Nameless Sylvan Reserve is a 54 hectares (133.4 acre) nature reserve

Nature reserve

A nature reserve is a protected area of importance for wildlife, flora, fauna or features of geological or other special interest, which is reserved and managed for conservation and to provide special opportunities for study or research...

 on the Illawarra Escapment

Illawarra

Illawarra is a region in the Australian state of New South Wales. It is a coastal region situated immediately south of Sydney and north of the Shoalhaven or South Coast region. It encompasses the cities of Wollongong, Shellharbour, Shoalhaven and the town of Kiama. The central region contains Lake...

 of south-eastern New South Wales

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

, 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...

. It is 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) north of Berry

Berry, New South Wales

Berry is a small Australian town in the Shoalhaven region of the NSW South Coast in the state of New South Wales, located south of the state capital, Sydney. The indigenous people of the area were the Wodi Wodi people. In the 1810s, George William Evans, Government Surveyor, reported on the Berry...

, and close to the Barren Grounds Nature Reserve

Barren Grounds Nature Reserve

The Barren Grounds Nature Reserve occupies in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales, Australia. It is located east of Budderoo National Park, and west of the city of Kiama. The reserve can also be accessed from the south, via a local road and a bush walk from the town of Berry...

. It is owned and managed by Bush Heritage Australia

Bush Heritage Australia

Bush Heritage Australia is a non-profit organisation based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia that operates throughout Australia. It was previously known as the Australian Bush Heritage Fund, which is still its legal name. It purchases land, assessed as being of outstanding conservation value, from...

 (BHA), to which it was donated in 2007 by Louise Sylvan.

Landscape and biota

The property is steeply sloped, with Irwin’s Creek flowing through the reserve; the lower part protects a scarce remnant of Illawarra subtropical rainforest

Rainforest

Rainforests are forests characterized by high rainfall, with definitions based on a minimum normal annual rainfall of 1750-2000 mm...

, while the higher part holds temperate rainforest. Plant species include the Giant Stinging Tree

Dendrocnide

Dendrocnide is a genus of 37 species of shrub to large tree in the nettle family Urticaceae. They have a wide distribution across South-East Asia, Australia and the Pacific Islands.They are colloquially known as stinging nettles or nettle trees...

, Red Cedar and Brush Bloodwood

Baloghia

Baloghia is a genus of plants under the family Euphorbiaceae. It comprises 12 species, found in Australia , New Caledonia and Norfolk Island....

, as well as various kinds of figs

Ficus

Ficus is a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes, and hemiepiphyte in the family Moraceae. Collectively known as fig trees or figs, they are native throughout the tropics with a few species extending into the semi-warm temperate zone. The Common Fig Ficus is a genus of...

. The principal management needs are the control of weeds and feral animals.