Sediment yields and soil loss rates from native forest, pasture and cultivated land in the Bathurst area, New South Wales

Native forest at Durras in south-eastern New South Wales and Jarrahdale in south-western Western Australia was examined for the presence of Phytophthora cinnamomi by two sampling and isolation techniques. With the lupin seeding baiting technique, randomly selected samples of soil and fine roots collected from the New South Wales site yielded P. cinnamomi when baited, while similar baiting of comparable samples from Western Australia failed. Direct plating of samples of upper roots and root collars of recently dead Banksia grandis from Western Australian sites yielded P. cinnamomi, while this organism was not isolated from comparable samples of chlorotic Macrozamia communis collected at the New South Wales site. The results suggest that the form of occurrence of P. cinnamomi and its association with disease in Australia vary in different situations. Viewing each situation independently might ensure the adoption of control/prevention strategies appropriate to all.

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Comparison of Bird Counts From Pine Forest and Indigenous Vegetation.

Wildlife Research ◽

10.1071/wr9770281 ◽

1977 ◽

Vol 4 (3) ◽

pp. 281 ◽

Cited By ~ 21

Author(s):

PV Driscoll

Keyword(s):

Pinus Radiata ◽

New South ◽

New South Wales ◽

Bird Communities ◽

Pine Forest ◽

Native Forest ◽

Number Of Species ◽

Eucalyptus Forest ◽

South Wales ◽

Forest Habitats

Bird counts were taken in Feb., March and July 1975 in 4 native habitats, ranging from wet sclerophyll Eucalyptus forest to mallee (E. stricta)-heath on the Boyd Plateau, and two Pinus radiata habitats (20 yr and 40 yr) in the Jenolan State Forest, New South Wales, Australia. In each season the number of birds and the number of species was highest in the native forest habitats, lower in the pine habitats and least in the mallee-heath. The composition of native forest, pine forest, and mallee-heath bird communities shows considerable differences.

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The Influence of Proximity of Plantation Edge on Diversity and Abundance of bird species in an exotic pine plantation in north-eastern New South Wales

Wildlife Research ◽

10.1071/wr9910299 ◽

1991 ◽

Vol 18 (3) ◽

pp. 299 ◽

Cited By ~ 25

Author(s):

GN Curry

Keyword(s):

New South ◽

Structural Characteristics ◽

New South Wales ◽

Bird Species ◽

Native Forest ◽

Feeding Guild ◽

South Wales ◽

North Eastern ◽

Plantation Life ◽

Abundance And Diversity

Data were collected in summer and winter in a 15-year-old plantation of Pinus taeda, at Clouds Creek, north-eastern New South Wales. In summer, diversity and abundance of bird species declined over a distance of 900 m into the plantation. However, in winter this progressive decline in bird densities was limited to within the first 200 m of the plantation periphery. At greater distances into the plantation, the floristic and structural characteristics of the vegetation (including windrows) were of more importance than the proximity of the plantation edge in accounting for variations in the abundance and diversity of birds. Food for insectivorous birds (the dominant feeding guild) is probably restricted in the plantation because few local species of invertebrates are likely to be adapted to living on exotic pines; invertebrate mobility as well as abundance is probably less in winter, so that fewer invertebrates enter the plantation from adjacent native forest. Windrows are an important habitat feature contributing to the diversity and abundance of birds within plantations, probably serving as 'corridors' through the alien habitat of exotic pines, thus enabling birds to range further into plantations. For approximately 40 per cent of the plantation life cycle, the influence of proximity of plantation edge on diversity and abundance of bird species is probably of limited importance, particularly in winter. Reducing plantation size in order to increase the diversity and abundance of bird species is not realistic, because plantations would have to be very small. Instead, emphasis should be placed on increasing the structural and floristic diversity of plantations by creating a broad range of successional stages throughout the plantation complex, by enhancing the habitat value of windrows, and by retaining native vegetation within and near plantations.

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Digital mapping of RUSLE slope length and steepness factor across New South Wales, Australia

Soil Research ◽

10.1071/sr14208 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 53 (2) ◽

pp. 216 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

Xihua Yang

Keyword(s):

Land Use Planning ◽

Soil Loss ◽

Overland Flow ◽

New South ◽

New South Wales ◽

Slope Angle ◽

Universal Soil Loss Equation ◽

Slope Length ◽

South Wales ◽

Soil Loss Equation

The Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) and its main derivate, the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE), are widely used in estimating hillslope erosion. The effects of topography on hillslope erosion are estimated through the product of slope length (L) and slope steepness (S) subfactors, or LS factor, which often contains the highest detail and plays the most influential role in RUSLE. However, current LS maps in New South Wales (NSW) are either incomplete (e.g. point-based) or too coarse (e.g. 250 m), limiting RUSLE-based applications. The aim of this study was to develop automated procedures in a geographic information system (GIS) to estimate and map the LS factor across NSW. The method was based on RUSLE specifications and it incorporated a variable cutoff slope angle, which improves the detection of the beginning and end of each slope length. An overland-flow length algorithm for L subfactor calculation was applied through iterative slope-length cumulation and maximum downhill slope angle. Automated GIS scripts have been developed for LS factor calculation so that the only required input data are digital elevation models (DEMs). Hydrologically corrected DEMs were used for LS factor calculation on a catchment basis, then merged to form a seamless LS-factor digital map for NSW with a spatial resolution ~30 m (or 1 s). The modelled LS values were compared with the reference LS values, and the coefficient of efficiency reached 0.97. The high-resolution digital LS map produced is now being used along with other RUSLE factors in hillslope erosion modelling and land-use planning at local and regional scales across NSW.

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Reducing denitrification loss with nitrification inhibitors following presowing applications of urea to a cottonfield

Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture ◽

10.1071/ea9940075 ◽

1994 ◽

Vol 34 (1) ◽

pp. 75 ◽

Cited By ~ 21

Author(s):

DL Chen ◽

JR Freney ◽

AR Mosier ◽

PM Chalk

Keyword(s):

Soil Loss ◽

New South ◽

New South Wales ◽

Calcium Carbide ◽

Nitrification Inhibitors ◽

N Loss ◽

Mineral N ◽

N Transformations ◽

South Wales ◽

Denitrification Loss

The effects of the nitrification inhibitors nitrapyrin, acetylene (provided by wax-coated calcium carbide), and phenylacetylene on nitrogen (N) transformations and denitrification losses following presowing applications of urea were determined in a cottonfield in the Namoi Valley of New South Wales. The study used 0.05-m-diameter microplots to follow the changes in mineral N, and 0.15-m-diameter microplots fertilised with 15N-labelled urea (6 g N/ m2; 5 atom % 15N) to assess losses of applied N. When urea was applied in February (34 weeks before sowing), 84% of applied N was lost from the soil. Loss of applied N was reduced by addition of nitrapyrin and phenylacetylene, to 53 and 57%, respectively. In the absence of nitrification inhibitors, less N was lost (72% of that applied) from an application in May than from the February application. Addition of acetylene, phenylacetylene, and nitrapyrin reduced losses over the 24 weeks to sowing to 57, 52, and 48%, respectively. These experiments show that N loss from presowing applications of urea can be significantly reduced by the use of nitrification inhibitors, but that the losses of N are still substantial.

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Digital mapping of soil erodibility for water erosion in New South Wales, Australia

Soil Research ◽

10.1071/sr17058 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 56 (2) ◽

pp. 158 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Xihua Yang ◽

Jonathan Gray ◽

Greg Chapman ◽

Qinggaozi Zhu ◽

Mitch Tulau ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Soil Erosion ◽

Soil Properties ◽

Soil Loss ◽

New South ◽

New South Wales ◽

Field Measurements ◽

Soil Erodibility ◽

South Wales ◽

Australian Continent ◽

K Factor

Soil erodibility represents the soil’s response to rainfall and run-off erosivity and is related to soil properties such as organic matter content, texture, structure, permeability and aggregate stability. Soil erodibility is an important factor in soil erosion modelling, such as the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE), in which it is represented by the soil erodibility factor (K-factor). However, determination of soil erodibility at larger spatial scales is often problematic because of the lack of spatial data on soil properties and field measurements for model validation. Recently, a major national project has resulted in the release of digital soil maps (DSMs) for a wide range of key soil properties over the entire Australian continent at approximately 90-m spatial resolution. In the present study we used the DSMs and New South Wales (NSW) Soil and Land Information System to map and validate soil erodibility for soil depths up to 100 cm. We assessed eight empirical methods or existing maps on erodibility estimation and produced a harmonised high-resolution soil erodibility map for the entire state of NSW with improvements based on studies in NSW. The modelled erodibility values were compared with those from field measurements at soil plots for NSW soils and revealed good agreement. The erodibility map shows similar patterns as that of the parent material lithology classes, but no obvious trend with any single soil property. Most of the modelled erodibility values range from 0.02 to 0.07 t ha h ha–1 MJ–1 mm–1 with a mean (± s.d.) of 0.035 ± 0.007 t ha h ha–1 MJ–1 mm–1. The validated K-factor map was further used along with other RUSLE factors to assess soil loss across NSW for preventing and managing soil erosion.

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A review of the oribatid mite family Nothridae in Australia, with new species of Novonothrus and Trichonothrus from rain forest and their Gondwanan biogeo-graphical affinities (Acari: Oribatida)

Zootaxa ◽

10.11646/zootaxa.3005.1.1 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 3005 (1) ◽

pp. 1 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

MATTHEW J. COLLOFF

Keyword(s):

New Species ◽

New Zealand ◽

Environmental History ◽

Rain Forest ◽

New South ◽

New South Wales ◽

Oribatid Mite ◽

Native Forest ◽

South Wales ◽

High Diversity

The Nothridae of Australia hitherto consisted of the semi-cosmopolitan Nothrus anauniensis, Novonothrus flagellatus and an un-named Novonothrus species. This paper contains additional records of N. anauniensis and descriptions of five new species of Novonothrus, including immatures (N. barringtonensis sp. nov., N. coronospinosus sp. nov., N. glabriseta sp. nov., N. nothofagii sp. nov. and N. silvanus sp. nov.), a genus known from Australia, New Zealand and Chile. A key to Novonothrus is provided and the genus redefined. A second species of Trichonothrus (T. hallidayi sp. nov.), is described, representing a new generic record for Australia: Trichonothrus was previously known only from South Africa. Supplementary descriptions are given for Novonothrus flagellatus Hammer, 1966 and Trichonothrus austroafricanus Mahunka, 1986. The Australian record of the former species is based on a misidentification of the species described herein as N. glabriseta sp. nov. and N. flagellatus appears to be confined to New Zealand. Three species groups are proposed for Novonothrus: Barringtonensis (N. barringtonensis, N. nothofagii and N. silvanus) from central New South Wales and Victoria; Puyehue (N. glabriseta from Tasmania, N. puyehue, N. covarrubiasi and N. kethleyi from Valdivian temperate rain forest in Chile) and Flagellatus (N. coronospinosus from northern New South Wales and N. flagellatus from native forest, including Nothofagus, in New Zealand). Novonothrus and Trichonothrus show a relict Gondwanan distribution and are associated with indigenous wet forests. In Australia, members of these genera have been recorded mostly from cool tem-perate Nothofagus rain forest. The relatively high diversity of sexual species of Nothrina in Australian temperate rain forests is contrasted with high diversity of thelytokous parthenogenetic species in temperate Northern Hemisphere localities and is discussed in relation to differences in palaeoclimate and environmental history.

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The butterfly fauna of the Pilliga Forest, a large woodland remnant in the Brigalow Belt South bioregion in northern inland New South Wales, Australia

Pacific Conservation Biology ◽

10.1071/pc18002 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 25 (2) ◽

pp. 193

Author(s):

Michael J. Murphy

Keyword(s):

Narrow Range ◽

New South ◽

New South Wales ◽

Native Forest ◽

Butterfly Species ◽

Faunal Assemblages ◽

South Wales ◽

Butterfly Fauna ◽

Conservation Concern ◽

Eastern Highlands

Sixty-three butterfly species representing five families have been recorded from the Pilliga Forest in northern inland New South Wales – the largest surviving remnant of native forest on the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range. This is one of the richest recorded butterfly faunas of any location on the New South Wales western slopes and adjacent plains, reflecting the location of the Pilliga Forest in a biogeographic overlap zone between northern and southern faunal assemblages with proximity to both the western plains and outliers of the mesic eastern highlands. No narrow-range endemic species or species of state or national conservation concern were recorded; however, half of the species recorded have patchy, discontinuous distributions within their broad range due to specific habitat requirements. Some minor western range extensions are recorded and two hilltopping sites are documented. This study highlights the significant biodiversity conservation value of the Pilliga Forest in the predominantly cleared western slopes bioregions.

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Private native forest policies in New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria and Tasmania

Small-scale Forestry ◽

10.1007/s11842-007-9011-5 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 6 (2) ◽

pp. 141-155 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Sue Aenishaenslin ◽

Kate Convery ◽

Basil Gua ◽

Mia Spain ◽

Lee Tunstall

Keyword(s):

New South ◽

New South Wales ◽

Native Forest ◽

Forest Policies ◽

South Wales

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Deriving RUSLE cover factor from time-series fractional vegetation cover for hillslope erosion modelling in New South Wales

Soil Research ◽

10.1071/sr13297 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 52 (3) ◽

pp. 253 ◽

Cited By ~ 29

Author(s):

Xihua Yang

Keyword(s):

Time Series ◽

Vegetation Cover ◽

Soil Loss ◽

New South ◽

New South Wales ◽

Ground Cover ◽

Erosion Hazard ◽

Fractional Vegetation Cover ◽

South Wales ◽

Factor C

Soil loss due to water erosion, in particular hillslope erosion, can be estimated using predictive models such as the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE). One of the important and dynamic elements in the RUSLE model is the cover and management factor (C-factor), which represents effects of vegetation canopy and ground cover in reducing soil loss. This study explores the potential for using fractional vegetation cover, rather than traditional green vegetation indices (e.g. NDVI), to estimate C-factor and consequently hillslope erosion hazard across New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Values of the C-factor were estimated from the emerging time-series fractional cover products derived from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS). Time-series C-factor and hillslope erosion maps were produced for NSW on monthly and annual bases for a 13-year period from 2000 to 2012 using automated scripts in a geographic information system. The estimated C-factor time-series values were compared with previous study and field measurements in NSW revealing good consistency in both spatial and temporal contexts. Using these time-series maps, the relationship was analysed between ground cover and hillslope erosion and their temporal variation across NSW. Outcomes from this time-series study are being used to assess hillslope erosion hazard, sediment and water quality (particularly after severe bushfires) across NSW at local, catchment and regional scales.

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