Which native ecological communities and species are threatened by exotic perennial grasses?
Several endangered ecological communities are threatened by exotic perennial grasses. Examples include the following: • White box yellow box Blakely’s red gum woodland (‘Box-gum woodland’) is threatened by Coolatai grass. Coolatai grass dominates large areas of pasture, roadsides, travelling stock routes and areas of remnant vegetation in the North Western Slopes, especially in the Manilla area north of Tamworth. • Serrated tussock, African lovegrass and Chilean Needlegrass are a major threat to native grasslands, particularly the endangered communities ‘Natural temperate grasslands of the Southern Tablelands of NSW and the ACT’ and ‘Bega Dry Grass Forest’. • In the Sydney area, pampas grass threatens ‘Duffys Forest Ecological Community’. Threatened species at risk include Persoonia mollis and the orchid Microtis angusii. Aren’t some exotic perennial grasses important pasture and horticultural species? Perennial grasses such as phalaris are important components of pastures in many area