Rod Giblett and David SHOWCASE James Photos by Bryony Fremlin A Botanical The Anstey-Keane dampland or heathland and Bush Forever Site (342) in Perth, is the second most floristically diverse of 500 Jewel: Bush Forever sites, with 381 species of native flora. According to Bush Forever, it is second only to the Greater Brixton St. The Anstey- site in terms of number of species. The site includes rare flora and two threatened ecological communities. It is located in Keane Jandakot Regional Park in Forrestdale within the City of Armadale in the Perth south-eastern metropolitan area. Two Damplands in threatened ecological communities have been described in this area. They are associated with seasonal wetlands. One of Perth Western these is endangered type 10a, described in Bush Forever, ‘shrublands on dry clay flats and the other is vulnerable type 8, Australia ‘herb rich shrublands in clay pans’. It should be nominated to the Directory of Important Wetlands in Australia. Patersonia in Anstey-Keane Damplands The Anstey-Keane dampland in would not only destroy the flora in the road Forrestdale also has more species of reserve but also seriously compromise the native flora than Kings Park which has 293 fauna, including bandicoots and native taxa (plus 172 weed taxa) and kangaroos, that live in the site and cross which is Bush Forever site 317. Kings the road reserve. Park is regarded as an iconic tourist destination for visitors and valued From Anstey Road the heathland is flat recreation site for Perth residents. This and the vegetation is low. It stretches north year it was crowded with many people and south from Armadale Road in the enjoying the picnic areas and the activities south to Ranford Road to the north. The that were part of the wildflower festival, land is flat with barely a rise or fall. The held for six weeks. Kings Park is notable trees are short and the bushes and other for the many species of native flora vegetation are low. One nearby resident common to the area and for its botanical calls the area ‘scrub,’ implying that its gardens that showcase flora species from vegetation is worthless. The vegetation is elsewhere in Western Australia. Not well- certainly not tall, grand and uplifting like known and certainly not as well-visited as forest, nor like picturesque ‘bush’. Much of Kings Park, is Anstey-Keane dampland its vegetation, however, is small, exquisite with its botanical treasures and rich and valuable in its own right. biodiversity and flowers for six months of the year. It too could be a valued park. Many of the species are found in the lower and wetter land summed up nicely as Yet it is threatened with a proposed road ‘dampland’. Moisture is diffused through through the middle of it. It is also being the land and not usually visible on the degraded by off-road vehicle use and surface. The wetness of the land is usually rubbish dumping. This proposed road inferred only from the types of plants that it 19 supports. Dampland is thus unlike other including the east side of Forrestdale Lake wetlands, such as the nearby, Nature Reserve and the Anstey-Keane internationally significant Forrestdale Lake, damplands. with its large body of open shallow water in winter and spring, but that usually dries out Professor Stephen Hopper, Professor at in summer. Damplands are moist basins the University of Western Australia, former covered with plants. They have been Director of Kings Park and Botanic defined by the V and C Semeniuk Gardens and an eminent botanist said: Research Group as ‘seasonally waterlogged basins’ that ‘support rich plant ‘Ephemeral wetlands are a special and animal communities’. The types of favourite of mine. I have worked in plants found in damplands depend on particular on gnammas on granite moisture close to the surface of the land. outcrops since the 1970s, as well As many of these plants are short, and as being actively involved in rare ground-hugging, the area is often called flora conservation for damplands, heathland, though there are also and in helping securing Brixton St, sedgelands and herblands in the area. Kenwick as a reserve when I worked in CALM [now DEC]. Such damplands are truly unsung Lobelia biodiversity jewels of international significance, at risk from many perspectives. Perth itself is one of the most biodiverse cities on Earth, and its ephemeral damplands are at the sharp edge of conservation concern given their rarity and vulnerability. In this context putting a road through the Anstey-Keane damplands would be ill-advised Before European settlement these once indeed when suitable alternatives floristically-rich damplands occurred all the could be implemented.’ way from Pinjarra in the south, to the (CALM = Department of Conservation and Land Management now termed Department of southern Perth metropolitan area. The Environment and Conservation [DEC]) sandy, clay soils of these flat damplands, called the Pinjarra Plain, have resulted in The exceptional shrub species found at the evolution over thousands of years of Anstey-Keane include: swamp fox banksia their unique vegetation. The northernmost ( Banksia telmatiaea); one-sided tip of the Pinjarra Plain is wedged between bottlebrush (Calothamnus hirsutus); the Bassendean Dune complex to the west and the Wungong River to the east. Regelia ciliata Confined almost solely to the east side of the Swan Coastal Plain the Pinjarra Plain was highly suitable as good agricultural land and so has been almost entirely cleared. With the removal of almost all the native vegetation for farming, the only places it can be found today are along the Perth-Bunbury railway line, road verges (such as Mundijong Road), nature reserves, remnants on private property, and two large areas in Forrestdale, 20 swamp cypress (A c t i n o s t r o b u s the dampland are: woolly dragons pyramidalis); sand bottlebrush (Beaufortia (Pityrodia uncinata), the southernmost squarrossa); and Regelia ciliata which population of this species according to the provides important habitat for southern- Bush Forever site description; Petrophile brown bandicoot, or quenda (Isoodon seminuda); basket flower (Adenanthos obesulus), as it provides dense cover for obovatus); swamp pea (Euchilopsis this secretive and vulnerable animal. linearis) and stinkwood (Jacksonia Because of its size this area supports a sternbergiana). Many herbaceous species rich representation of birds and mammals found here show themselves each spring. Pityrodia uncinata including the western grey kangaroo Many species of orchids occur here (Macropus fuliginosus). Several species of including purdies donkey orchid (Diuris birds are attracted to the flowering purdiei), a declared rare flora (DRF) heathland shrubs such as the white- species. Green kangaroo paws cheeked honeyeater (Phylidonyris nigra), (Anigozanthos viridis) are endemic to tawny crowned honeyeater (Phylidonyris these damp areas (that is, found nowhere melanops), along with insectivorus birds else). Carpets of pink petticoats such as the splendid blue wren (Malurus (Polypompholyx mutifida) appear here and splendens), white-winged triller (Lalage give an extra blaze of colour. Many sueurii), and black-faced wood swallow sundews (Drosera spp) are also pink and (Artamus cinereus). Raptors include the give an exceptional splash of colour. little eagle (Hieraaetus morphnoides), wedge-tailed eagle (Aquila audax) and nankeen kestrel (Falco cenchroides). Ornduffia submersa Several species of melaleucas are also found in this dampland, including robin red breast bush (Melaleuca lateritia) and saltwater paperbark (Melaleuca cuticularis), more commonly found closer to the coast. Lower ground cover plants are icons of the area with exceptional colour in spring. Some highlights found in 21 Cutting a jewel in half makes it relatively Rod Giblett is Secretary of the Friends of worthless. The same would apply to the Forrestdale and Associate Professor in the Anstey-Keane Bush Forever site. School of Communications and Arts, Edith Cowan University. He is the author of many books including Forrestdale: People and Dampiera place; People and places of nature and culture; and Black swan lake: Life of a wetland . He is also co-editor with Hugh Webb of Western Australian wetlands: The Kimberley and south- west and co-author with Hugh of ‘Western Australian Wetlands: Living Water or Useless Swamps?’ Habitat, 21(3), 1993, 30-36. Hibbertia stellaris The larger an area of conserved bushland, the more viable it is for the plant and animal communities that inhabit it. The shorter the length of boundaries it has, the less opportunity there is for the ‘edge- effect’ of weeds, disease and human incursions. The area where Keane Road is proposed to go through has recently been surveyed as the most pristine of the entire Bush Forever site. Environmental consultants ‘Enviroworks’ David James is President of the Friends of are currently preparing a Public Forrestdale and a well-known naturalist. He Environmental Review (PER) of the has lived in Forrestdale all his life. His story proposed road. and those of other long-time former and present residents can be found in Forrestdale: This will be released for public comment People and place. soon. David gazing at the Regelia 22 The biodiversity and ambience of this area It is special because for its size for, by is beautifully captured by the photographer metropolitan standards, it is a big reserve. responsible for all these photos, in a It is because of its large size, un- description of a morning walk. fragmented by roads, that Anstey-Keane is In all Bryony mentions 3 animal species; 4 in such good condition. reptile species; 12+ invertebrate species; 18 bird species in a 4 hour walk through the wonderful plant life. Ed. Dasypogon Bryony Fremlin Excerpts from ‘A Walk Through Anstey-Keane Damplands’ Wedged between 3 major roads, a scattering of rural properties and burgeoning housing estates, is Anstey- Keane Dampland, a 308-hectare Bush Forever nature reserve in the southeastern suburb of Forrestdale.