider community, non-governmental organisations and government agencies to support Australia’s key environmental custodians.

Source:Based on Australian Bureau of Statistics data

Natural Resource Management practices and sources of NRM advice

* Data obtained from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 2012 Land Management Practices Survey (LaMPS) 2012. LaMPS collected land practices informationfrom approximately 50,000 farm businesses across Australia. The data has been aligned to Conservation Management Zones from ABS Statistical Area 2 units and Australian Agricultural Environment units. The % figures presented here are indicative only. For more information on LaMPS please refer to: @.nsf/mf/4630.0

** The sample for the Drivers of Practice Change 2012 survey consisted of a random subsample of 1228 broadacre farm managers from the Australian Agricultural and Grazing Industries Survey (AAGIS) frame. The data has been aligned to Conservation Management Zones from ABS Statistical Area 2 units. Forthis reason, the figures presented here are indicative only.

^ This chart indicates the sources of advice utilised for native vegetation management from respondents who identified they sought advice.

For more information please refer to

Land tenure, land use, Native Title andLocal Government Areas

Source:Land tenure data based on Environmental Resources Information Network (ERIN) categorisation of Public Sector Mapping Authority (PSMA) State Tenure 2012; Land use mapping based on Australian Collaborative Land Use and Management Program (ACLUMP) 2012. For more information on Australian land use and management information and classification please refer to:

Indigenous Land Councils
New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council:
Native Title and Traditional Owners
Traditional Owners / Registered Native Title Body Corporate / Hectares / % of zone
Gunai/Kurnai People / Gunaikurnai Land & Waters AboriginalCorporation / 199,253 / 16.16
Local Government Areas
Cooma-Monaro Council / NSW
Snowy River Shire Council / NSW
Tumbarumba Shire Council / NSW
Tumut Council / NSW
Alpine Shire / VIC
Baw Baw Shire / VIC
East Gippsland Shire / VIC
Falls Creek Alpine Resort (Unincorporated) / VIC
Lake Mountain Alpine Resort (Unincorporated) / VIC
Mansfield Shire / VIC
Mount Baw Baw Alpine Resort (Unincorporated) / VIC
Mount Buller Alpine Resort (Unincorporated) / VIC
Mount Hotham Alpine Resort (Unincorporated) / VIC
Mount Stirling Alpine Resort (Unincorporated) / VIC
Murrindindi Shire / VIC
Towong Shire / VIC
Wangaratta Rural City / VIC
Wellington Shire / VIC
Yarra Ranges Shire / VIC

Zone vegetation characteristics

The National Vegetation Information System (NVIS) framework is a nationally consistent vegetation classification system based on vegetation data collected by states and territories. It provides information on the extent and distribution of vegetation types across the Australian landscape.

Two products are used to provide the Zone Vegetation Characteristics graph. A modelled pre-European vegetation distribution (pre-1750), and extant (current extent) vegetation, which is based on contemporary vegetation mapping. The information presented here relates to Major Vegetation Subgroups (MVSs). There are 85 MVS types across Australia, describing the structure and floristic composition of dominant and secondary vegetation stratums (e.g.canopy and mid-storey species). Major Vegetation Subgroups only reflect the dominant vegetation type occurringin an area from a mix of vegetation types. Less-dominant vegetation groups which may also be present aretherefore not represented.

It is important to note that the vegetation information is indicative only, as state and territory mapping in Australia is of variable resolution and scale. However, this data is the best available nationally consistent information on vegetation, and the dataset continues to evolve and increase in accuracy.

Analysing this information at Conservation Management Zone, rather than national level provides greater discrimination for decision makers, as clearance levels of vegetation types are not uniform across Australia. Forexample, eucalypt woodlands with a tussock grass understory is a vegetation type found across Australia. IntheBrigalow Woodlands Conservation Management Zone, eucalypt open woodlands with a tussock grass understory originally covered approximately 36% of the zone, but today it only covers only 14.5 % of the zone (58.7%of this vegetation community has been cleared in the Brigalow). In the Northern Australia Tropical Savannah zone, thisvegetation type originally occupied 19.6% of the zone. Today, it occupies approximately 19.4% of the zone (only2.3% of this vegetation type has been cleared). It should be noted that this data only provides an indication ofchange in extent, and not vegetation condition.

For more information on the National Vegetation Information System (NVIS) please refer to:

Ramsar and Nationally Important Wetlands

Ramsar wetlands / Jurisdiction / Hectares
Ginini Flats Wetland Complex / ACT / 367.50
Blue Lake / NSW / 338.10

For more information on Ramsar please refer to:
-convention-wetlands

Nationally Important Wetlands / Jurisdiction / Hectares / Criteria
Upper Buchan River / VIC / 1,125.39 / 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Yaouk Swamp / NSW / 332.92 / 1
Suggan Buggan and Berrima Rivers / VIC / 181.17 / 2, 3, 4
Tomneys Plain / NSW / 107.47 / 1
Davies Plain / VIC / 57.04 / 3, 5
Blue Lake (Kosciuszko) / NSW / 41.30 / 1, 4, 5
Central Highlands Peatlands / VIC / 35.82 / 1
Mt Buffalo Peatlands / VIC / 22.69 / 1
Nuniong Plateau Peatlands / VIC / 11.83 / 1
Caledonia Fen / VIC / 9.45 / 1
Howqua River / VIC / 0.28 / 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
Nursery Swamp / ACT / 0.12 / 1, 6
Rock Flats / ACT / 0.12 / 1
Rennex Gap / NSW / 0.12 / 1, 3
Snowgum Flat / NSW / 0.12 / 1,
Rotten Swamp / ACT / 0.12 / 1, 6
Scabby Range Lake / ACT / 0.12 / 2
Snowy Flats / ACT / 0.12 / 5,
Ginini and Cheyenne Flats / ACT / 0.12 / 1, 2, 4, 5, 6
Cotter Source Bog / ACT / 0.10 / 1, 6, 2
Big River / VIC / 0.04 / 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Nationally important wetlands are defined according to the following criteria:

  1. It is a good example of a wetland type occurring within a biogeographic region in Australia.
  2. It is a wetland which plays an important ecological or hydrological role in the natural functioning of a major wetland system/complex.
  3. It is a wetland which is important as the habitat for animal taxa at a vulnerable stage in their life cycles, or provides a refuge when adverse conditions such as drought prevail.
  4. The wetland supports 1% or more of the national populations of any native plant or animal taxa.
  5. The wetland supports native plant or animal taxa or communities which are considered endangered or vulnerable at the national level.
  6. The wetland is of outstanding historical or cultural significance.

Please note, the above are a subset of all the Nationally Important Wetlands found within the Zone. For more information on Nationally Important Wetlands please see: -important-wetlands-australia-third-edition

World and National Heritage

Heritage values / World or National Heritage / Heritage type / Jurisdiction / Hectares / % of zone
Australian Alps National Parks and Reserves / National Heritage / Natural / NSW / 748,286 / 60.69

Please refer to the Australian Heritage Database for detailed information on listing criteria for these heritage values:

For more information on Australia’s world and national heritage please refer to:

Major National Reserve System properties

Major National Reserve System properties
Name / Property type / IUCN category / Jurisdiction / Hectares / % of zone
Kosciuszko / National Park / II / NSW / 363,269 / 29.5
Alpine / National Park / II / VIC / 298,156 / 24.2
Namadgi / National Park / II / ACT / 30,879 / 2.5
Namadgi / Wilderness Zone / IB / ACT / 22,249 / 1.8
Yarra Ranges / National Park / II / VIC / 19,271 / 1.6
Mount Buffalo / National Park / II / VIC / 9,701 / 0.8
Baw Baw / National Park / II / VIC / 7,637 / 0.6
Bimberi / Nature Reserve / II / NSW / 5,973 / 0.5
Scabby Range / Nature Reserve / IA / NSW / 4,873 / 0.4
Avon / Wilderness Park / IB / VIC / 4,235 / 0.3
Yaouk / Nature Reserve / IA / NSW / 2,719 / 0.2
Nunniong Plain N.F.S.R. / Natural Features Reserve / III / VIC / 2,318 / 0.2
Burrowa – Pine Mountain / National Park / II / VIC / 2,225 / 0.2
Mount Skene N.F.S.R. / Natural Features Reserve / III / VIC / 1,944 / 0.2
Mount Gibbo N.F.S.R. / Natural Features Reserve / III / VIC / 1,329 / 0.1
Nunnett Plain N.F.S.R. / Natural Features Reserve / III / VIC / 1,179 / 0.1
Wabba / Wilderness Park / IB / VIC / 1,172 / 0.1
Tidbinbilla / Nature Reserve / II / ACT / 984 / 0.1
Yarrarabulla R.N.A / Remote and Natural Area – not scheduled under NPA / VI / VIC / 761 / 0.1
Mount Sarah N.F.S.R. / Natural Features Reserve / III / VIC / 690 / 0.1
Spring Creek / Reference Area / IA / VIC / 683 / 0.1
The IUCN categories are as follows:
Ia Strict Nature Reserve / IUCN protected area management categories classify protected areas according to their management objectives. The categories are recognised by international bodies such as the United Nations and are utilised by many national governments, including the Australian Government, as the global standard for definingand recording protected areas.
Ib Wilderness Area
II National Park
III Natural Monument or Feature
IV Habitat/Species Management Area
V Protected Landscape/ Seascape
VI Protected area with sustainable use of natural resources

Please refer to the IUCN website for further explanation:

For more information on Australia’s National Reserve System please refer to:

EPBC Act (1999) threatened ecological communities

Threatened ecological communities
Name / Listing status / % of total distribution* / % of zone**
Alpine Sphagnum Bogs and Associated Fens / Endangered / 24.3 / 98.9
Natural Temperate Grassland of the SouthernTablelands of NSW and theAustralian Capital Territory / Endangered / 2.8 / 7.1
White Box-Yellow Box-Blakely’s RedGum Grassy Woodland and DerivedNative Grassland / Critically
Endangered / 2.5 / 49.0

* % of the total national distribution describes the proportion of the total national distribution
of theThreatened Ecological Community that is found within the zone.

** % of the total zone area describes the proportion of the zone that the Threatened Ecological Community
is likely or known to occur in.

It should be noted that the identification of any given Threatened Ecological Community above does not imply that the Threatened Ecological Community (TEC) is found uniformly across the Conservation Management Zone. Rather, the % of the TEC’s total distribution (*) within the zone is an indication of its importance to that zone interms of conservation efforts. The % of the zone (**) indicates how rare, or difficult the ecological community may be to find within the zone.

The threatened ecological communities above are listed under The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act), which is the Australian Government’s principal environmental legislation.
For more information, please refer to

EPBC Act (1999) threatened species

Threatened mammals
Common name / Scientific name / Status / % of total
distribution* / % of zone**
Mountain Pygmy-possum / Burramys parvus / Endangered / 98.94 / 6.7
Leadbeater’s Possum / Gymnobelideus leadbeateri / Endangered / 27.81 / 3.3
Konoom, Smoky Mouse / Pseudomys fumeus / Endangered / 25.06 / 13.0
Spot-tailed Quoll,
Spotted-tail Quoll, Tiger Quoll (southeasternmainland population) / Dasyurus maculatus maculatus (SE mainland population) / Endangered / 4.32 / 61.4
Long-footed Potoroo / Potorous longipes / Endangered / 2.32 / 1.7
Brush-tailed Rock-wallaby / Petrogale penicillata / Vulnerable / 0.94 / 3.1
Grey-headed Flying-fox / Pteropus poliocephalus / Vulnerable / 0.18 / 2.5
Koala (combined populations of Queensland, New South Wales and theAustralian Capital Territory) / Phascolarctos cinereus / Vulnerable / 0.09 / 3.0
Long-nosed Potoroo (SE mainland) / Potorous tridactylus tridactylus / Vulnerable / May be present / May be present
Threatened birds
Common name / Scientific name / Status / % of total
distribution* / % of zone**
Australasian Bittern / Botaurus poiciloptilus / Endangered / 1.04 / 31.3
Swift Parrot / Lathamus discolor / Endangered / 0.02 / 0.24
Australian Painted Snipe / Rostratula australis / Endangered / 0.01 / 0.10
Regent Honeyeater / Anthochaera phrygia / Endangered / 0.01 / 0.21
Superb Parrot / Polytelis swainsonii / Vulnerable / 0.01 / 0.10

* % of total distribution describes the proportion of the total national distribution of the threatened species thatisfound within the zone.