Assessing biodiversity

Biodiversity refers to the variety of plants, animals, and ecosystems in an area. Some places are more valued than others for supporting this diversity. The Queensland Government assesses and maps places that are important for biodiversity, where ecosystems, plants, and animals can be found, and the condition of ecosystems to sustain species. This information guides investment to manage, protect and rehabilitate key places for plants, animals and ecosystems.

The greater role an area provides in sustaining healthy ecosystems and the species that depend on them, the greater role the area has in maintaining and improving biodiversity. For example, a healthy woodland that provides a refuge for rare plants and animals is far more valuable for biodiversity than a cleared area where native species struggle to survive.

The Queensland Government assesses several criteria to determine the value of an area for biodiversity. These include its size and condition, whether it provides habitat for rare or threatened species, and how connected it is to other natural areas.

The Queensland Government produces detailed information to support biodiversity management. You can use this information to find out where key areas for biodiversity are and how to best manage these areas.

Where is biodiversity

• Biodiversity Planning Assessments identify and map the biodiversity and conservation values of Queensland landscapes.
• Aquatic Conservation Assessments identify and map the biodiversity and conservation values of Queensland wetlands, rivers and estuaries.
• Habitat models map places where threatened and priority plants and animals and their habitats can be found.
• Threatened species assessments collate available information on the distribution, abundance, and threats and evaluate the conservation status (wildlife class) of species that are at risk of extinction.
• WildNet has information on wildlife sightings, survey results, species profiles and multimedia.
• Current vegetation extent and pre-clearing vegetation are mapped under the regional ecosystem program. This provides an exceptional basis for comparing Queensland’s landscape before and after land-clearing and helps guide conservation priorities. Regional vegetation mapping uses satellite imagery, in combination with recent aerial photography and field-based information to confirm data accuracy.
• Specimens in the Queensland Herbarium collections can be viewed, mapped and queried via the Australasian Virtual Herbarium (AVH)

How is biodiversity faring

• The State of the Environment report provides a summary of the status and trends of Queensland’s environment.
• The Threatened Species Listing Report provides a snapshot of the extinction risk of Queensland’s species
• BioCondition (site-scale assessment) and Spatial BioCondition (mapped assessment) are tools that can be used to determine the condition of Queensland vegetation communities and produce an overall condition score (0-100) of this vegetation.
• Wetland Condition is assessed in alignment with the Reef 2050 long term sustainability plan.
• The Biodiversity Condition Toolkit for Grazed lands, funded by Meat and Livestock Australia has been produced by the Queensland Herbarium and Biodiversity Science in collaboration with the Department of Primary Industries). The toolkit aims to support land managers involved in the management of grazing lands and biodiversity conservation within the Brigalow Belt and Mulga Lands biogeographic regions of southern Queensland. It provides knowledge and insights on the plants and animals that occur alongside grazing stock in healthy grazing lands.
• Threatened species assessments suggest actions to improve habitat quality for at risk species.
• Manage fire for biodiversity with guidelines for Queensland’s regional ecosystems.
• Guidelines on how to survey for frogs, reptiles, birds and mammals (vertebrate fauna).

How to manage for biodiversity

• The Biodiversity Condition Toolkit for Grazed lands, funded by Meat and Livestock Australia has been produced by the Queensland Herbarium and Biodiversity Science in collaboration with the Department of Primary Industries). The toolkit aims to support land managers involved in the management of grazing lands and biodiversity conservation within the Brigalow Belt and Mulga Lands biogeographic regions of southern Queensland. It provides knowledge and insights on the plants and animals that occur alongside grazing stock in healthy grazing lands.
• Threatened species assessments suggest actions to improve habitat quality for at risk species.
• Manage fire for biodiversity with guidelines for Queensland’s regional ecosystems.
• Guidelines on how to survey for frogs, reptiles, birds and mammals (vertebrate fauna).