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Appendix 3

Corysanthes sp. aff diemenicus Coastal
(Late Helmet-orchid)

Conservation status:

EPBC Act 1999: Not listed

IUCN (2000): CR

NRE (2000): E

Distribution:

Endemic to Victoria - Victorian Gippsland Plain Bioregion (Cape Schank, Mornington Peninsula National Park) and Wilsons Promontory Bioregion (Cotters Lake, Wilsons promontory National Park). Can be expected to occur in similar habitat in southern Victoria, but no records are yet available.

Specific details of population localities (including GPS data) are held on DSE internal files.

Abundance:

< 500 plants, in 2 populations. Likely to be naturally rare, but more common prior to landscape scale disturbance particularly from weed invasion and clearing of Woolly Tea-tree scrub.

Habitat:

Occurs in closed scrub dominated by Leptospermum lanigerum, typically associated with Leucopogon parviflorus in swamps and along water courses on moist, black, peaty alkaline soils overlying calcarenite. Understorey is relatively open, with a herbaceous ground layer which may include Viola hederacea, Lobelia anceps, Selliera radicans and Geranium molle. Critical habitat has not been determined, but likely to be restricted to alkaline soils and may require occasional creation of canopy gaps for regeneration.

Reservation status:

Reserved at Wilsons Promontory National Park and Mornington Peninsula National Park.

Management:

Parks Victoria (Victoria East Region, Tidal River; City and Bays Region, Rosebud).

Recovery objectives:

Maintain and/or increase existing population sizes; protect and manage habitat

Recovery actions undertaken:

• Both sites were visited during recovery plan preparation.

Issues specific to recovery:

• The site at MPNP appears to have dried out somewhat, and plants have not been seen in recent years. Woolly Tea-trees are also showing signs of senescence and the site is significantly degraded by invasive pest plants, predominantly Senecio angulatus.
• Searches in similar habitat in the Mornington Peninsula are urgently required (eg. Buckleys Reserve, Balnarring).
• All PV staff at WPNP, including seasonal field staff, should be made aware of the site's location to prevent damage to plants.
• Some careful hand weeding may be required at WPNP.

Overall recovery strategy:

Searches for new populations to re-locate known populations will be conducted, and baseline data collected with assistance of Field Naturalists. Weed management will be investigated at MPNP in the immediate vicinity of the known population and strategies to maintain and regenerate habitat will be investigated. Risk management at WPNP will include site protection by ongoing track closure and inclusion on Environmental Information System. Recovery will be jointly managed by DSE and PV.

Consultation:

Parks Victoria (Victoria East Region, Tidal River; City and Bays Region, Rosebud); John Eichler (Melbourne Field Naturalists Club).