Photographs
There is an extensive photographic coverage of plant and animal species
and native vegetation (EVC) in
this package. For many of the plant species and EVCs there are no other published photographs.
The flora and fauna databases have colour photographs of all animal
(mammal, bird, reptile and frog) species, 81% of the plants (including
every species of eucalypt, wattle and orchid).
There are also photographs of all
Ecological Vegetation Classes (EVCs) in the Greater Melbourne area.
There are usually several photographs for each species, showing, for animals, males, females, juveniles and different colour forms or, for plants, flowers, fruit, leaves, bark and so on.
There are also multiple photographs of most EVCs
In total there are over 8,500 photographs of about 2900 plant and animal
species and 60 EVCs.
Descriptions
For each species a simple and concise description has been prepared. As much as possible non-technical language has been used in these descriptions but when this is not practical an on-line glossary is included which can be accessed by simply
highlighting the word then clicking the right mouse-button.
Plants
For each plant species the descriptions contain information on the general appearance, flowers (or spores if a fern), fruit, leaves and (often) its preferred environment. Other pieces of information include flowering time, place of origin (if the species is not native), Koorie use (if any) and a variety of other characteristics.
Animals
For each animal species the descriptions contain information on general appearance, colours, differences (if any) between males, females and juveniles, size (and weight for mammals), breeding data and habitat.
Vegetation
For each EVC the description includes
information on the vegetation appearance, the area it occupies in
the region, its habitat, altitude range, climate, soils and conservation
status.
There is also a list of the commonly occurring
plant species (both native and non-native) arranged in order of their life
forms.
Tutorial
1 (PDF 1.4 Mb)
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| Eucalyptus
leucoxylon subsp. bellarinensis - Bellarine Yellow Gum
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General Appearance: A
small, often mallee-like tree, to 12 m tall, with loose, fine,
fibrous bark on the base of the trunk, and smooth grey and white
bark on upper branches.
Leaves: Adult: Lanceolate,
petiolate, asymmetric, to 16 cm x 30 mm, alternate, blue-green.
Juvenile: Ovate to broadly lanceolate, sessile, to 9 x 8 cm
blue-green (darker above), waxy, mostly opposite, many pairs joined
around the stem (connate).
Buds: More
or less club-shaped, to 15 x 7 mm, on pedicels, in groups of 3, on a
slim peduncle; operculum rounded, conical, contracted to a point.
Fruit: Wineglass-shaped, to
20 x 14 mm, pedicellate; valves 4-6, below level of rim.
Conservation: [f] Listed
under the Victorian Flora and Fauna Guarantee. [e] Endangered
in Victoria. [endemic] Found only in Victoria.
Annual Rainfall: 583 to 677
mm
Warmest Temperatures: 24 to
26 °C
Coolest Temperatures: 6 °C
Altitude: 24 to 94 m ASL
Other Scientific Names: Eucalyptus
leucoxylon subsp. nov. (Bellarine Pen.)
Other
Common Names: Bellarine
Peninsula Yellow-gum, Yellow Gum
© Viridans Biological Databases |
Striped
Legless Lizard - Delmar impar   |
General Appearance: A
slender, broad-headed, legless lizard, to 27 cm long. Upper surface
grey-brown with lines of pale-edged, dark brown scales along the
sides, arranged in a series of close, diagonal bands. Lower sides
and lower surface off-white. Head more or less uniformly dark
grey-brown above and off-white below. Head is relatively broad,
distinctly wider than the neck, external ear openings conspicuous,
snout rounded. Tail about twice as long as body and tapered.
Scalation: Scales are
arranged, at mid-body, in 13-16 rows. Hindlimb scales present and
well-developed.
Breeding: Lays two, long,
flexible-shelled eggs in summer.
Diet: Principally arthropods.
Environment: Principally
lowland grasslands and grassy woodlands, often with rocky soil.
Conservation: [f] Listed
under the Victorian Flora and Fauna Guarantee. [V] Vulnerable
in Australia. [e] Endangered in Victoria.
Other States: NSW SA
© Viridans Biological Databases
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EVC
9: Coastal Saltmarsh
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General Description:
Usually a dense to sparse, species-poor shrubland, to 1.5 m tall,
dominated by succulent, leafless shrubs. In areas where the shrubs
are absent the vegetation becomes a herbfield dominated by succulent
herbs. It grows in muddy, intertidal zones which are daily inundated
with sea-water. The principal shrub in this vegetation is Sclerostegia
arbuscula (Shrubby Glasswort) and in areas where the
shrub is absent the herb layer is dominated (often to the exclusion
of all other species) by Sarcocornia quinqueflora
(Beaded Glasswort). All species in this vegetation have
specializations for living in sea-water. The most obvious of these
is succulence, but others survive by excreting large amounts of salt
during periods of exposure. Australian saltmarshes occupy a similar
ecological range to those of Europe but differ in that most of our
species are perennials while many (if not most) European saltmarsh
species are annuals. Coastal Saltmarsh has very few invasive,
non-native species.
Area: 4800 ha.
Common Native Species:
Medium Shrubs:
Sclerostegia arbuscula (Shrubby Glasswort)
Small or Prostrate Shrubs:
Suaeda australis (Austral Seablite)
Medium Herbs:
Sarcocornia quinqueflora (Beaded Glasswort)
Samolus repens (Creeping Brookweed)
Hemichroa pentandra (Trailing Hemichroa)
Small or Prostrate Herbs:
Disphyma crassifolium ssp. clavellatum
(Rounded Noon-flower)
Medium Non-tufted Grasses or Grass-like Plants:
Triglochin striatum (Streaked Arrowgrass)
Distichlis distichophylla (Australian Salt-grass)
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