The flora and vegetation of the seasonal and perennial wetlands of the southern Carnarvon Basin, Western Australia

Abstract

-A total flora of 265 taxa was recorded from 58 wetland areas in the southern Carnarvon Basin. The flora was dominated by arid species but also included 34 temperate taxa at the northern end of their range and 18 tropical taxa at the southern end of their range. Five species (DicllOpogon tyleri, Calandrinia sp. Coolcalalaya (GJK and NG 698), Myriocephallls gascoynensis ms, Lythmm sp. Towrana (RJC 2183), Psammagrostis wiseana) are endemic to the study area. The Calandrinia sp. appears not to have been collected previously. A collection of Rllmex crystallil1llS was the first recorded in Western Australia since 1885.Classification of the wetlands was undertaken at two different scales; at both scales heterogeneity was high. The major division in the data sets was between the saline and non-saline wetlands. Percentage of single species occurrences was high in both datasets, ranging from 46--55%; this component of the flora adds significantly to plant biodiversity but is not a predictable component of vegetation communities. In the seven-group classification no floristic groups were restricted to particular habitat types but at the finer scale sampling there is a stronger correlation between floristic community type and habitat type. At this scale the major habitat types (e.g. river pools) encompassed a range of floristic groupings. The patterns in low species richness and very patchy species distribution found in this study are similar to those reported for wetlands in the higher rainfall areas of the south west but the underlying causal factors determining these patterns remain unclear.

The riparian flora and plant communities of the Pilbara region of Western Australia

“…Johnson and Wright, 2001;Braimbridge et al 2010). The only other regionalscale wetland floristic survey undertaken in Western Australia's arid zone was completed by Gibson et al (2000), in the southern half of the Carnarvon Basin bioregion to the south of the Pilbara. They recorded 263 taxa from 57 wetlands (albeit with smaller quadrat size) representing ca.12% of the region's fl ora (Keighery et al 2000).…”

“…They recorded 263 taxa from 57 wetlands (albeit with smaller quadrat size) representing ca.12% of the region's fl ora (Keighery et al 2000). Gibson et al (2000) observed that the wetland fl ora of the southern Carnarvon Basin, while dominated by taxa of the arid zone (Eremaean), had affi nities with both temperate and tropical fl oras. In part, this is true of the Pilbara, although the temperate component of the flora is smaller and largely composed of very widespread taxa rather than those with temperate distributions for which the Pilbara is their northern range limit.…”

“…The proportion of uncommon taxa recorded for the Pilbara -singletons (33.2%) and those from fewer than fi ve sites (66.4%) -is of similar magnitude to other similar studies. Gibson et al (2000) recorded that 55% of taxa occurred at a single site (singletons) in the southern Carnarvon Basin. A more comprehensive survey of temperate zone wetlands in Western Australia showed very similar proportions (31% and 59.3% respectively) to the current study (Lyons et al 2004).…”

Systematics and biogeography of Australian rhopalosomatid wasps (Hymenoptera: Rhopalosomatidae) with a global synopsis of the enigmatic genusOlixonCameron

“…13B). The type locality site is illustrated in Gibson et al (2000, Plate 64) and is described as mixed low shrubland over pale calcareous sand with shell fragments on Holocene supra tidal flat of Carnarvon Coastal Plain. It is named in honour of Dr Mark Harvey (Western Australian Museum), who collected all of the known specimens of this species, is one of the very few people to have observed a live Olixon, and whose interest in the genus brought the species to our attention.…”

Some gaps in the reserve system of the southern Carnarvon Basin, Western Australia

“…The patterns are summarised by Halse et al (2000) and Gibson et al (2000a) for wetland communities, and by McKenzie et al (2000a) for terrestrial communities. This paper should not be used without prior reference to all three of these publications.…”