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Welcome to the Wilderlands project report for the Budgerum project detailing the various monitoring activities undertaken as part of the management plan and offering insights into the outcomes and findings at each of the monitoring sites within the property.
This report has been developed by Wilderlands Lead Ecologist, Deanna Marshall.
Wilderlands acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the Budgerum Project, the Barapa Barapa people, and pay our respects to their elders past and present. We recognise and respect their deep ongoing connection to land, water and culture.
We express our heartfelt gratitude to Cassinia Environmental’s dedicated staff members who shared valuable information regarding onground works and the biodiversity on the property.
We would also like to express our thanks to staff at Zoos Victoria and Museums Victoria for their ongoing support with regards to acoustic monitoring for Plains-wanderer.
Wilderlands would especially like to acknowledge and thank the following people that contributed to the collection and analysis of biodiversity data during 2024: Aaron Grinter, Peter Morison, Dan Nugent, and Tristy Osbon.
The Budgerum Project is a 90-hectare chenopod grassland and chenopod woodland conservation property of extremely high biodiversity value.
It protects the Critically Endangered ‘Natural Grasslands of the Murray Valley Plains’ and includes many threatened plants such as Chariot Wheels (Maireana cheelii), Bristly Love-grass (Eragrostis setifolia), Long Eryngium (Eryngium paludosum), Veined Peppercress (Lepidium phlebopetalum), Umbrella Wattle (Acacia oswaldii) and Bush Minuria (Minuria cunninghamii).
Threatened fauna species include Fat-tailed Dunnart and although the property boasts suitable habitat for the critically endangered Plains-wanderer, they haven’t officially been confirmed on the property to date.
Budgerum’s native bird diversity increased to 32 species, many of these species were observed during incidental surveys and on the remote cameras.
The native plant diversity at Budgerum remains at 107 species.
The vulnerable Fat-tailed Dunnart (Sminthopsis crassicaudata), a small native carnivorous marsupial mouse, was recorded while undertaking thermal spotlighting on the property. This was a good indicator that habitat elements were conducive to this threatened fauna species.
How Wilderlands monitor the flora at the Budgerum
The properties landowners, Cassinia Environmental, had historically established nine photo monitoring points on Budgerum and Wilderlands utilises 5 of these existing monitoring points to undertake our monitoring program.
The primary objective of this program is to monitor environmental changes and contribute to the understanding of biodiversity management at the property scale.
As part of this activity, a comprehensive flora list was compiled from property visits and both Wilderlands and Cassinia staff continue to record new species encountered over time.
As Deanna Marshall explains below, point transects and quadrats were undertaken at each monitoring point, serving as ecological tools that enable the quantification of the vegetation’s relative abundance, the measurement of its structure, and allow the monitoring of changes over time.
The variability in grassland openness is crucial, given the diverse habitat preferences of various grassland plant and animal species, and effective grassland biomass management is essential to ensure heterogeneous patches across the property, particularly in the presence of exotic annual grasses capable of significant proliferation during favourable seasons – a prevalent concern in remnant native grasslands.
During favourable conditions, an accumulation of biomass, primarily from invasive annual grasses like Wild Oats and Barley Grass at Budgerum can occur. This biomass obstructs inter-tussock spaces, rendering them unsuitable for native plant germination and the habitat needs of specific animal species, such as the critically endangered Plains-wanderer, which is known from the local area.
Grassland Vegetation Cover using Line Transects
The vegetation cover of the grasslands was determined using point transects, each 25m long with a pinpoint placed at every 50cm interval and recording the lifeform/structural category that touches the pinpoint. At each monitoring point two 25m transects are undertaken.
The results from the surveys indicated that native grasses dominated particularly during winter, and summer grasses and litter dominated during spring.
A decrease in exotic annual grasses from winter to spring suggested they had completed their life cycle and were now contributing to the ‘litter’ category. Exotic forbs had a slight increase in spring, potentially due to favourable growth conditions.
Grassland structure (openness) using the Golf Ball Monitoring
Monitoring structure allows us to compare the same grassland over time and can assist in determining habitat requirements for fauna.
Vegetation openness was evaluated within 1m x 1m quadrats using the ‘golf-ball’ technique whereby 1m x 1m quadrats were placed every 5m along a 50m transect line at each monitoring point.
For context, the Plains-wanderer typically favours an openness level of 14-16 golf balls but also requires smaller patches with 10-13 golf balls.
The monitoring data confirms the presence of areas of requisite habitat conditions for the Plains-wanderer throughout the different seasons, suggesting that grassland openness may not be the limiting factor for the absence of Plains-wanderers.
Monitoring Sites
The following monitoring points were established at Budgerum and have been utilised by Wilderlands as part of the ecological monitoring program. This program aims to monitor environmental change and contribute to our understanding of biodiversity management at the property scale
Click the sections below to see the results from each site.
Monitoring Site 2 – PPT6 is a red soil grassland with an open structure, characterised by 45% soil crust/bare ground. Winter grass species dominated, covering 23% of the site, with an average tussock height of 17 cm. Perennial native forbs and shrubs contributed 22% and 11% cover, respectively. Litter was minimal (1%), and exotic species were virtually absent, indicating that the site was in exceptional condition. A remote camera was active at this site (see ‘Remote Cameras’ for results), along with a Plains-wanderer song meter, which was installed in August 2024.
Monitoring Site 3 – PPT1 is a red-grey soil grassland with an open structure. The site featured 6% soil crust/bare ground, with summer grass species dominating at 54% cover, followed by 20% litter cover, 18% winter grass cover, and 6% exotic annual grass cover. The average tussock height was 26.5 cm, while perennial native forbs and shrubs had very low cover. Cassinia Environmental conducted biomass reduction burning in May 2023.
Monitoring Site 3 – PPT2 is a red soil grassland with an open structure, characterised by 36% soil crust/bare ground. Winter grass species dominated, covering 13% of the site, with an average tussock height of 10.5 cm. Perennial and annual native forbs contributed 25% and 7% cover, respectively. Litter levels were low (2%), while exotic annual grasses had an average cover of 9%.
A remote camera and acoustic monitor have been operating at this site (see ‘Remote Cameras’ and ‘Acoustic Monitoring’ for findings).
Monitoring Site 3 – PPT3 consisted of a grey soil gilgai puff area that transitioned into a red soil grassland. The gilgai puff was dominated by litter (48%) and summer grasses (31%), with exotic annual grasses also present (29%). The average tussock height was 13.5 cm. The red soil section featured 10% soil crust and bare ground, with some perennial native forbs scattered throughout
Monitoring Site 3 – PPT8 is a grey soil grassland dominated by high litter cover (53%), exotic annual grasses (31%), and summer grasses (40%). Soil crust/bare ground was minimal, covering just 6%, while exotic perennial forbs accounted for 21%. The average tussock height was 36.5 cm. Perennial native shrubs had very low cover, and native forbs were absent.
Total Flora Species Richness
A total of 107 indigenous flora species have been recorded on the property, including 15 rare and threatened species. There were no new flora species recorded at Budgerum in 2024.
Fauna Monitoring
Bird Monitoring
BirdLife Australia pioneered the Bird Atlas method, which involves the recording of bird species and the count of individual birds within a 2-hectare area during a 20-minute observation period.
This approach has been adopted by individuals across the country, culminating in the creation of the nation’s most extensive biological database.
For the Budgerum Project, bird species and numbers were recorded 50 m either side of a 200m transect (2ha) over 20 minutes at several of the sites, during both winter and spring.
Data was entered into the Birdata app. Additionally, incidental species lists for the property were compiled during both winter and spring visits and entered into the Birdata app.
Bird surveys were undertaken during winter and spring. In total, 12 birds of 4 species were recorded within the monitoring sites. Furthermore, 18 additional bird species were recorded outside of the designated monitoring sites and periods.
This cumulative effort resulted in the identification of ten new species for the Budgerum Project, bringing the total native bird species to 32. White-browed Woodswallow was the most numerous bird and Brown Songlark was the most widespread bird in the Wilderlands Budgerum Project during the 2024 monitoring season.
Remote Cameras
Remote cameras were used across the property, with two remote cameras deployed at Site 2 – PPT6 and Site 3 – PPT2, with several bird species identified including Common Bronzewing, Magpie-Lark, Brown Falcon and Little Raven, which is encouraging and increased the known avian diversity for the Project.
The introduced Fox and Hare were the most frequently captured species on the remote cameras on the property. Control of these pest species is ongoing and requires landscape scale efforts.
Spotlight Surveys
Some species are best spotted at night which is why our team recently headed to Budgerum in the hope of catching a glimpse of the elusive creatures that call these grasslands home.
On 4th June 2024, equipped with thermal cameras, head torches and spotlights, Lead Ecologist Deanna Marshall was joined by Dan Nugent – a renowned Plains-wanderer expert who knows more than most about one of the rarest species of bird in the world which we believe may exist at the property.
Species identified included the Fat-tailed Dunnart, Little Button-quail, Horsfield’s Bushlark, and Stubble Quail.
A second spotlighting survey was conducted in August, during which Stubble Quail were identified.
Plains-wanderer Acoustic Monitoring
The Plains-wanderer (Pedionomus torquatus) is a unique and critically endangered bird species endemic to Australia and the last of its kind, with a genetic history stretching over 100 million years and no living relatives. It has global significance, ranked number one in the world for conservation importance by the London Zoological Society.
They are known from grassland sites neighbouring our Budgerum Project. The females are notable for their distinctive appearance, having a rufous chest with a black and white collar. Both male and female Plains-wanderers resemble small quail or Button-quail, but they are not closely related at all. Due to habitat loss and other threats, the Plains-wanderer population has sharply declined, making conservation efforts crucial to its survival.
In February 2023, an SM4 Wildlife Song Meter was installed at Site 3 – PPT2, and in August 2024, a second Song Meter was installed at Site 2 – PPT6. The Song Meters were programmed to record wildlife sounds for one hour at both dawn and dusk. Female Plains-wanderers are known to vocalise primarily during the spring season.
To date, there have been no positive detections of Plains-wanderers on the acoustic monitors within the Wilderlands Project site.
We are grateful to the various government and community groups that support our work and contribute to the ongoing protection of this charismatic grassland species.
Protect precious biodiversity at our Budgerum project. Forever. One square metre at a time.
In the heart of the Victorian Riverina, situated just 250 kilometres north of Melbourne, lies our Budgerum project. It is nestled alongside the Avoca River, and encompasses vast flat grassy plains.
But these valuable grasslands face many threats. Across the globe, grassland ecosystems are among the most endangered, their reserves dwindling into small, fragmented patches as agricultural expansion continues.
Preserving the remaining native grasslands in the Victorian Riverina is imperative for the survival of the species that call this ecosystem home. Among these species are the critically endangered Plains Wanderer.
Budgerum Grasslands serves as a 90-hectare sanctuary of exceptional biodiversity, comprising a range of threatened plants. Among these treasures are Chariot Wheels (Maireana cheelii), Bristly Love-grass (Eragrostis setifolia), Long Eryngium (Eryngium paludosum), the endangered Veined Peppercress (Lepidium phlebopetalum), Umbrella Wattle (Acacia oswaldii), and the rare Bush Minuria (Minuria cunninghamii).
By becoming a part of the Wilderlands project, Budgerum, you will be significantly contributing to the overarching preservation efforts aimed at safeguarding its vulnerable species.
Connect with our team to discover how you can join Wilderlands and protect this project today.
