Backdrop to encounter : the 1770 landscape of Botany Bay, the plants collected by Banks and Solander and rehabilitation of natural vegetation at Kurnell

The first scientific observations on the flora of eastern Australia were made at Botany Bay in April–May 1770. We discuss the landscapes of Botany Bay and particularly of the historic landing place at Kurnell (lat 34˚ 00’ S, long 151˚ 13’ E) (about 16 km south of central Sydney), as described in the journals of Lieutenant James Cook and Joseph Banks on the Endeavour voyage in 1770. We list 132 plant species that were collected at Botany Bay by Banks and Daniel Solander, the first scientific collections of Australian flora. The list is based on a critical assessment of unpublished lists compiled by authors who had access to the collection of the British Museum (now Natural History Museum), together with species from material at National Herbarium of New South Wales that has not been previously available. The list includes Bidens pilosa which has been previously regarded as an introduced species. In 1770 the Europeans set foot on Aboriginal land of the Dharawal people. Since that time the landscape has been altered in response to a succession of different land-uses; farming and grazing, commemorative tree planting, parkland planting, and pleasure ground and tourist visitation. We describe and reconstruct the 1770 vegetation and landscape features of the Kurnell landing place site, now within Botany Bay National Park, based on primary historical sources and surviving remnants of the landscape, and suggest ways in which the remnants can be rehabilitated and enhanced to protect and focus on the botanical, historical and cultural values of this important place

Adventures, hardship and a scientific legacy : Ludwig Leichhardt's 1843 journey to Mt Royal in the Hunter Valley, NSW

In January 1843, curiosity for natural history led a young German naturalist, Ludwig Leichhardt, to spend about three weeks exploring Mt Royal on the north of the Hunter Valley, about 70 km north west of Newcastle, New South Wales. This was a sidetrack on his journey from Newcastle, through the Hunter Valley and inland to Moreton Bay (Brisbane) and preceded the journeys for which he was to become famous; his 1844–45 overland journey from Moreton Bay to Port Essington (in Northern Territory) and his disappearance without trace in 1848 attempting to cross Australia. Using his Diary and herbarium records this paper brings together the chronological events of the 29 year old Leichhardt’s journey, the plant and animal species recorded, the specimens collected and his landscape descriptions and compares the 1843 landscape with the area today. Most of it is now in Mount Royal National Park, and part of the Gondwana Rainforest Reserves World Heritage Area. Using Mt Royal as an example of the richness of Leichhardt’s scientific legacy, we draw attention to the existence of a considerable number of Leichhardt’s plant specimens in herbaria in Sydney and Melbourne relating to his early collecting around Sydney and the little-known journey from Newcastle to Moreton Bay. Leichhardt’s visit to Mt Royal provides an insight into a gifted young naturalist coping with some of the hardships of nineteenth century botanical exploration, in a landscape which is easily recognizable and of which much is remarkably little changed since European settlement

The Eucalypts of the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area: distribution, classification and habitats of the species of Eucalyptus, Angophora and Corymbia (family Myrtaceae) recorded in its eight conservation reserves

The Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area (GBMWHA), immediately west of Sydney (33° 53’S; 151° 13’E), on the east coast of Australia was listed as World Heritage for its outstanding natural values, a major component of which is the high number of eucalypt species and eucalypt-dominated communities present, some 13 per cent of all eucalypt species in the world. They grow in a great variety of plant communities, from tall closed forests, through open forests and woodlands, to stunted mallee shrublands. This paper provides a definitive list of the 96 eucalypts (species of the genera Eucalyptus, Angophora and Corymbia in the family Myrtaceae), that have been recorded there (55 widespread, 41 restricted), together with the distribution of the eucalypts in the eight reserves that make up the GBMWHA, and information on the classification and habitat of the different species. The information is based on records held at the National Herbarium of New South Wales and the results of surveys by the NSW Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water (DECCW) over the past 20 years. The majority of species have components of both stress-tolerator and competitor ecological strategies and this has probably been a main contributor to their success. However details of the ecology of the majority of taxa are poorly-known and more research is needed to provide guidance for conservation management in the face of changing climate conditions

Ecology of Sydney plant species : part 10, Monocotyledon families Lemnaceae to Zosteraceae

Ecological data in tabular form are provided on 668 plant species of the families Lemnaceae to Zosteraceae, 505 native and 163 exotics, occurring in the Sydney region, defined by the Central Coast and Central Tablelands botanical subdivisions of New South Wales (approximately bounded by Lake Macquarie, Orange, Crookwell and Nowra). Relevant Local Government Areas are Auburn, Ashfield, Bankstown, Bathurst, Baulkham Hills, Blacktown, Blayney, Blue Mountains, Botany, Burwood, Cabonne, Camden, Campbelltown, Canada Bay, Canterbury, Cessnock, Crookwell, Evans, Fairfield, Greater Lithgow, Gosford, Hawkesbury, Holroyd, Hornsby, Hunters Hill, Hurstville, Kiama, Kogarah, Ku-ring-gai, Lake Macquarie, Lane Cove, Leichhardt, Liverpool, Manly, Marrickville, Mosman, Mulwaree, North Sydney, Oberon, Orange, Parramatta, Penrith, Pittwater, Randwick, Rockdale, Ryde, Rylstone, Shellharbour, Shoalhaven, Singleton, South Sydney, Strathfield, Sutherland, Sydney City, Warringah, Waverley, Willoughby, Wingecarribee, Wollondilly, Wollongong, Woollahra and Wyong. The study area falls within the Sydney Basin IBRA Bioregion. Families are: Lemnaceae, Liliaceae, Lomandraceae, Luzuriagaceae, Najadaceae, Orchidaceae, Philydraceae, Phormiaceae, Poaceae, Pontederiaceae, Posidoniaceae, Potamogetonaceae, Restionaceae, Ripogonaceae, Smilacaceae, Sparganiaceae, Thismiaceae, Typhaceae, Uvulariaceae, Xanthorrhoeaceae, Xyridaceae, Zingiberaceae, Zosteraceae. Data are derived from herbarium collections, literature and field observations. It is hoped that the many, often alarming gaps in the information available will stimulate much-needed research into the ecology of more of the species. Information is provided so far as available to us for each plant species in the following categories: Life History: Growth form, vegetative spread, longevity, primary juvenile period (time from germination to fruiting), reproduction, flowering and fruiting times, fruit/seed type, dispersal, establishment and growth, fire response, interaction with other organisms. Distribution: Status/origin (native/naturalised), botanical subregions, distribution in Sydney area, selected locations. Habitat: Habitat, altitude, annual rainfall, typical local abundance, vegetation, substrate, exposure. Conservation: Conservation status

Root-suckering and Clonality in a Blue Mountains Banksia Taxon (Proteaceae)

We report novel observations of widespread root-suckering from shallow lateral roots, and clonal morphology in 29 populations of plants ascribed to Banksia paludosa subsp. paludosa in the upper Blue Mountains, NSW, and differing from southern populations (Southern Highlands and Woronora Plateau) which are lignotuberous resprouters. Following fire, Blue Mountains populations can resprout to form multi-stemmed shrubs appearing to be lignotuberous resprouters, but form root connected populations of sometimes closely spaced ramets in discrete areas. New single- or multiple-shoot root suckers frequently arise following fire from lateral roots at varying distances from the nearest established ramets. No lignotubers (developed on seed-grown plants) were observed, but multi-stemmed ramets which survive multiple fires may develop small, swollen, woody underground structures where they originate from lateral roots, but these are also frequently killed by fire and thus not reliably persistent regenerative organs. Cone development is rare, compared with southern populations, and no seedling recruitment was observed in any population. Such geographically widespread and ubiquitous root-suckering has not previously been reported in Banksia species in eastern Australia, though it has been reported in southwestern Australian species and in an ecotype of Banksia marginata from western Victoria and South Australia. We suggest that Blue Mountains populations of this species may represent a distinct taxon with a different post-glacial history and recommend genetic and taxonomic studies to better understand the relationships with related species, including the identity and placement of the Blue Mountains root-suckering taxon reported here

Population Ecology of Two Endemic, Fire-sensitive, Blue Mountains Banksia Taxa (Proteaceae) in Response to Fire

Banksia penicillata (northern Blue Mountains) and Banksia paludosa subsp. astrolux (Southern Highlands) occur in small, isolated populations and occasionally as isolated individuals. We undertook a field study of both species to better understand their population ecology in relation to fire. Both are large, serotinous, fire-sensitive shrubs with plant-stored seedbank and a relatively short lifespan (15 years old across the landscape, including some sites with fire intervals >30 years, to provide increased opportunities for distance-dispersal and establishment of new fruiting populations. Applying IUCN threatened species criteria, there is a strong case for listing Banksia paludosa subsp. astrolux as Endangered and Banksia penicillata as Vulnerable

Two Centuries of Botanical Exploration along the Botanists Way, Northern Blue Mountains, N.S.W: a Regional Botanical History that Reflects National Trends

The Botanists Way is a promotional concept developed by the Blue Mountains Botanic Garden at Mt Tomah for interpretation displays associated with the adjacent Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area (GBMWHA). It is based on 19th century botanical exploration of areas between Kurrajong and Bell, northwest of Sydney, generally associated with Bells Line of Road, and focussed particularly on the botanists George Caley and Allan Cunningham and their connections with Mt Tomah. Based on a broader assessment of the area’s botanical history, the concept is here expanded to cover the route from Richmond to Lithgow (about 80 km) including both Bells Line of Road and Chifley Road, and extending north to the Newnes Plateau. The historical attraction of botanists and collectors to the area is explored chronologically from 1804 up to the present, and themes suitable for visitor education are recognised. Though the Botanists Way is focused on a relatively limited geographic area, the general sequence of scientific activities described - initial exploratory collecting; 19th century Gentlemen Naturalists (and lady illustrators); learned societies and publications; 20th century publicly-supported research institutions and the beginnings of ecology, and since the 1960s, professional conservation research and management - were also happening nationally elsewhere. The broader view of the Botanists Way concept is considered to provide a valuable basis for expanded visitor interpretation of science and conservation in and around the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area, botany being a significant element of nature tourism. Funding for public-good science through largely government funded institutions is a relatively recent development. It has been particularly influential in the last 50 years (i.e. essentially in the lifetimes of current researchers). However, despite recognition of its obvious successes, public-good science should not necessarily be assumed to be a permanent feature of our culture, and remains vulnerable to political climate

The Grose Vale flora and the value of documenting botanically interesting sites

Particular botanical sites have always been attractive to botanists, and the recording of such sites even in an ad hoc way, adds to our long-term documentation of ecological change. Here we look at records from an unusual dry rainforest site in western Sydney, first recognised in 1910, and re-recorded on several occasions more recently. Though the site has little formal conservation protection, the records indicate that many of the original species still survive at the site, while the periodic recording draws attention to the scientific value of the site, particularly at a local level, and has increased its value as an ecological reference site. Much of the vegetation of the Cumberland Plain has been subject to major clearing and disturbance over the past 200 years, and almost all vegetation is recovering in some way. Repeated visits are valuable for getting a complete picture of the flora; repeated visits by the same botanist over the shorter term (e.g. within a few years) may also be valuable, especially as the revisiting botanist may be more likely to notice changes. By documenting sites now, and continuing this over future years; we can enhance the value of many existing sites

Native plants of Sydney Harbour National Park: historical records and species lists, and their value for conservation monitoring

Sydney Harbour National Park (lat 33° 53’S; long 151° 13’E), protects significant vegetation on the harbor foreshores close to Sydney City CBD; its floristic abundance and landscape beauty has been acknowledged since the writings of the First Fleet in 1788. Surprisingly, although historical plant collections were made as early as1802, and localised surveys have listed species for parts of the Park since the 1960s, a detailed survey of the flora of whole Park is still needed. This paper provides the first definitive list of the c.400 native flora species for Sydney Harbour National Park (total area 390 ha) showing occurrence on the seven terrestrial sub-regions or precincts (North Head, South Head, Dobroyd Head, Middle Head, Chowder Head, Bradleys Head and Nielsen Park). The list is based on historical species lists, records from the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage (formerly Dept of Environment, Climate Change and Water) Atlas, National Herbarium of New South Wales specimen details, and some additional fieldwork. 131 species have only been recorded from a single precinct site and many are not substantiated with a recent herbarium specimen (though there are historical specimens from the general area for many). Species reported in the sources but for which no current or historic specimen exists are listed separately as being of questionable/non-local status. About 85% of the 400 species are recorded as being from North Head, the largest precinct, though the smallest Chowder Head does not have the fewest species. As well as size, differences indicate the different flora of inner harbour sites; inner harbour Bradleys Head and Nielsen Park include 24% of the single record species. Rare and threatened species, and regionally important species are discussed in relation to current threats which include weed invasion, fire frequency, Phytophthora, Black rats and tourism pressures. Given the threats to the flora it is an appropriate time to take stock of the flora as a basic structural component of the biodiversity. What is now needed is a systematic survey (with quadrat-based methodology) to provide baseline data against which to compare state of Park trends with future resurvey. In the absence of such a survey this list at least will provide a reasonably definitive list of the species occurring in the Park regions at the beginning of the 21st Century. If only we had done this at the beginning of the 20th Century! Key words: Sydney Harbour, native plant species lists, First Fleet observations, conservation monitoring