Scottsdale Reserve - Bush Heritage Australia

Established: 2006
Area: 1,328 ha
Location: 75km South of Canberra
Traditional Owners: Ngunawal people

Just 45 minutes south of Canberra, this unique reserve is home to some of Australia's most threatened temperate ecosystems.

As around 300 hectares of this 1,328 hectare property had been cleared for farming, Scottsdale is often a hub of volunteer activity, restoring these cleared areas so they can help support some of the threatened species occurring in the natural parts of the reserve.

The Red-breasted Robin is found on Scottsdale. Photo Jiri Lochman / Lochman Transparencies.

Scottsdale protects endangered grassy box woodlands and temperate grasslands. It also harbours many rare birds, animals, fish and reptiles.

Wrapped around Scottsdale's northern and western flanks is the Murrumbidgee River, which cascades over natural rock weirs and through deep tree-fringed pools. The Upper Murrumbidgee Demonstration Reach is a partnership supporting the recovery of native fish in the river.

The Bare-nosed Wombat is a common sight at Scottsdale. Photo Jiri Lochman / Lochman Transparencies.

Scottsdale is also part of the Kosciuszko 2 Coast project – a partnership helping landowners create connections between remnant woodlands and grasslands between Kosciuszko and Namadgi National Parks across to the escarpment forests on NSW's far south coast.

All this has been protected thanks to the generosity of our supporters.

What Scottsdale protects

Scottsdale's home to a remnant of Australia's last ice age, the Silver-leafed Mountain Gum. Adapted to a time when this part of the world was much drier and colder, just 10 populations of this little mallee tree are thought to exist in Australia, and it's vulnerable to extinction. The reserve also protects:

A Peregrine Falcon in flight. Photo Wayne Lawler / EcoPix.

Animals: Rosenberg's Monitor (vulnerable in NSW), Speckled Warbler (vulnerable in NSW), Peregrine Falcon, Brown Treecreeper (vulnerable in NSW).

Plants: Currawang (spearwood), Curved Rice Flower, Button Wrinklewort, Silky Swainson-pea.

Vegetation communities: Yellow-box grassy woodland (nationally critically endangered), Scribbly Gum-black Cypress-pine Forest, Tablelands Frost Hollow Grassy Woodlands, Southern Tablelands Natural Temperate Grassland (nationally endangered).

What we’re doing

Restoring an entire ecosystem is a tricky business, but at Scottsdale we hope to do just that by helping natural regeneration along, by replanting key species of the precious yellow box woodland.

A Rosenberg's Goanna on Scottsdale. Photo Jeroen van Veen.

A project aiming to restore 300 hectares of woodland is being carried out by Greening Australia – and we've jointly funded it with the Australian Government.

How do we create an environment that favours native plants when the soil has a long history of fertiliser, grazing and cultivation? African Lovegrass is a major headache. One successful strategy we've used has been removing the top 10cm of nutrient-enriched topsoil. We then direct seed with a mix of native trees and shrubs.

Relocating the Striped Legless Lizard

The Murrumbidgee River from Scottsdale Reserve. Photo Peter Saunders.

With 1 in 15 Australian reptiles at risk of extinction, we've translocated and reintroduced the Striped Legless Lizard to Scottsdale. We rescued these nationally-threatened lizards from two development sites in northern Canberra.

Upper Murrumbidgee Demonstration Reach (UMDR)

The UMDR has been established to demonstrate ways of supporting the recovery of native fish. Amongst its projects are carp control research and willow reduction measures.

Carp control

Carp are one of the world's most invasive species and research we're involved in has the potential to inform targeted carp removal on a much broader scale.

A baby Platypus rescued from a sinkhole by UMDR volunteers controlling willows. Photo Richard Swain.

Not much is known about their movements and where they aggregate in the context of this upland riverine system. The project involves tagging fish and tracking their movements with acoustic telemetry. They'll also be lured, trapped and removed from a section of the river to learn more about their population structure.

Reducing the impact of willow trees

Willow infestation is a major issue for native fish habitats – it can block out native plants, alter stream flows, cause flooding and reduce water quality. The UMDR works to control young emerging willows with volunteers in kayaks cutting back and removing the plants before they can establish.

Volunteers – the spirit of Scottsdale

It would be no understatement to say that volunteers have made Scottsdale the place it is today.

Volunteers and revegetation at Scottsdale. Photo Annette Ruzicka.

In one year alone they clocked up nearly 1,000 working days helping with revegetation, tackling weeds and feral animals, carrying out survey work, looking after infrastructure, mapping and closing rabbit warrens, and more.

The majority are locals who care deeply about their patch of bush, but they also come from further afield.

The volunteer-run nursery on Scottsdale is a case in point, with volunteers regularly on site to tend to the seedlings and grasses such as Bulbines, Trigger plants, Chocolate Nodding, Yam Daisies and Blue Devils, which are grown from seed.

Cultural values

The Murrumbidgee River at Scottsdale Reserve – a favourite haunt of Platypus, the Ngunawal clan totem. Photo Dave Watts.

Scottsdale is within the traditional lands of the Ngunawal people and is very close to Lake George, where the Ngunawal creator being (Budjabulya) is thought to reside. It was also part of a trade route with the neighbouring Yuin people, and home to the Ngunawal clan totem, the Platypus (mulagun).

We've worked with the Ngunawal to carry out cultural heritage surveys, unearthing artefacts, including stone axes and tool-making materials, so we can ensure important sites are protected.