Mosaic Map: NRM funded projects
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Research to shed light on rare plants in arid South Australia
Research into the ecology of native plants in South Australia is providing vital information on those under threat.
Basic information is lacking on the needs and dangers facing threatened species and ecological communities in the northern Arid Lands region. This lack of understanding has prevented the development of targeted recovery efforts.
An important project is now prioritising threatened plants and associated ecological communities so that management actions can be put in place for those most at risk, and for those where the populations in South Australia form a sizeable part of the national population.
Funding
The project is a partnership between the South Australian Department for Environment and Heritage and Greening Australia (SA). The Australian Government has provided the program with more than $300,000 over the past two years through the Arid Lands Natural Resources Management Board.
Activities
Biodiversity Support Officer Janet Walton said the project involved reviewing the information currently available for the region's threatened species.
"For each targeted species we already have some information about its location, population size, habitat condition and threats," Janet said.
"My role is to locate these plants out in the field to find out whether any of these elements have changed and update the data."
Over the next six months, a number of previously established exclosures - fenced areas that exclude grazing and browsing animals - will be re-monitored, repaired and reviewed. Data collected from the exclosures will be used to identify threats and as a basis for management recommendations.
Studies will also be carried out to identify potential habitat for plants, including types of wattle and Emu bush. General surveys will be undertaken to locate the presence or absence of three unique plant species - Althea australia, Leptorhynchos melanocarpus and Swainsona dictyocarpa - which do not yet have common names as so little is known about them.
Achievements
So far, the project has reviewed 113 plants and re-monitored three exclosures.
A successful plant vouchering workshop was also held at the Arid Lands Botanic Gardens in Port Augusta to raise awareness and improve the way plant specimens are collected in the region. Participants included environmental field officers and local landholders.
Janet said when collecting plant specimens, people were encouraged to document important observations such as plant description, population size and GPS location, and to press and dry specimens as soon as possible.
More information
- Janet Walton, Arid Lands Biodiversity Support Officer: (08) 8648 5978 or rangelands@greeningsa.org.au
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