Maintaining Biodiversity – top 10 tips
These biodiversity management guidelines are for use at a property scale and should be tailored for particular situations .
1 . Maintain ground cover and diversity of native perennial grasses .
• Ground cover is the protective layer of material covering the soil surface . Grass tufts , leaf litter , twigs , logs and stones are all types of ground cover .
• Ground cover encourages water infiltration by slowing down water movement and providing soil structure .
• High ground cover provides shelter and protects animals from being seen and eaten by predators such as cats , foxes , dingos , snakes , owls , hawks and kites .
• High ground cover protects ground dwelling animals from drying out or over-heating .
• Use grazing strategies that regularly spell country , particularly during the wet season .
• Spelling allows plants to grow and seed , later becoming organic matter ( essential for soil condition and nutrient cycling ), food and shelter for animals .
• A diverse and vigorous native pasture contains many different species of grasses with strong , deep , healthy root systems .
• Native , perennial grasses offer a wide variety of food sources ( leaves , stems , seeds and roots ) and habitats for a wide range of animals ( micro-organisms , insects , reptiles , birds , mammals ).
• Many native animals feed exclusively on native grasses .
• Diverse and vigorous native pastures are resilient – they recover quickly after natural disturbance like droughts , floods and fires .
• Spelling allows seeding and recruitment of native plant species .
• Spelling improves breeding success in some native animals that nest , burrow or hide in the grass and soil layer .
• Spell country after fire to allow native , perennial grasses to recover quickly .
• Adjust stock numbers to maintain strong grass tufts with active growing points at the end of the dry season .
2 . Identify and manage special areas for biodiversity Special areas often have unusual features and significant biodiversity values . They might be special because :
• particular species use it - e . g . key habitat for endangered or threatened species ; important breeding areas for waterbirds ; vegetation types that are regionally unusual or very sensitive to grazing ( e . g . vine scrubs );
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