Central Creek Grassland, Reservoir

tarix	25.06.2016
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Fact Sheet

Central Creek Grassland is part of Kulin land for which the Wurundjeri, the traditional owners have been custodians for many centuries. Their living culture and unique role in the life of this region is acknowledged.

Site	Central Creek Grassland is about 13km north of Melbourne directly south of Mahoneys Road on the east side of Central Creek, a tributary of the Merri Creek, in Reservoir (Melways Map 8 B12). The area of the grassland gazetted as a reserve occupies 9 hectares. Earlier studies of the biological attributes of the Central Creek Grassland included a further 6.5 hectares of formerly undeveloped land in the north and east of the grassland that was developed for housing in 2003.
Land Ownership	It is only in very recent times that the Central Creek Grassland has been reserved for conservation. Central Creek Grassland was part of the freeway reservation that extended all the way down the Merri Creek valley. Community opposition led to the revocation of this freeway, first the downstream section (between Alexandra Pde and Coburg Lake) during the 70s, and the northern section (Coburg Lake – Mahoneys Rd) in the 90s. Some of the land that had been covered by the freeway reservation was then sold for housing – including the land to the south of grassland between Merri and Central Creeks. Further community-based pressure to reserve the state-significant grassland between Mahoneys Rd and Bartrop St led, with the support and assistance of Darebin Council, to a compromise arrangement where degraded parts of the grassland on the north and east edge have been developed for housing. The rest of the land has been reserved for conservation. Strict planning and development guidelines aim to reduce the impact of the newer developments on the remaining native grassland. The reserve was gazetted as a crown land reserve with Darebin Council as its Committee of Management in 2003.
Ecological Communities	The Central Creek Grassland includes the following ecological communities: Plains Grassland, a species rich, largely treeless ecological community now reduced to less than 0.1% of its former range in Victoria. The community is listed as threatened under Victoria’s Flora & Fauna Guarantee Act and an Action Statement has been prepared (Muir, 1999). The community has been nominated for listing as a threatened community under the federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. Stony Knoll Grassland, dominated by Spear Grasses and a variety of other grasses and herbs that prefer good drainage. Blackwoods (a species of wattle) are also prominent, forming low shrubby thickets. This community is found in the north-west corner of the grassland. Grassy Wetland is found near Central Creek, immediately north of Davidson Street. Common Tussock Grass, Common Sedge, Soft Rush and Common Swamp Wallaby Grass characterise this wetland.

Significant Fauna:		National
			Growling Grass-frog (Southern Bell Frog)
		State
			Grassland (Little) Copper Butterfly
		Regional
			Brown Songlark, Little Whip Snake, Little Grassbird, , Large Striped Skink

Other interesting fauna species at Central Creek Grassland include Pallid Cuckoos and Horsefield’s Bronze Cuckoos. In a review of its habitat values, Williams (2000) considered that the grassland contained good habitat for Fat-tailed Dunnarts, Striped Legless Lizards and Nankeen Night-Herons, all of which are found in adjacent areas. A small number of Eastern Grey Kangaroos lived in the grassland till 2003 when development of housing and freeways cut off access to open space north of Mahoneys Road.

Significant Flora	National
	Callitriche brachycarpa	Short Water-starwort
	Dianella amoena	Matted Flax-Lily
	State
	Tripogon lolliformis (rare)	Rye Beetle-grass
	Thelymitra sp. aff. pauciflora (Basalt Plains) taxonomy needs confirmation	Slender Sun Orchid
	Regional
	Acaena ovina	Juncus pauciflorus
	Alisma plantago-aquatica	Lachnagrostis aemula
	Amphibromus archeri	Lachnagrostis filiformis var. 2
	Amphibromus nervosus	Lepidosperma curtisiae
	Arthropodium fimbriatum	Leptorhynchos squamatus
	Arthropodium minus	Leptorhynchos tenuifolius
	Arthropodium strictum	Lobelia pratioides
	Asperula conferta	Lomandra micrantha
	Asperula scoparia	Lomandra nana
	Austrodanthonia caespitosa	Muellerina eucalyptoides
	Austrostipa aristiglumis	Oxalis radicosa
	Austrostipa curticoma	Panicum effusum
	Bothriochola macra	Pentapogon quadrifidus
	Burchardia umbellata	Pimelea curviflora
	Caesia calliantha	Pimelia humilis
	Calocephalus lacteus	Plantago gaudichaudii
	Carex tereticaulis	Poa rodwayii
	Cheilanthes sieberi	Poa sieberiana
	Convulvulus remotus	Rumex dumosus
	Eleocharis pusilla	Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani (validus)
	Eryngium ovinum	Solenogyne dominii
	Eryngium vesiculosum	Thelymitra megcalyptra
	Geranium retrosum	Tricoryne elatior
	Haloragis aspera	Triglochin striatum
	Haloragis heterophylla	Veronica gracilis
	Hermarthria uncinata var uncinata	Wahlenbergia gracilenta
	Juncus holoschoenus	Wahlenbergia luteola

A Significance rating identifies biologically noteworthy species or sites, and the degree to which they are rare or threatened. Ratings are revised as more is learnt about flora and fauna populations and as ongoing habitat degradation and (occasionally) improvement occur. Very little of the invertebrate and non-vascular plant biota has been assessed.
Background Reading Beardsell, C., 1997, Sites of Faunal and Habitat Significance in North East Melbourne. Frood, D., 1992, Vegetation of the Native Grasslands in the Merri Creek Valley, Outer Melbourne Area. McMahon, A.R.G. and Schulz, M., 1993, Merri Creek Concept Plan – Flora & Fauna Study. Muir, A., 1999, Western (Basalt) Plains Grassland Community. Action Statement No 53. Robinson R. & Duggan, D., 1994, Davidson Street Grassland. A report on the flora, fauna, development options and management. Ross, J.H. and Walsh, N.G. 2003, A Census of the Vascular Plants of Victoria. 7^th Ed. Williams, L.M., 2000, Central Creek Project: Review of Flora & Fauna.

Merri Creek Management Committee 2004