La Trobe Wildlife Sanctuary

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  • Gresswell Hill Nature Conservation Reserve
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  • Gresswell Habitat Link
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The Gresswell Habitat Link, along with the Gresswell Forest and Gresswell Hill, makes up an area of regional faunal significance. It is the largest and most significant stand of River Red Gum Eucalyptus camaldulensis on public land in Greater Melbourne and one of the largest and most intact in General Melbourne. The link is separated from the Golf Course and Wattle Ave by a farm fence. It has a formal trail including boardwalks over the marshland near Wattle Ave.

Faunal significance

The following are important faunal records for the Gresswell Habitat Link.

Regionally vulnerable

• Birds: Red-capped Plover Charadrius ruficapillus

Regionally depleted

• Birds: Buff-banded Rail Gallirallus philippensis Latham’s Snipe Gallinago hardwickii White-winged Triller Lalage sueurii
• Butterflies: Blue Jewel Hypochrysops delicia

Regionally restricted

• Birds: Rainbow Lorikeet Trichoglossus haematodus
• Reptiles: Large Striped Skink Ctenotus robustus Tussock Skink Pseudemoia pagenstecheri
• Butterflies: Meadow Argus Junoina villida Dark Purple Azure Ogyris abrota Chequered Blue Theclinesthes serpentata

Significant Observations

• Six Latham’s Snipe, international migratory birds, were flushed from the Strathallan Creek near the golf course on 7 October 1987. Small numbers visit the area from September to January. Dense rushes and sedges along the creek provide shelter during the day. At night they venture out onto the seasonal floodplain herbfield, including areas of the golf course. Disturbance from subdivision has reduced the visitation rate of snipe.
• A pair of Red-capped Plover nested above the eastern shoreline of the ULA stormwater wetlands at Wattle Ave in Nov/Dec 1995. These wetlands support Common Reed-Cumbungi-Tall Spike-sedge. This is the only record in north east Melbourne and one of only a few away from coastal salt marsh in Melbourne general. The species was recorded in wetlands at Melbourne Wildlife Sanctuary in the 1970’s.
• A Buff-banded Rail was recorded amongst Rush Sedge-Common Spike Sedge-Austral Rush seasonal wetland near the entrance pondage of the Habitat link in May 1996.

The role of the Gresswell Habitat Link

The ultimate biological value of a fragmented site lays in the strength of its habitat links.

The Gresswell Habitat Link will assist and maintain species diversity and genetic flow between the biologically significant Gresswell Forest and La Trobe Wildlife Sanctuary. It provides a link for birds to other habitat patches such as Bundoora Park and Simpson Barracks. It is pivotal in the long-term survival of species such as the Sugar Glider 'Petaurus breviceps', which in turn can have a flow on effect of benefiting nocturnal birds of prey such as the Barking Owl 'Ninox connivens'. The Strathallan Golf course provides an extra habitat buffer, increasing the habitat area and the diversity, density and viability of fauna in the habitat link. It will increase the effectiveness of the habitat link to function as a habitat patch as well as it’s effectiveness as a link between Gresswell Forest and the La Trobe Wildlife Sanctuary. It provides additional habitat for beneficial vertebrate and invertebrate species which helps to control pest invertebrates, e.g. agents of eucalypt dieback, promoting a more balanced native ecosystem.

The increased area and habitat diversity of wetland along the Strathallan Creek provides a wider ‘filtering zone’ for effluent, stormwater and roadway runoff which improves the quality of water entering the La Trobe Wildlife Sanctuary.

Regeneration and revegetation with indigenous ground flora and re-establishing cover (e.g. replacing logs) provide for the dispersal of ground fauna, particularly frogs and lizards.

Many of the remnants, individually, are too small, too fragmented or too isolated to function effectively in conserving the assemblages of fauna and flora present in the area prior to the clearing of native vegetation. However, considered collectively, these remnants contain significant fauna e.g. in the past the Barking Owl has been recorded, a large owl nearly extinct in urban Melbourne. This owl occupies a large home range, and habitat preference is strongly biased towards areas that provide a high density of large trees greater than 60cm diameter and a high density of hollow trees of a range of sizes, including large hollows greater than 15cm diameter which are suitable nesting places for Barking Owls. The prey potential and nest sites provided by remnant trees in areas such as the Gresswell Habitat Link add to the carrying capacity of a site for birds such as the Barking Owl.

Management Issues

• Restricting earthworks and development near biologically significant areas
• Establishing habitat buffers between areas of development and areas of biological significance
• Stopping disturbance and dumping of rubbish and weeds
• Weed control
• Improving levels of water turbidity and retarding water run off and effluent
• The protection of indigenous vegetation from clearing, cutting and removal
• Instigating and maintaining a revegetation program to reduce habitat fragmentation, particularly understorey species
• The control of domestic and feral cats and roaming dogs
• Promoting natural regeneration by leaving unmown blocks, containing slashed or grazed perimeter firebreaks

References

Beardsell, C. (1997). Sites of Faunal and Habitat Significance in North East Melbourne. Nillumbik Shire Council.