Helmeted honeyeater colony returns to the wild
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3m ago 3 minutes ago Thu 8 May 2025 at 9:09pm
For the first time in almost half a century, helmeted honeyeaters have returned to Cardinia Shire, in Victoria's East. Scientists from Healesville Sanctuary have worked to establish a new population, to help boost the number of this endangered species.
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ABC News
18 hours ago
- ABC News
Rare Earth minerals
Rare earth minerals are again in the headlines. Their supply and who control's them, are ringing alarm bells, as Tariff negotiations put world trade on edge. These minerals are Essential to the global green energy transition and are a vital ingredient of today's cutting edge technology. Where are they? And what power do they exert? Guests: Gracelin Baskin, director of the critical minerals security program at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC. Olivia Lazard. Affiliated with Carnegie Europe and the Berggruen Institute in Brussels. Dr. Chris Vernon, chief research scientist at CSIRO based in Perth, Western Australia John Mavrogenes, Professor of economic geography at the Australian National University in Canberra Presented and produced by Ros Bluett
ABC News
a day ago
- ABC News
Extraordinary friendship between self-confessed plant geeks after gardens destroyed by bushfire
The friendship between Kingsley Dixon and Phil Vaughan was forged in fire. Dixon, a renowned botanist living in Western Australia, and Vaughan, a respected nurseryman in Victoria, had heard of each other, but didn't connect until their properties were destroyed by bushfires on opposite sides of the country, just weeks apart. Both men lost thousands of plants, including rare and endangered native species. "We trade stories about what we lost and now what things are beginning to come back," Mr Vaughan said. Phil Vaughan in his garden near Pomonal, in Victoria's west. ( ABC News: Pat Rocca ) Bonded by shared experience, the self-confessed plant geeks have spent the past year helping each other rebuild — swapping seeds and expertise across Australia. "Phil's just been such a beacon of optimism," Professor Dixon said. "So I fed off him in terms of what I could expect." A year on, both gardens are once again bursting with colour and life. "And that's where the joy's been," Professor Dixon said with a grin. "My goodness. We not only were surprised by the re-sprouting, but the germination has been astonishing." Phil Vaughan's garden has been recovered well from the fires. ( ABC News: Pat Rocca ) Phil Vaughan's garden has recovered well from the fires. (ABC News: Pat Rocca) A pink plant in Phil Vaughan's garden. ( ABC News: Pat Rocca ) (ABC News: Pat Rocca) A plant in Phil Vaughan's garden. ( ABC News: Pat Rocca ) (ABC News: Pat Rocca) But the danger isn't over. Scientists have warned Australia is facing an accelerated biodiversity crisis. "With climate change, we are seeing an increased frequency of what we're calling mega fires," Royal Botanic Gardens director and chief executive Victoria Chris Russell said. "The fact that they're happening more regularly is a real issue." Time and funding are running short, but scientists and passionate individuals refuse to give up — even when the threat literally burns down their backyards. A childhood dream turned nightmare Kingsley Dixon had dreamed of having a property like Cypress Farm since he was a little boy. Cypress Farm, before it was ravaged by fire. ( Supplied: Sabrina Hahn ) The renowned botanist and his husband Lionel Johnston poured their hearts and souls into the 12-acre garden in Waroona, 110 kilometres south of Perth. They proudly welcomed Gardening Australia to film a special feature there in December 2023. Three months later, their garden burned to the ground. The fire at Kingsley's property in March last year. ( Supplied ) It happened on a cool day with minimal wind. But even with mild conditions and a solid fire plan there was no defence from the ember attack. "We tried so hard to put them out," an anguished Professor Dixon told the ABC at the time. "But we just couldn't." The fire destroyed five structures on the property, their Japanese maple collection, and a native garden, which covered about three acres. "It was this big and wonderful collection of rare banksias, rare verticordias — feather flowers — that really got hit, and that was the hardest part for us," Professor Dixon said. A plant at Cypress Farm, before it was ravaged by fire. ( Supplied: Sabrina Hahn ) The Waroona garden before the fire. (Supplied: Sabrina Hahn) A plant at Cypress Farm, before it was ravaged by fire. ( Supplied: Sabrina Hahn ) (Supplied: Sabrina Hahn) Plants at Cypress Farm, before it was ravaged by fire. ( Supplied: Sabrina Hahn ) (Supplied: Sabrina Hahn) When the couple returned to the ruins of their beloved property, they gave themselves a few hours to grieve, then got to work. "I was on the tractor, and we started cleaning up. It's the best tonic," Professor Dixon said. Pomonal's relentless megafire threat On the other side of the country, near the Grampians National Park in western Victoria, Phil Vaughan knew exactly what the clean-up involved. His Pomonal property was one of dozens gutted by fire in February, 2024 — just weeks before Waroona was struck. Flying embers had created an erratic patchwork of damage. "It burned down one garden bed, then tore down the other side," Mr Vaughan said. Thousands of plants were destroyed — many of them rare and endangered natives. Phil Vaughan in his garden. ( ABC News: Pat Rocca ) It took two months for he and his family to stack the burned remnants into a pile they nicknamed "Mount Misery". He was devastated but refused to wallow. "We lost gardens and fences and whatever else but 46 people lost their houses. How do you whinge about losing some plants?" Mr Vaughan asked, shaking his head. Mr Vaughan had spent decades travelling the country to collect and cultivate threatened species, so starting again was a mammoth task. "It was such a vast collection over a long period, but we're getting there," he said. The replanting started in September. In December, a second Grampians megafire threatened his home once again. Bushfires ravaged the countryside near the Grampians in December last year. ( CFA, Lexton Fire Brigade ) "It was a double banger, getting hit twice in one year. You don't think that could ever happen," Mr Vaughan said, shaking his head. This time much of Pomonal was spared, but the threat lingered for more than three weeks as firefighters battled extreme conditions. The fire burned an area larger than Singapore. Some of the areas it decimated were the only natural habitats of certain rare and endangered species. Many Australian species have adapted to bushfires, but CSIRO research has revealed they have become more frequent and intense. Pomonal is situated in the Grampians. about 240 kilometres west of Melbourne. ( ABC News: Pat Rocca ) "The repeated megafires that we're seeing in the Grampians, which is a particular area that we're working in at the moment, is really making it hard for plants to continue to survive in the conditions in relation to fire there," said the Royal Botanic Gardens's Chris Russell. "Once it's gone, it's gone." Securing the future of Australia's seed sources On the western edge of Melbourne's Botanic Gardens, scientists have spent more than a century persevering and protecting Australian flora. For the past 10 years, the Victorian Conservation Seedbank has been a crucial part of that mission. "It's a collection of seeds and genetic material from plants in the wild that are at risk of extinction," Mr Russell said. The seed bank contains a multitude of species at risk of disappearing. ( ABC News ) In a series of complex and targeted operations, the Seedbank's scientists collect, research, store and germinate native seeds from across the state and country. The seeds or spores of more than half of Victoria's threatened species have been stored in its vaults. Whenever possible, endangered plant species have been reintroduced into the wild. A researcher from the Victorian Conservation Seedbank looks at an x-ray of banksia seeds. ( ABC News ) Their mission has become increasingly urgent. "It's an accelerated biodiversity crisis that we're going through at the moment," Mr Russell said. Causes range from habitat loss, clearing, and climate change. Incredibly, his team had collected seeds from a threatened plant endemic to the Grampians just one week before the most recent megafire destroyed everything that was left. "This rare and threatened genetic material, the seeds, is really like gold," Mr Russell said. The Victorian Conservation Seedbank stores more than a billion seeds from around Victoria. ( ABC News ) The Victorian Conservation Seedbank holds over 2,330 collections covering over 1,500 taxa. (ABC News) The Victorian Conservation Seedbank stores more than a billion seeds from around Victoria. ( ABC News ) (ABC News) The Victorian Conservation Seedbank stores more than a billion seeds from around Victoria. ( ABC News ) (ABC News) Almost 50 flora species are only found in the Grampians National Park. "There might be only 100, 150 left in the wild so if they get hit on two subsequent seasons or too regularly, and they don't get a chance to set seed, and then mature for the next generation of plants, that's what really causes the problem," Mr Russell said. Their rescue mission has support from 15 other seed banks around Australia that run education programs, share information and coordinate funding applications. "It all obviously takes resources to achieve this important work, but it also works with other botanic gardens, other community groups," Mr Russell said. "There are specialist individuals, community members who are avid plant collectors and are really some of the most knowledgeable experts in particular groups of plants, so drawing on that knowledge and working with them in the field as well. "Everyone can play a role in conserving plants." Professor Dixon and Mr Vaughan could not agree more. "I think the home gardener has a role to play in all of this … I call it people power," Professor Dixon said. "it's giving people the power to be part of the conservation solution." 'Preservation by cultivation' Using their own properties as examples, Mr Vaughan and Professor Dixon hope other gardeners will join the mission to save endangered species. "If everyone's got one in their garden … nothing's lost," Professor Dixon said, as Mr Vaughan nodded. Phil Vaughan and Kingsley Dixon got to know each other after their properties were destroyed by fire. ( ABC News: Patrick Rocca ) The two men have not only replanted endangered species, but reinforced them through a process known as grafting. Professor Dixon said Mr Vaughan was renowned in horticultural circles for his grafting experience. "You've got a desirable top half, and you stick it onto the roots of something that's hopefully bombproof," said Mr Vaughan. In other words, the vulnerable plant gets attached to the disease or drought resistant rootstock of a different species, making it far more resilient. The grafting aims to create more resilient plants in times of drought and fire. ( Supplied: Kings Park ) Over the past year, they decided to teach others the art of grafting, holding workshops on both sides of the country. "I think that's our duty now, to share the magic and grow Australian biodiversity," Professor Dixon said. "Preservation by cultivation," Mr Vaughan added. Workshops are hosted by Kings Park and Botanic Gardens in Perth. (Supplied: Kings Park) (Supplied: Kings Park) (Supplied: Kings Park) Their collaboration has given both men renewed vigour to keep up the fight for their conservation. "To get all things back in a bigger and better way, but more importantly, the friendship with Kingsley is something that's going to go on forever," Mr Vaughan said. "And hopefully encourage other people to have the same sort of passion as we've got."
News.com.au
2 days ago
- News.com.au
La Trobe researchers warn gazania garden plant sold at Bunnings is ‘highly invasive'
A popular garden plant sold at Bunnings is even more invasive and potentially dangerous to Australia's natural environment than originally thought, new research has revealed. La Trobe scientists, writing in the Frontiers journal, warn that gazania daisies, a brightly coloured ornamental plant sold in nurseries nationwide, is a 'highly-invasive plant' that is beginning to impact grain production and grasslands across southern Australia. The plant can germinate and thrive in almost all conditions, the report shows, regardless of moisture, temperature or salinity levels. 'Due to its flexible growth requirements, gazania is now widespread and naturalised in a variety of habitats including coastal sand dunes, stream banks, wastelands, open grasslands, along roadsides and on cultivated and irrigated sites,' the report states. 'While gazania has long been considered as an environmental weed in Australia, a trend of 'jumping the fence' has been observed in recent years, infesting grain crop production fields in low-rainfall regions of South Australia. 'The presence of gazania in cropping fields is proving highly problematic, with farmers finding it difficult to control with common herbicides.' The researchers warn the weed is now 'rapidly spreading' across Australia and urgent long-term management strategies are needed to control the invasion. Gazania is native to South Africa and was introduced into Australia in the 1950s and 1970s. Invasive Species Council advocacy manager Imogen Ebsworth said the daisies should be banned from sale immediately. 'Gazanias are the perfect example of an escaped invasive garden plant that needs to be banned from sale,' she said. 'They are already banned in South Australia, but it's clear we need them pulled nationally. 'I urge the nursery industry to act on this new evidence and stop selling it … we've seen this story unfold far too many times. Ornamental plants that turn into unstoppable weeds, costing us billions in control efforts and wiping out native species in the process.' The council estimates more than 30,000 plant species have been imported into Australia for gardening, but 'fewer than a quarter' have been assessed nationally for their weed risk. Weeds cost the country more than $5bn a year in agricultural and environmental damage, the council said, with 'escaped' ornamental plants making up more than 70 per cent of the country's environmental weeds. Garden plants can escape and germinate in the wild via garden waste, lawn clippings and seed dispersal. Bunnings continues to sell gazanias, NewsWire has confirmed. According to the retail giant, each state and territory has its own list of declared weeds and laws and regulations for invasive weeds. The plants Bunnings sells across its stores differ depending on where they are sold and their declaration status. 'Like many nurseries and retailers, we sell a wide range of locally sourced plants across our stores and we work hard to create an assortment that caters to customer preferences and demand,' Bunnings director of merchandise Cam Rist said. 'As always, we closely follow all relevant local biosecurity regulations and the advice of regulators about the plants we sell.' The plant is also sold at other nurseries, including online marketplaces. The council argues 'self-regulation' has not worked and wants a federal government response. 'We've spent decades relying mainly on self-regulation, which just doesn't work,' Ms Ebsworth said. 'You can still legally buy plants that are banned in neighbouring states or overseas. 'Unless governments act, we'll keep selling the next lantana, the next gazania, straight into our backyards and bushland.'
