A big thank you to our wonderful volunteers who joined our East Coast working bee on 27-28 October to help with weed control, rubbish removal and South Esk Pine monitoring.
At South Esk Pine Reserve our team patrolled the entire reserve to remove and treat gorse as well as remove some litter in the reserve that was swept down by floods in 2016.
Removal of gorse is vitally important to help many rare and threatened species in this reserve, including nationally endangered South Esk Pines.
The reserve is one of the largest stands of this species left in the world, and removal of gorse is also important to reduce fire risk.
Our Friendly Beaches Reserve not only protects threatened species but also contains important heathland, which is one of the most diverse plant communities found in Tasmania.
Our volunteer team removed over a thousand thistle seedlings from a small open area on the boundary of our reserve. Thistle infestation from neighbouring properties is an ongoing issue, and the remote location of this infestation (more than an hour’s walk from the nearest road access) is a particular challenge.