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Threatened Species Protection of Victoria’s native species www.ces.vic.gov.au December 2008 Fact Sheet No. 8 This fact sheet is one of a series, developed from material presented in Victoria’s first comprehensive State of the Environment Report. The Report is a major undertaking of the Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability and covers a broad range of environmental issues affecting the State. Its purpose is to improve community understanding of Victoria’s environment, and through the use of recommendations, to enhance its condition for present and future generations. The report was released in December 2008 and is available at www.ces.vic.gov.au Key findings • Many of Victoria’s native species are under stress – 157 vertebrates and 778 plant species are rare or threatened with extinction. • The number of threatened species in Victoria is increasing. • Climate change is expected to further increase the number of threatened species because warming is likely to be faster than many species capacity for adaptation. • We know very little about many of our native species and survey effort is declining. • The legislation protecting Victoria’s native species is underresourced and needs updating to account for climate change. Victoria’s biodiversity is threatened Victoria has over 5000 native terrestrial species, which are integral to the functioning of our natural and agricultural systems. However, loss of habitat, the introduction of exotic plant and animal species, and other threatening processes mean that a large and increasing number of native species is threatened with extinction. Among our threatened species are Victoria’s mammal emblem, the Leadbeater’s Possum (Gymnobelideus leadbeateri) and bird emblem, the Helmeted Honeyeater (Lichenostomus melanops cassidix). Despite an increase in the number of species listed as threatened and the increasing risks posed to them, we know little about many of our native species and efforts to understand their distribution appear to be declining. The number of threatened species is high and increasing Victoria has at least 3,140 native species of vascular plants, 900 lichens, 750 mosses and liverworts, 111 mammals, 447 birds, 133 reptiles, 33 amphibians, and a large number of invertebrates, fungi and algae species. At least 24 vertebrate species have become extinct in Victoria, including nine that have become globally extinct. 157 vertebrate species are considered to be threatened with extinction in Victoria. A further 87 species are considered to be ‘near threatened’ or ‘data deficient’. We have very little information about threatened invertebrates in Victoria. Forty-nine vascular plant species have become extinct from Victoria, with a further 745 species listed as vulnerable or endangered; 804 species are rare, and 228 are poorly known. Four lichen and fungi 33 groups are considered threatened in Victoria, 77 are poorly known and 34 are rare. At least two species have become extinct. In most of Victoria’s 28 bioregions, more threatened species were recorded up to 2007 than to 2002. The Gippsland Plain and Victorian Volcanic Plain bioregions had the highest number of threatened animal species in 2007, while the Murray Mallee bioregion had the highest number of threatened plant species. Weeds and habitat loss are the top threats Victoria’s native species are affected by a range of threatening processes, including habitat loss from previous vegetation clearing and current land use patterns, the impacts of weeds and pest animals, changes to surface and groundwater flows, and the increasing threat of climate change. A sample of approximately 200 threatened species and communities listed under the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 shows that weed invasion, habitat loss, inappropriate fire regimes and grazing are the most commonly identified threatening processes, with 70–90 species affected. Figure 1. Victoria’s endangered mammal and bird emblems. (a) Leadbeater’s possum; (b) Helmeted Honeyeater. Without actions to reduce the pressures on threatened species, a species may continue to decline to the point of extinction, with unknown consequences for its ecosystem. Changing patterns of land use, as well as climate change, pose significant risks to native species. Commissioner Environmental Sustainability Victoria Disease is an immediate threat for only a small number of threatened species, but some diseases have important impacts on specific species or groups of species. The spread of Cinnamon fungus (Phytophthora cinnamomi), which causes dieback disease in eucalypts, is listed as a threatening process in the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act, as is the infection of amphibians, including the critically endangered Spotted Tree Frog (Litoria spenceri), with Chytrid fungus. Climate change is not yet formally listed as a threatening process in Victoria, but it has been identified as a threat for several especially vulnerable species. This emerging threat is likely to be defined for more species in future as its impacts on biodiversity are better understood. The Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act (FFG Act) aims to protect Victoria’s native species so that ‘…Victoria’s flora and fauna can survive, flourish and retain potential for evolutionary development in the wild’. However, the number of threatened species in Victoria is increasing and populations of some threatened species have continued to decline, so this objective is not being achieved. The Victorian Government is currently reviewing policy for land and biodiversity, including the role of the FFG Act. A useful role for threatened species legislation will be to help us to understand Victoria’s natural ecosystems and their vulnerabilities to climate change, and to maximise the adaptive capacity of Victoria’s native species, e.g. by building vegetation and landscape connectivity. This might be more beneficial than attempting to guarantee survival of all species. Figure 2. Threatening processes affecting Victoria’s threatened flora and fauna. We need more information about Victoria’s biodiversity Biological surveys are crucial to any assessment of the conservation status and distribution of a species but unfortunately we are conducting fewer surveys, not more. For animal species most data was collected between 1978 and 2002. There has been a dramatic drop in data collection since the mid2000s. For plants, collection effort peaked in the early 1990s and there has been a steady decline in the collection of flora records since the late 1990s. It is difficult to target conservation programs effectively without accurate information about where species exist and how they live. What does the Commissioner say? “Funding must be allocated to ensure that all species listed under threatened species legislation have appropriate and up to date Action Statements. Funding is also needed to support ongoing studies and surveys of Victoria’s native species. “The current threatened species legislation needs to be reviewed and updated to account for climate change. Above all we must not be lulled into an acceptance of the rate of extinction which characterised the 20th century. “Urgent action must be taken to protect Victoria’s native species. Programs like BushTender and EcoTender that encourage habitat improvement should be expanded.” What you can do • Grow plants that are native to your local area in your garden. • Do not grow plants that are declared noxious weeds, and which may later invade bushland. • Join a community volunteer group to look after native species in your local area. For more information See the State of Environment Report Victoria 2008, Part 4.2; Land and Biodiversity at http://www.ces.vic.gov.au State of the Environment Victoria 2008 Fact Sheet Series Published by the Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability Melbourne, Victoria, 2008 ©The State of Victoria, Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability 2008 This publication is copyright. No part may be reproduced by any process except in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968. Authorised by the Victorian Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability, 16/570 Bourke Street, Melbourne, Victoria 3000 For further information contact the Office of the Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability, phone +61 3 9637 8000 or visit http:// www.ces.vic.gov.au/SoE Figure 3. Collection dates for Victorian flora and fauna records. Disclaimer This report may be of assistance to you and every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided is correct. It is based largely on data and information provided by the Victorian Government. The Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability does not guarantee that the report is without flaw of any kind or is wholly appropriate for your particular purposes and therefore disclaims all liability for any error, loss or other consequence which may arise from you relying on any information in this publication.