Achievements

Protecting land, water and wildlife

We currently own and manage 30 reserves throughout Australia, covering over 938 076 hectares.  Bush Heritage reserves are now protecting:

• more than 242 vegetation communities, including at least 83 that are listed of high conservation value
• over 2700 plant species, including at least 250 of conservation significance
• at least 532 bird and animal species, including 195 that are known to be threatened

Recent acquisitions

Yourka Reserve, Qld
This spectacular 43,500 hectare reserve, 130 km south of Cairns, was purchased in October 2007.  Its rivers and creeks, billabongs and swamps, forests and woodlands, rocky escarpments and lowland plains are home to an abundance of animals and plants.  Yourka Reserve lies on the western edge of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area, within one of Australia's 15 biodiversity hotspots.

'Nameless' Sylvan Reserve, NSW
This generous gift of land from supporter Louise Sylvan in March 2007 has given Bush Heritage a new reserve in New South Wales.  This 55 hectare property is situated on the steep slopes of the Illawarra Escarpment, 10km north of Berry.  It protects one of the few remnants of endangered Illawarra subtropical rainforest.

Nardoo Hills Reserve 3, Vic
This 216 ha reserve in north-central Victoria was purchased in June 2006, with support from the R E Ross Trust and Perpetual Foundation.  The property links the southern end of the existing Nardoo Hills reserves to a previously isolated 200 hectare block of the Wychitella Nature Conservation Reserve, creating an 8 kilometre long chain of reserves along the Nardoo Hills.  These woodlands are regionally important for the hooded robin, diamond firetail, brown treecreeper, black-chinned honeyeater and tree goanna.

Peniup Creek Reserve, WA
This 2409 hectare reserve in Western Australia was purchased jointly with Greening Australia (WA) in April 2006. It is a key acquisition for Gondwana Link, the collaborative project that is reconstructing a continuous pathway of protected habitats between the Stirling Range and Fitzgerald River national parks. This acquisition was made possible by gifts from The Thomas Foundation and a number of individuals.

The continuing search for and investigation of new properties goes on across Australia.   Several properties are under negotiation.

Management and monitoring

Management is underway at all Bush Heritage reserves. Actions undertaken on the ground include pest plant and animal control and monitoring, erosion control, seed collection and revegetation work, fire management and fuel-reduction burning. Bush Heritage has continued to monitor the effectiveness of these management actions using flora and fauna surveys, mapping, and ongoing data collection.  

The Bush Heritage Ecological Outcomes Monitoring (EOM) program is breaking new ground in improving our understanding of the Australian landscape and how our actions affect it, either positively or negatively. It represents the first attempt in Australia to find a simple, repeatable and reliable way of measuring environmental health over time and thus learning how the land and its wildlife respond to land management activities.

Ecological Outcomes Monitoring is being implemented on our reserves and will also be implemented on land that we are managing for conservation in partnership with others. As yet  no monitoring sites have been established on partnership properties, but there are plans to do so soon.

Fundraising

In the 2006-2007 financial year, nearly $11 million was raised in donations and bequests.  Over $1.2 million was contributed in grants from governments, trusts, and foundations.  

Community involvement

Between July 2006 and June 2007, 339 people volunteered through the Conservation Partnerships Program, at Bush Heritage reserves and at our Conservation Support Centre in Melbourne. They contributed more than $684 285 towards reserve management and administration costs.

The Conservation Partnerships Program includes the Volunteer Ranger and Working Bee programs. These were established to assist reserve managers with general reserve management activities. A total of 86 people participated as volunteer rangers, with most staying between two and four weeks on the reserves. Seventy-nine people joined working bees for periods ranging from two days to three weeks. The Conservation Partnerships Program has operated on eleven reserves.

Thirteen guided field trips provided supporters and local communities with the opportunity to explore eight of the Bush Heritage reserves. Staff explained the conservation significance of the reserves and the management work required to protect them.

For more detail of our recent achievements, refer to our Annual Financial Report 2006-2007.