Goonderoo
Goonderoo, as Bush Heritage’s first mainland property, has a special place in our suite of reserves across Australia. Situated in central Queensland near Emerald, the 593 ha property was purchased in 1998 to conserve a quality stand of remnant brigalow (Acacia harpophylla). Brigalow, a long-lived wattle with silver leaves and rough bark, is found in a variety of landscapes with fertile soils, and gives its name to the Brigalow Belt, one of Queensland’s thirteen bioregions.
The Brigalow Belt runs inland from Townsville to the NSW border and covers nearly 20 per cent of Queensland. Despite covering such a large area, only 6 per cent of brigalow remains uncleared, as the fertile soils that support brigalow communities are also in high demand for broad acre agriculture such as cropping and grazing. Overall, only about 2 per cent of brigalow is in protected areas.
Brigalow is a fire-sensitive plant, and natural resource management on Goonderoo focuses on protecting the recovering stands of brigalow from bushfire. Buffel grass – an agricultural grass which grows widely on the property – poses a significant fire risk and management uses an integrated approach to its control. This includes utilising stock from the neighbouring stock reserve to pulse-graze the buffel grass. The grazing keeps the grass at manageable levels and so reduces the risk of an intense fire. Pulse grazing was carried out on four occasions during growing and seeding times in 2007–08 to further reduce the spread of the grass through the reserve.
Goonderoo is an unmanned reserve, but over the last year a part-time reserve manager has carried out significant work on fencing, firebreaks, upgrades to the homestead workshop, weed control and general natural resource management. All this work has injected new life into this strategic reserve. Goonderoo is not only important to the conservation of the Brigalow Belt bioregion but is also a staging point for staff working on Bush Heritage’s nearby Edgbaston and Carnarvon reserves.
Goonderoo is home to 142 bird species, at least ten species of snake and a wide variety of other wildlife including sugar gliders and koalas. It contains nine distinct plant communities, including brigalow woodlands and native grasslands, which are classified as endangered.
Management work: Fencing, fuel-reduction burning, fire break maintenance, road maintenance, weed control, bird surveys, feral animal surveys.
Contributes to: the protection of eight significant communities and six species at risk.