| We're delighted to report to Bush Heritage supporters that we are negotiating the purchase of a large property in central Queensland. The creation of this new Bush Heritage Reserve will make a major contribution to the protection of biodiversity in Australia, and we ask your support to complete this exciting purchase. Much of this newsletter is devoted to telling you about the property, and showing you some of the photographs Wayne Lawler has taken for us there in recent weeks. |
Fig tree in vine scrub
at Carnarvon
©
Wayne Lawler/ECOPIX
Joss Bentley, Land Manager for Bush Heritage, writes about the significance of the property for species conservation:
Carnarvon Station is in the heart of Central Queensland, currently the focus of Queensland's infamous land clearing activity. Clearing activity has increased significantly in the region with the prospect of future controls, and the most recent estimates suggest that Queensland's annual clearing rate exceeds 400,000 hectares per annum. Most of this is occurring in the woodlands of central Queensland. View Carnarvon Station on a map.
Grassy woodlands extend from Tasmania to Cape York Peninsula. Over the last 150 years 85% to 90% of the woodlands of south eastern Australia have been cleared. With the loss of the woodlands has come the dramatic decline, and in some cases extinction, of the associated woodland-dependent fauna. This includes many of the mammals (for example the white-footed tree-rat, the bridled nailtail wallaby and the spotted-tailed quoll) and numerous bird species (the paradise parrot, the regent honeyeater and the painted honeyeater).
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For many of these species, their only secure populations are those in the northern woodlands, the very areas that are currently subject to some of the highest clearing rates in the country. Unless current clearing rates in the northern woodlands are reduced, we will see the dramatic reduction and loss of the northern woodland species, and of those more widespread species that are currently declining in the southern woodlands. Carnarvon Station is over 59,000 hectares, and adjoins the Carnarvon National Park. The property is remarkably diverse, containing 17 regional ecosystems, of which seven are Endangered and one is considered Of Concern. Some of these ecosystems are found in the adjoining National Park, but most of the Endangered ones are not. One of the advantages of purchasing such a large property is that ensuring the long-term viability of the populations of rare and threatened species and ecosystems is much easier than on small reserves, where populations are necessarily small and frequently isolated, and where there are many external threats. Not only can we be more confident of ensuring the long-term protection of these species and ecosystems, but the relative costs of management are also significantly reduced. The adjoining National Parks provide a buffer for the property and increase the area of available habitat for a number of species. This is particularly important in the case of fauna species that require large areas of habitat, and migratory species. Carnarvon Station and the adjoining National Parks are part of the mesotherm archipelago, a series of high altitude areas associated with the Great Dividing Range as it runs north through Queensland. The retention of large areas of woodland along this archipelago is critical to the maintenance of the Eastern Australian Bird Migration System. Fauna surveys have not yet been conducted on the Station, but we expect to find a diverse assemblage, including a number of threatened species, such as the golden-tailed gecko, northern quoll, and the glossy black cockatoo. There are also many areas of significance for Aboriginal people on the property. Bush Heritage will respect this heritage, and will approach the appropriate Aboriginal people regarding its management. |
For more images visit the Carnarvon Photo Gallery.