Allocasuarina glareicola - profile

Conservation status in NSW: Endangered
National conservation status: Endangered

Description

An erect, often depauperate she-oak shrub 1-2 m high, with 20 cm branchlets. Cones are 10 - 13 mm by 7 - 8 mm, on a 4 - 7 mm stem.

Location and habitat

Distribution
 Primarily restricted to the Richmond (NW Cumberland Plain) district, but with an outlier population found at Voyager Point, Liverpool.

• Grows in Castlereagh woodland on lateritic soil. Found in open woodland with Eucalyptus parramattensis, Eucalyptus fibrosa, Angophora bakeri, Eucalyptus sclerophylla and Melaleuca decora. Common associated understorey species include Melaleuca nodosa, Hakea dactyloides, Hakea sericea, Dillwynia tenuifolia, Micromyrtus minutiflora, Acacia elongata, Acacia brownei, Themeda australis and Xanthorrhoea minor.
• Not killed outright by fire but resprouts from the rootstock.
• Spreads by vegetative means, such that clumps of up to 100s of stems may be a single individual.
• The time taken for the plants to flower and set seed is not known, but only those plants growing in areas unburnt for some time produced substantial numbers of fruit.

Regional information
This species is found in the following catchment management authority regions. Click on a region name to see more details about the distribution, vegetation types and habitat preference of the species in that region.

• Hawkesbury/Nepean
• Sydney Metro

Threats

• Habitat loss due to clearing for development or mining
• Habitat degradation through rubbish dumping, weed invasion and unrestricted access creating tracks
• Too frequent fire may prevent fruit production and seed set.

Recovery strategies

Priority actions are the specific, practical things that must be done to recover a threatened species, population or ecological community. The Department of Environment and Conservation has identified 10 priority actions to help recover the Allocasuarina glareicola in New South Wales.

What needs to be done to recover this species?

• Avoid hazard reduction fires in populations where seed set has not occurred.
• Manage sites to prevent habitat degradation
• Protect from further clearing

References

• Harden G.J. (ed.) (2000). Flora of New South Wales Vol. 1. UNSW Press, Kensington, NSW.
• Matthes, M., Robertson, G. and Smith, M (1996). Conservation research statement and species recovery plan for Allocasuarina glareicola. NSW NPWS for the Australian Nature Conservation Agency.