NOUSHKA’S THREATENED SPECIES TALK
Friday 8th September
Following the AGM, our Guest Speaker Dr Noushka Reiter talked to us about the recently funded Nature Fund Project. The project ‘Raising Rarity: preventing extinction of Victoria’s threatened flora’ is a $1.35 million dollar project over 3 years with 11 partners, including Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria (RBGV) and Latrobe University being the lead agencies. Other Environmental and friends Groups are also contributing community support.
There are 24 threatened plants across Victoria which will be researched in various ways to try to prevent their extinction. Of these five are found only in the Grampians region.
- Undertake community surveys Community groups and partner organisations are being invited to help with surveys to check areas from old herbarium records and potential sites to ascertain the extent of populations.
- Collect seed, mycorrhiza or rhizobia. For all species, seed will be collected from across populations to ensure genetic diversity. Seed will be put into long term storage as well as used to establish a living collection. For orchids mycorrhizal fungi is essential for their germination in the wild. Fungi will also be collected, tested and put into long term storage. For most pea plants rhizobia appears to be necessary for them to thrive and their long-term survival, so rhizobia will be collected for each of the pea species. Some species which are known to be problematic to germinate will have research done to determine how to alleviate seed dormancy.
- Propagate an ex-situ collection: All species will be propagated and grown in the Cranbourne Gardens or shade houses, as a living collection. These collections can also be used to produce more seed and be used where re-introductions are to occur.
- For 10 species undertake genetic diversity studies: For these species some plants or seed already exist in the RBGVs collections. Genetic sampling will be done across all known wild populations and this will guide any further seed or cutting material which may need to be added to the ex-situ collection to ensure genetic diversity and help guide the material to be used for re-introductions.
- For 10 species undertake pollination studies: In order for re-introduction translocations to be successful it is essential to know what the pollinator is and that it is present at any re-introduction sites. For these 10 species, studies will be done to identify the pollinator and then bait for it at any potential re-introduction site.
- For 10 species undertake conservation translocations: These species will have plants propagated at the RBGV and will either augment current populations (have extra plants planted in that population) or be used to set up new sites for that species. Ascertaining why populations have declined in the first place will be important in taking steps to mitigate those threats. Site selection will be important and will need to contain similar soil and vegetation to where the wild population occurs and will need to have the pollinators present. The biggest threat to the success of translocations is herbivory, so in most cases the reintroduction will be done into a fenced area. As these are listed threatened species, in order to collect plant material, seed etc from the plants entails having permits, red tape and lots of bureaucracy in order to put them back into the wild.
Thelymitra mackibbini (photos from Wendy)
Measuring success
In the short term it is that the translocated plants survive. In the medium term it is getting pollination and seed set. Long term success is where you are getting germination of seedlings and an increase in the population.
Some definitions:
Conservation translocation/ rewilding: this is where plants are grown ex-situ then planted into an area to assist with the management and conservation of a threatened plant species.
Mitigation translocation: Translocation to mitigate the impacts of development on a threatened species, also known as development translocations and often done to offset the impacts of development and include ‘salvage translocations’ where entire plants are moved from a site prior to the development.
Pollinator baiting: the target species is grown in a pot and taken to the potential translocation site, on a day of the right weather conditions, someone then sits and waits for the insects to come to the pot plant, the insect is caught to get it correctly identified.
Some Facts presented at the talk:
There are well over 2,200 plant species recorded in the Grampians National Park, with over 184 of those State or Nationally listed as threatened plant species, many endemic (meaning they only occur in the Grampians National Park).
Australian Plants are in Peril: 1,426 of Australia’s plant species are listed as at risk of extinction (that is critically endangered). Thirty-six species have become extinct on our watch. In Victoria 1,617 of our plant species are listed as threatened i.e. have a Victorian listing as Presumed Extinct in Victoria, Endangered in Victoria, Vulnerable in Victoria, Rare in Victoria, or poorly known. Some of the species listed as threatened in Victoria may occur in other states and are not considered threatened, (plants don’t know borders, also the figure for Australian critically endangered plants may seem at odds with the Victorian number which takes in plants from all endangered status).
For those who are interested in participating in searches for the species in the Grampians there is a search for Sphaerolobium acanthos on 13 November and Pimelea pagophila on 25 November. Further searches may take place next year. If you are interested contact Noushka directly by email
or Alex McLachlan on
Win Pietsch inspecting the Thelymitra mackibinnii flowers in the Deeap Lead enclosure before searching for it at Moorl Moor. This activity was part of the activities for the Royal Botanic Gardens ‘Raising Rarity’ project. Win had helped plant out some of these plants a few years ago.