Sites of Biological Significance in Knox 2nd Edition Volume 1 A Report to Knox City Council by Graeme S. Lorimer, PhD of Biosphere Pty Ltd ABN 28 097 295 504 www.biosphere.net.au 13 Kyamba Ct, Bayswater North, Vic. 3153 Version 2.0, 28 June, 2010 First published 2004 Second edition 2010 ‘Sites of Biological Significance in Knox’, Vol.1 of two volumes by Graeme S. Lorimer. Published by Knox City Council, Wantirna South, Victoria. ii Document Revision 2.0, 28 June 2010 CONTENTS Preface vii Acknowledgments viii Executive Summary ix 1. Introduction 1 1.1 Purpose of the Study 1 1.2 How to Use This Report 1 1.3 Background about the Municipality of Knox 2 1.4 Governmental Context of This Study 3 1.5 The Study Approach 6 2. Scientific Methods 7 2.1 Extent of Coverage 7 2.2 Survey of Literature and Pre-existing Information 7 2.3 Finding Potential Sites of Significance 9 2.4 Site Inspections 9 2.4.1 Delineation of Vegetation Types 10 2.4.2 Detection and Recording of Plant Species 10 2.4.3 Weed Severity 11 2.4.4 Vegetation Quality and Condition 11 2.5 Incidental Records 13 2.6 Significance Ratings 13 3. Scientific Findings 15 3.1 Bioregions 15 3.2 Biogeographical Zones 16 3.2.1 Dandenong Ranges 16 3.2.2 Undulating Country 17 3.2.3 Valley Floors 17 3.2.4 Granodiorite Gullies 18 3.2.5 Lysterfield Granodiorite 18 3.2.6 Lysterfield Hills 18 3.3 Habitat Types 19 3.3.1 The Importance of Threatened EVCs in Knox 21 3.4 Species of Ferns and Flowering Plants 21 3.4.1 Rare or Threatened Nationally or State-wide 22 3.4.2 Rare or Threatened in Knox 23 3.4.3 Environmental Weeds 25 3.5 Species of Moss and Liverwort 27 3.6 Fauna 27 3.6.1 Birds 27 3.6.2 Mammals 27 3.6.3 Frogs 28 Document Revision 2.0, 28 June 2010 iii 3.6.4 Reptiles 28 3.6.5 Fishes 28 3.6.6 Invertebrates 29 3.7 Sites 29 4. Issues Affecting Biodiversity 31 4.1 Protection of Habitat in Reserves 31 4.1.1 Management Plans 32 4.1.2 Monitoring Change 32 4.1.3 Interpretive Signs 33 4.1.4 Interaction with Neighbouring Land 33 4.2 Protection of Habitat Outside Reserves 33 4.3 Weeds 34 4.4 Vegetation Clearing and Damage 35 4.4.1 Housing Development and Construction 36 4.4.2 Roads 37 4.4.3 Quarries 38 4.4.4 Established Residential Land 38 4.4.5 Dead Trees 38 4.5 Habitat Fragmentation 39 4.6 Dieback 39 4.7 Fire Management 40 4.8 Feral Animals 41 4.9 Pets 42 4.10 Nutrient Seepage 42 4.11 Drainage Works and Waterway Modification 43 4.12 Rare or Threatened Flora and Fauna 43 4.13 Revegetation 44 5. Conservation Measures in the Planning Scheme 45 5.1 State Planning Policy Framework 45 5.1.1 Conservation of Native Flora and Fauna 45 5.1.2 Protection of Waterways and Floodplains 46 5.2 Municipal Strategic Statement 47 5.3 Local Planning Policies 47 5.3.1 Dandenong Foothills Policy 47 5.3.2 Bushland Neighbours 47 5.4 Zones 48 5.5 Overlays 48 5.5.1 Environmental Significance Overlay – Schedule 2 49 5.5.2 Environmental Significance Overlay – Schedule 3 51 5.5.3 Vegetation Protection Overlay 52 5.5.4 Schedule to Clause 52.17 53 5.6 Administration of the Planning Scheme 53 5.6.1 Public Promotion 53 5.6.2 Provision of Information to Permit Applicants 54 5.6.3 Referral and Expert Environmental Opinion 54 5.6.4 Deciding Planning Permit Applications 54 5.6.5 Future Review of Significant Sites 56 6. List of Recommendations 58 iv Document Revision 2.0, 28 June 2010 Bibliography 63 Appendix A – Vegetation Communities in Knox 67 Appendix B – Indigenous Plant Species of Knox 86 Appendix C – Environmental Weeds of Knox 99 Appendix D – Fauna Species of Knox 102 Birds 102 Mammals 106 Frogs 107 Reptiles 107 Fishes 108 Butterflies 108 Notable Other Invertebrates 109 Appendix E – Example Bushland Neighbour Policy 110 Glossary and Abbreviations 112 Document Revision 2.0, 28 June 2010 v vi Document Revision 2.0, 28 June 2010 Preface This second edition has been updated to account for six years of change since the first edition in 2004. There have been substantial changes in Knox’s native vegetation and fauna, as well as in the Victorian Department of Sustainability & Environment’s assessment of the significance of many species of indigenous flora and fauna. Site Changes A reinvestigation of some sites was prompted by observations that they had been damaged since 2004, such as along the route of the EastLink road during its construction. One site was reinvestigated because Council had extensively revegetated it to compensate for lost habitat elsewhere in the municipality. Other sites were reinvestigated because they were on residential land subject to possible development, or because changes were apparent on aerial photographs taken since 2004. The author visited and inspected sites 3-5, 10, 15-17, 27, 29, 33, 34, 40-47, 49, 51, 52, 55, 56, 59-62, 64- 67, 69, 70, 78, 80, 81, 85, 89-91, 95, 98, 100, 102, 106, 109 and 111 in 2007-2010 to provide updated information in this edition. These inspections varied from a broad-ranging, two-day ecological survey (around the new Waterford Valley golf course) to an hour or so of redefining site boundaries or updating species lists. The author drove past, or walked beside, most of the other sites to confirm that their condition had not outwardly changed since 2004. Aerial photographs were checked for changes at nearly all sites. As explained in the introduction of Volume 2, two of the sites of biological significance identified in the first edition have been completely destroyed since 2004 and eighteen sites (mostly of State significance) have been reduced in extent due to clearing. Many other sites have changed significantly in their ecological condition, mostly adversely. Destructive land management and the effects of prolonged drought on swampy habitat have been profound in some sites (Lorimer 2007a). Plant species and vegetation communities that rely on swampy conditions have generally suffered severely during the drought, particularly since 2007. One new site of State significance has been introduced to this second edition: Site 12b – Mortiboy Reserve, The Basin. Changes in Planning Status Knox City Council’s reviews of the Boronia central activity area and the Dandenongs Foothills Policy Area prompted reconsideration of how habitat in these areas should be treated under the Knox Planning Scheme. The introduction of Schedule 1 to the Environmental Significance Overlay has also affected the treatment of the southwestern corner of Site 81. Changes in Significance Ratings The ratings of the significance level of sites have been reassessed according to the Department of Sustainability & Environment’s standard criteria (Amos 2004), which were published after the first ed- ition of the present report. This has resulted in a small upgrade of the significance rating of several sites. The ratings of flora species for their risk of extinction within Knox have been reassessed according to the international standard IUCN ‘Red List’ criteria of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (2001, 2003, 2008). This has resulted in many raised threat ratings compared with the criteria adopted in the first edition, which were based on the federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. The Victorian Department of Sustainability & Environment is in the process of applying the Red List methodology to its ratings at the state level, which will lead to an escalation of the state-level threat ratings of many of Knox’s flora species, even relatively common ones like Kangaroo Grass. The department updated its threat ratings for fauna in 2007 using the Red List criteria, and this second edition has been updated to account for this. Document Revision 2.0, 28 June 2010 vii Acknowledgments The author would like to express sincere thanks to: • Luke Murphy and Nadine Gaskell, who were Knox City Council’s project managers for this project during 2002-4 and 2007-2010, respectively. • Monique Reinehr of Knox City Council, who liaised with the author on planning provisions related to this study’s findings. • Kathryn Lorimer and David Lorimer for assistance with report production. • Steve Hines (formerly of Knox City Council) and Lisa Riddle (Planisphere) for ideas on planning. • Jan Jordan of Boronia for expertly gathered and prepared data on butterflies, moths and bees. • Kathleen Loxton of Ferntree Gully for providing naturalist observations (particularly butterflies). • Mark Fanthorpe, I. Rainbow, L. Living & R. Sinclair for fauna observations at and near Gilmour Park. • Andrew Paget for providing a copy of his 1985 B.App.Sc. thesis, with its copious botanical observations. • The Knox Environment Society for contributing flora and fauna observations and project information. • The U3A Knox Birdwatching Group for detailed bird observations in various parts of Knox, 1996-2000. • The National Herbarium of Victoria for providing a listing of plant specimen records from in and around Knox. • The Department of Sustainability & Environment for permitting use of flora and fauna data from the central databases in Victoria, which the department curates. These databases, the ‘Flora Information System’ and the ‘Victorian Fauna Database’, are copyright to the State of Victoria, Department of Sustainability & Environment. • Many landowners who granted permission to visit their properties. …and Rik Brown, who did some of the fieldwork and draft site descriptions for the first edition: RIK BROWN Botanical Consultant 113 Badger Weir Road, Healesville Vic.