Our Sponsored Conservation Project
Telopea Downs Nature Haven Project800 hectares
Protected Mallee Woodland and ShrublandThreatened Species
Malleefowl, Mallee Emu-wren, Western QuollPartners
Partnering with Zoos Victoria, Trust for Nature & Odonata Foundation through Carbon LandscapesSupporting Conservation
With support from First Option Bank, Carbon Landscapes is working in partnership with Zoos Victoria and Trust for Nature at our Telopea Downs property supporting many threatened species and their specific habitat requirements.
Carbon Landscapes has undertaken flora and fauna surveys on the property to ensure that the area is suitable for this threatened species as well as other target species. Current survey results are already indicating that Telopea Downs is a nature haven for many threatened species, including a stable population of Mallee fowl, a species listed as endangered in Victoria.
Protecting Threatened Species
First Option has ‘adopted’ this beautiful little bird and is working with Carbon Landscapes to support the Mallee Emu-Wren to ensure it thrives.
The Mallee Emu-Wren was once widespread throughout Victoria’s mallee regions, but their numbers have been decimated by land clearing and bushfires. Weighing just 4 grams, the little Mallee Emu-Wen is not a strong flier and is particularly vulnerable. Unable to cross large, open areas, the species has disappeared from large parts of its former range in Victoria.
Mallee bird communities’ conservation focuses on protecting and restoring mallee habitats by managing fire, controlling feral predators (cats and foxes), managing grazing, and maintaining habitat connectivity. Key actions include large-scale pest control, restoring degraded areas, re-establishing connectivity between habitats, engaging landholders and communities, and implementing appropriate fire management plans to benefit species like the Mallee fowl and Mallee Emu-wren.
What needs to be done?
- Work in partnership with Barengi Gadjin Land Council to explore opportunities to develop and implement joint projects to improve Country
- Establish a predator-proof fence to prevent access by feral goats, control predators and create a nature haven for existing native fauna and future reintroductions
- Reintroduce target fauna species (i.e., Mallee Emu-wren and Western Quoll) in partnership with Zoos Victoria, Bird Life and other partners
- Partner with nearby land managers, to create a network of conservation properties to achieve better outcomes for the nationally listed ‘Mallee Bird Community of the Murray Darling Depression Bioregion’
- Understand and implement recommended management actions associated with protecting the property’s endangered Green-leaf Mallee (Eucalyptus phenax subsp. phenax) population
- Continue feral goat control program in partnership with neighbouring properties
What is happening?
- Protecting and enhancing existing Mallee Woodland and Shrubland on property
- Established a fauna survey program in partnership with Zoos Victoria
- Undertaken a floristic survey of the property to understand how to best manage the property’s vegetation
- Working in partnership with Bird Life to determine feasibility of future introductions of Mallee Emu-wren populations
- Building on our existing knowledge of Malleefowl nesting mounds throughout property
- Installed camera traps to start benchmarking the presence of native fauna species on the property
- Established a bore-fed wetland, surrounded by a predator proof fence, to provide a continual water source for birds
- The access road to the environment centre has now been completed, making monitoring and improving the site more accessible to all interested parties.
