DARLING RIVERINE PLAINS BIOREGION Background Report

16/08/02 Darling Riverine Plains Bioregion Background Report
Land Profile
Land Systems Anabranch Travellers
Geology Quaternary alluvials Quaternary alluvials and aeolians
Landform and Soils Floodplains, channels, billabongs and plains. Grey Large overflow lakes, lunettes and plains. Grey clays and
clays, minor texture contrast
Vegetation Black box open woodland with occasional river
cooba and areas of lignum. River red gum on
channels.
co-dominant co-dominant
sands
Lignum and occasional black box on lake margins. Belah,
white cypress and prickly wattle on lunettes.
Condition Heavily grazed, local severe scalding Lunettes heavily grazed. Scalding and wind erosion
Reservation None Nearie Lake NR (4 347ha)
Key Areas To be determined
Figure 3.10 Profile of the Great Darling Anabranch Province
(adapted from Morgan & Terrey 1992)
Land Profile
Land Systems Darling, minor Canally and Wentworth
Geology Quaternary alluvials, minor aeolian
Landform and Soils Floodplain, main channels, billabongs, swamps, back channels and low dunes. Grey clays and sands
Vegetation Black box open woodland with river cooba and areas of lignum. River red gum on major channels.
Condition Heavily grazed, areas of severe scalding
Reservation None
Key Areas To be determined
Figure 3.11 Profile of the Pooncarie-Darling Province
(adapted from Morgan & Terrey 1992)
The most common plant communities within the DRP are open woodlands dominated by
Eucalyptus coolabah (coolibah), Eucalyptus largiflorens (black box) and Eucalyptus
camaldulensis (river red gum) with significant areas of Eucalyptus populnea subsp. bimbil
(bimble box) woodlands and grasslands and minor areas of shrublands (Cunningham et al.
1992; NWCMC 1996). On the northern fans there is a variety of communities including
mulga, northern floodplain community, gidgee and brigalow, bimble box and white cypress
pine and Mitchell grass plains. Along the Darling River from Bourke to the Menindee Lakes,
communities change from a dominance of Northern Floodplain plant communities to
Southern Riverine Woodlands, with belah and bluebush communities becoming increasingly
common to the south (Walker 1991). Walker’s descriptions contain greater detail than other
reports about plant species composition in the break down of the land systems into land units
for the Western Division.
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