Appendix 2 - Vegetation Communities and Regional Ecosystems

Vegetation Community 14q: A species of Cycas thought to be a disjunct population of Cycas
badensis forms a low shrubland on low parallel dunes on the north-west coast of Moa Island
where it is mapped as VC14q. The community was observed during a helicopter survey and
although not sampled on the ground, is relatively extensive, continuous, and readily differentiated
as a discrete vegetation unit. The community is represented in Photograph 38.
5.2.12 Regional Ecosystem 3.2.6
Description: Casuarina equisetifolia woodland. Occurs on foredunes.
Status: Of Concern
Vegetation Communities: 10a, 16e(co) 16f (co), 16b (co), 10b
Reference Sites: 3 Secondary (Masig; YO5, YO6, YO16), 7 Quaternary Sites.
Photograph 38. Cycas badensis
forming a shrubland community on
low parallel dunes. North –west coast
of Moa Island (VC14q).
Casuarina equisetifolia forms a prominent woodland community on foredunes throughout many
of the islands in the study area, both on continental islands and coral cays. It is apparent through
examination of a considerable number of Casuarina dominant communities throughout the study
area that structural variations to this community occur, and the current descriptions provide an
inadequate account of these variations.
In a similar fashion to VC5p, frequent edaphic change across prograding dune systems has often
resulted in a complexing of this RE with associated dune shrubland and woodland communities.
These complexes are classified as VC16b and VC16f, the latter being a particularly welldeveloped
example on the south coast of Friday Island where Casuarina equisetifolia woodland
complexes with vine thicket (RE3.2.2). Vegetation community 10b provides what would
generally be considered a typical representation of RE3.2.6, (represented in the RE attributes as
RE3.2.6a) where Casuarina equisetifolia forms a woodland community over a ground cover of
sprawling herbs and grasses typical of foredune communities. Such examples are best
represented on the west coast of Muralug (on Bampfield and Long Beach) where woodlands
typically reach 30m height and mix with scattered coastal vine forest species trees, most
commonly Terminalia catappa. This would represent the maximum development of the type,
and more typical examples on coastal foredunes would rarely reach an average canopy height of
greater than 20m.
3d Environmental – Torres Strait Regional Ecosystem Mapping Project – August 2008
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