Vegetation of Basket Swamp National Park, Northern Tablelands, New South Wales

Abstract

The vegetation of Basket Swamp National Park (2820 ha), 30 km north east of Tenterfield (28°54'S, 152°09'E) in the Tenterfield Shire, in the Northern Tablelands Bioregion NSW, is described. Seven vegetation communities are mapped based on survey of plots, subsequent ground-truthing, air photo interpretation and substrate. Communities described are: (1) 'Eucalyptus campanulata' (Blackbutt) – 'Eucalyptus cameronii' (Diehard Stringybark) Open Forests, (2) 'Eucalyptus campanulata' (Blackbutt) – 'Eucalyptus cameronii' (Diehard Stringybark) Grassy Open Forests, (3) 'Leptospermum trinervium' (Tea-tree) – 'Leptospermum polygalifolium' subsp. 'transmontanum' (Creek Tea-tree) Riparian Scrub, (4) 'Leptospermum trinervium' (Tea-tree) – Kunzea obovata (Pink Kunzea) – 'Leptospermum novae-angliae' (New England Tea-tree) Heaths & Shrublands, (5) 'Ceratopetalum apetalum' (Coachwood) – 'Lophostemon confertus' (Brush Box) Closed Forest, (6) 'Eucalyptus obliqua' (Messmate) – 'Eucalyptus campanulata' (Blackbutt) Tall Open Forests, and (7) 'Baeckea omissa' (Baeckea) – 'Baloskion stenocoleum' (Sedge) Heathy Sedgelands. All but two communities (3 & 7) were considered adequately reserved locally, no listed endangered or vulnerable communities were found. Thirty-six taxa were considered to be of conservation significance of which two are listed as vulnerable on Schedule 2 of the NSW TSC Act. A further nine have been reported under the RoTAP criteria.