Maroondah has a vast diversity of flora and fauna, including many rare and threatened species who depend upon our distinct habitat types.
Habitat types within Maroondah
There are 13 distinct habitat types within Maroondah.
- Wetlands
- Herb-rich plains grassy wetland
- Swamp scrub
- Manna gum riparian forest
- Swamp gum forest
- Silver-leafed stringybark forest
- Messmate subriparian forest
- Mixed eucalypt forest of silver-leafed stringybark
- Mixed eucalypt forest of messmate stringybark
- Messmate and narrow-leafed peppermint
- Yellow box - candlebark forest
- Peppermint and bundy forest
- Box-stringybark woodland.
Flora species in Maroondah
Indigenous plants, commonly referred to as ‘locally native’, are plants that occur naturally in a given area.
There are approximately 460 indigenous flora species in Maroondah.
Of these, there are 9 plants in Maroondah that are listed as rare or threatened under the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act (1988). Some of these species include:
- swamp everlasting
- Lindley's spider orchid
- Kilsyth South spider orchid
- tall wallaby grass
- thin duckweed
- golden cowslip
- two species of diuris
- sharp greenhood.
Why plant indigenous?
They are virtually maintenance free, requiring little or no watering under normal conditions. Their establishment does not require expensive, specialised soils, chemical sprays or fertilisers, as they are accustomed to the natural environmental conditions of the area. This means they save water, time and money.
Locally native plants are environmentally friendly, add beauty to your garden and provide food and shelter for fauna such as birds, stingless native bees and butterflies.
Bird species in Maroondah
Maroondah has 117 indigenous bird species.
Fragmentation of remnant habitat has meant that nearly all indigenous bird species recorded in the municipality are of biological significance at a municipal level.
There are 4 bird species that occur in Maroondah that have not previously been recorded in the Atlas of Victorian Wildlife. They are:
- royal spoonbill
- Australian shelduck
- black-winged stilt
- ·olive whistler.
Mammals in Maroondah
Mammals in Maroondah include:
- koala
- swamp wallaby
- echidna
- native water rat.
In total Maroondah has 18 indigenous and 6 introduced mammals. Some of these species include:
- white-striped freetail bat
- common ringtail possum
- brown antechinus
- sugar glider.
Amphibians in Maroondah
Maroondah has 2 major creeks and many wetlands that support 9 species of frogs, including:
- Peron's tree frog
- spotted marsh frog
- southern toadlet.
Reptiles in Maroondah
Other fauna include reptiles such as:
- red-bellied black snake
- white-lipped snake
- lowland copperhead snake
- blotched blue tongue
- McCoy's skink
- common long-necked tortoise.
There are 10 species of reptile recorded in Maroondah's Sites of Biological Significance Study in Maroondah Vol. 1. Lorimer et al. 1997.
Butterflies in Maroondah
There are 24 species of butterfly recorded, including the elusive sword-grass brown butterfly.
Further information
See Indigenous gardens or contact Council on 1300 88 22 33.