A daisy previously thought to have been eaten out of existence on Trust for Nature’s Neds Corner Station has been identified on the north-west Victorian property. Woolly Plover-daisy (Leiocarpa tomentosa) is an endangered small, perennial shrub with yellow flowers. It is mostly concentrated in South Australia with just a couple of sites in Victoria.

The discovery of the daisy on Neds Corner Station is extremely encouraging. At 30,000 ha it is one of Victoria’s largest private conservation reserves. Station manager, Peter Barnes, said there’s a chance the plant has been there for a while but not noticed because rabbit grazing hadn’t allowed it to flower. He said, “We think our intense pest management, mainly rabbit control, has allowed the daisy to grow to a certain height and produce flowers, which is how we became aware of it.

“Our success in controlling rabbits is the reason we keep finding new plants in the area and as the biodiversity improves we would hope to continue to find more.” In 2017, a new species of daisy for Victoria, the Large Hard-head Daisy, was identified at Neds Corner Station. Rabbit control has been a significant focus on the property so as to increase ground cover and protect plants and habitat for native animals. Over 25,000 rabbit warrens have been treated and 13,000 have been destroyed.

Five Inland Dotterel chicks accompanied by two males have also been spotted on the property. It is the first time Peter has seen multiple chicks in the 10 years he has been at Neds Corner Station. Inland Dotterels are not necessarily uncommon at the property but are rarely seen. This follows the exciting sighting of four Australian  Bustards which are rare in southern Australia.

It’s thanks to the generosity of supporters that Neds Corner Station is going from strength to strength. You can read about the Haul for Habitat crowd funding campaign in Conservation Bulletin #69.

For more information about projects in the Mallee region contact Greg Ogle (03) 8631 5888 or grego@tfn.org.au