The ecology of Sydney, located in the state of New South Wales, Australia, is diverse for its size, [1] where it would mainly feature biomes such as grassy woodlands or savannas and some sclerophyll forests, with some pockets of mallee shrublands, riparian forests, heathlands, and wetlands, in addition to small temperate and subtropical rainforest fragments. [2] [3]
There are 79 vegetation communities in the Sydney metropolitan area that are identified, described and mapped. [4] The combination of climate, topography, moisture, and soil influence the dispersion of these ecological communities across a height gradient from 0 to 200 metres (0 to 700 ft). [5] There are many hiking trails, paved and unpaved roads for exploring the many different biomes and ecosystems. [6] [7] [8]
Savannas (or grassy woodlands), the most predominant biome in the Sydney region, [9] mainly occur in the Cumberland Plain west of Sydney CBD, which generally feature eucalyptus trees that are usually in open, dry sclerophyll woodland areas with shrubs (typically wattles, callistemons, grevilleas and banksias) and sparse grass in the understory, reminiscent of Mediterranean forests. [10] The plants in this community tend to have rough and spiky leaves, as they are grown in areas with low soil fertility.
Wet sclerophyll forests, which are part of Eastern Australian temperate forests, have narrow, relatively tall, dense trees with a lush, moist understory of fleecy shrubs and tree ferns. They are mainly found in the wetter areas, such as Forest District and the North Shore. [11]
It has been calculated that around 98,000 hectares of native vegetation remains in the Sydney metropolitan area, shaping the geography of Sydney, about half of what is likely to have been existing at the time of European arrival. [12]
In 1787, the First Fleet personnel discovered a landscape that was alien to them, and unlike the green meadows and deciduous forests of England. Arthur Phillip expressed that: [13]
The coast, as well as the neighbouring country in general, is covered with wood...The necks of land that form the coves are mostly covered with timber, yet so rocky that it is not easy to comprehend how the trees could have sufficient nourishment to bring them to so considerable a magnitude.
This was a response to comparisons with the mostly deeper, fertile soils of the British Isles and how the rocky mountainous areas like the Scottish Highlands and Dartmoor lacked tree cover. [13]
The "neck of land" which separates the southern part of the harbour from the northern part was primarily sand. Between Sydney Cove and Botany Bay the first area is made up of woodland. The rest of the land consisted of heath, poor sand and several swamplands. Coastal areas featured mangroves in many inlets, estuaries at Port Jackson, in addition to decentralized areas of saltwater or freshwater marshes, and sheltered areas of subtropical rainforest along waterbody valleys. [13]
Most of the North Shore and inland areas featured sclerophyll forests and woodlands filled with eucalypts of many different species, ranging in different heights, and growing at immensely contrasting densities. Much of the wooded land had grass cover under the trees, but comparatively small understorey shrub or smaller tree growth. Cumberland Plain, which is inland, had sparser and fewer tree cover than the region near the coast. By May 1789 much of the thick forest around Port Jackson was cleared. [13]
First Fleet surgeon George Worgan described the environment of Sydney, particularly its terrain: [13]
...We meet with, in many parts, a fine black soil; luxuriantly covered with grass, & the Trees at 30 or 40 yards [27–37 m] distant from each other, so as to resemble Meadow land, yet these spots are frequently interrupt[ed] in their Extent by either a rocky, or a sandy, or a swampy surface, crowded with large trees, and almost impenetrable from Brushwood which being the case will necessarily require much Time and Labour to cultivate any considerable space of land together.
In 1819, British settler William Wentworth described Sydney's vegetation and landform in great detail:
The colony of New South Wales possesses every variety of soil, from the sandy heath, and the cold hungry clay, to the fertile loam and the deep vegetable mould. For the distance of 5 mi (8.0 km) to 6 mi (9.7 km) from the coast, the land is in general extremely barren, being a poor hungry sand, thickly studded with rocks. A few miserable stunted gums, and a dwarf underwood, are the richest productions of the best part of it; while the rest never gives birth to a tree at all, and is only covered with low flowering shrubs, whose infinite diversity, however, and extraordinary beauty, render this wild heath the most interesting part of the country for the botanist, and make even the less scientific beholder forget the nakedness and sterility of the scene.
Beyond this barren waste, which thus forms a girdle to the coast, the country suddenly begins to improve. The soil changes to a thin layer of vegetable mould, resting on a stratum of yellow clay, which is again supported by a deep bed of schistus. The trees of the forest are here of the most stately dimensions. Full sized gums and iron barks, alongside of which the loftiest trees in this country would appear as pigmies, with the beefwood tree, or as it is generally termed, the forest oak, which is of much humbler growth, are the usual timber. The forest is extremely thick, but there is little or no underwood.
At this distance, however, the aspect of the country begins rapidly to improve. The forest is less thick, and the trees in general are of another description; the iron barks, yellow gums, and forest oaks disappearing, and the stringy barks, blue gums, and box trees, generally usurping their stead. When you have advanced about 4 mi (6.4 km) further into the interior, you are at length gratified with the appearance of a country truly beautiful. An endless variety of hill and dale, clothed in the most luxuriant herbage, and covered with bleating flocks and lowing herds, at length indicate that you are in regions fit to be inhabited by civilized man. The soil has no longer the stamp of barrenness. A rich loam resting on a substratum of fat red clay, several feet in depth, is found even on the tops of the highest hills, which in general do not yield in fertility to the valleys. The timber, strange as it may appear, is of inferior size, though still of the same nature, i. e. blue gum, box, and stringy bark. There is no underwood, and the number of trees upon an acre do not upon an average exceed thirty. They are, in fact, so thin, that a person may gallop without difficulty in every direction. [14]
Early settlers compared the landscapes to the manicured parks of England which also featured well-spaced trees and a grassy understorey. [15] In 1787, Arthur Bowes Smyth from the First Fleet described the landscape in a favourable manner: [13]
...fresh terraced, lawns and grottos with distinct plantations of the tallest and most stately trees I ever saw in any nobleman's grounds in England, cannot excel in beauty those whose nature now presented to our view. The singing of the various birds among the trees, the flight of the numerous parraquets, lorrequets, cockatoos and macaws, made all around appear like an enchantment; the stupendous rocks from the summit of the hills and down to the very water's edge hang'g over in a most awful way from above, and form’g the most commodious quays by the water, beggard all description.
Captain John Hunter, who criticised Sydney for having "poor, sterile soil, full of stones", had a more positive view of Rosehill's and Parramatta's landscape, which are further west, for having arable lands, stating: [13]
...But near, and at the head of the harbour, there is a very considerable extent of tolerable land, and which may be cultivated without waiting for its being cleared of wood; for the trees stand very wide of each other, and have no underwood: in short, the woods on the spot I am speaking of resemble a deer park… but the soil appears to me to be rather sandy and shallow, and will require much manure to improve it… however, there are people… who think it good land… The grass upon it is about 3 feet [nearly a metre] high, very close and thick; probably farther back there may be very extensive tracts of this kind of country…
Another First Fleet surgeon, Arthur Bowes Smyth, also acknowledged the beauty of scenery: [13]
The general face of the country is certainly pleasing, being diversified with gentle scents, and little winding vallies, covered for the most part with large spreading trees, which afford a succession of leaves in all seasons. In those places where trees are scarce, a variety of flowering shrubs abound, most of them entirely new to an European and surpassing in beauty, and number, all I ever saw in an uncultivated state.
In 1827, Peter Cunningham described the western plains of Sydney as "a fine timbered country, perfectly clear of bush...through which you might, generally speaking, drive a gig in all directions, without any impediment in the shape of rocks, scrub or close forest.". [16]
After landing, the First Fleet thought that Botany Bay was an inhospitable, swampy piece of land which lacked a source of drinking water, in addition to the area featuring poor, sandy soils that did not have any substance. Arthur Phillips writes: [13]
The appearance of the place is picturesque and pleasing...but something more essential than beauty of appearance...must be sought in a place where the permanent residence of multitudes is to be established.
Regarding Phillips' statement, Australian environmentalist Tim Flannery wrote: "The vegetation the early Europeans found growing on the Sydney sandstone both delighted and appalled them...the hungry settlers realized in despair that this magnificent vegetation offered little sustenance". Moreover, the First Fleet's reaction to the Botany Bay area was so negative that Phillip and his crew almost instantly explored further north, towards Port Jackson and Broken Bay. [13]
Upon arriving in Port Jackson, First Fleet lieutenant David Blackburn wrote that Sydney Harbour was "either Immense Barren Rocks, tumbled together in Large Ridges which are almost Inaccessible to Goats, or A Dry Sandy Soil and A General Want of Water". First Fleet officer John Hunter also described Sydney Cove as "very bad, most of the ground being covered with rocks, or large stones". [13]
In July 1788, Lieutenant Ralph Clark, a member of the First Fleet, had a scathing view of Sydney's landscape, climate and as well its inhabitants, writing: [13]
I shall only tell you that this is the poorest country in the world, which its inhabitance [sic] shows they are the most miserable set of wretches under the Sun… there is neither river or Spring in the country that we have been able to find… all the fresh water comes out of swamps which the country abounds with… the country is overrun with large trees not one Acre of clear ground to be seen… the Thunder and Lightning is the most Terrible I ever herd [sic], it is the opinion of every body here that the Government will remove the Settlement to some other place for if it remains here this country will not be able to maintain its self in 100 years...
In a 1793 commentary map by Watkin Tench, the overall notion was that most of Sydney agriculturally poor – The land around South Head was "exceedingly rocky, sandy & barren"; the area northwest of Botany Bay was "sandy barren swampy Country"; the coastline from Manly to Mona Vale was "sandy, rocky and very bad Country", the Ku-ring-gai Chase area was "very bad & rugged", the Cattai area was "very dreadful Country", and the southwest of Prospect Hill was a "bad Country frequently over-flowed". [13]
The most widespread eucalyptus species in the Sydney region include: [34]
Non-eucalyptus tree species:
Common shrub species include, but are not limited to:
Introduced shrubs and/or vines that are invasive species): [57]
Due to the microclimate, the plant hardiness zone in the Sydney area would range: [58]
The fauna of the Sydney area is diverse and its urban area is home to variety of bird and insect species, and also a few bat, arachnid and amphibian species. Introduced birds such as the house sparrow, common myna and feral pigeon are ubiquitous in the CBD areas of Sydney. [59] [60] Moreover, possums, bandicoots, rabbits, feral cats, lizards, snakes and frogs may also be present in the urban environment, albeit seldom in city centers. [61]
About 40 species of reptiles are found in the Sydney region and 30 bird species exist in the urban areas. [62] [63] [64] Sydney's outer suburbs, namely those adjacent to large parks, have a great diversity of wildlife. [65] Since European settlement and the subsequent bushland clearing for the increasing population, 60% of the original mammals are now considered endangered or vulnerable, and many reptile species are experiencing population diminution and are becoming elusive. [66]
This list includes bird species that are widespread in the Sydney metropolitan area: [67]
Although not commonly spotted, these birds are also present in Sydney: [64]
This list includes mammal, reptile and amphibian species that are spotted in the Sydney urban area: [68] [69]
This list includes insect, spider and centipede species that are commonly present in Sydney: [70]
The Royal National Park is a protected national park that is located in Sutherland Shire local government area in the southern portion of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Sclerophyll is a type of vegetation that is adapted to long periods of dryness and heat. The plants feature hard leaves, short internodes and leaf orientation which is parallel or oblique to direct sunlight. The word comes from the Greek sklēros (hard) and phyllon (leaf). The term was coined by A.F.W. Schimper in 1898, originally as a synonym of xeromorph, but the two words were later differentiated.
The geography of Sydney is characterised by its coastal location on a basin bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the east, the Blue Mountains to the west, the Hawkesbury River to the north and the Woronora Plateau to the south. Sydney lies on a submergent coastline on the east coast of New South Wales, where the ocean level has risen to flood deep river valleys (rias) carved in the Sydney sandstone. Port Jackson, better known as Sydney Harbour, is one such ria.
The Cumberland Plain, also known as Cumberland Basin, is a relatively flat region lying to the west of Sydney CBD in New South Wales, Australia. An IBRA biogeographic region, Cumberland Basin is the preferred physiographic and geological term for the low-lying plain of the Permian-Triassic Sydney Basin found between Sydney and the Blue Mountains, and it is a structural sub-basin of the Sydney Basin.
Eucalyptus botryoides, commonly known as the bangalay, bastard jarrah, woollybutt or southern mahogany, is a small to tall tree native to southeastern Australia. Reaching up to 40 metres high, it has rough bark on its trunk and branches. It is found on sandstone- or shale-based soils in open woodland, or on more sandy soils behind sand dunes. The white flowers appear in summer and autumn. It reproduces by resprouting from its woody lignotuber or epicormic buds after bushfire. E. botryoides hybridises with the Sydney blue gum in the Sydney region. The hard, durable wood has been used for panelling and flooring.
The Sydney Turpentine-Ironbark Forest (STIF) is a wet sclerophyll forest community of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, that is typically found in the Inner West and Northern region of Sydney. It is also among the three of these plant communities which have been classified as Endangered, under the New South Wales government's Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995, with only around 0.5% of its original pre-settlement range remaining.
The Eastern Australian temperate forests is a broad ecoregion of open forest on uplands starting from the east coast of New South Wales in the South Coast to southern Queensland, Australia. Although dry sclerophyll and wet sclerophyll eucalyptus forests predominate within this ecoregion, a number of distinguishable rainforest communities are present as well.
Dichelachne crinita , commonly known as the longhair plume grass, is a type of grass found in Australia, New Zealand and islands of the Pacific Ocean. It is often seen on sandy soils near the sea as well as woodlands. The flowering panicles are open and feathery at maturity. The grass may grow up to 1.5 metres (5 ft) tall. Crinita, the specific epithet, is derived from Latin (hairy).
Western Sydney Regional Park is a large urban park and a nature reserve situated in Western Sydney, Australia within the suburbs of Horsley Park and Abbotsbury. A precinct of Western Sydney Parklands, a park system, and situated within the heart of the Cumberland Plain Woodland, the regional park features several picnic areas, recreational facilities, equestrian trails, and walking paths within the Australian bush.
The Dharawal National Park is a protected national park that is located in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, in eastern Australia. The 6,508-hectare (16,080-acre) national park is situated between the Illawarra Range and the Georges River and is approximately 45 kilometres (28 mi) south west of Sydney. There are three entry points to the park: from the east through Darkes Forest; from the north through Wedderburn; and from the south through Appin.
The Cooks River/Castlereagh Ironbark Forest (CRCIF) is a scattered, dry sclerophyll, open-forest to low woodland and scrubland which occurs predominantly in the Cumberland subregion of the Sydney basin bioregion, between Castlereagh and Holsworthy, as well as around the headwaters of the Cooks River. The Cooks River Clay Plain Scrub Forest is a component of this ecological community, though both belong to a larger occurring community called the Temperate Eucalyptus fibrosa/Melaleuca decora woodland.
The Cumberland Plain Woodland, also known as Cumberland Plain Bushland and Western Sydney woodland, is a grassy woodland community found predominantly in Western Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, that comprises an open tree canopy, a groundcover with grasses and herbs, usually with layers of shrubs and/or small trees.
The Sydney Sandstone Ridgetop Woodland, also known as Coastal Sandstone Ridgetop Woodland and Hornsby Enriched Sandstone Exposed Woodland, is a shrubby woodland and mallee community situated in northern parts of Sydney, Australia, where it is found predominantly on ridgetops and slopes of the Hornsby Plateau, Woronora Plateau and the lower Blue Mountains area. It is an area of high biodiversity, existing on poor sandstone soils, with regular wildfires, and moderate rainfall.
Wide Bay Military Reserve is a heritage-listed military installation at Tin Can Bay Road, Tin Can Bay, Queensland, Australia. The reserve supports a diverse range of plant communities from estuarine, strand, wetlands, heath, tall shrublands and woodlands, to the open forests of the sub-coastal hills and ranges. The total number of bird species recorded for the place totals 250, which is high by Australian standards. It was added to the Australian Commonwealth Heritage List on 22 June 2004.
The Southeast Australia temperate forests is a temperate broadleaf and mixed forests ecoregion of south-eastern Australia. It includes the temperate lowland forests of southeastern Australia, at the southern end of the Great Dividing Range. Vegetation ranges from wet forests along the coast to dry forests and woodlands inland.
The Shale Sandstone Transition Forest, also known as Cumberland Shale-Sandstone Ironbark Forest, is a transitory ecotone between the grassy woodlands of the Cumberland Plain Woodlands and the dry sclerophyll forests of the sandstone plateaus on the edges of the Cumberland Plain in Sydney, Australia.
The Eastern Suburbs Banksia Scrub, which also incorporates Sydney Coastal Heaths, is a remnant sclerophyll scrubland and heathland that is found in the eastern and southern regions of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Listed under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 as and endangered vegetation community and as 'critically endangered' under the NSW Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016, the Eastern Suburbs Banksia Scrub is found on ancient, nutrient poor sands either on dunes or on promontories. Sydney coastal heaths are a scrubby heathland found on exposed coastal sandstone plateau in the south.
The Castlereagh Scribbly Gum and Agnes Banks Woodlands is an endangered sclerophyll low-woodland and shrubland community found in western Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Vegetation comprises low woodlands with sclerophyllous shrubs and an uneven ground layer of graminoids and forbs.
The Swan Coastal Plain Shrublands and Woodlands is a sclerophyll-woodland vegetation community that stretch from Kalbarri in the north to Busselton in the south, passing through Perth, in Western Australia. Situated on the Swan Coastal Plain, it is listed as Endangered under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. The woodlands also incorporate Perth–Gingin Shrublands and Woodlands.
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