Conservation Management Zones of Australia
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Conservation Management Zones of Australia Brigalow Woodlands Prepared by the Department of the Environment Acknowledgements This project and its associated products are the result of collaboration between the Department of the Environment’s 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 of 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 of DotE; Nyree Stenekes and Robert Kancans (DoA), Sue McIntyre (CSIRO), Richard Hobbs (University of Western Australia), Michael Hutchinson (ANU); David Lindenmayer and Emma Burns (ANU); and Gilly Llewellyn, Martin Taylor and other staff from the World Wildlife Fund for their generosity and advice. Special thanks to CSIRO researchers Kristen Williams and Simon Ferrier whose modelling of biodiversity patterns underpinned identification of the Conservation Management Zones of Australia. Image Credits Front Cover: Carnarvon Gorge National Park – Photo by Dan Proud, www.danproud.com.au Page 4: Northern hairy-nosed wombat (Lasiorhinus krefftii) – Darren Jew Page 10: Relic bottle tree (Brachychiton rupestris) amongst brigalow scrub near Barcaldine – Allan Fox Page 14: Giant pink slug (Triboniophorus aff. graeffei), Mt Kaputar National Park – R Cleary Sean Australia/OEH Page 16: Rufous Bettong (Aepyprymnus rufescens) – Bernard Dupont Page 18: Grass trees (Xanthorrhoea glauca subspecies angustifolia), Warrumbungle National Park – Richard Lukacz Page 21: Pilliga Mouse, Poolkoo (Pseudomys pilligaensis) – Justin McDowell Page 22: Star Finch (Neochmia ruficauda) – JJ Harrison Page 25: Ornamental Snake (Denisonia maculata) – Steve Wilson Page 32: Yakka skinks (Egernia rugosa) – Steve Wilson Page 33: Eucalyptus woodlands with a tussock grass understorey, Bimble box (Eucalyptus populnea) – Wendy Hawes @ The Envirofactor Page 34: Brigalow forests and woodlands (Acacia harpophylla) – Murray Fagg Page 35: Eucalyptus woodlands with a shrubby understorey, Mount Kaputar National Park – Jessica Stokes/OEH Page 36: Eucalyptus open forests with a grassy understorey (Corymbia citriodora) – Brooker and Kleinig Page 37: Eucalyptus open woodlands with a grassy understorey (Eucalyptus microcarpa) – R.W. Purdie Page 38: Other Acacia forests and woodlands (Acacia pendula) – Murray Fagg Page 39: Blue grass (Dichanthium) and tall bunch grass (Chrysopogon) tussock grasslands – Department of the Environment Page 40: Dry rainforest or vine thickets (Brachychiton rupestris) – Murray Fagg Back Cover: Carnarvon Gorge National Park – Photo by Dan Proud, www.danproud.com.au © 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 third parties, and any images depicting people. For licence conditions see here. Conservation Management Zones of Australia, Brigalow Woodlands Contents Acknowledgement of Traditional Owners and Country ����������������������������������������������2 Introduction ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������2 Zone at a glance ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������3 Population characteristics �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������6 Employment, volunteering and incomes �������������������������������������������������������������������������9 Agriculture, Natural Resource Management practices and sources of NRM advice ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������11 Land tenure, land use, Native Title and Local Government Areas ������������������������� 13 Zone vegetation characteristics����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 15 Nationally Important Wetlands �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������17 World and National Heritage ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 18 Major National Reserve System properties �������������������������������������������������������������������� 19 EPBC Act (1999) threatened ecological communities ������������������������������������������������� 20 EPBC Act (1999) threatened species ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 21 EPBC Act (1999) migratory species ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������ 26 Threatened endemic species ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 27 Invasive species ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 29 Vegetation profiles and management recommendations ��������������������������������������� 32 Conservation Management Zones of Australia, Brigalow Woodlands 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-economic information. 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. 2 / Conservation Management Zones of Australia, Arid Shrublands and Desert Zone at a glance Area of zone: Population density: 34,219,347 hectares % of Australia: 1.25 people 4.45% per square kilometre Zone population characteristics Zone employment characteristics 500,000 3.5% 450,568 400,000 300,000 Number of people 200,000 100,000 0 otal T er 65 Ov a second language English as ndigenous 96.5% I outh (15–24) Y Employed Unemployed Source: Based on Australian Bureau of Statistics data 3 / Conservation Management Zones of Australia, Brigalow Woodlands Major cities and towns Population Top five agricultural commodities Value per annum Dalby 10,861 Beef $1,344m Dubbo 32,335 Cereals for grain $881m Emerald 12,896 Other broadacre crops $623m Tamworth 36,160 Poultry $207m Toowoomba 96,221 Vegetables for consumption $204m Total value of Warwick 13,371 $4,254m agricultural commodities Rural centres Population Biloela 5,809 Climate characteristics* Blackwater 4,846 Mean annual temperature 19.6 Celsius Calliope 3,058 Mean Maximum of the Hottest Month 32.7 Celsius Chinchilla 4,774 Mean Minimum of the Coldest Month 4.6 Celsius Coonabarabran 2,566 Dysart 3,010 Mean Annual Rainfall 634.9mm Gracemere 7,576 Dominant rainfall season Summer Gunnedah 7,901 * The figures are interpolated 75-year means (1921 to 1995) Highfields 7,947 representing the period prior to the onset of rapid climatic warming. Cited in: Williams KJ, Belbin L, Austin MP, Stein J, Ferrier S (2012) Moranbah