Made with FlowPaper - Flipbook Maker
Banksia Bulletinsummer 2022/23 What bird is that? Restoring Mistletoe Wildflowers thrivingFrom the Mayor Welcome to the Summer 2022/23 edition of Banksia Bulletin . It is a pleasure to introduce this edition as your newly appointed Mayor of Bayside. As the year draws to a close, I would like to thank all of our wonderful Friends groups – the convenors and volunteers – who have contributed so much to our incredible natural environment this year. The hours spent caring for our reserves, heathlands and foreshore by volunteers is a significant demonstration of how valuable our natural environment is to you all. Everyone living, working and visiting Bayside benefits from the contribution you provide to make Bayside a better place to live. Banksia Bulletin also relies on the contribution of volunteers, and I would like to acknowledge our contributors who regularly submit articles and are so generous with sharing their beautiful photography. In particular, I would like to thank Pauline Reynolds, Sue Forster and John Eichler for their significant contribution to every edition. There are many other local authors and photographers who submit stories and images and I thank you all for sharing your insights and discoveries. Over the next year, I look forward to visiting our nature reserves, exploring and learning more about Bayside’s natural environment, and together we will continue to nurture, protect and celebrate our natural environment for all the community to enjoy.As the holiday season is upon us, however you to choose to celebrate, I wish you all a safe and happy time surrounded by family, friends and of course, our wondrous wildlife. Councillor Hanna El Mouallem Mayor Cover photo: Trachymene at Cheltenham Park by Pauline ReynoldsIn this issue Special features Other articles Plants of Bayside Words by Aaron Hurrell, Citywide Bushland Crew Photo by Pauline Reynolds Coast Banksia The Coast Banksia or Banksia integrifolia is a Banksia that grows either open and erect or as a spreading tree. Reaching sizes between 10-20 metres tall and stretching 5-10m wide, it has thick, tessellated bark that is grey-brown in colour. The leaves are dark green on the upper surface with a silvery underside. The flowers are pale-yellow in colour and range in size from 6-12cm long to 5-8cm wide. Coast Banksia can flower all year round, but the main flowering time is between February and September. Growing only by seeds, the Coast Banksia prefers well drained soils and responds best to summer watering. This sturdy tree can make for an excellent ornamental windbreak and is good for erosion control along the foreshore. Our First Nations people made use of the flower for candles and even a sweet drink. Source: Bull, Marilyn (1991) Flora of Melbourne: A guide to the indigenous plants of the greater Melbourne area Carlton Vic: Hyland House Publishing Gardening Australia on ABC Compiled by Jo Hurse, Pauline Reynolds and Rob Saunders Popular ABC TV show Gardening Australia has showcased how Bayside conducts its controlled burns in local bushland reserves. Presenter Jane Edmanson and the crew spent a day with Citywide Bushland and Nursery Operations Manager Jo Hurse, with Banksia Bulletin contributor and Friends of George Street Reserve Convenor Pauline Reynolds joining for part of the day spent at Bay Road Heathland Sanctuary, Gramatan Avenue Heathland Sanctuary and Long Hollow Heathland in 2021. The segment showed Bayside’s remnant bushlands and the use of fire in their conservation and management. It explained how fire plays an important role in our environment and can be used to help restore indigenous biodiversity. Jo was quoted in the segment as saying, “We can go from a site with less than 10 species to over 60 species of plants”. Jane finished the story with, “It’s amazing to realise that if you choose to set aside just a little piece of public land for conservation, there are treasures right beneath your feet ”. The episode, titled Bush of the Bay, aired on Friday 28 October. View the segment via (L-R) Jane Edmanson chats with Jo Hurse about how ecological controlled burns can restore biodiversity. Photo by Pauline Reynolds Banksia Bulletin | Summer 2022/234Wildflowers thriving Words and photos by Pauline Reynolds @ George Street Reserve A most beautiful display of Austrostipa mollis flowered at George Street Reserve this year. There have been wonderful displays of the grass previously, but this is outstanding. The Austrostipa mollis has grown well in many places throughout Bayside this spring, perhaps due to the rain. This photograph (above) shows the 2020 burn site taken last spring with mainly Senecio picridoides and Senecio hispidulas thriving and only a few Austrostipa mollis plants visible. This photograph (above) was taken in October 2022 showing the ‘paddock’ of the grass waving in the breeze. It will be interesting to see what the dominant plant will be next year. There are many species of seedlings appearing. @ Sandringham Golf Links Wild Parsnip (Trachymene composita var composita) is quite common in pockets of Melbourne but it was a nice discovery, identified by Val Stajsic at Sandringham Golf Links in October, which appeared after this year’s ecological burn. It’s annual, or sometimes biennial, with beautiful flowers and many seeds. “There is an old collection of Trachymene composita at the Herbarium, and my collection from Cheltenham Park. The Sandy Golf Links plant is the first record of Wild Parsnip in this part of Bayside, at least in recent years. It has always surprised me why it never appeared after burns locally so I was very pleased to see it,” Val said. @ Royal Melbourne Golf Club Four plants of Pimelea octophylla appeared at The Royal Melbourne Golf Club (RMGC) after an ecological burn this year on one of the richest remnants of vegetation on the course. The site is by the fairway of the third east hole, which is also the boundary with Balcombe Park. The species has not been observed at RMGC after previous burns anywhere on the course including this site. It has regenerated at least twice in different areas of Long Hollow after burns. It doesn’t seem to have a long life. “Other than Long Hollow Heathland and RMGC, I am not aware of any other contemporary observations of Pimelea octophylla in Bayside,” Val Stajsic said. Editor’s note: Pauline Reynolds received a message from Val Stajsic after this story was submitted to say that during examinations of the regenerating heathland at Long Hollow over the weekend of 3-4 December, Val observed 16 young plants of Pimelea octaphylla, which is wonderful news. Hopefully most or all will thrive and produce more seed. Banksia Bulletin | Summer 2022/235Boom and bust Discovering the local inhabitants at Tulip Street Pond The life of an ephemeral pond is one of taking opportunities when they arrive. From the millennial drought when aerial photos had not shown any pond at all, to La Niña effects of above-average rainfall, runoff over several seasons in a row had returned the pond to half-full by November 2022. By Elizabeth Walsh Friends of Native Wildlife Inc. Banksia Bulletin | Summer 2022/236Gum saplings that sprouted a few years ago now have their roots waterlogged, but reeds and water plants are flourishing. Along with this change, the last survey of waterbugs showed a return of numerous small tadpoles as we listened to frog calls during the daytime. There were a few damselfly and dragonfly nymphs found at that time too that have grown through their various growth stages and emerged as magnificent flying machines: a mass of blues and browns zooming across the abundant reeds. The photos show males and females as you would observe them with the naked eye. Small and unclear. We were grateful to John Gooderham of the Waterbug Company who shared his enthusiasm and knowledge during our recent Wild in Bayside online talk. John’s enthusiasm is catching and encouraged locals to join us on our first survey since COVID-19 closures. Since this article was published, FoNW Inc has held another survey for attendees to see the beauty and intricacy of many of our pond insects closely. Our template cards are a helpful start to identify life from our water samples, along with The Waterbug App, which we highly recommend. Equipment such as nets, spoons, pipettes, large trays and smaller individual trays are used along with magnifying glasses to help identify the finer features of many creatures. Federation University set up The Waterbug Blitz Team, which has resulted in a united and coordinated collection and collation of waterbug data. The aim of the project was to reinvigorate the Australian community’s awareness, concern for, and care of, their local waterways. John Gooderham “ has been developing an improved approach to how scientists and citizen scientists (like waterwatchers) can use a similar methodology to identify waterbugs and collect data that is of good quality and robust for use in riverine assessments”(i). Adults and young alike are intrigued by the many species of waterbugs Tulip Street Pond harbours. Many decades ago, local children referred to the pond as the ‘yabby pond’, followed by FoNW Inc referring to it as the Tulip Street Frog Pond. Our awareness of the many waterbugs that inhabit this pond now has shown a much fuller picture of what an ephemeral pond is all about. The lifecycles of waterbugs vary, and our citizen scientists have many questions to answer before identifying each individual such as whether a bug has a shell, a soft surface, its specific shape, whether it has gills or legs, feelers or special mouthparts or even tails and how it manoeuvres in the water. All are answered with careful time and study and the use of The Waterbug App and Melbourne Water Identification cards. FoNW Inc is building a life picture of this special ephemeral pond through waterbug surveys and continues to monitor monthly for frog calls throughout the year. (i) Identify waterbugs (freshwater invertebrates) from Australia, assess the health of a river/ creek/wetland and submit data to contribute to the citizen science program – The National Waterbug Blitz. Banksia Bulletin | Summer 2022/237Encouraging signs from 2022 ecological burn Aboriginal cultural burning was practiced in this area for tens of thousands of years to sustain the amazing biodiversity of the heathlands and woodlands. After settlement, this age-old fire regime changed, resulting in fewer but more devastating fires. By Rob Saunders Convenor Friends of Long Hollow Heathland Controlled, ecological burning was reintroduced at Long Hollow Heathland in 1985 and is now used regularly in all Bayside's bushland reserves. The secret to its success is the bank of soil-stored seed which lies waiting for the right signal – typically the heat or smoke from a fire – to awaken and germinate. These seeds are treasures which bring forth a new cycle of life. Long Hollow has seen three ecological burns in the last few years: in the centre of the heathland in 2015, in the south-western corner in 2018, and the most recent at the northern end of the reserve in April 2022. All three areas were weed-infested before their burns and their species richness was severely depleted. Regeneration after the 2015 ecological burn was remarkable, with dozens of species reappearing and flowering the following spring. Some unusual local species were observed, including the Tall Leek-orchid (Prasophyllum elatum ), which was seen at Long Hollow for the first time. Early Nancy (Wurmbea dioica ) was also seen flowering for the first time in many years, and the Small Grass tree (Xanthorrhoea minor ) flowered prolifically. Interestingly, additional species are still being discovered in the 2015 burn site, seven years later. The beautiful Cranberry Heath (Astroloma humifusum ) was recently spotted by Citywide’s Will McGowan while he was hand-weeding in the area. Seasonal factors are also clearly important and this year’s wetter than normal weather has favoured other wildflowers including Milkmaids (Burchardia umbellata ) which are flowering prolifically. The most obvious results of the 2018 burn have been the removal of invasive Coast Tea-tree (Leptospermum laevigatum ) and the regrowth of a dense woodland consisting of Black Wattle (Acacia mearnsii ), Coast Manna-gum (Eucalyptus viminalis ssp. pryoriana ) and Cherry Ballart (Exocarpos cupressiformis ). Long Hollow Heathland burn site Creeping Raspworts (Gonocarpus micranthus) Banksia Bulletin | Summer 2022/238It is wonderful to see saplings five or more metres tall after less than four years. The ground and shrub layers have also increased in diversity, and the previous infestation of Trad (Tradescantia fluminensis ) has disappeared. Each species in the heathland plant community tends to have a particular cycle of life that is related to, if not totally dependent on, the fire regime. It is early days for the 2022 burn site, but there are already encouraging signs. There are large numbers of Kangaroo Apple (Solanum aviculare ), a pioneer species which plays a vital role in the first months and years after a fire by shading and sheltering the less hardy plants as they re-establish. Typically, Kangaroo Apples will die off en masse after a few years, having replenished the soil-stored seed bank in readiness for a future fire. Other indigenous species that are already visible in the first flush of regrowth after the 2022 fire include Rough Fireweed (Senecio hispidulus ), an erect, annual or short-lived perennial already up to one metre tall and flowering. Wattles are also very evident germinating thickly in places because their seeds are stimulated to germinate by heat from the fire. Unfortunately, the most common by far is Coast Wattle (Acacia longifolia ssp. sophorae ) which is considered a weed this far inland and will need to be carefully removed. Looking more closely, it is possible to find Spike Wattles (Acacia oxycedrus ), which are more reflective of the Damp Sands Herb-rich Woodland Ecological Vegetation Class in this part of Long Hollow. Equally welcome are the Creeping Raspworts (Gonocarpus micranthus ) carpeting some of the damp areas near the Beaumaris Secondary College Wetland. Indigenous Common Blown Grass (Lachnagrostis filiformis ), which is not often seen in Bayside’s bushland reserves, is also evident in the damp areas. There are also many small seedlings of various Hibbertias, Isolepis, Olearias, Ozothamnus, Ricinocarpos and other genera which we will be able to identify more completely as they grow further. Ecological burns are clearly a vital management tool for the conservation of indigenous biodiversity. Each burn will always have its own site characteristics, immediate impacts of fire and smoke, and subsequent weather conditions, so it is inevitable that the regeneration in each case will be different. But it is also vital to give nature the time it needs. Some species might not appear for some years after a fire. Tree everlasting (Ozothamnus ferrugineus) and Twiggy daisy-bush (Olerea ramulosa) Native cranberry (Astroloma humifusum) Spike Wattles (Acacia oxycedrus) Banksia Bulletin | Summer 2022/239Next >