Dry forests and woodlands
Musk Lorikeet (Photo: J.Tscharke)
5 months ago from Parks Victoria
Location: Dry forests and woodlands
Lace Monitor (Photo: J.Tscharke)
5 months ago from Parks Victoria
Location: Dry forests and woodlands
Tawny Frogmouth (Photo: M. Antos)
5 months ago from Parks Victoria
Location: Dry forests and woodlands
Box Ironbark (Photo: D. Simondson)
5 months ago from Parks Victoria
Location: Dry forests and woodlands
Grey Box Woodland (Photo: Mark Antos)
5 months ago from Parks Victoria
Location: Dry forests and woodlands
There are many types of dry forests and woodlands occurring across the drier northern slopes of the Great Divide, as well as in Victorian foothills, coasts and plains.
Stringybark forests dominate the near-coastal landscape east of Western Port; grassy woodlands are scattered throughout the Western district; and box-ironbark forest cover a wide arc from west of Stawell to east of Wangaratta.
During the gold rush, huge areas of forest were cut to provide wood for fuel and building. Forests were also cleared for agriculture, particularly in the more fertile plains and valleys. The remaining forests are fragmented and prone to invasion by weeds and pest animals.
More about dry forests and woodlands
- They support a wide variety of plants and animals including a range of reptiles and significant mammals such as the Brush-tailed Phascogale, Squirrel Glider and Regent Honeyeater
- Have an understory of native wallaby, spear, kangaroo, tussock and weeping grasses and herbs which respond well to low intensity fire
- Support some of the state’s rarest orchids
- Old and dead trees provide habitat for a variety of animals
- Birds, such as the Swift Parrot, travel long distances to feed in the trees and shrubs at peak flowering times.
Key Threats
- Weed invasion
- Over grazing by introduced and native herbivores
- Phytophthora cinnamomi (a fungal dieback).
Where to see dry forests and woodlands
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Grass Tree
14 May 2012
Grass trees (Xanthorrhoea australis, Xanthorrhoea minor) have a rough black trunk which only starts appearing after many years of growth. They have long narrow leaves clustered at the top of the trunk with cream or white flowers massed in a thick spike which can be up to 3 metres …
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