Contents:
PART ONE - LIFE, HISTORY & BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY
PART TWO - ACT ONE AND ACT THREE INFORMATION
Habitat Types:
Bio = Life
Diversity = Many Different
There are so many environmental issues in the world today with so many challenges for us all. Almost too many in fact. How on Earth did we allow our world get into this predicament? Maybe we have always thought of ourselves as superior to nature, and so we didn't need to bother. Maybe we have seen nature as a limitless wilderness. Or maybe we think that we have more rights than other living things. Whatever it is, the plight of so many species in the world today is among the most pressing of all the environmental issues facing humanity.
Loss of biodiversity, is an emerging reality which might one day spring upon us like a Tasmanian Tiger and sink its teeth into our society's jugular. Make no mistake, the accelerating rate of the extinction of life forms has the potential to produce unknown and perhaps terrible consequences for the total ecology of the planet. And that means us. Yes us. Believe it or not human beings are just one of the many millions of species who share this rock in space. We're just another placental mammal which needs clean air, soil and water just like all the other placental mammals. It may be possible for us to "fix" some environmental issues. But once a species is lost, even with the best will in the world we cannot bring back the dead. Extinction is forever, as they say.
Prof Eileen Dover
from her much vaunted redress to the nation
January 14 1997
What do we really want and how much do we really need? As we stand on the brink of the twenty-first century we have to ask ourselves many important questions. For we are becoming increasingly aware that our values and our needs will determine, to some extent, the future survival of all species on this planet, and of their habitats and ecocommunities. We have to realise that the daily needs of the millions of people on earth place incredible stresses on natural systems. While we can have as many protection programs as there are species, these can only be a part of any solution. Frankly, our negligence suggests that there is something desperately wrong with our culture, our attitudes and our priorities. What are we all really striving for? And what could possibly be worth the loss of species, habitats, clean air, predictable climate, the list could continue for days. And herein lies our challenge. Are we really prepared to accept such losses? Environmental education has a vital role to play in focusing community attention on the precious, accelerating and irreplaceable losses to the natural environment. It has another role too. What are to be the priorities of our society in the next decades? How does the preservation of species, habitats and natural systems fit in with all our schemes? How are we going to achieve sustainability and meet our moral responsibilities to the life forms with whom we share this unique planet?
As individuals there are many, many things we can do. We need to challenge our ideas about what is important in our lives. What do we really need to live a fulfilled and happy life? How often do we sit back and think about our impact on Earth? How often do we challenge the endless list of material things we imagine we need to make us happy? What answers will we give to our children and to our grandchildren when they ask, "If you knew what was happening, why didn't you do something"?
Let's have a wee look at foxes. This scourge of Australian bio-diversity is a charming creature, so agile and so well evolved. But so aggressive toward little grey brown bundles of Oz fur. The urge to release foxes provides an insight into the attitudes of Australia's new settlers. They wanted the land of Australia to be like the 'old country'. In 1855 foxes were released so that people could hunt them. But life here was too easy for foxes, plenty of space and plenty of food. And in just a few decades they had become a terrible pest. Foxes eat small native mammals and are one of Australia's feral animals most responsible for the declining numbers of native species.
We can't alter the mistakes our great, great grandparents made, but we can and must question how much our view of the land has really changed. Everybody talks environment these days, but is the land really any more than a "resource" to the average city person. The introduction of the fox is a terrible example of a way of thinking which saw no problem with the idea of exploiting a non-human species purely for pleasure. But has that thinking changed in 150 years? How can we rationalise having dogs and cats as pets? When we know the devastation they cause on the native animals. These days we have a greater knowledge and understanding than many of our predecessors. But has this really changed our attitude and behaviour? Is more required? What does seeing the land in new ways really mean? Can we make more emotional bonds with and responses to nature? Is it a spiritual thing?
Other hands may fell the last stands of rainforest, others may clearfell forest wilderness for woodchips to make wasteful packaging for goods we do not need. Others may release the pollutants that degrade the oceans, the rivers and the air that we breathe and the atmosphere that makes the earth alone among the planets a haven for life.
Others are the agents, but we are the principals, or at least the aiders and abettors. It is our values that are expressed in these actions. It is our lifestyle that makes such vandalism profitable. It is the governments we elect that permit it.
Hal Wootten Q.C.
President ACF 1986
It is about the enormous variety of life forms and environments on our Earth, and it is essential to maintaining the basic processes on which human life depends. Biological diversity is the result of hundreds and millions of years of evolution. Diversity increases in living things as changes in genetic structure produce new species and ecosystems. But when genetic variation decreases, then a species can become extinct or an ecosystem lost. The concept of the living world and its interrelated processes is biological diversity. There are three ways in which diversity can be thought about:
1. Genetic diversity
2. Species diversity
3. Ecosystem diversity
Diversity can be found within species as well between species. Genetic diversity involves the variation of genes in any living thing. Within a species considerable genetic variation can be found, and this allows an individual organism to be unique. Genetic diversity is important in many ways. These may be related to environmental differences or to the manner in which an organism lives and manages to survive. The classic understanding relates to in-breeding. If too much of a gene pool is lost, the progeny of a given population are denied access to the whole range of genetic material which has evolved with that population.
It should be noted that those genes in any species that control fundamental biological processes generally show little variation. whereas more specialised genes can show far greater variation. Pressure on species and habitats can result in the loss of members of a population who possess the specialised genes for that population.
The individuals in the population which carry those specialised genes are like the genetic investment account. The gene may protect them against a particular disease, or cyclical climate variations such as drought or flood. When the size of a species' population is reduced, the loss of genetic diversity, and hence investment genes, is proportionately lost. The consequence may be that the entire population could be lost following one usually survivable ecological event such as a major bushfire or flood.
Species diversity is about the number and variety of living things on Earth. It is estimated that there are 10 million living species on our planet, and of these only about 1.7 million have been described. Measuring and describing species diversity involves collecting, counting, describing and naming, using three types of measurement.
species richness - the number of species in a particular area
species abundance - the relative numbers among species
quantitative study - the evolutionary history of species
There are many factors which influence species diversity. On land environments, rainfall patterns and food supply are critical variables. While in a marine environment the influences of the currents and the buoyancy and surface tension of seawater may be equally vital. It appears that fewer species live in the ocean than on land, even though genetic diversity is higher in marine organisms. The greatest variety of marine species is generally found on continental shelves. Studies also show that on earth there is overall a greater variety of species in tropical regions than in temperate zones and even fewer species in polar regions.
This term is broadly used to describe the wide diversity of habitats and communities on the Earth, such as arid grasslands, tropical rainforests, the polar ice-caps, coral reefs and the deep oceans. Ecosystem diversity is the different kind of environments, combined with the many different species adapted to live in each. To classify our ecosystems scientists generally describe them by habitat and climate; for example, tropical rainforest or temperate grassland. There is also a wide variety of sea ecosystems which are very different from land ecosystems.
The longest journey begins with one footstep. The habitat and species information below offers the first few paces on the Clockwork road. But we have to take a broad approach. To provide detail about every habitat niche in this wide brown land would not only take a lot of cyberspace but would also perhaps mitigate against the crucial secret ingredient of Clockwork, which is localising by you. Localising the style, the place names, the species, the threats, the solutions and even some of the jokes. That's what makes Clockwork tick.
Obviously park rangers and members of Friends groups can help you, as well as people who have spent time getting to know their local eco-community. In fact anyone who wishes to share with others their knowledge of the local habitat profile, its flora and fauna and any problems which threaten its survival. Don't of course forget your local library, and you could go surfing elsewhere on this Environment Australia site or even on the Net at large.
The information below is designed to help those who may not yet have specialist understanding. First timers in biological diversity education perhaps. It's not too technical, and it should provide the pointers needed to head you in the right direction. The information is structured to slot neatly into the format of Mainspring, the Clockwork Biological Diversity play. You might just find an example below which suits you perfectly. But if not, it will help to tune you in, and fire up your imagination.
Indeed, given the impossibility of covering every biological diversity issue in every corner of Australia where this material may be down loaded, quite a number of the species have been chosen to enable users to even conduct the program in any busy city suburb in Australia. The idea is that your chosen species can be used as an inspiration for sustainable living options and as the action component in Act Three. If you're in downtown Melbourne or Sydney for instance, you might like to adapt Clockwork as a program to run in a local open space. So you can explore and experience eco-community concepts in Act Two, while focusing on the Mountain Pygmy Possum in Act One and then using energy conservation and greenhouse mitigation measures as the action component in Act Three (global warming and its effects on the Alpine Country is one of the potential threats to the Mountain Pygmy Possum). Your audience will go home with a greater understanding of biological diversity. They will have experienced a nice natural place and observed some interrelationships. And they will have learned a little about a particular threatened species will go home charged up and committed to conserving energy. Perfect!
Of course accuracy is important, but imparting specific detail for the sake of it is not the aim of the exercise. The aim is to run a Clockwork program for visitors which gives them a sense of the concept of eco-community, and a sense of commitment to being a part of problems and solutions. This will be far more valuable than trying to remember Latin names and obscure details of taxonomy and natural history. In essence the species you chose to focus on become characters to nourish the imagination of visitors. So that the concepts of environmental issues become an important part of their world view, and have an influence on their lifestyle choices in favour of generally reducing environmental impacts.
When you are looking for a species to star in Act One, don't overlook threatened plants. Consider also, if it is relevant in your area, what might be called landforms. Because the habitat which sits on the surface is dependent on its inanimate building blocks. The disappearance of dunes or the removal of rocks to beautify gardens can be as important as the felling of trees or the clearing of scrub. And of course there are the invertebrates. Choosing an insect as your Act One species could give your visitors a real buzz! Creepy crawly, fluttery, buzzy, bitey animals are too easily ignored, yet they play a monumental part in natural systems. So don't forget the bugs.
In general, the most basic cause of threats to biological diversity in Australia and indeed around the world, is the loss of habitat. Clearing habitats for urban or other development, such as extractive industries, agriculture and for all sorts of human activities, are all slowly, or not so slowly, chipping away at biological diversity. In Australia, the next greatest threat to an eco-community comes from feral species of animals and plants. Foxes, rabbits, cats, goats and environmental weeds like Mimosa, blackberries, willow trees and numerous other species of introduced garden plants gone wild. The list could go on for three and a half weeks. After these threats, other factors causing pressure on biological diversity might include pollution incidents or the long term greenhouse effect which in the future may threaten intertidal zones or alpine regions.
At the end of the day there are two very simple causal relationships. Some human activities create threats to biological diversity. Other types of human activity can save many species and natural systems from extinction. Act One of Clockwork is about the former, Act Three the latter.
The choice of species has been made with a view to providing those new to this type of interpretation with easy and useable examples. This will allow visitors to physically do something to help in the 'hands on for habitat', component of the script.
Details and listing of extinct species is generally not included. The focus of Clockwork is on those that are surviving and how to ensure their future.
The bio-regional profiles below overview seven broad habitat types in Australia
1. ARID ZONES
2. GRASSLANDS
3. ALPINE AREAS
4. FORESTS AND WOODLANDS
5. RAINFORESTS
6. WETLANDS
7. MARINE AND COASTAL AREAS
Obviously, there may be some overlap. An estuarine flat might be another person's wetland. However, if you see the material provided here as road signs to head you in the right direction, do a little locally relevant research. Then you will have no trouble melding your choice of threatened species and preferred action into the Clockwork Script. From there you are guaranteed to give people a memorable experience which they will enjoy and which will make an impact.
Each Bioclimatic Zonal Region is structured thus:
- introductory comments
- examples of threatened plants
- examples of threatened animals
- a selection from a mixture of plants and animals
- some suggestions for action in Act Three which relate to each species
Just before we go to the first of the habitat types, there is one little reminder of just exactly what Clockwork, and the examples of threatened species under the following seven habitat types, is all about.
As most would know, there are listings put together by different agencies in Australia and across the world that specify the exact number of species of plant and animal that are endangered, threatened or even extinct. These listings can be made to show the total number of threatened species for a particular area or habitat type such as those listed below, however it is not the intention of Cog & Spindle to list every species.
Its real aim is provide a few simple examples of the flora and fauna species that are threatened within each habitat type and gives some ideas for possible Act One and Act Three species. But the key lies with you.
Being a member of your local community, you will know what the local shops look like, where to go for the best ice-cream and also what the important local environmental issues are. For example, there may be a patch of native vegetation in your area that was once widespread but is now an important remnant. You might live in a rural community, small town or on the urban fringe.
Choose a species for the play that relates to you. It might not even be an example that we have given but may be one that you know is important to your community or area.
As well as those who live in in smaller communities, many people live in urban, or city environments. Although not sometimes quite as obvious as in rural environments, the underlying reasons or influences for a species being threatened is still an issue for city dwellers. You, might like to head for species that although are not present in the environment you live in, are still influenced by it. An example might be the species from the Alpine habitat which provide Act Three greenhouse solutions relevant to issues of lifestyle.
A large part of Australia's land mass is a vast expanse of semi-arid and desert country, reaching from the western plains of New South Wales and Queensland to the goldfields of Western Australia, and from the Great Australian Bight, to the Gulf of Carpentaria.
With clear skies, low rainfall and scorching heat, there are many contrasting landscapes in these arid regions. Central Australia is a desert of stony plains, sand dunes, low undulating hills and rocky outcrops. And the Mallee is a semi- arid region of dry and sandy plains extending in a broad band across southern Australia.
Threatened plants include ... Undoolyana Wattle.
Threatened animals include ... Wopilkara (Greater Stick-nest Rat), Red-finned Blue-eye, Night Parrot, Greater Bilby, Sandhill Dunnart, Numbat, Western Barred Bandicoot, Rufous Hare-wallaby, Banded Hare-wallaby, Bridled Nail-tail Wallaby and the Dusky Hopping-mouse.
1. The Night Parrot - Western and South Australia, & Northern Territory
2. Sandhill Dunnart - South Australia
3. Greater Bilby - Northern Territory, Western Australia
This bird was thought to be extinct from about 1940, then a dead specimen was found in Queensland in 1990. The Night Parrot creates its nest close to the ground beneath dense shrubs or within dense spinifex. This obviously makes it more vulnerable to feral predators although it would seem that the greatest threat to its survival has been as a result of overgrazing and trampling of the sparsely covered land. As its name suggest it spends most of the day sheltering.
Night Parrot Suggestions for Act Three
- This one calls for local community education. If landholders could be encouraged to protect the last of the habitat patches within the former range of the Night Parrot, they may just provide the lifeline which remaining individuals need.
- Encourage landholders to become interested and involved, as assistance with fencing off such remnant habitat would greatly assist.
This is another species thought to be extinct. But fortune shone on its chances for survival when, ironically, a handful were discovered during a land clearing operation for agriculture, in the late 1960s.
Sandhill Dunnart Suggestions for Act Three
- Another one for local community education. Again encourage the support of local landholders to protect untouched habitat within its range, especially in the south east region of the Great Victorian Desert. Three Sandhill Dunnarts have been sighted in this area.
- Encourage landholders to become interested, as assistance with fencing off such remnant habitat would also assist.
- The planting of indigenous grasses and shrubland areas in preparation for the day when all other threatening processes have been contained, might also offer help for the Sandhill Dunnart. Doing this would require coordination with local government, the State conservation agency or Landcare groups.
One of Australia's contenders for the role of Easter Bunny, the Greater Bilby has suffered significantly throughout their habitat from rabbits and from the spread of cattle. This mostly nocturnal animal once covered half the continent of Australia, but has since been reduced to some remote areas in the Northern Territory and Western Australia and Queensland, where the impact of rabbits, foxes and cattle is controlled through careful management. One to the Bilby!
Greater Bilby Suggestions for Act Three
- As with so many other threatened species of plants and animals in the Arid Zones, enlisting the support of landholders will prove to be a critical part of the survival of the Greater Bilby. Remnant habitat on private land is a lifeline.
- Captive breeding of the Greater Bilby has been mooted, so the planting of indigenous "habitats", may in time prove very valuable and important. This is another fantastic project to coordinate with a local Landcare or Environment group.
These days we think a lot about the idea of responsible pet ownership. Communication, education, advertising, art and cultural projects or indeed anything we can think up, which could impact on our attitudes and involvement with our pets is vitally important. Not only for the survival of the Greater Bilby but indeed for almost all other threatened wildlife.
For more detail about species in the Arid Zone, Click Here.
In Central Australia, there are vast areas of desert country, which is often bordered by steep escarpments or by sand dunes. Though some of the deserts are sandy, they may also be claypans or covered with stones called gibbers, which have become smooth and polished by the action of the wind. This is very harsh country for travellers, the explorers Burke and Wills found the gibber plains 'terrible to walk on'.
Over thousands of years the prevailing winds blowing over Central Australia, always from the same direction have helped to give form to these vast areas of desert. One of the most famous is the Simpson Desert. Here, large sand dunes have been formed in almost parallel rows extending for many hundreds of kilometres, in a general south to north direction along the borders of Queensland, New South Wales and South Australia.
But, harsh as they are, few of our deserts are totally barren. Through even the most prolonged droughts the tough vegetation of mulga scrub, salt bush and spinifex manages to survive. The sand dunes of Central Australia, for example, are stabilised by a covering of vegetation such as saltbush, spinnifex daisies and pea bushes.
In the arid desert areas of Central Australia both wind and water are very important agents in moulding the land surface. Throughout the region there are many rocky outcrops, escarpments and plateaux which over long periods of time have been worn away or dissected by weathering. Among the most interesting and famous rock forms is Uluru (Ayers Rock), the largest monolith in the world, which rises starkly from the surrounding plains. There are also many mountain ranges in this vast desert area which include some of the most beautiful scenery in Australia.
Mallee areas are semi-arid regions extending across south-east Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia. These areas consist largely of dry and sandy undulating plains with a typical vegetation cover, including Mallee eucalypts and other plants which are drought resistant.
Mallee is an Aboriginal word for the Water Mallee Gum. Today the word is used to refer to a region which extends across southern Australia. Mallee areas have hot dry summers, cool winters and low annual rainfall. Though the Mallee is poor farming country, it is an important habitat for a variety of mammal species.
Many forms of Australian plants and animals have evolved to withstand hot dry conditions. In Central Australia for example the vegetation is well adapted to the area. Some plants present the edges of their leaves to the sunlight, and have the surface of their leaves and stems coated with a waxy varnish like substance, which can reduce loss of moisture. In addition, plants often have deep root systems allowing them to get water from lower soil levels. There are plants which are able to die back to their roots until rain comes, while others have short life cycles. In the Mallee areas, the vegetation usually consists of eucalypts ranging in height from 3 to 9 meters which grow over low drought resistant shrubs. Mallee vegetation can often be seen on parallel sand dunes.
Most of Australia's native grasslands are threatened and the species of animals who rely on them are under pressure. This creates a double problem as the grassland communities rely on native fauna to continue pollination, seed distribution and nutrient recycling. Today there are mostly only remnant grassland communities growing throughout Australia with the exception of the tussock grasslands found on Australia's northern and inland plains.
Threatened plants include ... Curly Sedge, Button Wrinklewort (Canberra Daisy), Tumbridge Buttercup
Threatened animals include ... Pygmy Blue-tongue Lizard, Western Barred Bandicoot, Banded Hare-wallaby, Rufous Hare-wallaby, Burrowing Bettong, Desert Bandicoot, Golden Bandicoot, Julia Creek Dunnart, Night Parrot, Orange-bellied Parrot, Western Quoll and the Eastern Barred Bandicoot.
1. The Eastern Barred Bandicoot Victoria
2. The Button Wrinklewort Victoria & ACT
3. Burrowing Bettong Western Australia
Once said to be common from Footscray to Mount Gambier, the Eastern Barred Bandicoot had reached critically low numbers by the mid 1980s. With most of its grassland plains habitat cleared for farming, and with the encroachment of civilisation and its pet cats, the Eastern Barred Bandicoot had its back to the wall. Its remaining refuge being ironically, gorse bush and the local tip. Both provided a last bastion of protection against feral predators and local domestic cats. As was observed during the campaign to save the Bandicoot, if it can survive because of our rubbish, imagine its chances if we get serious. Fortunately now the Eastern Barred Bandicoot is making a comeback. Local people are involved in recovery programs and a number of fenced reserves have been created in which the Eastern Barred Bandicoot population is beginning to thrive.
Eastern Barred Bandicoot Suggestions for Act Three
- Fencing projects. Would need a lot of organising and local communication and very careful planning.
- Public education about domestic animals suggesting such action as a cat curfew.
- The planting of indigenous grasses and shrubland areas in preparation for the day when all other threatening processes have been contained and an expanding Bandicoot population needs somewhere to colonise.
Once common in the plains to the east of Melbourne stretching as far away as Casterton. This plant was also known to be found around Canberra. A number of things threaten the Button Wrinklewort including weed encroachment and livestock grazing. Rabbits too are culprits but what's new? There is also some suggestion that the use of fertilisers in agriculture has a deleterious effect on the Button Wrinklewort as well.
Button Wrinklewort Suggestions for Act Three
- Fencing projects to protect remnant populations from grazing, urban development and weeds. This would need a lot of organising and communication with local conservation bodies such as Landcare groups and the like.
- Public education about remnant populations in general and the Button Wrinklewort in particular.
- After communicating with relevant authorities it may be possible to run a propagation and planting program creating a small reserve of the Button Wrinklewort.
This amazing creature is included because it is the only burrowing kangaroo. That probably needs to be said twice because it is such and amazing and delightful concept. Here goes. A burrowing kangaroo. Wow. How on earth have we let the Burrowing Bettong become endangered?
For Clockwork purposes the Burrowing Bettong is not an ideal animal to study. The fact that it is only found on islands off the coast might make it hard to use in Interpretation programs. Unless you weave the story around the fact that it once was common across the whole country. And you could decide that any mainland habitat study will be useful in this case. For the time may not be too far away when Burrowing Bettong will be able to recolonise the mainland.
Burrowing Bettong Suggestions for Act Three
- Burrowing Bettongs were released in the Gibson Desert in the early 1990s. But they were all killed by cats. Hands on activity which deals with this menace would help right across Australia. Perhaps your Clockwork program could revolve around an education or communication campaign about cats. The message must eventually sink in.
For more detail about species in Grasslands, Click Here.
Native grasslands are the habitat of many species of plants and animals that are only found in Australia. In southern Australia most of the original grassland communities have disappeared. They have been replaced by cereal crops and introduced grasses. Remaining native grasslands are mainly found in northern Australia, in Cape York, the Northern Territory and in the arid Central areas.
Grassland types vary throughout the range of landscapes and climates in Australia. Spinifex is the dominant vegetation in many native grasslands, which are known as spinifex hummock grasslands. There are about twenty species of spinifex and each species has its own preferred region and type of habitat. One species may be found on the rocky hills of Central Australia, others on sand dunes or across clay plains. Most species of spinifex have needle sharp leaves pointing outwards. The plants grow in large clumps, which form an impenetrable shelter for a variety of native reptiles, birds, and small animals. Between the spinifex clumps the land is largely bare. The rare ground-dwelling Night Parrot was once common in spinifex hummock grassland.
Another type of grassland occurs in western Queensland and the Northern Territory, this is arid tussock grassland known as Mitchell Grassland. The grass grows in scattered tussocks with other grasses and small shrubs. Mitchell grass is softer than spinifex and forms tussocks rather than hummocks, and unlike spinifex, Mitchell Grasslands can be used for grazing sheep and cattle.
In the cooler temperate regions of southern-eastern Australia there are still areas of Kangaroo Grassland, the tussock grassland which once covered the basalt plains from Melbourne to the South Australian border. The dominant grass is Kangaroo Grass, so called because it was favoured by kangaroos. Many other plants grow in Kangaroo Grassland such as Wallaby Grass, Spear Grass, flowering plants and orchids.
Australia's cold wet high country is where Alpine tussock grasses grow, but cattle grazing and the rabbits have seriously affected the growth of SnowGrass and Wallaby Grass in these areas.
The grasses that grow in coastal zones are very hardy and can tolerate wind and salt. Hairy Spinifex is one of the many species of grass which is important in coastal areas because it grows over sand dunes and can help to keep them from being washed or blown away. Around estuaries, native couch grass traps nutrients in the water which contributes to keeping the estuarine environment healthy.
Some types of grassland communities include:
An Alpine environment is defined as one which has continuous snowfall for at least one month of the year. Australia's alpine regions, while offering some of the harshest climactic conditions on the continent, are nevertheless mild enough to allow a vast array of species to flourish. There are two major threats to alpine species and both are recent. The booming snow ski set industry is leading to developments such as roads, villages and other infrastructure which can have a deleterious affect on species surviving in an already harsh environment. Hard hoofed animals in the alpine areas also present problems. However, the greatest potential threat is from the climate change subsequent to greenhouse warming. Greenhouse predictions in relation to the snow country present a fantastic opportunity to run Clockwork in a distant urban location on behalf of the threatened Alpine species. This is because it is energy consumption and the generation of carbon dioxide in everyday life which most exacerbates greenhouse levels.
Threatened plants include ... Anemone Buttercup
Threatened animals include ... Mountain Pygmy-possum, Southern Corraboree Frog, Mount Baw Baw Frog, Pedder Galaxias.
1. Mountain Pygmy-possum
2. Corroboree Frog - South-Eastern Australia
The Mountain Pygmy-possum, was only discovered in the mid 1960s. Since then it has begun to experience environmental pressures on its amorous intentions. The famous "tunnel of love" was built at Mt Hotham under a newly constructed road to assist the male possums make their way down the slopes in search of a mate as the snows melted. Roads and other alpine developments designed to serve the winter snow set are an increasing threat to the Mountain Pygmy-possum's habitat. However, with careful management these threats can be tempered. Potentially far more devastating are the climate changes wrought by global warming and the greenhouse effect. There is a great opportunity here for Clockwork to educate about bio-diversity and its link with lifestyle choices.
Mountain Pygmy-possum Suggestions for Act Three
- Energy Conservation! The Mountain Pygmy-possum presents a perfect opportunity to run a general, all purpose Clockwork in which the action component revolves around everyday conserver living. Fossil fuel use and waste is within the grasp of everybody. We can choose to walk rather than to drive, and we are all within a metre or two of power switches most of the day. An Act Three scenario revolving around energy conservation, using the possum as its 'mascot' provides an opportunity for people to become actively involved and to feel empowered.
- What about promoting car pooling for the Mountain Pygmy- possum ?
- Dress up to keep the heater down for the Mountain Pygmy-possum. Winter heating is responsible for more than 50% of energy consumption. Give participants the opportunity to create a communication project which promotes insulation, draft exclusion and rugging up to keep the heater a little lower. Discuss the installation of solar hot water systems.
One of Australia's most attractive frogs, the Southern Corroboree Frog lives above 1000m in the alpine and sub-alpine habitat of Kosciusko National Park. This beautiful frog is decorated with yellow and black stripes going down its back and only grows about 30 cm long. The female lays its eggs in burrows in the moss of bogs where it spends most of its time. It also lives in the litter of trees and under logs and eats insects for every meal. Fires and droughts dry up the dampness in the frog's habitat making it impossible for it to breed.
Corroboree Frog Suggestions for Act Three
- Carefully planned land management for these areas and habitat pockets will assist in keeping the frog's habitat safe.
- Careful land use and management of sub-alpine and alpine resorts is imperative for the survival of this frog.
For more detail about species in the Alpine/High Country Zone, Click Here.
Alpine environments are found distributed over Tasmania, Victoria, New South Wales and the ACT. The lower limits of alpine areas are called the winter snowline and these usually blend into tall wet sclerophyll forest or temperate rainforest. Most of the high mountain country is sub-alpine and this is the habitat of the snow-gum. Snow-gum woodland does not extend to the highest peaks. Above the tree line is the true alpine environment, and here are some of the most severe climatic conditions in Australia. Mt Kosciusko the highest peak in the country has a blanket of snow for at least eight months of the year. But compared with the climate in the high mountains of other continents, Australia's alpine conditions are milder. Even in winter there are spells of fine sunny weather. This relatively mild climate combined with the generally flat high country means that the soil does not freeze and many living organisms are able to survive the winters. Even when it is snowing some animal life is active.
The white-backed Magpies can be seen searching among snow covered shrubs and wombats push through the snow to nibble the snow grass underneath. In the high treeless Alps the Alpine Grassland is an interesting and characteristic vegetation, with short grasses and small or dwarf plants forming a thick mat. This can be seen on the Snowy Mountains, where in summer whole slopes are covered with grasses and wild flowers.
Habitat subtypes in the Alpine regions include heath, bog, grassland, and rocky scrubland. The high country is also home to a vast array of species including Snow gums, over 50 lichen, the wolf spider, green cockroach, earthworms, 20 mammal species, 110 bird species, 27 reptiles and 9 frogs.
Despite having experienced serious pressure, woodlands and forests are still found in Australia and their habitats are very varied and extensive. As are the thousands of species of plants, animals and invertebrate animals which depend on them including Ringtail Possum, Potoroos, Spotted Pardalote, Red-winged Wren, Crimson Rosella and Red-necked Wallaby. Since European settlement, much of the woodland and forest areas have been disturbed or entirely cleared, for grazing, crops and urban development. Habitat loss is a major threat to the fauna of woodlands and forests.
Threatened plants include ... Rose mallee, Pink Pimelea, Bayonet Spider Orchid, Tufted Bush-Pea, Eucalyptus morrisbyi
Threatened animals include ... Chuditch (Western Quoll), Golden-shouldered Parrot, Barred Galaxias, Leadbeater's Possum, Giant Gippsland Earth Worm, Spotted Tree Frog, Broad Headed Snake, Superb Parrot, Long-footed Potoroo, Lake Eacham Rainbow Fish, Eungella Gastric Brooding Frog, Proserpine Rock-wallaby
1. Leadbeater's Possum - Victoria
2. Broad Headed Snake - New South Wales
3. The Box and Ironbark Woodlands - Victoria and New South Wales
This animal lives in small colonies in the Central Highlands of Victoria. Together with the Helmeted Honeyeater, another endangered species, it is the faunal emblem of the State of Victoria. Leadbeater's Possum occurs in the rich understorey of the huge Mountain Ash which grows over 100 meters tall. It nests in hollows which take many years to form in the tree. This possum eats insects living on foliage or under bark and the large tree cricket is also an important food source. The survival of remaining old growth forest is the key to the survival of the Leadbeater's possum.
Leadbeater's Possum Suggestions for Act Three
- As with the Mountain Pygmy-possum, Leadbeater's Possum offers the potential for a Clockwork program to operate in an urban environment, on behalf of the animal far away and with urban conservation action as the focus for Act Three. Which must include support for the regular Victorian Field Naturalists surveys of the possum. Efforts to promote paper recycling may also indirectly assist by reducing pressure on timber harvesting.
- Public education always has a potent potential. Obviously the greater the number of people who know of the plight of Leadbeater's Possum, the greater the interest in its survival.
- Local Conservation and Friends organisations are always worth approaching as they may be looking for person power to assist directly with surveys.
The Broad-headed Snake is a spectacular animal with its jet black body hooped by vivid yellow stripes. This snake is found only along the coast and in hill country surrounding Sydney, to a distance of about 300 km. Such a limited range in a highly populated part of Australia does not auger well for the Broad-headed Snake. It seems that threats to its survival stem in part from our admiration for it. Reptile fanciers and collectors, impressed by its striking looks and the ease with which it can be found close to Sydney have taken many snakes and severely depleted its numbers. Nature lovers of a different type are also contributing to the snake's decline. Because the Broad-headed Snake occurs in rocky habitats and there are many Sydney gardeners who like the snake's rocks for their gardens. Plundering the niche areas for garden decoration poses a long term problem for the re-emergence of this snake. It is essential that bush rocks be left in their natural setting.
Broad-headed Snake Suggestions for Act Three
- Again, on account of its proximity to Sydney, this animal presents an opportunity for an urban environment based Clockwork, which uses public education approaches in order to alert the wider community to the threats posed by reptile fanciers and rock collectors.
- Inquiries to local conservation groups may offer opportunities to assist with fencing, sign erection or rock replacement type work.
- This animal also presents a chance to educate about the general concept .... "take nothing but photographs and leave nothing but footprints". So many children long to catch and keep an animal, and some adults too have this urge. However, clearly for the Broad-headed Snake this is a practice which must stop.
For more detail about species in Woodlands, Click Here.
This is a variation on the basic Clockwork concept. The suggestion is, rather than focus on a single species, put the spotlight on an entire ecosystem and all the species within it which are threatened as pressure on it mounts. What is this system? The quintessential Australian eco-type is how the Box and Ironbark forests have been described. Rainforests, mangroves, arid zones and wetlands occur the world over but the Box and Ironbark Forests are uniquely Australian. They are indeed the little Aussie Battler of habitats. Stretching in an arc from around Bendigo in Victoria up through to southern Queensland, the Box and Ironbark forests are the gateway to the flat lands encountered after leaving the Great Diving Range behind on a journey inland. These forests inspired Banjo Patterson and are notably eulogised in that famous, rollicking poem, the Man From Ironbark. Close to 85% of these woodlands have now been cleared. While mining, timber cutting for firewood and fence posts and persistent grazing by domestic stock are ongoing threats to the remaining 15%. It is an incredibly diverse eco-type providing home to species from the coastal and mountain areas to the semi-arid inland. The Box and Ironbark forests have an exceptionally high number of threatened plants and animals.
Rare and Threatened plants include ... Pink Pimelea, Ausfeld's Wattle, Deane's Wattle, Western Silver Wattle, Streaked Wattle
Rare and Threatened animals include ... Spot-tailed Quoll, Regent Honeyeater, Swift Parrot, Superb Parrot, Pink-tailed Legless Lizard, Striped Legless Lizard
Box and Ironbark Forest Suggestions for Act Three
The Victorian National Parks Association in partnership with the Australian Nature Conservation Agency must be credited with turning the tide for the Box and Ironbark Forests in 1995 and 1996. There are two major aims in the campaign to save the Box and Ironbark.
- Make people aware that they exist. Being dry forest, and while magnificently beautiful in the Spring with clearings of green grass studded with wildflowers, they are sometimes thought to be a little nondescript. Projects which simply establish the idea in the community mind that there is a discreet eco-type called the Box and Ironbark forests are important.
- Local environment groups in Box and Ironbark country will know of projects in fencing, wildlife surveying and other events.
For more detail about species in the Forest Zone, Click Here.
Woodland areas are broadly recognisable by the fact that the trees are more widely spaced than in forests, and they have rounded crowns that do not interlock overhead. Most woodland occurs between the coastal forests and drier mallee scrub of the inland regions, and covers a larger part of the continent than do forests. Two important woodland subtypes which are facing particular pressure include the Box and Ironbark forests and the Barmah Red Gum Forest. In eastern Australia, temperate woodlands occur to the east of the Great Dividing Range, from southern-eastern Queensland through New South Wales to south-western Victoria. On the eastern slopes of the Range the heavier rainfall supports forests, and on the drier inland slopes there is open woodland. The trees of a temperate eucalypt woodland are slender and graceful with umbrella shaped crowns, but because these woodlands usually occur in places with good soil and climate, large areas have been cleared for agriculture. This has of course greatly reduced the habitats of many wild life species.
Forests differ from woodlands principally in their density or closer spacing and also from the larger size of the trees, but the change from woodland to forest is often very gradual. In many places it would be hard to pick the spot at which the vegetation ceased to be woodland and became forest. Birds and mammals of woodland and forest are often very similar crossing from one to the other and using each type to meet different needs.
Botanists describe Australia's eucalypt forests as sclerophyll forests, meaning hard-leaved, in comparison to the large soft leaves of rainforests. There are two types of sclerophyll forest, dry and wet.
Dry forests tend to have lower trees and a ground cover of grasses or low shrubs. There are usually no ferns or epiphytes. The Ironbark, Stringybark, Peppermint Box and Red Gum are typical dry sclerophyll forest trees. Red Gum forests grow along the Murray River. At Barmah in Victoria there is the largest remaining Red Gum forest in Victoria. This is a typical dry sclerophyll forest with tall trees and a dense undercover of grasses and shrubs
The wet eucalypt forests of the high rainfall regions of south-eastern and south-western Australia have very tall, old trees and a luxuriant understorey of shrubs, tree ferns, creepers and climbing plants. In some of the forests the trees may have reached maturity without disturbance. But these old-growth forests are becoming increasingly rare in Australia. This is because since European settlement most of them have been cleared, logged or otherwise disturbed in some way. There are many plants and animals which are only found in this type of forest. The Mountain Ash, Messmate, Mountain Grey Gum and the Southern Blue gum are typical wet sclerophyll forest trees.
In Australia we have many types of rainforest. They include the tropical rainforests of the north, and the cooler temperate rainforests. Rainforests develop where the right mixtures of rainfall, temperature and soil conditions occur. As you might expect, rainforests rely on a lot of rain which helps to form a dense humid community of plants. Both the hot tropical rainforests of the north and the cooler temperate rainforests of the south are much reduced from their original distributions
Threatened plants include ... Hairy Quandong, Angle-stemmed Myrtle, Scaly Myrtle, Ptychosperma bleeseri
Threatened animals include ... Aywalirroomoo (Carpentarian Rock rat), Long Footed Potoroo, Christmas Island Hawk-owl, Eungella Gastric Brooding Frog, Lake Eacham Rainbow Fish
1. Eungella Gastric Brooding Frog
2. Long Footed Potoroo
Isn't this the old story? Just what have we lost before we even knew it? This incredible frog was only discovered in the early 1980s and hasn't been sighted again since the mid 1980s. It is said that only a fraction of all the species on earth have been discovered and described by science, and that increasing numbers are disappearing before they've been spotted. The other big question of course is what treasures are lost? Apart from the inherent beauty of species and their equal right to survival, what insights are lost to medical science for instance through their demise. Could the Eungella Gastric Brooding Frog be as valuable as Madagascan Rosy Periwinkle has become? This Periwinkle was saved from extinction just in time for science to learn that it held properties which helped cure childhood leukemia The Eungella Gastric Brooding Frog's young develop through the egg and tadpole stages while in the mothers stomach. However, unlike other species of Gastric Brooding Frog, it seems the digestive juices of the Eungella Frog are not turned off during brooding time. Perhaps there are valuable hints for medical science here in relation to the human digestive system. But it is a mystery as to why the Frog can no longer be found. Conditions in its habitat seem satisfactory. There is of course the possibility that this frog is being affected by the influences which are causing a decline in all frog numbers. There are many theories, but one suggests that frogs are particularly sensitive to chemicals in the environment, and that even minute traces can have a deleterious effect on them. Traces of DDT have been detected on Antarctica, so the waterways around the Eungella Valley are certainly not likely to be pesticide free. But nobody knows where the Eungella Frog is.
Eungella Gastric Brooding Frog Suggestions for Act Three
- This animal and indeed frogs in general, give Clockwork creators the opportunity to again use a beacon species to run a program which addresses an aspect of everyday conserver living. With a focus on chemicals in the environment the possibilities are rampant for your Act Three to explore the world of green cleaners and present the community with information and dialogue about the use fertilisers and pesticides.
It can be an eerie experience to visit the temperate rainforests of East Gippsland, where the Long-footed Potoroo lives. Places like the Erinundra Plateau, with its tall trees and deep gullies. Every so often one happens upon a weathered old sign which warns of wild dogs, which the locals will tell you "may roam in packs and can be aggressive". It sends a shiver up the spine. These are the enemies of the Long- Footed Potoroo. As well as the dogs, it suffers also from foxes and from the effects of forest operations and land clearing.
Long Footed Potoroo Suggestions for Act Three
- Responsible pet ownership at last seems to gaining some presence in the environmental debate. The packs of dogs in East Gippsland are possibly the descendants of cuddly Christmas presents. It's hard to believe people take domestic pets to the wild and dump them but it happens. Some no doubt would have from local settlements. The Act Three opportunity is to put the spotlight on the damage which domestic pets gone wrong can do. Even in urban environments the effect of pet excrement washed into local waterways is devastating. In some of Australia's larger population centres, after heavy rain, up to 50 tonnes of accumulated dog excreta is washed into creeks and rivers and of course eventually the seas. The Long- footed Potoroo may be just the thing to give the inspiration needed to think twice and act once about responsible pet ownership.
For more detail about species in the Rainforest Zone, Click Here.
In Australia, tropical rainforests are found down the eastern coast from Cape York to the Richmond River area and can be seen in many eastern coastal national parks. During the millions of years that the plants in rainforests have been competing for light and mineral nutrients, many unusual life forms have developed. The woody climbing plant, the Liane, entwines and climbs the trees, often crossing from tree to tree in its efforts to reach the forest roof. Epiphytes too have solved the problem of escaping the gloom of the forest floor by growing on the higher branches of the trees.
Further south are sub-tropical rainforests which have fewer species of trees while epiphyte ferns and mosses are more common. In general the sub-tropical rainforests are simpler in their make-up than tropical rainforests and the environment is not as diverse in the tropics.
Cool temperate rainforests are very different from tropical rainforests. And they can be seen at their best in western Tasmania on the mountain slopes. Cool temperate forests do not get not warm tropical downpours, they get instead cold blustery gales from the Southern Ocean, and often snowfalls. The dominant trees are the Antarctic Beech, the King Billy Pine and the Celery Pine. The most striking feature of temperate rainforests is the thick covering of vivid green mosses and lichens which grows over everything.
Rainforests contain a vast array of species including pale-yellow robin, tiger cat, king orchid, Regent Bower bird, Boyd's Forest Dragon, Azure Kingfisher, Golden Bower birds, Green Ringtailed Possum , Rufous scrub bird, Orange blossom orchid, Green Tree Ants, Mountain Brushtail, Satin Bowerbird. Growing on tropical rainforest trees from northern New South Wales to north-eastern Queensland is the King Orchid. This plant forms bulky clumps of bright yellow flowers which can be seen high up on the branches of the tall rainforest trees. The Sticky Wattle grows in the cool temperate forests of South Gippsland and this is the only place in Australia where Sticky Wattle can be found growing naturally. But this plant's habitat has been almost all removed by clearing for farming, and the Sticky Wattle is now a seriously endangered species.
It is difficult for scientists to define wetlands because they can be all so different in source and in structure. In Australia it has been suggested that six main categories of wetlands should be recognised lakes, swamps, land subjected to flooding, rivers and creeks, tidal flats and coastal inshore waters. (McComb, A & Lake, P Australian wetlands. A&R 1990.)
In comparison with many other countries, Australia has relatively few wetlands, this is because of the low rainfall and the high rate of evaporation. Many parts of the continent do not have permanent wetlands. For example, in the arid regions of Central Australia rivers seldom flow. Though often after tropical cyclones, floods will cover vast areas creating temporary wetlands, and the tropical northern rivers which flood annually, replenish billabongs, swamps, and flood plains.
Threatened plants include ... Buxton Gum
Threatened animals include ... Western Swamp Tortoise, Lace-eyed Tree Frog, Helmeted Honeyeater, Fitzroy Tortoise, Green and Golden Bell Frog.
The Western Swamp Turtle is one of the most endangered vertebrates in Australia. There are many battles in life for this hard shelled creature. It sleeps throughout the summer under the soil, logs or leaves. While snoozing, it is prey to dogs and foxes or gets caught in summer fires. The Western Swamp Turtle only lays up to five eggs at a time, she then covers them with soil and they then wait for the winter rains to come before hatching, this could take about six months.
They are only found in Western Australia near Perth. They enjoy swampy areas in dense heath and low Banksia woodland, where winter rains fill the low-lying parts with water. Alas, if the swamps fill for only a short period the turtles won't be able to find enough feed to keep them through their aestivation or sleeping time. People are now taking action to try and increase the numbers of these turtles. At Ellen Book and Twins Swamp in Western Australia they have fenced off areas where the turtle is known to exist. Eggs that are laid in dangerous places are taken to Perth Zoo where they are incubated, hatched and then returned to the wild. Twins Swamp is also pumped with water to keep the level up in the drier seasons when water levels may become critically low.
Western Swamp Turtle Suggestions for Act Three
- Fencing off areas around the turtles habitat.
- Pet management to protect the turtles from domestic dogs.
- Control of non indigenous creatures such as foxes.
For more detail about species in the Wetlands Zone, Click Here.
The wetlands of eastern coastal Australia are more permanent and are rich in bird and animal life. But even these wetlands form a very small part of the total environment. Many of the swamps scattered around the south-eastern and south-western regions are dependent on winter rains and are dry in drought years. Inland, the Murray-Darling River system often floods and fills its many billabongs, which are breeding grounds for vast flocks of birds. The major inland wetlands of the south-east are to be found on the Murray River. Here large swamps occur, such as at Barmah State Forest, Kow Swamp and Hattah Lakes National Park. These inland water habitats are home to a great variety of living things.
In Port Phillip Bay in Victoria there are swamps on Mud Island and at the mouth of the Werribee River. And east of Wilson's Promontory there are wetland habitats of coastal lakes and swamps extending to Mallacoota Inlet.
The wetlands of northern tropical Australia are very beautiful, particularly in the tropical wet season, when the rains flood the swamps along the Northern Territory coastal plains. In the rivers and swamps are freshwater crocodiles, giant waterlilies of pink and white, and flocks of thousands of birds, such as Jabiru, Spoonbill, Ibis, Brolgas, and many varieties of geese and ducks. Because we have so relatively few wetlands they have naturally become a focal point for visitors, both human and animals. Looking after our wetland poses very special management problems. The Murray River, for example is in great danger because so much of its water has been re-directed for domestic and agricultural use.
The Australian coastline is very extensive, over 36,000 km in length. Some parts are washed by warm tropical seas, while others get the winds and sea-swell from the Antarctic. We have western tropical waters, eastern tropical waters, warm temperate waters and cool temperate waters. And in each lives an amazing diversity of life forms.
The marine environment encompasses a very great variety of habitats, ranging from rocky coasts and sandy beaches to tidal mudflats mangrove swamps, rivers and estuaries. There are coral reefs, vertical cliffs sheer to the sea, wave-cut rock platforms, sheltered bays and long surf beaches.
Habitat sub types include sand dunes, cliff faces, mangroves, reefs, heathlands, rock platforms, headlands ,lagoons, seagrass meadows, sandflats, shelf-edge atoll,
Threatened plants include ... Zieria prostrata, Epacris stuartii
Threatened animals include ... Yirrkoo (False Water-Rat), Orange-bellied Parrot, Humpback Whale, Southern Right Whale, Leathery Turtle and the Golden-backed Tree Rat.
1. Leathery Turtle
2. False Water Rat
3. Orange-bellied Parrot
4. Southern Right Whale
The Leatherback Turtle is the largest turtle in the world and can be three metres long and weigh 600 kg ! Although they do breed on northern Australian beaches their main breeding ground is on Asian shores. The Leatherback Turtle lays about 80 eggs in a hole on the beach, which she then covers. While still in their shell these baby turtles encounter predators, reptiles that will eat their eggs and people who steal them to sell. Many of the breeding grounds of the Leatherback Turtle are covered with happy human holiday makers and foxes which dig up the eggs for food. Once hatched, the baby turtles must make their own way across the beach and into the water. During this dangerous journey they encounter many natural predators like birds, crabs and fish. Once in the water they are surrounded by new dangers, such as plastic bags, which they often eat in mistake for jelly fish. Many Lesatherback Turtles get caught in drift nets and they are often encountered by speed boats. The Malaysian government is currently working with the World Wide Fund for Nature to protect this most vulnerable species.
The False Water Rat is found in the swamps and estuaries of northern Australia, specifically Stradbroke Island, the swamps of Arnhem Land, Melville Island and Mackay Island. It is named 'false' because it doesn't have webbed feet like the true water rat. Numbers of the rat have been difficult to estimate as their habitat is difficult for humans to get into their swampy homes in the mangroves. But recent studies of the rat population on Stradbroke Island have revealed just what exquisite taste this furry friend has. This rat dines on crabs, lobsters, mussels and a species of flatworm. Did you know that it is the only predator of the flatworm ever found? The False Water-rat is depleting in numbers due to the draining of swamps, sand mining and clearing for recreation areas and homes. A growing awareness of the importance of mangroves as a home for fish, marine life and other small creatures may well save the False Water-rat.
The Orange-bellied Parrot is a magnificent coloured bird with an emerald green chest and back, bright yellow underparts and an orange patch on its belly, hence the name. It is on the endangered list and there maybe only one hundred and fifty of these birds left in Australia. Apart from habitat decline, the main danger facing the parrot is that it's eggs are being collected and smuggled into other countries. The first Orange-bellied Parrot was taken from Australia by a member of Captain Cook's expedition to Tasmania, and it was taken to England.
Another problem with its survival is changes to its natural habitat which is the forested margins of coastal sedgeplains, saltmarshes and dunes. Farming and agriculture has made a great change to the bird's natural feeding grounds.
\The Orange-bellied Parrot migrates from the coasts of Victoria and South Australia to remote areas of South-west Tasmania where it breeds. During the winter the Orange-bellied Parrot feeds on seeds of various saltmarsh plants and coastal vegetation. But every year many of these saltmarshes are being reduced in size or eaten by cattle and sheep. This parrot is also threatened by a disease which causes its feathers to drop out, damages its beak and causes death. Against all these odds, the endangered Orange-bellied Parrot is on the comeback. By the mid eighties they recorded less than 100 but now with improved habitat management, habitat reservation, fire control, land purchase, tagging, nesting boxes and a successful captive breeding program, the Orange-bellied Parrot's population is showing signs of recovery.
For many centuries whaling has been a part of indigenous culture in many parts of the world. The hunting the Southern Right Whale was particularly easy, because after it had been injured the whale would float to the surface and the whalers could easily bring it to shore. In the past the Southern Right Whale has been hunted for oil, food and baleen which was made into needles, spoons and stays for women's corsets. Since 1935 though, the Southern Right Whale has been fully protected. But this species of whale is on the endangered list and will remain so for a long time due to its low reproduction rate. The gestation period is one year and single calves are born only every two to three years. At this rate it will take a long time for Southern Right Whale numbers to reach a natural population. Sanctuaries, such as the Southern Ocean Sanctuary are involved in the protection of this endangered whale.
For more detail about species in the Marine and Coastal Zone, Click Here.