Established:
2002
Area:
897 ha
Location:
430km SE of Perth
Traditional Owners:
Koreng Noongar people
When we first explored the possibility of adding Chereninup to our list of conservation reserves, we couldn't have asked for better prospects. It's located in a global biodiversity hotspot that's recognised as one of the most biologically valuable regions in the world.
It was also seen as critical to the success of Gondwana Link, a project to restore a 1,000km stretch of connectivity in south-west Western Australia.
The decision to buy Chereninup is now paying off and it's part of a vital habitat link between the Fitzgerald River and Stirling Ranges National Parks.
One way to measure our on-ground success is through plant and animal surveys, and results from Chereninup have been very impressive.
We now know that Honey Possums, found only in the heathlands of southwest WA, are using recently restored habitat on the reserve, and that both Black-Gloved and Tammar Wallabies also call Chereninup home.
York Gum, which has been almost eliminated from the Western Australian wheat belt, is protected here.
All this is protected thanks to our generous supporters.
Animals: Honey Possum, Malleefowl, Carnaby's Cockatoo, Tammar Wallaby, Western Whipbird.
Plants: Dwarf Spider Orchid, Moort, Feather Flowers, Nodding Banksia, Sandalwood.
Vegetation communities: Blue Mallee, Banksia and Dryandra thickets, York Gum woodland, Flat-topped Yate Woodland, Granite Sheoak woodland.
Nursing 80 hectares of previously cleared bushland back to life has been a focus of our work here.
Once an environmentally barren paddock, those 80 hectares are now populated by carefully chosen eucalypts, melaleucas, wattles and casuarinas as part of our first broad-scale restoration planting.
Many years on from the planting, the trees and shrubs are not only increasing native animal populations but have also contributed to the fight against climate change, storing thousands of tonnes of CO2 equivalent – enough to offset the average emissions of hundreds of households.
If there were an award for cutest animal in the world, the Honey Possum would surely win.
These tiny creatures weigh about the same as two teaspoons of sugar, while their babies are no bigger than a grain of rice.
Despite their diminutive size, Honey Possums have the largest sperm of all mammals but, being rather shy creatures, it's unlikely they'd gloat. They prefer cover of darkness and often disappear in daylight hours.
Distinguished by their brush-tipped tongue and pointy snouts, they're endemic to southwest Western Australia's heathlands.
Honey Possums eat only nectar and pollen, and rely on various proteaceous species, such as banksias, for food throughout the year.
They're important contributors to the biodiversity of their habitat, collecting pollen on their fur and pollinating other plants as they feed.
The south coast of Western Australia has a long history of human occupation. The Noongar people have lived here for at least 40,000 years, and the patterns of tribal occupation suggest the landforms formed boundaries for different groups. This reserve may have been part of the boundary system for two or more tribes.
BLOG 08/09/2021
This large daisy went unnoticed on our Beringa and Chereninup Reserves until botanist Libby Sandiford visited with her eagle eye looking for something different. Only a few plants were found and this plant may be listed soon as a priority species. Our FitzStirling reserves protect many rare and threatened plant species.
Read MoreBLOG 04/05/2021
Did you know that there can be more organisms in one teaspoon of soil than there are people on the planet? The microscopic communities that live in the soil beneath our feet are critical to the health of the planet and ourselves.
Read MoreBLOG 10/02/2021
It was a proud day for us in south coast WA yesterday as we hosted the launch of our Fitz-Stirling Fauna Recovery Project! This ambitious five-year project spans about 40,000 hectares, making it the largest integrated fauna recovery program involving private landholders in the region’s history.
Read More18/12/2020
Ecologist Angela Sanders and Alex Hams (Healthy Landscape Manager in South West WA) discuss our Fitz-Stirling reserves. Botanist Libby Sandiford presents floral assessments.
Read MoreBLOG 04/12/2020
Botanist extraordinaire Libby Sandiford has spent the past few years striding across our properties in the Fitz-Stirling in south-west Western Australia. She's documented an incredible 934 species of flora in just under 4000 hectares, which is highly biodiverse by anyone's reckoning.
Read MoreBLOG 05/11/2020
We put out seven cameras on our Chereninup Reserve in the Fitz-Stirling region of south-west Western Australia in the hope of catching a Tammar Wallaby or two. Instead we found a Red-Tailed Phascogale running across the ground in front of the camera.
Read MoreBUSHTRACKS 25/09/2020
As we prepare to start a first-of-its-kind feral control program in the Fitz-Stirling, Noongar Traditional Owner Aunty Carol Petterson reflects on the changes seen in her lifetime.
Read MoreBLOG 09/04/2020
It had been 16 years since our last visit to Chereninup Creek Reserve, for a National Tree Day planting. That cold and blustery day was the start of a revegetation program in the mega-diverse region between the Stirling Range and Fitzgerald River National Parks in southern WA.
Read MoreBLOG 18/12/2017
Chereninup Creek has revealed some of its secrets to Botanist Libby Sandiford and Ecologist Angela Sanders. This is the 4th Bush Heritage property to be surveyed this year in the biodiversity hotspot between the Fitzgerald River and Stirling Ranges National Parks in south-west WA and has once again lived up to its designation.
Read MoreBUSHTRACKS 05/10/2017
We're transforming bare paddocks into bush as part of one of Australia’s most ambitious revegetation projects – and the animals are coming back.
Read MoreBLOG 26/11/2015
Our recent fauna survey kept us busy on the Gondwana Link Fitz-Stirling properties, with 260 pitfall traps working on 5 properties over 15 days. Our volunteers were thrilled to see honey possums and pygmy possums for the first time and some saw native bush rats. With variable weather the reptile activity was a bit slow, although we did see a few more active on the roads. A thunderstorm brought the frogs out and we caught a few in the traps the next day.
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