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Riverland Ramsar Site Ecological Character Description

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Riverland Ramsar Site Ecological Character Description See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/282785823 Riverland Ramsar Site Ecological Character Description Technical Report · January 2009 CITATIONS READS 13 72 4 authors: Peter R Newall Lance Neil Lloyd Federation University Australia Lloyd Enviromental Pty Ltd 37 PUBLICATIONS 521 CITATIONS 26 PUBLICATIONS 412 CITATIONS SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE Peter Gell Keith F. Walker Federation University Australia University of Adelaide 102 PUBLICATIONS 1,965 CITATIONS 253 PUBLICATIONS 6,667 CITATIONS SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects: Estuary environmental flows assessment methodology for Victoria (EEFAM) View project Vegetation of the Menindee Lakes View project All content following this page was uploaded by Peter R Newall on 29 October 2015. The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file. Riverland Ramsar Site Ecological Character Description Riverland Ramsar Site Ecological Character Description by Peter Newall, Lance Lloyd, Peter Gell and Keith Walker Project No: LE0739 11th June 2008 Revised 13th July 2009 Riverland Ramsar Site ECD…4 Contents ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...................................................................................................................................... 6 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ............................................................................................................................... 7 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ....................................................................................................................................... 8 1. INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................................... 24 1.1. PURPOSE ..................................................................................................................................................... 24 1.2. SITE DETAILS ............................................................................................................................................. 25 1.3. DATE OF DESCRIPTION.............................................................................................................................. 27 1.4. RELEVANT TREATIES, LEGISLATION OR REGULATIONS .......................................................................... 27 1.4.1 International treaties and strategies .................................................................................... 27 Ramsar Convention ...................................................................................................................................... 27 1.4.2 Commonwealth Legislation and Policy ................................................................................ 29 1.4.3 State Legislation .......................................................................................................................... 29 2. DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE ................................................................................................................ 31 2.1 SETTING...................................................................................................................................................... 31 2.2 RIVERLAND RAMSAR SITE ......................................................................................................................... 33 2.2.1 Murtho Block .................................................................................................................................. 33 2.2.2 Calperum Block ............................................................................................................................ 33 2.2.3 Chowilla Block ............................................................................................................................... 33 2.3 OVERVIEW OF RAMSAR SITE .................................................................................................................... 36 2.4 RAMSAR LISTING ....................................................................................................................................... 41 Criterion 1 (representative/rare/unique wetland type in appropriate biogeographic region) ............................................................................................................................................................... 42 Criterion 2 (vulnerable/endangered/critically endangered species or ecological communities) .................................................................................................................................................. 42 Criterion 3 (supports populations of plant and/or animals important for regional biodiversity) .................................................................................................................................................... 44 Criterion 4 (supports species at critical stages or provides refuge in adverse conditions) ............................................................................................................................................................................. 45 Criterion 5 (providing habitat that regularly supports 20,000 or more waterbirds) ........... 46 Criterion 6 (providing habitat that regularly supports 1% of the global population of one species of waterbird) ................................................................................................................................... 48 Criterion 7 (supporting a significant proportion of indigenous fish taxa, life-history stages, species interactions or populations that are representative of wetland benefits and/or values) ................................................................................................................................................ 49 Criterion 8 (supplying an important food source, spawning ground, nursery and/or migration path for fishes, on which fish stocks depend) ............................................................... 50 2.5 LAND USE AND TENURE ............................................................................................................................ 52 3. ECOLOGICAL CHARACTER OF THE RIVERLAND RAMSAR SITE ....................................... 54 3.1 GENERAL DESCRIPTION ............................................................................................................................. 54 3.2 COMPONENTS OF THE SITE ....................................................................................................................... 56 3.2.1 Climate ............................................................................................................................................ 56 3.2.2 Geomorphology ............................................................................................................................ 58 3.2.3 Soils .................................................................................................................................................. 64 3.2.4 Hydrology ....................................................................................................................................... 64 3.2.5 Water Quality ................................................................................................................................ 71 3.2.6 Vegetation and Habitat .............................................................................................................. 73 3.2.7 Vegetation and Inundation Level ........................................................................................... 88 3.2.8 Fauna................................................................................................................................................ 94 Riverland Ramsar Site ECD…5 3.2.9 Critical components of the Site .............................................................................................. 98 3.3 PROCESSES OF THE SITE .......................................................................................................................... 98 3.4 BENEFITS AND SERVICES OF THE SITE .................................................................................................. 100 3.5 CONCEPTUAL MODELS OF THE SITE ....................................................................................................... 108 3.5.1 Landscape conceptual models .............................................................................................. 108 3.5.2 Flood levels and vegetation communities ........................................................................ 112 3.5.3 Biological processes .................................................................................................................. 119 3.5.4 Physico-chemical processes................................................................................................... 120 3.5.5 Groundwater processes ........................................................................................................... 121 3.6 KEY ACTUAL OR POTENTIAL THREATS TO THE SITE ............................................................................. 122 3.7 LIMITS OF ACCEPTABLE CHANGE ............................................................................................................ 127 4. CHANGES IN ECOLOGICAL CHARACTER SINCE LISTING ................................................. 151 5. KNOWLEDGE GAPS ................................................................................................................................
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