Habitat Quality
- Gardiners Creek Corridor
- Scotchmans Creek Corridor
- Dandenong Creek Corridor
- Adjoining Habitat and Corridors
Gardiners Creek Corridor
Damper Creek Reserve
The habitat quality of remnant vegetation occurring along Damper Creek Reserve is notably uniform. Damper Creek comprises a narrow strip of remnant vegetation and restored habitats which is c. 1.5 km long and generally less than 150 m in width. Remnant strips of vegetation offer the greatest value as fauna habitat when they comprise intact vegetation; species richness is often positively correlated with vegetation width (Bennett 1991). Damper Creek reserve is generally narrow and bordered by residential developments or open parklands with high levels of disturbance. Generally, narrow, linear remnants experience higher edge effects due to a higher edge-to-area ratio. These effects can include higher weed invasion, invasion of exotic fauna species or commoner and aggressive native species (e.g. the Bell and Noisy Miners), rubbish dumping and vegetation dieback.
Nonetheless, the remnant and restored vegetation represents good-to-high quality habitat and provides suitable foraging, nesting and perching substrate for a variety of native wildlife (within a largely developed landscape) including the Regionally significant Sugar Glider and Water-rat, and a suite of locally significant species, including the Tawny Frogmouth, native birds favouring suburban settings, and insectivorous bats. The age of the trees is generally young, but there is a low-moderate abundance of older, hollow-bearing eucalypts and stags (dead trees), and provision of artificial nest boxes has provided nesting opportunities for hollow-dependent vertebrates (e.g. the Sugar Glider, Common Ringtail Possum and Common Brushtail Possum, some birds and insectivorous bats).
Probably one of the most serious threats to the vegetation and fauna habitat of Damper Creek Reserve concerns the dieback of older trees.
Scotchmans Creek Corridor
Valley Reserve
Valley Reserve, also of uniform quality, generally supports high-quality habitat for indigenous vertebrates. The square shape indicates that this reserve is less prone to edge effects. Revegetation is well-developed, and together with remnant indigenous vegetation this will eventually be integrated with the remnant forest. The vegetation of this reserve also supports a well-developed shrub understorey along the creek, a moderate to high abundance of large, hollow-bearing trees and stags, open grassy areas (which would provide habitat for locally common species such as the Galah, Australian Magpie and Magpie-lark), rock beaching and instream rocks. The multi-aged structure of the forest remnant will potentially provide a supply of hollow-bearing trees in perpetuity. Provision of nest boxes has also elevated opportunities for hollow-dependent species. Some areas of Valley Reserve also support a high abundance of fallen bark and litter, but there is generally a dearth of fallen timber.
As with Damper Creek Reserve, one of the most serious threats to the vegetation and fauna habitat of Valley Reserve concerns dieback of older trees.
Scotchmans Creek
The quality of fauna habitat varies substantially along Scotchmans Creek, with areas of low, low-moderate and moderate quality (also see Quin et al. 1999). The quality depends upon the distribution of indigenous vegetation, with all areas supporting non-indigenous vegetation being rated as low-quality fauna habitat. In contrast to Damper Creek and Valley Reserves, the vegetation is grossly modified from its pre-European state, and substantial sections of the creek support no indigenous canopy trees or shrubs, and banks are densely vegetated with exotic herbaceous species (e.g. sections between Warrigal Road and Stanley Avenue). From west to east, remnant stands of indigenous vegetation are rated as follows:- Warrigal Road (Low-Moderate fauna habitat quality);
- Oakleigh Golf Course (Moderate fauna habitat quality);
- Stanley Avenue Reserve (Good fauna habitat quality);
- Fairway Reserve (Moderate to Good fauna habitat quality);
- South of Waverley Road (Moderate fauna habitat quality).
Significant issues at Scotchmans Creek concern maintaining existing values of remnants and preventing their degradation from adjoining non-indigenous vegetation, and linking up the remnants through future revegetation.
Dandenong Creek Corridor
Dandenong Creek
Together with Parks Victoria managed land, Dandenong Creek supports a diversity of significant fauna habitats varying between moderate to very good quality. One of these habitats represents a significant example of a vegetation community and fauna habitat type now severely depleted in Australia, Yarra Gum Alluvial Terraces Grassy Woodland, which mostly occurs on Parks Victoria land (Shepherds Bush), but also enters City of Monash managed property at Shepherds Lane. The Yarra Gum Woodland, together with the riparian vegetation along the creek, represents very good quality fauna habitat.
Situated between Wellington and Police Roads, there are also stands of Manna Gum Forest and Muttonwood (moderate-good fauna habitat quality).
There are also significant wetland habitats with extensive areas of open water, sandy edges and areas of dense reed beds which support a variety of Regional to State significant wetland birds, and potentially support Nationally significant Southern Bell Frog (e.g. Jells Park managed by Parks Victoria): this is fauna habitat of good quality. The Mulgrave Reserve wetlands represent remnant and restored wetland habitats of moderate to good quality for fauna and support vegetated ponds, dense beds of Phragmites and dense grasses and sedges in seasonally inundated areas, the latter which represents preferred habitat for the Regionally significant Latham's Snipe (recorded on numerous occasions by City of Monash staff).
There are also areas of excellent revegetation works beneath scattered remnant eucalypts, especially between Shepherds Bush and Jells Park, but also between Ferntree Gully Road and Wellington Road. In time, these areas will provide a vegetated corridor running along Dandenong Creek through most of the City of Monash management area.
Adjoining Habitat and Corridors
Areas adjoining each reserve were assessed in the field and from aerial photographs to determine the potential for revegetating adjoining areas to form a continuous fauna habitat link. The importance of linear remnants, such as those occurring along roadside reserves and creeks, is well documented (Bennett 1988, 1991; Saunders et al. 1991; Foreman 1995). Although linear reserves of vegetation are often considered to have limited intrinsic habitat value, they potentially provide important habitat links (i.e. potential corridors for the movement of native fauna). Furthermore, if linear reserves of vegetation are of sufficient length (continuous), width, or quality, they may provide suitable living space (intrinsic value) for a variety of fauna.
The creek running through Valley Reserve flows into Scotchmans Creek close to the intersection of Regent Street and Waverley Road. From there, Scotchmans Creek flows in a south-westerly direction into Fairway Reserve on the west side of Forster Road. The land supporting Scotchmans Creek, and immediately south of Waverley Road, was also assessed for fauna habitat value. Immediately south of Waverley Road, and for c. 150 m, this land supports remnant trees and shrubs, namely Yellow Box, Messmate Stringybark, Swamp Gum, Swamp Paperbark and Late Black Wattle. The land is privately owned and is used as a horse paddock; it has experienced high levels of weed invasion and supports exotic trees, for example, Radiata Pine (Pinus radiata) and non-indigenous eucalypts e.g. Spotted Gum (Corymbia maculata). Further to the south-west, the creek is more highly degraded and supports scattered willows and other exotic trees over steep banks vegetated with exotic grasses. Above the steep banks, the habitat constitutes mown grassy flats backing onto rear fences. The lower half of the creek bank has also been beached with rocks. There is considerable potential for retaining the indigenous trees and shrubs present along the creek near Waverley Road, removing non-indigenous plant species, and revegetating with indigenous species to link Fairway Reserve with remnant vegetation at Valley Reserve. With ongoing works along Scotchmans Creek west to Warrigal Road, this would eventually provide a continuous corridor of vegetation running along Scotchmans Creek from Warrigal Road, as far as, and including, Valley Reserve.
The Melbourne Water land on the eastern side of Regent Street was rapidly and briefly assessed for potential revegetation works. This represents the continuation of Scotchmans Creek to the east, where it is channelled underground beneath an open, grassy parkland supporting non-indigenous eucalypts.
Updated: 23 September 2003
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