Arthurs Seat Habitat Restoration

Protecting remnant native vegetation and threatened animal species at the heart of the Mornington Peninsula

The granitic soils of Arthurs Seat retain one of the few large areas of remnant vegetation on the Mornington Peninsula. The Arthurs Seat Habitat Restoration project seeks to enhance the habitat quality of Arthurs Seat to support the unique wildlife of the area. A major threat to the site is the encroachment of environmental weeds. The project will protect several threatened species recorded in the area, including Lewin’s Rail, White Bellied Sea Eagle, Powerful Owl and Southern Brown Bandicoot.

Sheepwash Creek Catchment Landcare began work to restore Arthurs Seat in 2013 through the removal of habitat-changing weeds. Following tried and true revegetation principles, the group is working outwards from areas of highest biodiversity, having started at the headwaters of Sheepwash Creek near the OT Dam. Due to the high quality vegetation in the surrounding area, extensive regrowth of native species is already occurring, including the germination of large numbers of Rough Tree Ferns. The project is continuing to expand out from treated areas, with the aim of restoring the full expanse of bushland on the northern slopes of Arthurs Seat – the heart of the Mornington Peninsula.

Themes and Local Areas

Primary Theme:Native vegetation
Other Themes:Waterways, Groundwater, Native Animals, Soil Health, Communities, Climate Change
Primary Local Area:Mornington Peninsula
Other Local Areas:
Project location:Arthurs Seat
Scale of the project:Landscape
New or continuing work:Continuing/building on previous work

Project partners

Lead organisation:Sheepwash Creek Catchment Landcare Group
Key partners:Mornington Peninsula Landcare Network, Parks Victoria
Registered Aboriginal Party/s relevant to the project or its area:Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation

Investment opportunities

Opportunities for investors within this project start from:$$ (Tens of thousands of dollars)
Estimated scale of investment for full project implementation:$$$ (Hundreds of thousands of dollars)
Estimated timeframe for full project implementation:2-10 years

Contribution toward targets

Primary Regional Catchment Strategy target and contribution to its achievement:This project will contribute to the following region-wide targets:

Pest and weed control – At least 316,800 hectares of pest herbivore control and 105,600 hectares of weed control undertaken in priority areas in this region between 2017 and 2050 (an average of at least 9,600 and 3,200 hectares per year respectively).

Diversity of native animals – Maintain the diversity of native animal species in the region from 2021 to 2050 and ensure the populations are sustainable, secure, healthy and resilient.

Community volunteering – Community volunteering for natural resource management surpasses 1 million hours per year.
Relevant Biodiversity 2037 goal:Undertake weed or pest herbivore control to maintain and enhance vegetation quality in priority areas
Relevant National Landcare Program priority:

More information

https://mplandcare.org.au/our-landcare-groups/sheepwash-creek-catchment-landcare-group/