Lockerbie Scrub
Encyclopedia
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
and woodland
Woodland
Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...
, surrounded by open tropical
Tropics
The tropics is a region of the Earth surrounding the Equator. It is limited in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere at approximately N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere at S; these latitudes correspond to the axial tilt of the Earth...
savanna
Savanna
A savanna, or savannah, is a grassland ecosystem characterized by the trees being sufficiently small or widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to support an unbroken herbaceous layer consisting primarily of C4 grasses.Some...
woodland, at the northern tip of the Cape York Peninsula
Cape York Peninsula
Cape York Peninsula is a large remote peninsula located in Far North Queensland at the tip of the state of Queensland, Australia, the largest unspoilt wilderness in northern Australia and one of the last remaining wilderness areas on Earth...
in Far North Queensland
Far North Queensland
Far North Queensland, or FNQ, is the northernmost part of the Australian state of Queensland. The region, which contains a large section of the Tropical North Queensland area, stretches from the city of Cairns north to the Torres Strait...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
Description
The Scrub consists of lowland rainforestRainforest
Rainforests are forests characterized by high rainfall, with definitions based on a minimum normal annual rainfall of 1750-2000 mm...
, eucalypt
Eucalypt
Eucalypts are woody plants belonging to three closely related genera:Eucalyptus, Corymbia and Angophora.In 1995 new evidence, largely genetic, indicated that some prominent Eucalyptus species were actually more closely related to Angophora than to the other eucalypts; they were split off into the...
tall open forest and closed eucalypt woodland
Woodland
Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...
. The rainforest type represented there is semi-deciduous
Semi-deciduous
Semi-deciduous is a botanical term which refers to plants that lose part of their foliage, also Semi-deciduous plants can mean, that plants can lose their foliage for a very short period, when old leaves fall off and new foliage growth is starting. This phenomenon occurs in tropical and...
notophyll vine forest. The climate is monsoon
Monsoon
Monsoon is traditionally defined as a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation, but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with the asymmetric heating of land and sea...
al with well-defined wet
Wet season
The the wet season, or rainy season, is the time of year, covering one or more months, when most of the average annual rainfall in a region occurs. The term green season is also sometimes used as a euphemism by tourist authorities. Areas with wet seasons are dispersed across portions of the...
and dry season
Dry season
The dry season is a term commonly used when describing the weather in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which oscillates from the northern to the southern tropics over the course of the year...
s. Land tenure is mainly Aboriginal
Australian Aborigines
Australian Aborigines , also called Aboriginal Australians, from the latin ab originem , are people who are indigenous to most of the Australian continentthat is, to mainland Australia and the island of Tasmania...
(Deed of Grant in Trust
Deed of Grant in Trust
A Deed of Grant in Trust is the name for a system of community-level land trust established in Queensland to administer former reserves and missions...
) land, with pockets of freehold around the communities of New Mapoon and Bamaga
Bamaga, Queensland
-Language:The community languages of Bamaga are Kalaw Kawaw Ya, Brokan , and English, particularly for education and government business.-Industry:...
.
Mammals
Northern QuollNorthern Quoll
The Northern Quoll , also known as the Northern Native Cat, the Satanellus, the North Australian Native Cat or the Njanmak , is a carnivorous marsupial mammal, native to Australia.- Taxonomy :The Northern Quoll is a member of the family Dasyuridae, and is often stated to be the most distinctive...
s, Spectacled Flying Foxes and Bare-backed Fruit-bat
Bare-backed Fruit-bat
The Bare-backed Fruit Bat is a fruit bat in the family Pteropodidae.D. moluccense magna is distinctive as its wings join along the centre of its back rather than its sides giving this bat a ‘hairless’ back. This bat is also unique as it roosts in caves rather than in tree canopies...
s occur in the Lockerbie Scrub.
Birds
Some 158 km2 of the Lockerbie Scrub has been identified by BirdLife InternationalBirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global Partnership of conservation organisations that strives to conserve birds, their habitats and global biodiversity, working with people towards sustainability in the use of natural resources...
as an Important Bird Area
Important Bird Area
An Important Bird Area is an area recognized as being globally important habitat for the conservation of bird populations. Currently there are about 10,000 IBAs worldwide. The program was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife International...
(IBA) because it is a significant migratory
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
bottleneck
Bottleneck
A bottleneck is a phenomenon where the performance or capacity of an entire system is limited by a single or limited number of components or resources. The term bottleneck is taken from the 'assets are water' metaphor. As water is poured out of a bottle, the rate of outflow is limited by the width...
for Spangled Drongo
Spangled Drongo
The Spangled Drongo is a bird of the family Dicruridae.The Spangled Drongo is the only Drongo to be found in Australia...
s and Rainbow Bee-eater
Rainbow Bee-eater
The Rainbow Bee-eater, Merops ornatus, is a near passerine bird in the bee-eater family Meropidae. It is the only species of Meropidae found in Australia.-Description:...
s, as well as supporting populations of Lovely Fairywrens and Yellow-spotted Honeyeater
Yellow-spotted Honeyeater
The Yellow-spotted Honeyeater is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family.It is endemic to Australia.Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical mangrove forests....
s.
Also present in the area are several birds whose Australian range is limited to the Cape York Peninsula, including Palm Cockatoo
Palm Cockatoo
The Palm Cockatoo , also known as the Goliath Cockatoo, is a large smoky-grey or black parrot of the cockatoo family. It is the only member in subfamily Microglossinae and the only member of the monotypic genus, Probosciger...
s, Yellow-billed Kingfisher
Yellow-billed Kingfisher
The Yellow-billed Kingfisher is a medium-sized tree kingfisher. Its colouring is distinctive; it has an orange head and neck with a black nape patch and white throat. Adult females also have a black crown patch. The upper mantle is blackish grading to olive green on the back, blue-green on...
s, Red-bellied Pitta
Red-bellied Pitta
The Red-bellied Pitta, Pitta erythrogaster, is a species of bird in the Pittidae family.It is found in Australia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines.Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.-References:...
s, Trumpet Manucode
Trumpet Manucode
The Trumpet Manucode is species of medium-sized, approximately 31 cm long, bird in the family Paradisaeidae. It has elongated horn-like head tufts and loose neck feathers. The plumage is of blackish glossed blue, green and purple. It has a red iris, long coiled trachea, and blackish bill,...
s, Magnificent Riflebird
Magnificent Riflebird
The Magnificent Riflebird, Ptiloris magnificus, is a medium-sized passerine bird of the Paradisaeidae family. The male is velvet-black bird of paradise with elongated black filamental flank plumes, an iridescent blue-green crown, a wide, triangle-shaped breast shield, and on central tail feathers...
s, Fawn-breasted Bowerbird
Fawn-breasted Bowerbird
The Fawn-breasted Bowerbird, Chlamydera cerviniventris is a medium-sized, up to 32 cm long, bowerbird with a greyish brown spotted white plumage, a black bill, dark brown iris, yellow mouth and an orange buff below. Both sexes are similar...
s, Northern Scrub-robin
Northern Scrub-robin
The Northern Scrub-robin is a species of bird in the Petroicidae family.It is found in Australia, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . Downloaded on 25 July 2007....
s, Yellow-legged Flycatchers, Tropical Scrubwren
Tropical Scrubwren
The Tropical Scrubwren or Beccari's Scrubwren is a bird species. Placed in the family Pardalotidae in the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy, this has met with opposition and indeed is now known to be wrong; they rather belong to the independent family Acanthizidae.It is found in tropical moist forests of...
s and Frill-necked Monarch
Frill-necked Monarch
The Frill-necked Monarch is a species of songbird in the Monarchidae family. It is endemic to the rainforests of the northern Cape York Peninsula...
s. The endangered Southern Cassowary
Southern Cassowary
The Southern Cassowary, Casuarius casuarius, also known as Double-wattled Cassowary, Australian Cassowary or Two-wattled Cassowary, is a large flightless black bird...
was recorded in Lockerbie Scrub in 1986 but is now probably extinct there. Bush Stone-curlew
Bush Stone-curlew
The Bush Stone-curlew or Bush Thick-knee is a large, ground-dwelling bird endemic to Australia...
s, Silver-crowned Friarbird
Silver-crowned Friarbird
The Silver-crowned Friarbird is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family.It is endemic to Australia.Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests and subtropical or tropical mangrove forests.-References:...
s and Yellow Honeyeater
Yellow Honeyeater
The Yellow Honeyeater is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family.It is endemic to Australia.Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical mangrove forests....
s have been recorded on rare occasions. Graceful Honeyeater
Graceful Honeyeater
The Graceful Honeyeater is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family.It is found in Australia, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea....
s are common. White-streaked Honeyeater
White-streaked Honeyeater
The White-streaked Honeyeater is a species of bird in the Meliphagidae family. It is monotypic within the genus Trichodere.It is endemic to Australia.Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry forests....
s are present.