Regional ecosystem details for 7.3.12
| Regional ecosystem | 7.3.12 |
|---|---|
| Vegetation Management Act class | Endangered |
| Wetlands | Not a Wetland |
| Biodiversity status | Endangered |
| Subregion | 2, 9, 3, 1, (7), (6), (8) |
| Estimated extent1 | Pre-clearing 26000 ha; Remnant 2021 4000 ha |
| Short description | Mixed eucalypt open forest to woodland dominated by Eucalyptus tereticornis and Corymbia tessellaris +/- Melaleuca dealbata (or vine forest with these species as emergents). Lowland alluvial plains |
| Structure code | Open Forest |
| Description | Mixed eucalypt open forest to woodland, dominated by Eucalyptus tereticornis (forest red gum) and Corymbia tessellaris (Moreton Bay ash) +/- Melaleuca dealbata (cloudy tea tree), (or vine forest with these species as emergents). Alluvial plains of lowlands. Not a Wetland. (BVG1M: 9e). Vegetation communities in this regional ecosystem include: 7.3.12a: Eucalyptus tereticornis, Corymbia tessellaris, E. pellita, C. intermedia, Melaleuca dealbata and Lophostemon suaveolens woodland to open forest, often with a secondary tree layer of Acacia mangium and A. crassicarpa. Alluvial plains of lowlands. Not a Wetland. (BVG1M: 9e). 7.3.12b: Eucalyptus tereticornis, Corymbia tessellaris, E. pellita, C. intermedia, Melaleuca dealbata and Lophostemon suaveolens woodland to open forest, often with a secondary tree layer of Acacia mangium and A. crassicarpa, and with a very well-developed vine forest understorey. Alluvial plains of lowlands. Not a Wetland. (BVG1M: 9e). 7.3.12c: Eucalyptus tereticornis open woodland to sparse woodland over a prominent secondary tree layer of Melaleuca quinquenervia and/or M. viridiflora. Alluvial plains of lowlands. Not a Wetland. (BVG1M: 9e). |
| Supplementary description | Stanton and Stanton (2005), A16g, A16gv, (also Qld Herbarium and WTMA (2005) A16q); Kemp and Morgan (1999), 23, 27, 28; Tracey and Webb (1975), 16g, 19 |
| Protected areas | Hinchinbrook Island NP, Girramay NP, Gulngay NP, Girringun NP, Hull River NP, Paluma Range NP, Bloomfield River CP, Grey Peaks NP, Smithfield CP, Daintree NP (CYPAL), Earl Hill CP |
| Special values | 7.3.12: Potential habitat for NCA listed species: Phlegmariurus phlegmarioides. |
| Fire management guidelines | SEASON: Begin burning after the wet season (April-May), but avoid hot, dry season unless a high intensity fire is required to manage thickening, then undertake storm burn. INTENSITY: Low, with occasional moderate or high intensity to manage thickening and/or stimulate germination. INTERVAL: 2-5 years. INTERVAL_MIN: 2. INTERVAL_MAX: 5. STRATEGY: Mosaic burn 25-60%. Begin burning early in the fire season, with progressive patch fires burnt through the year. Stop burning when the network of fires and other breaks is sufficient to impede fire spread later in the year. Storm-burning may be used to add further diversity to fire mosaic, promote perennial grasses and arrest woody thickening. ISSUES: In the absence of fire an abundance of rainforest pioneers (e.g., Melastoma spp., Chionanthus ramiflora, Mallotus philippensis, Alyxia spicata and Glochidion spp.) and bracken fern can establish. This development can be rapid (within about 15 years) after which system change is difficult to reverse. Thickening with rainforest species can be detrimental to habitat trees and endangered species (e.g., mahogany glider). Where fire is more common the understorey is usually dominated by tall grasses (e.g., Themeda triandra and Eriachne pallescens), herbaceous plants, lilies and sedges (e.g., Tricoryne anceps, Gonocarpus acanthocarpus, Lomandra longifolia, Dianella caerulea). |
| Comments | 7.3.12: More mixed in species (and often with Melaleuca dealbata) and of lower stature than 7.3.40. This type has been very heavily cleared for sugar cane growing due to its occurrence on the better alluvial soils. The vegetation community 7.3.12c was once extensive in the Tully-Murray floodplain and Kennedy Valley but is now practically extinct. Scattered across the full extent of the Wet Tropics lowlands. This ecosystem has a long history of European exploitation due to its grazing and timber values, and is therefore often structurally altered, and weeds are usually common. Many areas have a very well-developed rainforest secondary tree layer, and in some places the transition to rainforest is very well advanced, due to a complete cessation of burning. 7.3.12c: Once very common on the Tully-Murray floodplain where it is now practically extinct. |
1 Estimated extent is from version 13 pre-clearing and 2021 remnant regional ecosystem mapping. Figures are rounded for simplicity. For more precise estimates, including breakdowns by tenure and other themes see remnant vegetation in Queensland.
