The Gippsland Red Gum Grassy Woodland and Associated Native Grassland is a nationally-listed critically endangered ecological community. This project focuses on the Red Gum Grassy Woodlands in the Briagolong/Stratford areas. This area has been identified as having 40% of the remaining Red Gum Grassy Woodlands remnants for our entire region. This project is funded by the Australian Government from 2013-2018. The Red Gum Grassy Woodlands are important because of their unique biodiversity and they have a distinctive place within the Australian landscape.
Need
This ecological community used to be common and widespread across central Gippsland. The community comes in two forms, as a woodland and as a grassland with few or no trees, currently less than five per cent of its original coverage remains. The Red Gum Grassy Woodlands needs help to recover as it has been so degraded by grazing pressure, weeds, feral animals and clearing, it cannot recover on its own. The protection and recovery of Red Gum Grassy Woodlands on public and private land is vital to the future of the ecological community.
This special ecosystem is also home to a number of endangered plants and animals including:
- swift parrot
- regent honeyeater
- growling grass frog
- spot-tailed quoll
- southern brown bandicoot
and flora including:
- matted flax-lily
- purple glycine
- dwarf kerrawang
- maroon leek-orchid
- swamp everlasting.
Planning
The Investment Framework for Environmental Resources (INFFER) tool was used for rationalising and prioritising areas of focus. This helped identify the Briagolong/Stratford area as a priority area for rehabilitation of the Red Gum Grassy Woodlands.
We work with Maffra and District Landcare Network, Greening Australia, Gippsland Plains Conservation Management Network and local landholders.
Documents are available to help landholders including the Red Gum Grassy Woodlands ID Tool and native pasture management document.
Works
A ‘conservation tender’ was used for this project to ensure that the best value for money projects were funded to achieve the desired outcomes.
Thirteen sites were selected through the tender process, and these sites cover 232 hectares.
On-ground works have been undertaken at the sites to improve their condition or to enhance their protection.
These works include:
- fencing
- pest plant and animal control
- ecological burning
- ecological thinning
- enhancement planting and
- Burgan control.
Outcomes
The main outcomes of this project, are to protect and enhance the condition of the high and medium quality Red Gum Grassy Woodlands and their associated Native Grasslands.
Floristic monitoring has occurred for two consecutive years, to measure the on-ground works so far.
A field day to help landholders identify native grass and grassy weeds has been held.
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This project is funded by the Australian Government’s National Landcare Program.
See a snapshot of the achievements of the Red Gum Grassy Woodlands project in the National Landcare Program Five Year Overview 2013 – 2018.