The Drought is Broke
 

The delightful sound of heavy showers on the tin roof interrupted my focus on newsletter preparation. As the remains of Cyclone Esther  drifted south they were bringing drenching rain to locations that had not seen any for quite a while.

I called an old mate Doug up north by way of Bendick Murrell. He has been doing it tough with paddocks of little more than dirt and dust, and wine production abandoned for the year due to grapes being tainted by smoke from recent bushfires.

Thirty millimetres of good soaking rain and counting means the drought is broken or at least pushed back for a while. Soon a green tinge will paint the countryside and life will go on.

Hanging up, my mind drifted through the highs and lows of life in the bush and on to the remarkable names of our little villages. Then C.J. Dennis' lovely poem popped up:

Mile on mile from Mallacoota
Runs the news, and far Baroota
Speeds it over hill and plain,
Till the slogan of the rain
Rolls afar to Yankalilla;
Wallaroo and Wirrawilla
Shout it o'er the leagues between,
Telling of the dawning green.
Frogs at Cocoroc are croaking,
Booboorowie soil is soaking,
Oodla Wirra, Orroroo
Breathe relief and hope anew.
Wycheproof and Wollongong
Catch the burden of the song
That is rolling, rolling ever
O'er the plains of Never Never,
Sounding in each mountain rill,
Echoing from hill to hill ...
In the lonely, silent places
Men lift up their glad, wet faces,
And their thanks ask no explaining --
It is raining -- raining -- raining!

"Den"
The Bulletin, 22 April 1915, p22 
    - Greg Holland (full poem here)

Note that the full events section has been transferred to the Events Page on the MPLN Web Site. We shall continue with brief notifications of imminent activities here as a reminder.

Please Note: The rapidly changing COVID-19 situation with public events  means that you should check before attending to ensure that publicised events are still running.

And while we are on the topic, I can assure landcarers that there is no truth in the rumour currently flashing at light speed through the community that the COVID-19 virus breeds readily in rolls of toilet paper. It is absolutely OK for you to donate some of your hoard to needy neighbours and visitors!

Wild Pollinator Count
Australia has lots of wild pollinator insects that are often overlooked. European honey bees get a lot of attention because they are an adaptable, generalist forager, which means they are happy to visit almost any flower, in most climate zones. They are also a social species, so their hives are easy to domesticate and manage.

However, many native insects also contribute to pollination in crops and gardens all around the country. We still need to do a lot of research to identify all our pollinator insect species, understand their ecology and how they are affected by human activities. So far, we know that  Australia has around 2,000 native bee species, all of which are important pollinators. We also know there are a couple of thousand butterfly, wasp, fly, moth, beetle, thrips and ant species, some of which are documented pollinators. Unfortunately, we don’t have a lot of information on the ecology of many of these insects, what flowers they pollinate, or where they are found.

The Wild Pollinator Count gives you an opportunity to contribute to wild pollinator insect conservation in Australia. Please help by joining in the count wild pollinators in your local environment and help build a database on wild pollinator activity.

Wild Pollinator Count dates for 2020
Autumn: 12 – 19 April
Spring: 8 – 15 November

Find out how to count pollinators, identify the insects you see and submit your observations here.

If you have any questions or comments about the count, please email the organisers.
 

• biodiversity
• food production 
• Indigenous perspectives
• waste management

• Community planting day - Sat 9th May, at 'Warrak Farm ', 126 Hyslops Rd, Boneo 9.30am-1pm
• Community planting day - Sat 6th June, at 'Warrak Farm ', 126 Hyslops Rd, Boneo 9.30am-1pm
• National Tree Day - Dunns Creek Biolink Sun 2nd August (date and location tbc).

MP Landcare Network news
Representatives from each of our 12 member Landcare groups (‘Member Reps”) met last week to discuss Network-related issues. President David Maddocks ran the group through an exercise where we plotted potential Landcare initiatives on an impact/effort matrix. Other issues discussed included the Landcare stall at the Red Hill Show and the recent session on the Shire’s biolink decision making tool.
-       Jacqui Salter, Landcare Facilitator

Red Hill Show
MPLN and our new Koala group manned a stand a the recent Red Hill show. Thanks to the new, much improved, location on the entrance to one of the ovals, attendance was brisk. Three new young landcarers have volunteered for future projects. Sales of donated native plants for a gold coin sold out of stock and considerable interest was shown in the excellent weed display arranged by Michelle Stacey.

Landcare Trailer Available for Members
Landcare groups are welcome to borrow the new trailer for working bees, etc - it comes with a wide range of tools for weeding, planting, and other landcare activities. Our new gas burner also is available to tackle annual weeds (in wet conditions only). Please contact Jacqui to book

Gorse – No Remorse!
The Mornington Peninsula Landcare Network’s ‘Gorse – No remorse!” project funded through the Victorian Gorse Taskforce is looking for any properties on the peninsula that would like help with gorse control. If you have any neighbours with gorse you’d like us to approach, please send through the address to Jacqui.
 
2020 National Landcare Conference - Call for Abstracts
A reminder that Landcare Australia is calling for submission of abstracts and posters for the 2020 National Landcare Conference. The bi-annual event will be held from Wednesday 11 to Friday 13 November 2020, at the International Convention Centre in Sydney. LA is seeking presentations for the concurrent sessions that demonstrate the Landcare ethos for the following streams: Sustainable Agriculture, Environment & Climate Change, Community Partnerships in Action & Landcare Impact. Click onto the above web site for further details and/or to submit an abstract.
 

A Tour of LMPL Biolink Properties
On 26th February 2020 a Anthony Hooper (CEO) and Nicola Ward (board member) of the NCRL, together with Simon Thorning from the Shire went on a formal tour of three biolink properties in Red Hill South, Main Ridge, and South West Mornington Peninsula. Also on the tour were David Maddocks (MPLN President), Jacqui Salter (MPLN Facilitator), Chantal Kelly (Project Coordinator for GB2AS and Dunns Creek Biolinks), Geoff White (Red Hill South Landcare Group Secretary), Virginia Carter (LMPL bushland restoration specialist) and Michele Sabto (Overall LMPL coordinator).

The toured properties have had extensive weeding work done on selected sites, pursuant to biolink plans, and they are looking fabulous. They included one (GB2AS) property where over 2.68 ha has been set aside for revegetation. Another 2.6 ha revegetation site is also being planned for this property which will include plants suitable for weaving.

The first property visited in Red Hill South is a great example of how much can be achieved in a short space of time. On the left is an unweeded area on a neighbouring property still overgrown with sweet pittosporum (Pittosporum undulatum). Note the lack of understory diversity, which compares starkly with the area to the right where pittosporums have been removed over the past 3-4 years.

How spectacular it looks!

Some of the plants we spotted on the Red Hill South property follow.

Grass trigger plant (Stylidium graminifolium)
This plant is called a ‘trigger’ plant because its flower column is triggered by insect visitors. The trigger stays ‘cocked’ until an insect probes the flower, at which it springs up and deposits pollen onto the back of the insect (or picks up pollen from its back depending on the stage of flowering of the plant). Kind of like a slightly menacing slap on the back. If the pollen’s been deposited, the insect then transfers the pollen to another flower on a different plant. Check here to see a movie of this happening.

Wonga vine (Pandorea pandorana).

There are six species of Pandora worldwide, four of them in Australia. The Wonga vine is a vigorous climber and scrambler, found in damp woodlands and moist gullies, or sometimes on exposed rocky sites. From September to January, bunches of tubular flowers appear - on the Peninsula these are typically white or white and pink but this is an extremely variable species, in both the size and colour of its flowers.

Swamp pennywort (Centella cordifolia) was found on the Main Ridge property.

A trailing plant with white or pink flowers August to January, swamp pennyworts thrive in moist shady areas in swamp or riparian shrub. These plants were growing around a small dam sheltered on one side by a patch of woodland.

     - Report by Michelle Sabto

Greens Bush to Arthurs Seat Biolink
 
Late last year the Greens Bush to Arthurs seat project was the grateful recipient of a $20,000 Victorian Landcare Grant, which has helped to secure two more properties for bushland restoration works on 5.9 hectares, as well as revegetation of a further 2.68 hectares of private land within the biolink area. Through this funding we were also able to host another successful weed control weed identification and control workshop, which was held on 15th February at Greens Bush National Park.

Despite the drizzle there was a fabulous turnout for this event presented by local bushland restoration experts, Virginia Carter and Mark Mooney from Local Habitat. Attendees participated in an engaging walk and talk and weed control technique demonstrations. Among the wealth of knowledge shared, we learned about the need for correct planning and staged weed control, the safest and most environmentally sensitive methods of control for various problem weeds, and many burning questions were answered.

Representatives from Main Creek Catchment Landcare also were in attendance with a display of common weed samples that complemented the weed identification component - copies of the Mornington Peninsula Landcare Network weed control calendar were distributed as a useful, take home tool.
 
As you may already be aware, this phase of the GB2AS project is fast approaching its final few months, with current funding to be expended and reports submitted by June 2020. Although we are well on track for full and successful project delivery, there is still much to do, with almost 4,000 more indigenous plants to be installed throughout the month of May. All members and Landcare friends are warmly invited to attend one (or perhaps both) of the planned community planting days scheduled. Please refer to the events section in this newsletter for details.
 
It is fair to say that the success and momentum of this project has sparked much interest with the wider community, and as we look towards securing funding for a ‘Stage Two’ of the project, we are encouragong anyone with private property between Arthurs Seat and Greens Bush National Park to register their interest for potential future opportunities by emailing Chantal here.
 
As the project is sure to continue to grow, we will achieve even greater connectivity in the landscape and provide viable linkages to better support indigenous flora and fauna. Please keep an eye out in future additions of the MPLN newsletter for updates, including details for an upcoming screening of a short video on the Greens Bush to Arthurs Seat Biolink, currently in production, with a showing tentatively planned for mid June.
 
The ‘Greens Bush to Arthurs Seat Biolink’ is delivered by the Mornington Peninsula Landcare Network and the Port Phillip and Westernport Catchment Management Authority through funding provided by the state government’s ‘Our Catchments Our Communities’ and Victorian Landcare Grant initiatives.

           - Update by Chantal Kelly

Dunns Creek Biolink
The Dunns Creek Biolink project continues to create private-land connectivity between two high habitat-value public reserves, Bald Hill Nature Conservation Reserve and Kangerong Nature Conservation Reserve. In it’s second year, three more properties are contributing to the enhancement and reconnection of indigenous remnant vegetation through woody weed control and revegetation. By the end of July 2020, the Dunns Creek Biolink will have restored approximately 42 hectares of significant remnant vegetation on private land through the removal of habitat-changing weeds.
 
Pest animal control is ongoing with the removal of foxes across a combined 200 hectares of the biolink undertaken biannually. In addition, a complementary rabbit control workshop was held on the 23rd February. Presented by local pest management expert Rod Brindley, participants learned about the threats of rabbit populations on the environment, best practice baiting methodology to mitigate off target damage to native wildlife, and other integrated control techniques such as harbour removal and biological control. In a  generous cross-catchment act of good will, we were able to arrange a loan of specialised rabbit baiting hutches from the Merricks Coolart Catchment Landcare group, who successfully ran a similar program to this a few years ago. Biolink participants left the workshop equipped with the knowledge and materials to be able to conduct rabbit control independently on their properties. More baiting hutches will purchased through third year project funds and will remain the property of Dunns Creek Landcare, being available to all group members at the completion of the project.
 
Looking forward, following the success of last year’s biolink planting day at ‘Sussex Farm’, Dunns Creek Landcare will again be hosting a National Tree Day planting event this year on another biolink property, where we plan to install 1,500 indigenous trees and shrubs for increased connectivity and habitat. National Tree Day this year falls on Sunday 2nd August and all are welcome to come along for what should be another great day. Details will be published in next month’s newsletter in the events calendar.
 
The Dunns Creek Biolink is delivered by the Dunns Creek Landcare Group through funding provided by the RE Ross Trust.
 

A Neglected Benefit of Biolinks

What are the benefits of the series of biolinks being constructed and planned across the Peninsula under the Linking the Mornington Peninsula Landscape (LMPL) project?
 
The write-ups for both the LMPLN vision and each of its daughter biolink initiatives quite correctly focus on the benefits to local ecosystems and particularly to the free movement of plants and animals between what would otherwise be disconnected and endangered patches of residual native systems.
 
But there are other substantial benefits, as we argue in this and other follow-up articles in future newsletters.
 
In the December newsletter we looked at the Australian record for emissions of CO2 and related gases and found that while most Australian emission sources have risen by 35-60% from 1990 to the present, land use and land use change has decreased by 110%. In other words, Australia has gone from removing natural vegetation to increasing it slightly - and the net annual emissions decrease of ~50 Mt has driven a drop of nearly 10% of our total emissions.

Perhaps, therefore, biolinks also have an important  role in reducing our net CO2 emissions?
 
Let us first consider what happens when a new forest is established and a whole new ecological process kicks in, as shown in the accompanying figure (Todd 2012).

Photosynthesis extracts CO2 from the air initially to build trunks, branches, leaves, and roots of the new plants. Then, as the forest develops the interactions become more complex: tree roots pass carbon-rich sugars to underground fungi and similar; leaf litter builds up on the forest floor and uncountable numbers of detritivores move in to feast on the plenty. In a mature forest there may be ten thousand or more of these tiny creatures per square metre.
 
Lerps, caterpillars, beetles and general bugs gobble up leaves or bore into the bark and wood.
 
These tiny creatures in turn provide a food base for a range of carnivores, scavengers and the detritivores that feed on their dead bodies and faeces (see Bennet 2016 for an excellent overview of how forested areas work to support entire communities).
 
In addition to helping maintain a viable ecosystem, all this animal and fungus activity releases some of the sequestered CO2 to the atmosphere through respiration. Plants also release a range of volatile organic compounds containing carbon, and return CO2 to the atmosphere by respiration during the night.
 
But, detritivores and fungi also turn part of the litter into dark humus - for example, fungi consume the cellulose, or lignan in the wood, and leave the carbon. The resulting humus is a rich contributor to healthy soils and a stable store of carbon. An additional large mass of carbon is stored in the trunks and branches. Although these also decay by the CO2 is released on much longer timescales and some is retained in the revitalised soil below the fallen timber.

Much of the stored carbon from all processes eventually may decay back to atmospheric CO2 but this takes decades to centuries to occur - in wetland areas the anaerobic conditions mean that the carbon is locked up for very long periods.
 
Because of all this complexity, the carbon storage cycle is quite complex, and the details are not well understood. Lack of full understanding has generated considerable scientific discussion on how much atmospheric CO2 is actually removed by forests (see Popkin 2019 for a good review). Here we bypass this uncertainty and take the pragmatic approach of simply using the long-term record of the carbon actually stored by a growing forest based on the Zhang et al 2018 multi-year observations from developing eucalypt and acacia forests in the Pearl River Delta of China (see figure).
 
The Delta is located just inland from Hong Kong at a latitude of 22-23^oLatitude. This is more tropical than our location of around 38^o south and thus may only provide an indicator of the carbon sequestration by our biolink activities. However, the numbers are similar to those from other Australia studies and we are using the conservative values from just the growing eucalypts. Acacias sequester slightly more carbon thanks to their ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen into the soil and other Australian studies have found that a mixture of eucalypts and acacias does the best job of sequestration.
 
The nearly-completed first phase of the Greens Bush to Arthurs Seat Biolink (GB2AS) added ~20,000 native plants over a total area of ~29 Ha on 24 properties. Even if only 50% survive, these will provide a solid overstory canopy accompanied by a varied mix of lower acacias and other plants – in other words an ideal mix for sequestering carbon.
 
Using the above graph the growing biolink bush can be expected to sequester ~7 t/acre/year of carbon (or 17.5 t/Ha/year) and this sequesters ~66 t/Ha/year of atmospheric CO2.

Thus, our current 29 Ha GB2AS Biolink section is removing 1,900-2,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide semi-permanently from the air each year.

This is ten times the carbon storage capacity of the pasture that they replaced (Chief Scientist 2009).

To put this benefit in a local context, 2,000 t/year of CO2 removal:

• Provides an emissions compensation of ~3 t/year for each of the 640-odd volunteers who helped in the biolink design and implementation – equivalent to 25% of the Australian average per capita emissions
• Alternatively, 80 t/year could be claimed by each of the 24 properties involved, making their residents approximately carbon neutral or perhaps even negative.

When the full GB2AS Biolink is finished, it is reasonable to expect that at least 100 Ha of new bush will have been developed – then we shall be removing an additional 6,600 t/year of CO2 from our atmosphere, and provided we adopt good long-term practice, the resulting carbon will be sequestered for a century or more.
 
A rough extension of these figures provides the interesting perspective that the 20% (14,500 Ha) of residual bushland in Mornington Shire is sequestering ~1 Mt of CO2 each year - the equivalent of nearly 50% of the average annual per capita emissions from the entire population of our shire!
 
Do we dare to dream of what could really be done if we all worked together on implementing a coordinated biodiversity program for the Shire and beyond. A program that supports extensive biolinks and stable ecosystems with their resident populations of native wildlife. A program that leads to zero net CO2 emissions across the region while improving lifestyles. A program from which agriculture, tourism, and residents all benefit. And a program that could set a shining example for the rest of the  country.
 
Perhaps our biggest hurdle lies with us daring to dare.
 
      - Article by Greg Holland with thanks to all those who have contributed to the success of the biolink program.

Plant of the Month: Peppermint Gum

Species name: Narrow-leafed Peppermint Eucalyptus radiata subspecies radiata
 
Family: Myrteceae.

Origin: Indigenous to eastern Victoria and NSW - there are two other subspecies: sejuncta from northeastern NSW and robertsonii from southeastern NSW and far northeastern Vic.

Size: 10-40 m height, 6-20 m width.

Status: Common across its range. On the Peninsula, Peppermints are among the major overstory species of woodlands and foothill forests.
 
Reproduction: Typically from the production of gumnuts that enclose the seeds in hard outer coverings. As these dry out they split open to release the seed capsules, which typically fall in the vicinity of the parent tree. Most eucalypts can cross fertilise with other eucalypts and on the Peninsula we can find specimens that are a cross between E. radiata ssp radiata and E. pauciflora (snow gums aka white sallees).

Such cross fertilisation is common amongst eucalypts and is considered to be an
important factor in establishing and maintaining species diversity. But it can have negative impacts - for example the introduced mahogany gum E. botryoides readily cross-fertilises and can be responsible for diluting the local gene pool for other indigenous species.

Peppermints also readily clone themselves when damaged. When cut down they readily sprout a new trunk or two and thus are a good tree for coppicing. Natural cloning also occurs. When a mature tree falls, several branches towards the extremities die, but those back along the main trunk rapidly transform into new trunks, which then develop their own roots. Thus, a fallen peppermint may generate a mini-copse of clones that last long after the parent has decayed back into the soil - as is shown in the accompanying image.

Image Below: Several cloned peppermints (arrows). The three on the left are on the trunk (hidden) of a small tree that fell several years ago. Those in the middle are just sprouting out of a recently-fallen peppermint. And the those on the right (which include the two fallen trees and two standing trees, one hidden) are from a single tree that has since rotted away. As a result, every tree that can be seen is a clone of the original, now long-decayed tree.
Peppermints had their 15 seconds of fame back in 1852, when they were chosen by a Melbourne pharmacist, Joseph Bosisto, as the species for the first rudimentary production of eucalyptus oil. Bosisto had moved to Victoria to join in the gold rush but instead set up a pharmacy with a laboratory that specialised in the medicinal properties of Australian plants. He collaborated with the Government Botanist Baron von Mueller to establish the first still at Dandenong Creek using leaves gathered from peppermints throughout the area.

The resulting business prospered as eucalyptus oil was discovered to be useful for everything from cleaning to clearing clogged-up sinuses, as a tea flavouring, and more. By 1854 it was being exported to Britain and Europe, and the same primitive still distilling technique was used all the way through to WWII.

All that began with just a few of our humble peppermints.

- Article by Greg Holland


Book/App of the Month: iNaturalist

I bet that all of us have seen an interesting plant/animal/fungus and wondered what it was. I, for one, have laboured to even get a good guess on some new insect or flower, and often I have not been sure that I was correct with the final answer.

Enter iNaturalist, a sophisticated App and web site that provides an identification and archival service for the observation with minimum effort from the observer. Behind the site is a combination of an excellent artificial-intelligence engine for identifying images and an extensive global organisation of experts all helping to develop and maintain a database that aims to document every species on earth. iNaturalist Australia is partnered with my long-favourite Atlas of Living Australia, so everything you load up on either automatically feeds into the other.

Both the website and App work similarly, so I will just describe the App.

Download is trivial and free from the Apple App store. Then the fun begins.

You take a photo of whatever and the App automatically stores the image, date and time, and general location - if you have a GPS phone, the exact location will be stored. Clicking on "What did you see?" takes you to the AI system that searches the iNaturalist global data base for images with similar characteristics.

Up to ten suggestions will be displayed and a large proportion will have at least one as the correct answer. At worst, they typically provide a good pointer to the genus/family/order where the answer lies.

You select a guess (which may be don't know) and the information goes out to the wider iNaturalist community, who provide confirmation or alternative identifications that come back to you for comment-disagreement-confirmation. Some difficult identifications generate a whole series of assessments that often also lead to other serious experts joining in. The inset provides a snapshot of the type of discussion that can ensue.

At the end, you and your new global audience have a record of all your submissions together with image, map location and the relevant discussion. This can be edited at any future date to add more information, new images, etc. Those with an inclination also can access a wide range of sophisticated analytical techniques accompanying both iNaturalist and ALA.

Following is an example record for banded sugar ants


The variety of reviewers means that not only is a wide range of expertise brought to bear, occasional fascinating discussions also ensue, as shown by the following example:

LW: “This has the interesting greenish tint seen in specimens from the Otway Ranges.”
Me: “We are on the other side of Port Philip, on the Mornington Peninsula, so the colour variant may have extended this far.”
LW: “Going back 12000-13000 years forest during the wet period extended from eastern to western Victoria, and this accounts for finding the same species on either side of Port Phillip Bay (and at Macedon). Not all F. sugdeni in the Otways have the greenish tint. Specimens of quite a few species elsewhere in Victoria show this peculiarity, the cause of which is not presently known.”
Me: “Fascinating. With a lot of living things presence or not of a specific mineral or organic compound in their diet can change their colour (pink flamiongos being the classic example). So perhaps the reason lies there.”
LW: “Yes, this happens with some species such as Australoplana alba and Bipalium kewense that feed on earthworms where the haemoglobin / ingesta gives the planarian a pink-brown colour.”

- Review by Greg Holland

Leadership Development Grants
The Leadership Development Grants program is designed to strengthen skills and capabilities while fostering a new generation of leaders in catchment management.
 
Funding available: grants of up to $10,000 are available for travel, study, research, training and other forms of professional development for integrated catchment management in the following categories:

How to apply: for further information visit here.
Applications open:  on 3 February and close on 27 March 2020.
 

Regular Grant Opportunities
 

Do you any questions or complaints? How about a story to tell? Is there a weed, plant, fungus, slime mould, or animal that you want to know about? Have you identified a new, rare, or interesting species? Or a good book? How about a great photo?

Please contact Greg Holland for it to be featured in the newsletter.

Jacqui Salter: Landcare Facilitator, MPLN ph: 0408 213 079
Greg Holland: Newsletter Editor.
David Maddocks: President of MPLN ph: 0429 990 518
Michele Sabto: Project Coordinator for ‘Linking the Mornington Peninsula Landscape’ project.
Chantal Kelly: Project Coordinator for ‘Greens Bush to Arthurs Seat Biolink’ Project.
Sarah Saxton: MP Shire Agribusiness & Food Industry Officer.
Lizzie Younger: Melbourne Water River Health Officer.

The last newsletter contained a tale of an aging grey kangaroo – king of the bush - and his successfully repelling a younger pretender to his throne.
 
Time passes.
 
I recently found what was most likely the same kangaroo munching the soft green grass along the fence of our back lawn – his ex-mob grazed further down in the wetlands under the watchful eye of the new ‘king’.

I strolled forward to within 3m. He initially took no notice, then made a half hop and flopped down. Obviously exhausted, his only movement was to occasionally swat at the swarm of flies sensing a future feed.
 
Eventually, he struggled up and hopped slowly back towards the mob – rib bones showing through scrawny fur.
 
A fence that he once would have soared over now required an un-majestic scramble under the bottom wire. A few more hops and he flopped back to the ground, still being watched by the mob.

I never saw him again.

Someday I will find a pile of bleached bones in a remote corner, and I will stop to pay respects to the once magnificent animal that propelled those bones into successful battle against a younger interloper.


So it goes.

         - Images and story by Greg Holland