Edition 2 From Forest to Fjaeldmark The Vegetation Communities Saltmarsh and wetland Tecticornia arbuscula Edition 2 From Forest to Fjaeldmark (revised – February 2018) 1 Saltmarsh and wetland Community (Code) Page Alkaline pans (AAP) 6 Freshwater aquatic herbland (AHF) 8 Lacustrine herbland (AHL) 10 Saline aquatic herbland (AHS) 12 Saline sedgeland/rushland (ARS) 14 Freshwater aquatic sedgeland and rushland (ASF) 16 Sphagnum peatland (ASP) 18 Succulent saline herbland (ASS) 20 Saltmarsh (undifferentiated) (AUS) 22 Wetland (undifferentiated) (AWU) 23 General description aerial photograph interpretation) or where there is a fine-scale mosaic of diverse communities. Where Wetlands are among the most productive possible, these areas should be attributed to one of ecosystems on earth, fulfilling many environmental the specific mapping units. and socio-economic functions. They act as breeding grounds for many species of fish, water birds, It should be noted that the mapping units in this amphibians and insects. Many wetlands are section each incorporate a wide range of distinct important as stopover points for migratory bird vegetation types; more comprehensive vegetation species. Plant communities in wetlands filter water analysis of wetlands can be found in Kirkpatrick and and disperse heavy flow in times of flood. Harwood (1981), and of saltmarshes in Kirkpatrick & Glasby (1981). Saltmarshes are saline types of wetlands. They occur predominantly on low-energy coastlines where wave action does not hinder the establishment of vascular Revision plants. In Tasmania the best examples can be seen in A decision was made in late 2017 to move two sheltered inlets and bays on the east and south units previously in ‘Moorland, sedgeland, rushland coasts, with other large areas present in the far and peatland’ to this section on the basis of their north-west of the State and on some of the Bass ecological association with wetland communities. Strait islands. These systems are also highly Sphagnum peatland, previously MSP, is now ASP. productive, as they receive nutrient inputs from the Alkaline pans, previously MAP, is now AAP. land and are regularly flushed by the sea. In some Sphagnum peatland (ASP) is characterised by a estuaries in the north and east of the State, there ground layer of moss in the genus Sphagnum, which may be a dense monoculture of the weed species may form a dense, blanketing layer or a sparse layer Spartina anglica (Phillips 1975); this vegetation type is growing around trees, small shrubs, sedges or ferns. mapped as FSM and is described in Agricultural, Any area with greater than 30% ground cover of urban and exotic vegetation. Sphagnum is considered a Sphagnum peatland Wetland (undifferentiated) (AWU) and Saltmarsh community. These communities are found in (undifferentiated) (AUS) are generic types and are poorly–drained acid areas (pH 4.0–5.5), generally mapped where the specific wetland or saltmarsh above 600 m in altitude, although there are type cannot be identified by remote means (such as examples at lower altitudes. The patch sizes are Edition 2 From Forest to Fjaeldmark (revised – February 2018) 1 generally small because of sphagnum’s specific suitable habitats for Spartina anglica and ARS (M. environmental conditions required for growth and Visoiu pers. comm.). long recovery time after disturbance. Overall, Sphagnum peatlands are in good condition, Alkaline pans form where dolomite or limestone and most are within reserves, with the exception of crops out or occurs near the surface within the aquatic Sphagnum bogs. A main management moorland scrub mosaics in south-west Tasmania issue for these communities is fire protection (Whinam et al. 1989). The peat soils that underlie The dolomite and limestone derived gravels and Sphagnum peatlands can take many hundreds to sands range from moderately acidic to alkaline (pH thousands of years to develop, and after fire may 5.0 to 8.5) contrasting with the surrounding peat take equally long to recover. soils which are highly acidic (pH 4.0 to 4.5). A publication by (Proemse et al. 2017) describes Alkaline pans are highly visible with distinct Alkaline pans as ‘spring-fed groundwater-dependent boundaries due to the sharp gradient in pH, but are ecosystems’, refuting the previous interpretation of typically small and irregular in shape, often following these communities as ephemeral disturbance drainage lines and topographic depressions. features due to burning of the peat with resultant exposure of underlying alkaline substrates. The General management issues management issues for Alkaline pans are changes to There are many management issues for wetlands drainage and pH, and fire. The accumulation of and saltmarshes, as they are open systems, organic matter (‘peat’) in pans causes gradual vulnerable to disturbances outside their borders. changes to pH and drainage that may result in the Wetlands are host to many ubiquitous weed pan becoming dominated by acidity-loving species. species, most of which have insignificant impacts on Hot fires in peat around Alkaline pans with the community unless there is a compounding subsequent water erosion may actually initiate and disturbance, such as stock grazing or raised levels of extend the life of some pans. nutrients (Harwood 1991). References and further reading Change in the water regimes resulting in draining, drowning or partial modification has been, and still is, Barnes, R.W., Duncan, F. & Todd, C.S. (2002) The native vegetation of King Island, Bass Strait. Nature Conservation a major issue for wetland and saltmarsh Report 02/6. Nature Conservation Branch, Department of communities. Large areas have been lost in this way, Primary Industries, Water and Environment, Hobart. and most of the remainder, in developed areas, have suffered some level of disturbance (Harwood 1991, DPIWE (2004) A Wetlands Strategy for Tasmania. Kirkpatrick & Tyler 1988, Kirkpatrick & Harwood Department of Primary Industries, Water and 1983 a & b, Kirkpatrick & Harwood 1981). Environment, Hobart. Saltmarsh and wetland vegetation is adapted to high Fearn, S., Visoiu, M. & Mollison, R. (2003) A Proposed Management Plan for the Flora and Terrestrial Vertebrate levels of native animal grazing. The productivity of Fauna of the Tamar Island Wetland Reserve, with these systems makes them foci for many native particular reference to the threatened southern bell frog animal populations. However the hard hoofs of (Litoria raniformis) and its decline in the Launceston area. domestic stock break the delicate vegetation layer in A report prepared for Wetland Care Australia and the herbfield and pug up aquatic herbland. As this usually Tamar Island Wetlands Volunteers. Launceston results in a high cover of weed species and a loss of Environment Centre Inc., Launceston. native diversity, saltmarshes and wetlands are not suited to livestock grazing. A similar effect to stock Forest Practices Authority (2005) Forest Botany Manual. Forest Practices Authority, Hobart, Tasmania. grazing is produced by the tracks of off-road vehicles, which allow weeds to establish, and remain Harwood, C.E. (1991) Wetland vegetation. In: Tasmanian visible for many years (Harwood 1991, Barnes et al. Native Bush: A Management Handbook (Ed. J.B. 2002). Salt-tolerant pasture grasses such as Festuca Kirkpatrick) pp. 101–116.). Tasmanian Environment Centre arundinacea can pose weed problems in saline Inc., Hobart. communities. Spartina anglica has also replaced small Kirkpatrick, J.B. & Glasby, J. (1981) Saltmarshes in areas of saline sedgeland/rushland in some estuaries; Tasmania. Distribution, community composition and however there appears to be only a small overlap in Edition 2 From Forest to Fjaeldmark (revised – February 2018) 2 conservation. Occasional Paper 8. Department of Proemse, B.C., Eberhard, R.S., Sharples, C., Bowman, J.P., Geography, University of Tasmania. Richards, K., Comfort, M. & Barmuta, L.A. (2017) Stromatolites on the rise in peat-bound karstic wetlands. Kirkpatrick, J.B. & Harris, S.(1999) Coastal, heath and Scientific Reports 7, Article number: 15384. wetland vegetation. In: Vegetation of Tasmania (Ed. J.B. DOI:10.1038/s41598-017-15507-1 Reid, R.S. Hill, M.J. Brown & J. Hovenden) Vegetation of Tasmania. Flora of Australia Supplementary Series Richardson, A.M.M, Swain, R. & Wong, V. (1997) The Number 8. Australian Biological Resources Study Crustacean and Molluscan fauna of Tasmanian saltmarshes. Papers and Proceedings of the Royal Society of Tasmania. Kirkpatrick, J.B. & Harwood, C.E. (1981) The conservation 131, 21–30. of Tasmanian wetlands macrophytic species and communities. A report to the Australian Heritage Visoiu, M.H. (2003) Pers. comm. Festuca arundanaceae Commission from the Tasmanian Conservation Trust Inc., and Spartina anglica weediness in saltmarsh. 9 September Hobart. 2003. Kirkpatrick, J.B., & Harwood, C.E. (1983a) Plant Whinam, J., Barmuta, L.A. & Chilcott, N. (2001) Floristic communities of Tasmanian wetlands. Australian Journal of description and environmental relationships of Tasmanian Botany. 31, 437–451. Sphagnum communities and their conservation management. Australian Journal of Botany. 49(6), 673– Kirkpatrick, J.B. & Harwood, C.E. (1983b) The conservation 685. of Tasmanian macrophytic wetland vegetation. Papers and Proceedings of the Royal Society of Tasmania. 117, 5–20. Whinam, J., Hope, G.S., Clarkson, B.R., Buxton, R., Alspatch, P.A. & Adam, P. (2003) Sphagnum in peatlands Kirkpatrick, J.B. & Tyler, P.A. (1988) Tasmanian wetlands