Threatened Species

Threatened species are plants and animals that are recognised as being at risk of extinction in the wild. In NSW, these flora and fauna are protected and their recovery managed under the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995.

Threatened species are not only confined to individual plant and animal species, they can also include populations (for example, fairy penguins and long-nosed bandicoots on North Head near Manly) and ecological communities, which are unique assemblages of different plant and animal species that live together only in certain locations.

The City of Canada Bay provides habitat for three Endangered Ecological Communities (EECs) and one vulnerable plant species. The Local Government Area may also provide foraging habitat to Vulnerable bat and frog species that are known to occur in the adjoining Bicentennial Park.

The three EECs are:

Sydney Turpentine Ironbark Forest (this vegetation community is also recognised as Critically Endangered under the Federal Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999). Sydney Turpentine Ironbark Forest (STIF) is one of twelve EECs found on the clay dominated soils of Sydney’s Cumberland Plain. Of the estimated 25,516 Hectares that originally existed prior to European settlement in Australia, less than 4.5% remains, and of this remnant 1,182Ha, only 0.3% is situated in conservation reserves (i.e. National Parks etc).

Coastal Saltmarsh in the Sydney Basin Bioregion occurs in the intertidal zone on the shores of estuaries and lagoons. In the City of Canada Bay it is frequently found on the landward side of mangrove stands. Saltmarsh in the City of Canada Bay is characterised by Sea Rush (Juncus krausii), Samphire (Sarcocornia quinqueflora), Salt Couch (Sporobolus virginicus), (Isolepis nodosa), Austral Seablite (Suaeda australis) and Coast Couch(Zoysia macrantha).

Occasionally mangroves are scattered through saltmarsh communities. Canada Bay is actively reducing the threats to Coastal Saltmarsh communities through protection from trampling, signage and is employing various forms of active management. For more information on Endangered Ecological communities please visit the Dept. of Environment and Climate Change website.   

Swamp Oak Floodplain Forest has a dense to sparse tree layer of Swamp She-oak (Czarina glauca). Paperbarks (Melaleuca sp.) and vine species also occur depending on salinity. Groundcover plant species found in less saline areas of Swamp Oak Floodplain Forest include Centella (Centella asiatica), Scurvey Weed (Commelina cyanea), Spotted Knotweed (Persicaria decipiens); graminoids such as Tall Sedge (Carex appressa), Saw Sedge (Gahnia clarkei), Mat Rush (Lomandra longifolia), Basket Grass (Oplismenus imbecillis); and Harsh Ground Fern (Hypolepis muelleri).

The extent of the Swamp Oak Floodplain Forest prior to European settlement has not been mapped across its entire range. However, the remaining area of Swamp Oak Floodplain Forest is likely to represent much less than 30% of its original range.

For more information on Endangered Ecological Communities please visit the Department of Environment Climate Change and Water website.