Paspalidium grandispiculatum - vulnerable species listing

The Scientific Committee, established by the Threatened Species Conservation Act, has made a Final Determination to list the grass Paspalidium grandispiculatum B.K. Simon as a VULNERABLE SPECIES in Part 1 of Schedule 2 of the Act. Listing of Vulnerable species is provided for by Part 2 of the Act.

NSW Scientific Committee - final determination

The Scientific Committee has found that:

1. Paspalidium grandispiculatum B.K.Simon (family Poaceae) is a perennial grass. The following description is based on Simon (1982) and Clayton  et al. (2007); a line illustration is published in Simon (1982: 464: Fig. 35, 11-19). Rhizomes long, robust, woody; culms 80-150 cm long, woody, 7-9-noded, branching sparsely at some nodes throughout culm length; culm internodes glaucous to pruinose. Leaf-sheaths glabrous, smooth, without keel. Ligule a fringe of hairs to 1 mm long. Leaf-blades linear, 4-5(-8) cm long; 2-3 mm wide, flat or conduplicate, minutely scabby on the veins. Inflorescence a terminal raceme to 16 cm long, comprising widely spaced lateral secondary racemes to 3 cm long, each bearing loose irregularly arranged spikelets on pedicels to 1 mm long; inflorescence axis and pedicels scabrous-pubescent. Spikelets 2-flowered, 3.5-4.5 mm long at maturity, each subtended by a scabrous bristle 3-4 mm long arising from the pedicel beneath the lower glume. Lower glumes membranous, about half spikelet length, indistinctly 5-7-veined, minutely scabby on outer surface, with an obtuse apex. Upper glume membranous, three-quarters as long as spikelet, without keels, 7-9-veined, minutely scabby outside, apex obtuse or acute. Basal sterile florets male, lemma similar to upper glume, 5-veined, minutely scabby, obtuse; palea slightly shorter than lemma, hyaline, 2-keeled. Upper floret hermaphrodite, plano-convex, slightly shorter than spikelet, acute at apex; lemma 3-4 mm long, very finely wrinkled, 5-7-veined, acute at apex. Palea boat-shaped, 2-nerved. Anthers 3, 2.5 mm long. Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; 3 mm long.boat-shaped, 2-nerved. Anthers 3, 2.5 mm long. Caryopsis with adherent pericarp; 3 mm long.

2. Paspalidium grandispiculatum B.K. Simon has in the past (Webster 1995) been transferred to the genus  Setaria, as  Setaria grandispiculata (B.K. Simon) R.D. Webster, but this generic reassignment has not been accepted by Australian herbaria and is not supported by recent DNA work at generic level (S. Jacobs pers. comm. May 2008).  Paspalidium grandispiculatum B.K. Simon remains the preferred scientific name. The common name Helidon Panic has been applied in published and unpublished Queensland sources.

3. Simon (1982) states that Paspalidium grandispiculatum "is distinguished from all other Australian species of  Paspalidium by its large spikelets, and characteristic woody culms arising from robust woody rhizomes. Most other species of  Paspalidium possess contracted rootstocks and sometimes contracted rhizomes but not the elongated rhizomes of  P. grandispiculatum".

4. Paspalidium grandispiculatum occurs in the coastal hinterland and low ranges of far north-eastern New South Wales, in the NSW North Coast Bioregion ( sensu Thackway & Cresswell 1995). The species also occurs in south-east Queensland where it is known from scattered locations (Halford 1998; A. Benwell pers. comm. 5 May 2008; DEWHA 2008).  P. grandispiculatum first became known in New South Wales from a 1994 collection from Doubleduke State Forest, north-east of Grafton ( D. Binns 4505 at NSW Herbarium); the site is now in Bundjalung State Conservation Area (J. Cavanaugh  in litt. July 2009). The species persists at that location (D. Binns, A. Benwell, pers. comm. 5 May 2008), where it is locally common. It has also been seen (D. Binns, A. Benwell, pers. comm. 5 May 2008) at other locations in the southern section of the Richmond Range north of Grafton, including the Mt Belmore area and from there south towards Mt Marsh. These Richmond Range populations when seen were likely to have been mainly on State Forest tenure, and possibly some on private tenure; at least portions of these populations may now be in the recently expanded National Park tenures in the area.

5. In New South Wales, Paspalidium grandispiculatum occurs in the local government areas of Clarence Valley and Richmond Valley; it may also occur in other far North Coast LGAs.

6. Paspalidium grandispiculatum in New South Wales is likely to be restricted to poor sandy soils on sandstone substrates; it is known to occur on those parts of the Cretaceous-Jurassic Kangaroo Creek sandstones that are north of the Clarence River, but may possibly also occur to the south, and on the Cretaceous Grafton Formation sandstones where these abut the Kangaroo Creek formation along the Richmond Range.

7. The only vouchered specimen to date for New South Wales notes the habitat as open forest of Syncarpia glomulifera (Turpentine) on undulating topography. Queensland reports vary from "wet sclerophyll  Eucalyptus forest" (Simon 1982) to drier mixed eucalypt communities (Halford 1998, citing CORVEG database). D. Binns (pers. comm. 5 May 2008) reports seeing the species in drier forest types on sandstone NNW of Grafton, and A. Benwell (pers. comm. 5 May 2008) reports occurrences between Mt Belmore and Mt Marsh as being mostly on ridges in poor soils.  Paspalidium grandispiculatum is gregarious, being common to dominant in the ground layer where it does occur ( D. Binns 4505 at NSW Herbarium; Halford (1998), citing A. Benwell for one Queensland site; A. Benwell pers. comm. 5 May 2008, for NSW sites). The species is assumed to be wind-pollinated, and is reported to flower from January to May for Queensland populations (Halford 1998).  P. grandispiculatum reproduces by both sexually produced seed and by vegetative budding from the rhizomes, from which it is capable (Halford 1998) of regeneration after fire. No information is available on seed viability or longevity. Given the capacity for vegetative spread, genet life may be indefinite.

8. Paspalidium grandispiculatum has an extent of occurrence in New South Wales of about 560 km2 based on populations known to date, with the Bundjalung State Conservation Area occurrence separated from the southern Richmond Range occurrences by about 40 km. The species distribution is fragmented, probably as a result of both natural and land-use factors. No information is available on past decline. The area of occupancy in New South Wales is tentatively estimated to be 16 km2 based on occupancy of four 2 x 2 km grid cells, the scale recommended for assessing area of occupancy by IUCN (2008); however precise information on the number and extent of occurrences in the area from Mt Belmore to Mt Marsh is lacking. The actual area of occupancy is tentatively estimated as

9. Paspalidium grandispiculatum is listed as Vulnerable under the Commonwealth  Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (DEWHA 2008), and as Vulnerable under the Queensland  Nature Conservation Act 1992. Information is sparse on potential threats to  P. grandispiculatum. Boyes (2004) nominates the following actual or potential threats to the Queensland populations (which are mostly or wholly on private tenures): loss or fragmentation of populations or habitat through vegetation clearing; inappropriate fire regimes (especially frequent hazard reduction burning or green-pick burns); and habitat degradation through inappropriate practices in timber management and grazing. The relative paucity of hard data for assessing intrinsic and extrinsic risks of extinction in Queensland is reflected in Lynch & Drury (2006), and the same problem applies in New South Wales, where the known populations are somewhat remote from current obvious human disturbance processes. D. Binns (pers. comm. 5 May 2008) reports that the Bundjalung SCA (formerly Doubleduke State Forest) population is subject to little threat, with few recent disturbances, and past logging having been at low levels in the relevant vegetation types. A. Benwell (pers. comm. 5 May 2008) reports that there are no obvious threatening processes at either area of occurrence in New South Wales. Introduced groundcover competitors are nevertheless a possible future threat. Large areas of private or leasehold tenure adjacent to State Forests and National Parks along the Richmond Range, including in the Mt Belmore area, are subject to regular green-pick burning (R.O. Makinson pers. comm. 2008). Whilst  P. grandispiculatum has robust rhizomes and may be expected to be fire tolerant, frequent burning of this sort may or may not disadvantage the species as against other species, including weeds.  Lantana camara is frequent in some parts of the area (R.O. Makinson pers. comm. 2008), as it is on the Helidon sandstones in Queensland. 'Invasion of native plant communities by exotic perennial grasses', 'Invasion, establishment and spread of Lantana ( Lantana camara L.  sens. lat.)', and 'High frequency fire resulting in the disruption of life cycle processes in plants and animals and loss of vegetation structure and composition' are listed as Key Threatening Processes under the NSW  Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995.

10. Paspalidium grandispiculatum B.K. Simon is not eligible to be listed as an Endangered or Critically Endangered species.

11. Paspalidium grandispiculatum B.K. Simon is eligible to be listed as a Vulnerable species as, in the opinion of the Scientific Committee, it is facing a high risk of extinction in New South Wales in the medium-term future as determined in accordance with the following criteria as prescribed by the  Threatened Species Conservation Regulation 2002:

Clause 15

Clause 18

The geographic distribution of the species is observed, estimated or inferred to be very highly restricted such that it is prone to the effects of human activities or stochastic events within a very short time period.

Dr Richard Major
Chairperson
Scientific Committee

Proposed Gazettal Date: 24/09/10
Exhibition Period: 24/09/10 - 19/11/10

References:

Boyes B (2004) Descriptions, habitats and threats for the significant species and ecological communities of Gatton and Laidley Shires, South-East Queensland. Appendix B to the Biodiversity Recovery Plan for Gatton and Laidley Shires, South-East Queensland 2003-2008. Version 2, March 2004. Lockyer Catchment Association (LCA) Inc., Forest Hill, Qld. [accessed online 2 May 2008]

Clayton WD, Harman KT, Williamson H (2006 onwards, version of 5 June 2007) GrassBase - The Online World Grass Flora. [accessed 2 May 2008]

DEWHA (2008) Approved Conservation Advice for Paspalidium grandispiculatum . Species Profile and Threats Database, Commonwealth Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, accessed 16 Nov. 2009 DEWHA (2008)

Halford DA (1998) Survey of threatened plant species in south east Queensland biogeographical region. Queensland CRA/RFA Steering Committee. Forests Taskforce, Dept of Prime Minister & Cabinet, Canberra.

IUCN (2008) 'Guidelines for using the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria. Version 7.0.' (Standards and Petitions Working Group of the IUCN Species Survival Commission Biodiversity Assessments Sub-committee: Switzerland).

Lynch AJJ, Drury WL (2006) Assessing the conservation status and threats to priority plants: a case study in South-east Queensland, Australia. Australasian Journal of  Environmental Management 13, 36-51

Simon BK (1982) New species of Gramineae from south-eastern Queensland. Austrobaileya 1, 455-467

Thackway R, Creswell ID (1995) An interim biogeographic regionalisation for Australia: a framework for setting priorities in the National Reserve System Cooperative Program. (Version 4.0. ANCA: Canberra.)

Webster RD (1995) Nomenclatural changes in Setaria and  Paspalidium (Poaceae: Paniceae).  Sida: Contributions to botany 16, 443.