Project to restore Grevillea caleyi to former glory achieving great outcomes

21 Jul 2022

Efforts to restore habitat for the critically endangered Grevillea caleyi is bearing fruit with a substantial number of new seedlings in target areas where work has been undertaken.

Grevillea caleyi, a medium to tall shrub with long spreading branches which grows to a height and width of up to four metres, is restricted to an 8 km square in Northern Sydney around the ridgetops within Terrey Hills, Duffys Forest, Belrose and Ingleside.

Following hazard reduction burns by the Rural Fire Service in conjunction with the Northern Beaches Council in bushland at JJ Melbourne Hills Reserve in Terrey Hills, there has been a huge lift in seedlings of Grevillea caleyi, something which is hugely pleasing for Senior Land Services Officer, Robert Leslie.

“This project has focused on surveying and protecting vegetation at the reserve which is home to this endangered native plant which is only found in a particular area of Northern Sydney,” he said.

“Urbanisation over many years in these suburbs has decreased its habitat to just 15 per cent of its original size, now an eight square kilometre area.

“This year’s survey is showing over 1,500 individual plants have germinated in the burnt areas of this reserve alone which is a great reward for everyone’s hard work. It’s great to see support from all agencies into managing this important species.”  

While there has been success to date for the project, the habitat that remains is fragmented and under threat from weeds, altered fire regimes, disturbance from vehicles, bikes, horse riding and rubbish dumping.

In the next phase of the project, work will focus on protecting the endangered plant’s habitat through weed removal by professional contractors, planting in buffer zones adjacent to core habitat, installation of fencing, assessment of the habitat condition and vegetation monitoring.

The project is being run by Greater Sydney Local Land Services in partnership with the NSW Department of Planning and Environment and the Northern Beaches Council.

This project is supported by Greater Sydney Local Land Services, through funding from the Australian Government.