List of Threatened Ecological Communities Amendment (EC172) Instrument 2022
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Commonwealth of Australia
List of Threatened Ecological Communities Amendment (EC172) Instrument 2022
I, SUSSAN LEY, Minister for the Environment, pursuant to paragraph 184(a) of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, amend the list referred to in section 181 of that Act by including in the list of threatened ecological communities in the critically endangered category:
Drooping sheoak grassy woodland on calcrete of the Eyre Yorke Block Bioregion
as described in the Schedule to this instrument.
This instrument commences the day after registration.
Sussan Ley
...................................................................................
Sussan Ley
Minister for the Environment
Dated ...........16th February 2022.................................
SCHEDULE 1
Drooping sheoak grassy woodland on calcrete of the Eyre Yorke Block Bioregion
The Drooping sheoak grassy woodland on calcrete of the Eyre Yorke Block Bioregion ecological community is the assemblage of native plants, animals and other organisms that comprise a type of grassy woodland associated with shallow soils over calcrete.
The ecological community occurs in South Australia, within the Eyre Yorke Block bioregion. Known occurrences are on the western Eyre Peninsula and the southern Yorke Peninsula. The woodland is typically distributed on low relief undulating hilly plains, local rises and occasional steep-sided hills with soils ranging from low to moderately fertile calcareous loam to Aeolian sandy loam and calcrete pans at various depths.
The vegetation structure varies from a low to mid height open woodland to open forest. The canopy is dominated by Allocasuarina verticillata (drooping sheoak). Other species that may occur in the overstorey include Callitris gracilis (southern cypress-pine), Eucalyptus diversifolia (coastal white mallee), E. porosa (mallee box), Melaleuca lanceolata (dryland tea tree) and Pittosporum angustifolium (native apricot).
The understorey is typically scattered and variable in composition. It is generally grassy although shrubs are often present. Common shrub species on the Eyre Peninsula include: Dodonaea baueri (crinkled hop bush), Leucopogon parviflorus (coastal beard-heath), Olearia axillaris (coast daisy-bush) and O. ramulosa (twiggy daisy-bush). Common shrub species on the Yorke Peninsula include: Acrotriche patula (prickly ground-berry), Acacia rupicola (rock wattle), Beyeria lechenaultii (pale turpentine bush), Bursaria spinosa subsp. spinosa (sweetb), Exocarpos aphyllus (leafless cherry) and Pimelea serpyllifolia ssp. serpyllifolia (thyme riceflower). Acacia brachybotrya (grey mulga), A. cupularis (coastal umbrella bush), A. triquetra (gold dust wattle) and Dodonaea viscosa subsp. spatulata (sticky hop-bush) are present on both Peninsulas. The understorey may also include juvenile trees of canopy species.
The majority of plant diversity occurs in the ground layer and is typically dominated by perennial native grasses such as Austrostipa spp. (speargrasses), Rytidosperma spp. (wallaby Grasses) and Themeda triandra (kangaroo grass); sedges such as Gahnia lanigera (black-grass, saw-sedge), Lepidosperma congestum (clustered sword-sedge), Lepidosperma viscidum (sticky sword-sedge) and / or other tussocky plants e.g. Lomandra effusa (scented mat-rush). Prostrate or low shrubs are also present in the ground layer.
The ground layer may also contain ferns such as Cheilanthes austrotenuifolia (annual rock-fern) and C. lasiophylla (woolly cloak-fern), sundews such as Drosera glanduligera (scarlet sundew) and orchids such as Caladenia brumalis (winter spider orchid), Caladenia conferta (coast spider orchid), Caladenia intuta (ghost spider orchid), Cyrtostylis robusta (robust gnat-orchid) and Prasophyllum goldsackii (Goldsack’s orchid). Plants with a climbing or creeping habit may occasionally be present, and parasitic species such as the twining Cassytha melantha (dodder-laurel) and Lysiana exocarpi (harlequin mistletoe) can also be present on tree or shrub species.
The ecological community includes a variety of fauna species, including several species that are listed as threatened at a national or state level.