NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Edition # 3, 25 November 2016

In this issue:

Booroolong Frog (Litoria booroolongensis) - fauna species in profile
Partnerships and passion are the keys to creating fish refuges
From little orchids big things grow
Farmers tackling one of Australia's worst weeds
How far can a squirrel glider glide?
Managing gully erosion
More than just a long paddock
Biodiversity monitoring in the NSW Murray and Riverina regions
Publications available
Upcoming events

Booroolong Frog (Litoria booroolongensis) - fauna species in profile

By Tara Pitman, Land Services Officer

Have you ever heard a frog purring?

Yes.... then you may have been listening to a Booroolong frog!

The Booroolong Frog (Litoria booroolongensis) is a medium sized tree frog growing to about 5 cm. The skin usually has a slightly warty appearance and is grey, olive or brown with indistinct black markings and a white abdomen.

The Booroolong Frog is listed as Endangered in NSW. It is restricted to NSW and north-eastern Victoria, predominately along the western-flowing streams of the Great Dividing Range. They live in the cobble banks and rock structures along permanent streams with fringing vegetation, such as ferns, sedges or grasses.

The species is quite unique as the male lacks a distinct vocal sac, with a call described as a purring 'qirk qirk qirk' or 'craww craww craww' lasting two or three seconds.

Check out the Booroolong Frog - profile for more information on this unique amphibian!
Photo of male Booroolong Frog courtesy of Dave Hunter.

Partnerships and passion are the keys to creating fish refuges

By Jamie Hearn, Senior Land Services Officer

The recent floods have resulted in a large scale hypoxic (low oxygen) black water event with numerous fish deaths recorded across the Edward-Wakool system. Murray Local Land Services, in collaboration with State and Federal government water agencies, Murray Irrigation Ltd and the local community, has been working to implement measures to reduce the adverse environmental impacts of this natural event where possible. Activities are mainly focused around the staged delivery of environmental water into the river system via Murray Irrigation escape infrastructure to create fish refuges - localised areas with conditions that allow native fish to survive. This is being done in consultation with those landholders downstream of the escapes.

Some community members have also taken matters into their own hands and have borrowed and built their own aerators in an effort to improve dissolved oxygen levels and create localized fish refuges. A total of five aerators have been installed in the system through the generosity of local landholders, community groups and businesses in the Barham-Moulamein area. Landholders, electricians, plumbers and many others have provided time, money and materials to connect and install these aerators. Murray LLS is providing some assistance to these individuals and community groups to run the aerators and monitor their effectiveness.

This amazing community effort is on the back of a damaging major flood event and is a reflection of the concern and passion the local community has for the survival of native fish in our area. While the area of refuge provided through the use of the aerators and environmental water may only be small, the refuges will enhance the survival of at least some of our region's fish. All the better if these are large, old fish that have a high breeding success rates.

Top left: Tim Betts, landholder; Roger Knight, Local Landcare Coordinator; Troy Bright, Edward-Wakool Angling Association. Top right, bottom left and bottom right: Community built aerators.

From little orchids big things grow

By Rhiannon Caynes, Land Services Officer

More than 6,000 orchids from three endangered species will be propagated at the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria over the next few years in a project supported by Murray Local Land Services.

Australia boasts over 1,800 species of orchids, but many face extinction without proper management. The sand-hill spider-orchid (Caladenia arenaria), crimson spider-orchid (Caladenia concolor), and Oaklands diuris (Diuris callitrophila) are all listed as endangered under the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act. Through the Wild Orchids Project, a consortium of groups and organisations are working together to save these species.

Dr Noushka Reiter, who manages the Orchid Conservation Program at the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria, said their strategies included reintroduction, which involves studying the ecology of the species. “For orchids, we focus on their pollinators and mycorrhizal (root fungi) associations,” she said. “We are fortunate to have witnessed pollination this year in all three species of orchids and will begin the task of determining the pollinators’ presence at potential reintroduction sites next spring. Our dedicated team of staff and volunteers at the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria Orchid Conservation Program has now germinated hundreds of seedlings with their mycorrhizal fungi. These new orchids will be used to boost existing populations and establish new ones.”

The Wild Orchids project is a 10-year effort to conserve these orchids in the wild. Funded through the NSW Environmental Trust Saving our Species Partnership Grants, the project is a partnership between Murray Local Land Services, Office of Environment and Heritage, Department of Primary Industries – Land, Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria, Australian Network for Plant Conservation, Forestry Corporation of NSW, NSW National Parks and Wildlife Services and the community.

Over the next decade the project will include other key activities such as the installation of fencing and other infrastructure, weed management, community education and monitoring the orchid populations.

Orchids are among the most beautiful and mysterious of all Australian native flowering plants. They are often called ‘jewels of the bush’, a testament to their unique flowers, which bloom for only a few weeks of the year. Orchid enthusiasts have begun flocking to the Oaklands and Urana area where the Oaklands diuris is in flower until late November.

Left to right: Helen Waudby (OEH), Geoff Robertson (OEH) and Dr Noushka Reiter (Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria) checking out the newest additions to the nursery.

Farmers tackling one of Australia's worst weeds

By Elisa (Els) Tack, Senior Land Services Officer

African boxthorn is an invasive weed, introduced to Australia from South Africa in the mid-1800s and was commonly used as a hedge plant. They can grow up to 5m high and 3m wide, with thorny stems and orange-red berries. Boxthorn can be an aggressive invader of pastures, roadsides and riparian areas. Dense infestations reduce the usability of pasture land, reduce accessibility of shelter for stock and provide haven for rabbits.

Over the past 3 years Murray LLS's Billabong Yanco Project has provided funding and support to Yanco and Tributaries Advisory Council to conduct a trial of mechanical and chemical control methods for boxthorn, in conjunction with Central Murray County Council.

The results of the trial were showcased recently at a field day at Conargo. The day included demonstrations of machinery for removing boxthorns, including stem pullers and mulchers, and information on the effectiveness and suitability of options for control in different circumstances. These methods have proven very effective during the trials with large areas of boxthorn being removed along sections of the Colombo and Billabong creeks and evidence of good native vegetation recovery where the boxthorn were removed. Landholders have also reported significantly improved lambing rates due to stock being able to access shelter along the creek again.

For more information on the Billabong Yanco Project or the boxthorn trial or field day please contact Elisa Tack on 02 6051 2233.

Top: Boxthorn field day. Bottom left: Stem puller for removing boxthorn.
Bottom right: Close up of boxthorn, Photo: Phil Bendle.

How far can a squirrel glider glide?

By Tracy Michael, Land Services Officer

Did you know that Squirrel gliders can glide up to 250 times their body length?

The threatened Squirrel Glider (Petaurus norfolcensis) is dependant upon large old hollow bearing trees for shelter and nesting. These social possums use a variety of dens within their territory using up to 19 different hollows within a season.

Squirrel Gliders prefer to den in eucalypt trees with very large diameters and several hollows. In cleared, fragmented landscapes these large hollow bearing trees are often scattered and not well connected.

Gliders typically avoid coming to the ground to travel, and will on average glide 30-50 m between trees. Consequently, it’s critical to fill large gaps between these mature old trees so that Gliders can move around safely and access these important hollows.

The Burrumbuttock Squirrel Glider Local Area Management Plan (LAMP) Project is working with landholders to connect vegetation patches and reduce the gliding distance between large old paddock trees.

This project is guided by a committee consisting of Burrumbuttock landholders, Petaurus Education Group Inc, Wirraminna Environmental Education Centre, West Hume Landcare, Greater Hume Shire, Murray LLS, and the Office of Environment and Heritage.

15 landholders participated in the first round of this project revegetating over 30 hectares of connections. The project also funded the installation of 150 wire mesh stock proof tree guards in strategic locations to fill gaps between important paddock trees and reduce gliding distance.

To see footage of a gliding Squirrel Glider and find out more about the LAMP Project visit the Wirraminna website. *|END:IF|*

Managing gully erosion

By Julia McCourt, Land Services Officer

Gully erosion is a highly visible form of soil erosion consisting of open, incised and unstable channels that eventually affect soil productivity, restrict land use and can threaten farm infrastructure.

Gullies can start when fast flowing runoff hits a ‘nick’ point such as a rabbit burrow, root hole, worn stock/vehicle track, or bare soil. The energy of the water scours away the soil, undermining the vegetation. Once the vegetation and topsoil are removed, gullies spread rapidly up and down drainage lines until there is insufficient runoff to continue the erosion.
Read more

More than just a long paddock

By Shanna Rogers, Senior Land Services Officer

The TSR Biodiversity Project has been running for 3 years with funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Programme and aims to allow the active management of TSR's for biodiversity conservation to ensure important natural woodland and grassland habitat links are protected and restored.

Coreen TSR is one of the reserves involved in the project. It is a high conservation value reserve containing areas of Pine/Bulloak Woodlands, Grey Box Woodlands and wetlands. Direct seeding has been undertaken recently on the reserve to re-introduce a shrub understorey in patches of grassy Grey Box Woodland where it was absent.

Despite having only been direct seeded recently the reserve still caters for mobs of 700-800 cattle passing through and crash grazing the reserve about four times a year. Cattle grazing helps to manage annual grasses and fuel loads and hasn’t had any detrimental impact on the seedlings.

Renowned bird and wildlife expert Chris Tzaros has undertaken several surveys of the reserve and to date has identified 29 woodland bird species inhabiting the Pine/Bulloak Woodlands and 11 species in the Grey Box Woodland. The most abundance species found within the Pine/Bulloak Woodland are the small woodland birds such as Thornbills, Robins, Rufous Whistlers and the threatened Varied Sittella.

The Grey Box Woodland is a more open area than the Pine/Bulloak Woodland and has very little mid-storey or shrubs. As a result of the lack of this important habitat feature fewer species were found in comparison to the Pine/Bulloak Woodland (less than 1km away). The most abundance species found within the Grey Box Woodland was the Noisy Miner, which has a preference for eucalyptus woodlands lacking a shrub layer. This native but aggressive and bullying species has excluded most of the small woodland bird species that were found in the Pine/Bulloak Woodland.

Continued & future management of the reserve includes regular crash grazing to assist with weed and fire control, re-establishing shrubs and culling of over-abundant Noisy Miners where they are excluding small woodland birds. This will ensure that this TSR and many like it though out the Murray and Riverina regions will continue to provide high-quality habitat and connections throughout the landscape for wildlife movement.

Top: Peter O'Shannassy discussing the different grazing habits of sheep,cattle and kangaroos on TSRs.
Bottom left: The high conservation value Pine/Bulloak remnant.
Bottom right: The Murray LLS TSR Team L-R: Phill Falcke, Peter O'Shannassy, Chris Lucas, Stuart Watson, David Clarke, Roger Harris, Helen Wilson, John Nolan, Mick Mullins. Absent: Rodger Conn.

Biodiversity monitoring in the NSW Murray and Riverina regions

By Emmo Willinck & Shanna Rogers, Senior Land Services Officers

Exciting biodiversity monitoring and research is being undertaken in the NSW Murray and Riverina regions to determine biodiversity changes over time in response to different management regimes (i.e. traditional farming practices, active remnant management, new revegetation plantings, TSR management, etc). The monitoring project involves landholders, Landcare, the Australian National University, Murray and Riverina Local Land Services, Australian Research Council, NSW National Parks and Wildlife Services, Nature Conservation Trust and the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage.

Long term monitoring is being undertaken on over 200 sites across the region. Birds, reptiles, arboreal marsupials, small mammals, frogs and vegetation are surveyed on a regular basis. Key findings and messages resulting from the monitoring work can be found on Long Term Ecology; a blog to highlight the field based research of long term monitoring projects undertaken across SE Australia.

Publications available

Terrestrial Mammals of the south west slopes & upper Murray region of NSW

This colourful guide provides information for identifying of some of the terrestrial mammals found in the east of the region. This guide includes photos and descriptions of carnivorous marsupials, possums & gliders, monotremes & other marsupials, placental mammals and macropods.

Native vegetation guide for the Riverina

This valuable resource can be accessed online from the CSU website. This guide provides practical information about biodiversity conservation in the Riverina including: how to manage remnant vegetation, which locally native trees, shrubs and groundcover to plant in each district and revegetation methods.

Upcoming events

Australasian bittern information evening. 6pm-8pm Tuesday 29 November, Reed Beds bird hide car park, Mathoura. NSW National Parks and Wildlife Services and Murray Darling Wetlands Working Group are hosting this information evening on the life and times of the endangered Australian bittern. RSVP to Jamie Hearn 0447 420 789.
Biosecurity Information Session. 4pm-6pm Wednesday 30 November, Albury Entertainment Centre. Come along and learn about the proposed Regulation and Regulatory Impact Statement and provide feedback. The proposed regulation provides the framework for managing biosecurity risks and protecting the economy, environment and community from pests, diseases and weeds. For more information call 1800 808 095.
Wetland Plant ID Course. 9am-5pm Wednesday 7 December or Thursday 8 December, Cohuna-Koondrook. Rakali Ecological Consulting are running this course for anyone interested in wetland plant identification and ecology. RSVP to Elaine Baye s 0431 959 085.
Bush Stone-curlew and wildlife photography BBQ. 6pm-10pm Wednesday 8 February 2017, Barham Golf Club. Nature Conservation Working Group are hosting the event and will present the results of the latest round of bush stone-curlew surveys. Chris Tzaros will also be presenting on his journeys taking photos around Australia. RSVP to Elisa Tack 02 6051 2233.

Like what you're seeing in these e-newsletters? Do you know of someone else who might benefit from the information we're providing? Why not forward this to them and encourage them to subscribe? We have a range of options, and you can subscribe to one or all of them.

Forward

Click here to subscribe

Copyright © 2016 Murray Local Land Services, All rights reserved.
The information contained in this publication is based on knowledge and understanding at the time of writing November 2016. However, because of advances in knowledge, users are reminded of the need to ensure that the information upon which they rely is up to date and to check the currency of the information with the appropriate officer of Local Land Services or the user’s independent adviser. For updates go to www.lls.nsw.gov.au.

Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list

Facebook

Website

This email was sent to <<Email Address>>
why did I get this? unsubscribe from this list update subscription preferences
Murray Local Land Services · 931 Garland Ave · Albury, NSW 2640 · Australia