Regional ecosystem details for 7.2.6
| Regional ecosystem | 7.2.6 |
|---|---|
| Vegetation Management Act class | Of concern |
| Wetlands | Not a Wetland |
| Biodiversity status | Of concern |
| Subregion | 2, 6 |
| Estimated extent1 | Pre-clearing 300 ha; Remnant 2021 300 ha |
| Short description | Mosaic of clumps of notophyll vine forest, sclerophyll spp. shrubland and open woodland, and bare sand blows on aeolian dunes |
| Structure code | Closed Forest |
| Description | Mosaic of clumps of notophyll vine forest, sclerophyll spp. shrubland and open woodland, and bare sand blows. Aeolian dunes. Not a Wetland. (BVG1M: 3a). Vegetation communities in this regional ecosystem include: 7.2.6a: Open shrubland to low open forest. Aeolian dunes. Not a Wetland. (BVG1M: 28a). 7.2.6b: Evergreen notophyll vine thicket with Acacia crassicarpa, Elaeodendron melanocarpum, Aglaia elaeagnoidea and Drypetes deplanchei. Aeolian dunes. Not a Wetland. (BVG1M: 3a). 7.2.6c: Complex of open to closed shrublands, grasslands and low to medium woodlands and forests. Includes pure stands of Casuarina equisetifolia, and open to closed woodlands dominated by Acacia crassicarpa, Syzygium forte subsp. forte, and Calophyllum inophyllum and Pandanus sp. Foredunes of aeolian dunes on Hinchinbrook island. Not a Wetland. (BVG1M: 28a). |
| Supplementary description | Stanton and Stanton (2005), D44 (Qld Herbarium and WTMA (2005) D44a), D206, D208; Tracey and Webb (1975), 17 (in part) |
| Protected areas | Hinchinbrook Island NP |
| 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. b: Do not burn deliberately. INTENSITY: Low, with occasional moderate or high intensity to manage thickening and/or stimulate germination. b: Do not burn deliberately. INTERVAL: 2-5 years. b: Do not burn deliberately. INTERVAL_MIN: 2. INTERVAL_MAX: 100. 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. b: Do not burn deliberately. Mosaic burning in surrounding fire-adapted ecosystems will minimise spread and severity of wildfire during severe weather events. 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). b: Vine forest can be protected by maintaining mosaic burning within surrounding country to minimise spread and severity of wildfire. |
| Comments | 7.2.6: A very rare ecosystem on an unstable dune system subject to change, however all is within National Park. 7.2.6a: Hinchinbrook Island. 7.2.6b: Hinchinbrook Island. |
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.
