Yellingbo Nature Conservation Reserve
Encyclopedia
Yellingbo Nature Conservation Reserve is a 4.6 km2 nature reserve
50 km east of Melbourne
, in Victoria, Australia
. It lies in the Upper Yarra Valley
, near the towns of Yellingbo
and Macclesfield
. The reserve is managed by Parks Victoria
, which also manages adjoining freehold land along Cockatoo Creek, owned by the Victorian Trust for Nature, as if it were part of the reserve.
bird, the Helmeted Honeyeater
, Victoria’s avifaunal
emblem
, of which it holds the last known established wild population, and for which the protection and preservation of its habitat is the main goal of reserve management. It has been assigned the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s Category 1A (Strict Nature Reserve) for Protected Areas, indicating that it is managed primarily for science. It is listed on the Register of the National Estate
in recognition of the area’s outstanding natural values and its importance as part of Australia’s natural heritage.
and the Bird Observers Club, in 1965 some areas, including sections of public land along the Woori Yallock, Cockatoo and Sheep Station Creeks, were reserved as the Yellingbo State Wildlife Reserve by the Victorian Government for wildlife conservation
. Subsequently several contiguous areas were acquired by the Government by purchase or donation, increasing the area protected. In 1994 the Victorian Land Conservation Council recommended that most of these, as well as some other areas, should be consolidated as the Yellingbo Nature Conservation Reserve. Since then, further small parcels of land have been added to the reserve.
-rich Mountain Swamp Gum
forest, which is considered to be of national significance.
Some 230 native vertebrate
s are present; as well as the Helmeted Honeyeater, other significant species present are the endangered Leadbeater’s Possum (Victoria’s mammal
emblem), the Platypus
, Yellow-bellied Glider
, Black Wallaby, Rakali, Swamp Rat
, Spotless Crake
, Powerful Owl
, Southern Emuwren, Swamp Skink, Mountain Galaxias
and Southern Pigmy Perch.
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...
50 km east of Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, in Victoria, 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 lies in the Upper Yarra Valley
Yarra Valley
The Yarra Valley is the name given to the region surrounding the Yarra River in Victoria, Australia. The river originates approximately 90 kilometres east of the City of Melbourne and flows towards it and out into Port Phillip Bay...
, near the towns of Yellingbo
Yellingbo, Victoria
Yellingbo is a town in Victoria, Australia, 48 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the Shire of Yarra Ranges...
and Macclesfield
Macclesfield, Victoria
Macclesfield is a town in Victoria, Australia, 47 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the Shire of Yarra Ranges. At the 2006 Census, Macclesfield had a population of 1,041....
. The reserve is managed by Parks Victoria
Parks Victoria
-Department:Parks Victoria was established in December 1996 as a statutory authority, reporting to the Minister for Environment and Climate Change. The Parks Victoria Act 1998 makes Parks Victoria responsible for managing national parks, reserves and other land under the control of the state,...
, which also manages adjoining freehold land along Cockatoo Creek, owned by the Victorian Trust for Nature, as if it were part of the reserve.
Values
Yellingbo is a largely linear reserve containing stream-frontage land along the Woori Yallock, Shepherd, Cockatoo, Macclesfield and Sheep Station Creeks. It is important for the conservation of the last wild colonies of a critically endangeredCritically endangered
Version 2010.3 of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species identified 3744 Critically Endangered species, subspecies and varieties, stocks and subpopulations.Critically Endangered by kingdom:*1993 Animalia*2 Fungi*1745 Plantae*4 Protista-References:...
bird, the Helmeted Honeyeater
Helmeted Honeyeater
The Helmeted Honeyeater is a passerine bird in the Honeyeater family. It is a distinctive and critically endangered subspecies, formerly considered a full species, of the Yellow-tufted Honeyeater, that exists in the wild only as a tiny relict population in the Australian state of Victoria, in the...
, Victoria’s avifaunal
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
emblem
Emblem
An emblem is a pictorial image, abstract or representational, that epitomizes a concept — e.g., a moral truth, or an allegory — or that represents a person, such as a king or saint.-Distinction: emblem and symbol:...
, of which it holds the last known established wild population, and for which the protection and preservation of its habitat is the main goal of reserve management. It has been assigned the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s Category 1A (Strict Nature Reserve) for Protected Areas, indicating that it is managed primarily for science. It is listed on the Register of the National Estate
Register of the National Estate
The Register of the National Estate is a listing of natural and cultural heritage places in Australia. The listing was initially compiled between 1976 and 2003 by the Australian Heritage Commission. The register is now maintained by the Australian Heritage Council...
in recognition of the area’s outstanding natural values and its importance as part of Australia’s natural heritage.
History
With increasing community concern about declining Helmeted Honeyeater numbers, and following recommendations from the Victorian Ornithological Research GroupVictorian Ornithological Research Group
The Victorian Ornithological Research Group is a small project-focused ornithological group of amateurs and professionals based in Victoria, Australia. It was formed in 1962. It publishes a bulletin, VORG Notes...
and the Bird Observers Club, in 1965 some areas, including sections of public land along the Woori Yallock, Cockatoo and Sheep Station Creeks, were reserved as the Yellingbo State Wildlife Reserve by the Victorian Government for wildlife conservation
Wildlife conservation
Wildlife conservation is the preservation, protection, or restoration of wildlife and their environment, especially in relation to endangered and vulnerable species. All living non-domesticated animals, even if bred, hatched or born in captivity, are considered wild animals. Wildlife represents all...
. Subsequently several contiguous areas were acquired by the Government by purchase or donation, increasing the area protected. In 1994 the Victorian Land Conservation Council recommended that most of these, as well as some other areas, should be consolidated as the Yellingbo Nature Conservation Reserve. Since then, further small parcels of land have been added to the reserve.
Flora and fauna
Among the 285 native plant species, the reserve protects areas of sedgeCyperaceae
Cyperaceae are a family of monocotyledonous graminoid flowering plants known as sedges, which superficially resemble grasses or rushes. The family is large, with some 5,500 species described in about 109 genera. These species are widely distributed, with the centers of diversity for the group...
-rich Mountain Swamp Gum
Eucalyptus camphora
Eucalyptus camphora, Mountain Swamp Gum or Broad-leaved Sally, is an Australian eucalypt. It is found in the marshes and valleys of mountainous areas of New South Wales and southern Victoria....
forest, which is considered to be of national significance.
Some 230 native vertebrate
Vertebrate
Vertebrates are animals that are members of the subphylum Vertebrata . Vertebrates are the largest group of chordates, with currently about 58,000 species described. Vertebrates include the jawless fishes, bony fishes, sharks and rays, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, and birds...
s are present; as well as the Helmeted Honeyeater, other significant species present are the endangered Leadbeater’s Possum (Victoria’s mammal
Mammal
Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...
emblem), the Platypus
Platypus
The platypus is a semi-aquatic mammal endemic to eastern Australia, including Tasmania. Together with the four species of echidna, it is one of the five extant species of monotremes, the only mammals that lay eggs instead of giving birth to live young...
, Yellow-bellied Glider
Yellow-bellied Glider
The Yellow-bellied Glider is an arboreal and nocturnal gliding possum that lives in a narrow range of native eucalypt forests down eastern Australia, reaching from northern Queensland to Victoria.-Habitat:...
, Black Wallaby, Rakali, Swamp Rat
Australian Swamp Rat
The Australian Swamp Rat is a species of rat occurring around the coast of south and eastern Australia. It occurs in lowland country from Fraser Island down the coast of New South Wales and Victoria to the Mount Lofty Ranges in South Australia...
, Spotless Crake
Spotless Crake
The Spotless Crake is a species of bird in the rail family, Rallidae.It is found in American Samoa, Australia, the Cook Islands, Fiji, French Polynesia, Indonesia, Micronesia, New Zealand, Niue, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Pitcairn, Samoa, Solomon Islands, and Tonga.-References:* BirdLife...
, Powerful Owl
Powerful Owl
The Powerful Owl , also known as the Powerful Boobok, is a species of owl native to south-eastern and eastern Australia, the largest owl on that continent...
, Southern Emuwren, Swamp Skink, Mountain Galaxias
Mountain galaxias
The mountain galaxias species complex is a group of freshwater Galaxiid fish found all over southeast Australia. They form a cryptic species complex.-Classification:These fish were originally designated as a single species, Galaxias olidus, despite:...
and Southern Pigmy Perch.