Determining appropriate fire mosaics for biodiversity conservation in mallee ecosystems

Citation

Land & Water Australia. 2009. Determining appropriate fire mosaics for biodiversity conservation in mallee ecosystems. [Online] (Updated April 23rd, 2009)
Available at: http://lwa.gov.au/node/3270 [Accessed Sunday 21st of March 2010 04:13:38 AM ].

The aim of this project is to identify the properties of fire mosaics that enhance the persistence and status of a broad range of taxonomic groups (birds, mammals, reptiles, key invertebrates and plants) in Eucalypt mallee habitats in the semi-arid Murray Mallee region of south-eastern Australia.

This project will examine the response of a broad range of taxonomic groups to fire regimes across three states (VIC, SA, NSW) using an innovative, landscape-level approach. It will communicate the new knowledge and understanding to land managers, and demonstrate the utility of the proposed GIS modelling tool for fire planning and management.

Expected project completion date: January 2010

For more information, visit The Mallee Fire and Biodiversity Project web site.

Outcomes

1. To select mallee fire mosaics for study that represent gradients in extent, composition and configuration of fire-related vegetation patches

2. To systematically survey a range of taxa (birds, mammals, reptiles, selected invertebrates, selected plants) in these mosaics

3. To model the relationship between the richness and composition of faunal assemblages and landscape-level properties of fire mosaics (extent, composition, configuration)

4. To model the relationship between the incidence of selected species (e.g. fire response species) and landscape-level properties of fire mosaics

5. To incorporate these models into a GIS framework that will:

a) display spatial patterns of areas of high or low value for selected taxa and assemblages, and

b) allow managers to generate scenarios for ecological burning and predict their likely impact on the biota.

6. To communicate the new knowledge and understanding to land managers, and demonstrate the utility of the proposed GIS modelling tool for fire planning and management.