Biodiversity threatened by bitou bush invasion
A key part of the NSW Bitou Bush Threat Abatement Plan is the identification of the biodiversity most at risk of serious decline in NSW because of bitou bush invasion. Identifying this biodiversity involved assessing plant and animal species, plant populations and ecological communities.
Plants at risk
All plant species, not just those listed as threatened under the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 (TSC Act) or the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) were assessed. The plant species listed here were identified as the most at risk from bitou bush invasion in NSW. Species were assigned a priority of high, medium or low based on a model developed to assess the impact of bitou bush.
The method used to select and prioritise the species is described in Appendix 2 of the threat abatement plan.
Ecological communities at risk
Identifying the ecological communities at risk involved assessing endangered ecological communities listed under the TSC Act and/or the EPBC Act, as well as communities not listed under any legislation.
Plant populations at risk from bitou bush invasion were also identified. Only those specifically listed as threatened under the TSC Act were examined.
The list of plant populations and ecological communities at risk from bitou bush have been identified.
The method used to prioritise the communities and populations is described in Appendix 4 of the threat abatement plan.
Animals at risk
Identifying the animals at risk was much more difficult. An interim list is presented here as a preliminary guide. You can help us develop the final list by telling us which animals you think may be threatened by bitou bush, the reason why, and possible sites for control.
Amendments to these lists
Tell us if you know of a plant or animal species or community that should be included in a revised list.
Page last updated: 26 February 2011
