This Conservation Advice was approved by the Minister / Delegate of the Minister on: 3/7/2008 Approved Conservation Advice (s266B of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999) Approved Conservation Advice for depressa (Echidna Wattle)

This Conservation Advice has been developed based on the best available information at the time this conservation advice was approved.

Description Acacia depressa, Family Mimosaceae, also known as Echidna Wattle, is a dwarf, prostrate shrub forming mats to 5 cm high and approximately 50 cm across. The has a cushion- like habit with spiny branchlet tips. are compound, divided into a pair of leaves (pinnae), each 2−4 mm long with 3−4 smaller leaflets (pinnules), each 2–3 mm long. One light-golden globular flower head is found per axil and each flower head is about 4 mm across on a stalk 1−2 cm long. Pods are small, 1−2 cm long by 3 mm wide. The dimensions of mature seeds have not been recorded. Flowering occurs between December and January (Brown et al., 1998; Maslin, 1975, 2001).

Conservation Status Echidna Wattle is listed as vulnerable. This species is eligible for listing as vulnerable under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cwlth) (EPBC Act) as, prior to the commencement of the EPBC Act, it was listed as vulnerable under Schedule 1 of the Endangered Species Protection Act 1992 (Cwlth). Echidna Wattle is also listed as rare flora under the Wildlife Conservation Act 1950 () and on the Wildlife Conservation (Rare Flora) Notice 2006(2) (Western Australia).

Distribution and Habitat Echidna Wattle is restricted to lateritic hills in the Tarin Rock area, west of Lake Grace in Western Australia (Graham & Mitchell, 2001). Plant surveys have recorded approximately 1000 individuals in 16 populations (DEFL, 2007). Echidna Wattle grows in scrub, open heath and low scrub land (Maslin, 2001). This species occurs within (and on the boundaries) of the South West, Avon and South Coast (Western Australia) Natural Resource Management Regions. The distribution of this species is not known to overlap with any EPBC Act-listed threatened ecological communities.

Threats The main identified threats to Echidna Wattle include adult dying as a result of soil disturbance (Brown et al., 1998), burial from wind erosion of soil, due to their low stature (Graham & Mitchell, 2001), and too frequent fire. The main potential threats to Echidna Wattle result from the low number of individual plants currently known and its restricted distribution range. Fewer than half of the known individuals are found in conservation reserves (DEFL, 2007). Although good seed germination of Echidna Wattle has been noted following early autumn fires (Graham & Mitchell, 2001), two fires in quick succession may exhaust the soil-stored seedbank before the maturation and replenishment of the seedbank by new plants. Echidna Wattle is apparently not grazed by wildlife or livestock (Brown et al., 1998; Graham & Mitchell, 2001).

Acacia depressa Conservation Advice - Page 1 of 3 This Conservation Advice was approved by the Minister / Delegate of the Minister on: 3/7/2008 Research Priorities Research priorities that would inform future regional and local priority actions include: • Design and implement a monitoring program. • Establish the presence and estimate the size of the soil seedbank and determine seed germination requirements for Echidna Wattle. • Undertake survey work in suitable habitat and potential habitat to locate any additional populations/occurrences/remnants.

Regional Priority Actions The following regional priority recovery and threat abatement actions can be done to support the recovery of Echidna Wattle. Habitat Loss, Disturbance and Modification • Identify populations of high conservation priority. • Manage threats to areas of vegetation that contain populations/occurrences of Echidna Wattle. Fire • Develop and implement a suitable fire management strategy for Echidna Wattle to determine an appropriate fire regime. • Identify appropriate intensity and interval of fire to promote seed germination. • Provide maps of known occurrences to local and state rural fire services and seek inclusion of mitigative measures in bush fire risk management plans, risk register and/or operation maps. Conservation Information • Raise awareness of Echidna Wattle within the local community. Enable Recovery of Additional Sites and/or Populations • Undertake appropriate seed collection and storage. • Investigate options for linking, enhancing or establishing additional populations. • Implement national translocation protocols (Vallee et al., 2004) if establishing additional populations is considered necessary and feasible. • Undertake seed germination and/or vegetative propagation trials to determine the requirements for successful establishment.

Local Priority Actions The following local priority recovery and threat abatement actions can be done to support the recovery of Echidna Wattle. Habitat Loss, Disturbance and Modification • Prevent soil erosion and wind blown soil near known populations. • Monitor known populations to identify key threats • Monitor the progress of recovery, including the effectiveness of management actions and the need to adapt them if necessary. • Control access routes to suitably constrain public access to known sites on public land. • Suitably control and manage access on private land. • Minimise adverse impacts from land use at known sites. • Protect populations of the listed species through the development of conservation agreements and/or covenants.

Acacia depressa Conservation Advice - Page 2 of 3 This Conservation Advice was approved by the Minister / Delegate of the Minister on: 3/7/2008 Trampling, Browsing or Grazing • Manage known sites on private property to ensure appropriate cattle and sheep grazing regimes are conducted outside the growing season, i.e. when plants are not fertile. • Prevent grazing pressure at known sites on leased crown land through exclusion fencing or other barriers. Fire • Implement an appropriate fire management regime for local populations. This list does not necessarily encompass all actions that may be of benefit to Echidna Wattle, but highlights those that are considered to be of highest priority at the time of preparing the conservation advice.

Information Sources: Brown, A, Thomson-Dans, C & Marchant, N 1998, ‘Western Australia's Threatened Flora’, Department of Conservation and Land Management, Como. DEFL 2007, ‘Threatened (Declared Rare) Flora Database (DEFL)’, Department of Conservation and Land Management, Perth,. Graham, M. & Mitchell, M 2001, ‘Declared Rare Flora in the Katanning District, Western Australian wildlife management program no. 25’, Department of Conservation and Land Management, WA. Maslin, BR 1975, ‘Studies in the genus Acacia (Mimosaceae) - 4. A revision of the series Pulchellae’, Nuytsia, vol. 1, no. 5, pp. 388–494. Maslin, BR 2001, ‘Acacia depressa’, in Orchard, AE & Wilson, JG (Eds) , vol. 11B, CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne, p. 414. Vallee, L, Hogbin, T, Monks, L, Makinson, B, Matthes, M & Rossetto, M 2004, Guidelines for the Translocation of Threatened Plants in Australia - Second Edition, Australian Network for Plant Conservation, Canberra.

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