A Remote Rarity: Mongamulla Mallee
Climbing mountains and travelling along cliff edges, the Australian Seed Bank Partnership is dedicated to ensuring the future of this rare tree
By Australian Seed Bank Partnership
The Australian PlantBank, The Australian Botanic Garden, Mt Annan
Eucalyptus deuaensis infloresence (2007) by Murray FaggAustralian Seed Bank Partnership
Far from civilisation
Australia is a big place with a rich and fascinating diversity of native flora. In all that space, some trees have found a niche in small pockets of the landscape, happily existing far from civilisation. One such tree is the Mongamulla Mallee.
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Deua National Park
To find it in its natural habitat in NSW you need to drive 4 hours south of Sydney. Once you reach the small coastal town of Moruya a turn to the west will take you out bush and winding your way along dirt roads into the Deua National Park.
Collecting Eucalyptus deuaensis (2017) by Vanessa BarrattAustralian Seed Bank Partnership
Majestic Mongamulla Mountain
A solid hike along a picturesque ridgeline brings you to the Mongamulla Mountain, home of Eucalyptus deuaensis, the Mongamulla Mallee. In 2016, seed collectors from The Australian PlantBank hiked to the mountain to collect seeds to secure the future of the species.
Limited species
The Mongamulla Mallee tree reaches five metres in height and grows along cliff lines. The entire population of several thousand trees is found across around five hectares of land. Can you believe it? An area the size of five rugby fields contains the entire species!
Remote and rare
A small number of Eucalyptus deuaensis seeds had previously been collected by botanists in 1984. Due to the remote location of this species the site was rarely visited prior to its discovery.
Eucalyptus deuaensis (2007) by Murray FaggAustralian Seed Bank Partnership
Seed collection
During the 2016 visit, The Australian PlantBank collected seed from 30 trees. This collection resulted in more than 7,000 seeds, half of which were sent to the Millennium Seed Bank as part of the Global Tree Seed Bank Project.
The site was visited again in 2018 with many of the trees severely drought stressed. The Plantbank team managed to collect less than 150 seeds from only five trees.
Bushfire damage
The Mongamulla Mallee site was likely burnt in the 2019-20 bushfires. The current state of the population is unknown but work is underway across the state to understand the impact of the fires.
Important for conservation
Given the rarity and limited distribution of Eucalyptus deuaensis, it was considered an important species to conserve as part of the Global Tree Seed Bank Project.
Eucalyptus deuaensis infloresence (2007) by Murray FaggAustralian Seed Bank Partnership
The Global Tree Seed Bank Project
Seeds from Eucalyptus deuaensis and other threatened tree species from New South Wales are being securely stored at the Australian Plant Bank and duplicated at the Millennium Seed Bank in the UK.
To learn more about The Australian PlantBank you can visit their website
Stories compiled through a science communication internship at the Australian Seed Bank Partnership with Master of Science Communication student Christine Fernance from the ANU Centre for the Public Awareness of Science.
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