Gondwana Rainforests Research Articles

What type of rainforest burnt in the South East Queensland's 2019/20 bushfires and how might this impact biodiversity

AbstractBushfires burnt over 18 million hectares across Australia's east coast, including rainforests, over the spring and summer 2019/2020 period. Rainforest harbours a large percentage of Australia's biodiversity and does not usually burn and therefore understanding the extent and biodiversity implications was a priority. The National Indicative Aggregated Fire Extent Dataset (NIAFED) combined with detailed regional ecosystem (RE) mapping was used to estimate the perimeter and area of each of the burnt rainforest types within South East Queensland (SEQ). Previous biodiversity estimates for each rainforest regional ecosystem type combined with remnant ecosystem mapping data then enabled an assessment of the potential biodiversity impacts of the fires for SEQ rainforest. We found that 12% of the rainforest estate in SEQ was within the burn footprint (29 031 ha) including parts of the UNESCO World Heritage Gondwana Rainforests of Australia. Fifty per cent of the total remnant area of the Endangered rainforest type, semi‐evergreen vine thicket on Mesozoic to Proterozoic igneous rocks (RE: 12.12.17) was potentially burnt. This rainforest type has high diversity. Burn severity analysis found that the rainforest primarily burnt with low severity, however, there were patches of high severity. Accuracy assessment of severity mapping resulted in a weak correlation (0.57) due to the underestimation of ground fires in rainforest. As expected, we found rainforest‐suppressed fires. However, in contrast to expectations, we found the wettest rainforest types and putative past refugia burnt more than other rainforest types. These results suggest that given drought conditions any rainforest could burn, and we can expect that the area of rainforest will contract if both incidences of drought and wildfires increase due to climate change.

Extensive range contraction predicted under climate warming for two endangered mountaintop frogs from the rainforests of subtropical Australia

Montane ecosystems cover approximately 20% of the Earth's terrestrial surface and are centres of endemism. Globally, anthropogenic climate change is driving population declines and local extinctions across multiple montane taxa, including amphibians. We applied the maximum entropy approach to predict the impacts of climate change on the distribution of two poorly known amphibian species (Philoria kundagungan and Philoria richmondensis) endemic to the subtropical uplands of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia, World Heritage Area (GRAWHA). Firstly, under current climate conditions and also future (2055) low and high warming scenarios. We validated current distribution models against models developed using presence-absence field data. Our models were highly concordant with known distributions and predicted the current distribution of P. kundagungan to contract by 64% under the low warming scenario and by 91% under the high warming scenario and that P. richmondensis would contract by 50% and 85%, respectively. With large areas of habitat already impacted by wildfires, conservation efforts for both these species need to be initiated urgently. We propose several options, including establishing ex-situ insurance populations increasing the long-term viability of both species in the wild through conservation translocations.

Beyond bushfire severity: mapping the ecological impact of bushfires on the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area

ABSTRACT Bushfire severity mapping and analysis for Queensland’s Gondwana Rainforests World Heritage Area properties following wildfires in 2019/20 was found to under-predict the ecological impact within closed-canopy rainforests, biasing against the prioritisation of rainforest-dependent threatened fauna for assessment and the allocation of recovery resources. By incorporating the fire tolerance of vegetation communities mapped within the bushfire extent, bushfire severity can be extended to predict the potential ecological impact of each severity class on ecosystems, and priority species. Prioritising threatened species based on potential ecological impact rather than fire severity alone allows post-fire survey and monitoring to be better targeted to those species likely most severely impacted. It also allows resources and recovery actions to be directed towards those areas of greatest concern, which may not have suffered the worst bushfire severity.

A new species of Philoria (Anura: Limnodynastidae) from the uplands of the Gondwana Rainforests World Heritage Area of eastern Australia.

The six species of mountain frogs (Philoria: Limnodynastidae: Anura) are endemic to south-eastern Australia. Five species occur in headwater systems in mountainous north-eastern New South Wales (NSW) and south-eastern Queensland (Qld), centred on the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area. A previous molecular genetic analysis identified divergent genetic lineages in the central and western McPherson Ranges region of Qld and NSW, but sampling was inadequate to test the species status of these lineages. With more comprehensive geographic sampling and examination of the nuclear genome using SNP analysis, we show that an undescribed species, P. knowlesi sp. nov., occurs in the central and western McPherson Ranges (Levers Plateau and Mount Barney complex). The new species is not phylogenetically closely related to P. loveridgei in the nuclear data but is related to one of two divergent lineages within P. loveridgei in the mtDNA data. We postulate that the discordance between the nuclear and mtDNA outcomes is due to ancient introgression of the mtDNA genome from P. loveridgei into the new species. Male advertisement calls and multivariate morphological analyses do not reliably distinguish P. knowlesi sp. nov. from any of the Philoria species in northeast NSW and southeast Qld. The genetic comparisons also enable us to define further the distributions of P. loveridgei and P. kundagungan. Samples from the Lamington Plateau, Springbrook Plateau, Wollumbin (Mt Warning National Park), and the Nightcap Range, are all P. loveridgei, and its distribution is now defined as the eastern McPherson Ranges and Tweed caldera. Philoria kundagungan is distributed from the Mistake Mountains in south-eastern Qld to the Tooloom Scrub on the Koreelah Range, southwest of Woodenbong, in NSW, with two subpopulations identified by SNP analysis. We therefore assessed the IUCN threat category of P. loveridgei and P. kundagungan and undertook new assessments for each of its two subpopulations and for the new taxon P. knowlesi sp. nov., using IUCN Red List criteria. Philoria loveridgei, P. kundagungan (entire range and northern subpopulation separately) and P. knowlesi sp. nov. each meet criteria for Endangered (EN B2(a)(b)[i, iii]). The southern subpopulation of P. kundagungan, in the Koreelah Range, meets criteria for Critically Endangered (CE B2(a)(b)[i, iii]). These taxa are all highly threatened due to the small number of known locations, the restricted nature of their breeding habitat, and direct and indirect threats from climate change, and the potential impact of the amphibian disease chytridiomycosis. Feral pigs are an emerging threat, with significant impacts now observed in Philoria breeding habitat in the Mistake Mountains.

Disparate origins for endemic bird taxa from the ‘Gondwana Rainforests’ of Central Eastern Australia

Abstract Subtropical and temperate rainforests of Central Eastern Australia are some of the largest remaining fragments of their kind globally. The biota of these rainforests appears to comprise two broad biogeographical elements: a more ancient (Miocene or older) and typically upland temperate (‘Gondwanan’) element and a younger (Plio-Pleistocene) lowland tropical element. We present the first phylogenetic synthesis of the spatiotemporal origins for the eight bird taxa endemic to Central Eastern Australian Rainforests. At least five of these eight focal taxa show Plio-Pleistocene divergences from their respective northern sister taxa, consistent with origins driven by recent expansion and contraction of lowland rainforest. In contrast, two more strictly upland species, the rufous scrub-bird (Atrichornis rufescens) and the logrunner (Orthonyx temminckii), diverged from their nearest living relatives during the Miocene, suggesting potentially longer histories of persistence and more temperate origins. Finally, we did not recover reciprocal monophyly in mitogenomes from the two extant lyrebirds, Albert’s lyrebird (Menura alberti) and the superb lyrebird (Menura novaehollandiae). The disparate divergence ages recovered among all eight taxa are consistent with the biota of the Central Eastern Australian Rainforests comprising isolates either of younger age and tropical lowland origins or of older age and temperate upland origins.

Conserving Refugia: What Are We Protecting and Why?

Refugia play an important role in contributing to the conservation of species and communities by buffering environmental conditions over time. As large natural landscapes worldwide are declining and are increasingly threatened by extreme events, critical decision-making in biological conservation depends on improved understanding of what is being protected by refugia and why. We provide three novel definitions for refugia (i.e., persistent, future, and temporary) that incorporate ecological and evolutionary dynamics into a land management decision framework and are applicable across changing temporal and spatial settings. Definitions are supported by identification, core value, and management strategy criteria to assist short- and long-term decision-making. We illustrate these concepts using the World Heritage Gondwana Rainforests (WHGR) of eastern Australia, briefly exploring the spatial and temporal factors that can inform the development of conservation management strategies following the extreme fire events of 2019–2020. For the WHGR, available knowledge can be used to protect critical assets by recognizing and implementing buffer zones and corridor connections, and by undertaking emergency translocations of target species into safe areas that will act as future refugia. More broadly, we suggest that the identification and protection of ecological and evolutionary processes across varying temporal and spatial scales is central to securing improved biodiversity conservation outcomes.

Using automated acoustic monitoring to detect elevational migration in the avian community of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia

Climate change presents the most significant threat to Australia's rainforest avifauna. In order to determine the future impacts of climate change and make informed conservation decisions, baseline information on species distributions, elevational preferences, and seasonal movements is necessary. Traditionally, generating data such as these over large spatio-temporal scales has been difficult and costly. However, the recent development of cheap, reliable bioacoustic recorders has facilitated such data collection. By using automated acoustic recorders in subtropical rainforest along two elevational gradients in northern New South Wales, Australia, we were able to continuously monitor the avian community for a 14-month period. The data generated during this project allowed us to detect seasonal elevation migration amongst resident species, the arrival and departure times of migratory species and the breeding behavior of cryptic species. This research also represented the first comprehensive avian biodiversity survey conducted in the region. Here, we present our results from the automated acoustic monitoring, and discuss the implications for future research and monitoring of the avian community in the Gondwanan Rainforests of Australia.

Species turnover of corticolous bryophyte assemblages over 15 years in an Australian subtropical cloud forest

Montane forest ecosystem characterized by frequent cloud or mist inundation are considered highly vulnerable to climatic change. Despite this, there is a paucity of long-term studies assessing community change within these important ecosystems. We present the first comparative analysis of corticolous bryophyte diversity over 15 years in high elevation forests of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area, south-east Queensland, Australia. We found limited evidence of change in species richness across the five isolated stands of microphyll fern forest studied. However, we document considerable species turnover within corticolous bryophyte communities with a large and coherent pattern of change in the liverwort flora in particular (43-62% species turnover). Liverworts, but not mosses, also exhibited strong spatial patterns in species assemblages that likely correspond to varying exposure to orographic moisture associated with south-easterly winds. We postulate that microclimatic factors are stronger determinants of liverwort assemblages than moss assemblages in this system and that documented directional change in liverwort communities is a response to temporal fluctuation in moisture inputs from orographic cloud that are not discernible from precipitation records.

Phytophthora in the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area

The Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area (GRWHA) covers approximately 370,000 ha, extending along Australia’s east coast from southeast Queensland to central eastern New South Wales (NSW). The rainforests include cool temperate and subtropical ecosystems supporting a high biodiversity of plant and animal species. More than 200 plant species found in the GRWHA are rare or threatened, and invasion by pest species, including Phytophthora, is a significant concern. The current study used a sample design based on GIS layers representing conditions conducive to Phytophthora, including the presence of human disturbance, rainfall, temperature, elevation and slope, to determine the probability of Phytophthora occurring at a particular location and to identify sampling locations within the GRWHA. Sampling at these sites revealed eight Phytophthora species; P. cinnamomi, P. cryptogea, P. multivora, P. heveae, P. frigida, P. macrochlamydospora, two isolates referred to as Phytophthora gondwanense prov. nom. and one isolate referred to Phytophthora sp. (clade 4). Species were identified based on internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and cytochrome oxidase subunit II (cox II) data. The greatest diversity of Phytophthora species was found in the Oxley Wild Rivers National Park. This is the first report of P. frigida in Australia and is the first study to detect P. multivora within the GRWHA. Identification of these Phytophthora species within the GRWHA is concerning due to the unknown susceptibility of endemic native flora.

Conservation of imperiled crayfish, Euastacus clarkae Morgan, 1997 (Decapoda: Parastacidae), a highland crayfish from the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia’s World Heritage Area

The imperiled Clark’s crayfish, Euastacus clarkae Morgan (1997), was described from a handful of juvenile specimens collected from one location in 1981. The Australian Crayfish Project recently completed an intensive field survey project to better define its distribution, habitat, biology and conservation status. Euastacus clarkae is restricted to headwater reaches of highland streams feeding the Hastings and Forbes rivers, at elevations ranging from 670-1150 m. The entire Hastings River catchment (3846 km2) was surveyed and established the Extent of Occurrence for E. clarkae at 200 km2. The distribution was almost entirely located within Werrikimbe National Park where the species was locally abundant. We recommended conservation down listing from Critically Endangered to Endangered and present information to support future conservation efforts and allow specific management plans to be drafted for this rare, highland species. To assist with identification we provide a key to this and other Euastacus found in the Hastings and adjoining drainages.

If a frog calls in the forest: Bioacoustic monitoring reveals the breeding phenology of the endangered Richmond Range mountain frog (Philoria richmondensis)

AbstractAmphibians are the most threatened vertebrate taxon of modern times. Baseline data and affordable methods to monitor populations are absent for many Australian frog species. Furthermore, some species are visually cryptic, and detection often relies upon male advertisement calls. Imperfect detection rates impede our ability to assess the status of populations over time. Understanding the factors that influence calling is essential to inform the timing of survey effort and increase survey efficiency. Automated recording systems offer considerable potential to determine calling phenology and establish the relationship between calling and abiotic factors. The mountain frogs (Philoria Myobatrachidae) of the Gondwana rainforests are considered susceptible to climate change impacts, such as shifts in the timing of calling. In order to describe the calling phenology of Philoria richmondensis, commercially available automated recording systems were deployed at five locations, and over 5000 h of sound recordings were captured and analysed. Peak calling activity occurred during morning and evening periods in the austral spring. Ambient temperature was found to significantly contribute to the probability of a call occurring, with the highest frequency of calls recorded occurring between 15°C and 16°C, and there was a negative relationship between precipitation and calling activity. The results allow future surveys to be better targeted and provide a benchmark with which to detect changes in calling phenology over time.

Some new and noteworthy bryophytes from Antarctic Beech (Nothofagus moorei) forests of north-eastern New South Wales

Bryophytes (mosses, liverworts, hornworts) are an abundant and conspicuous component of the World Heritage Gondwana Rainforests of Australia which comprise several discontinuous areas of subtropical forests and woodland along the Great Escarpment of north-eastern New South Wales and south-eastern Queensland. The Gondwana Rainforests are considered to be of exceptionally high conservation value, with more than 200 rare or threatened plant and animal species but, surprisingly, no mention is made of bryophytes in the statement of outstanding universal values. Recent studies in Werrikimbe and Willi Willi National Parks using bryophytes as fine-scale indicators of rainforest condition, have identified a number of unusual and interesting bryophytes including the moss Rosulabryum epiphyticum (Bryaceae), Leptodontium viticulosoides, (Pottiaceae) and several endemic species of Macromitrium (Orthotrichaceae) The moss Fissidens thorsbornei (synonym: Nanobryum thorsbornei) (Fissidentaceae) and the liverwort Lejeunea gracilipes (Lejeuneaceae), are reported as new records for New South Wales.

Two new species ofEuastacus(Decapoda: Parastacidae) from the Gondwana Rainforests of central eastern Australia

Two new species of the crayfish genus Euastacus are described from the Gondwana Rainforests on the Queensland - New South Wales border region of Australia, Euastacus binzayedi sp. n. and Euastacus angustus sp. n. These two small, poorly spinose species are broadly similar in appearance and colouration to Euastacus dalagarbe Coughran, from the same region. Both species can be readily distinguished from E. dalagarbe; Euastacus binzayedi sp. n. by the numerous bumps and protrusions on the dorsal and ventral surfaces of its chelae, and Euastacus angustus sp. n. by its unusual, laterally compressed body shape, and the large ventromesial carpal spine. Cytochrome oxidase I divergence estimates from the most closely related species were high for both Euastacus binzayedi sp. n. (4.8%), and Euastacus angustus sp. n. (8.7%). Morphologically, both of these new species belong in a clearly defined, poorly spinose grouping, and both appear to be exceptionally rare, each known from a single locality.

The scenic rim of southeastern Queensland, Australia: A history of mid Cenozoic intraplate volcanism

Intraplate volcanism was widespread in southeastern Queensland during the mid Cenozoic, leaving a legacy of variably eroded volcanoes and rugged topography known locally as The Scenic Rim. These plume-derived volcanoes provide a detailed record of northward Australian plate velocity, and indicate a major slowdown commencing at 26 Ma and persisting until 23 Ma, correlated with initial collision of the massive Ontong Java plateau with the northern subduction margin of the Australian plate. Despite traversing over 36 km of continental crust, trace element and isotopic signatures indicate little or only minor contamination for most units, with the exception of rhyolites formed during the period of slow plate velocity. Nevertheless, the thick continental crust allowed magmas to stall and fractionate during ascent, often producing highly evolved rocks (e.g., comendites) containing extreme concentrations of incompatible elements, including >2000 ppm Zr. Meanwhile, isotopic and trace element results from mafic units are consistent with melting and mixing of depleted upper mantle and an EM1-like source. Alkaline mafic eruptions also often contain abundant upper mantle and lower crustal xenoliths, providing excellent samples of these otherwise inaccessible regions. Denudation has produced good exposures of the subsurface magmatic architecture, a variety of landscapes, and diverse wildlife habitats; as a result many of the volcanoes are contained in National Parks, including the World Heritage listed Gondwana Rainforests of Australia.

CONSERVING AUSTRALIA'S UNIQUE RAINFOREST FRUITS AND WILD RELATIVES

Australian rainforests have many unique edible fruits including wild relatives of worldwide economically important species such as citrus and macadamia. One of the key risks of projected climate change is its effect on Eastern Australian rainforests. The interaction of climate change with other threats, such as weeds and habitat fragmentation, is thus likely to impact on already vulnerable environments such as the World Heritage listed Gondwana Rainforests of S. Queensland and N. New South Wales. Seed banking is a cost effective way of conserving unique and vulnerable diversity ex situ for utilisation (e.g., plant breeding and restoration programs). However, the seeds of many rainforest species cannot survive the desiccation required in standard seed banking procedures (i.e., non-orthodox seed storage characteristics). This paper reports on preliminary findings on biology and storage characteristics of seeds of 11 significant and/or threatened Australian rainforest fruits. Of these, 4 were desiccation sensitive (DS) and living collections and technology development (e.g., cryopreservation) needs to be prioritised for ex situ conservation. Of the 7 desiccation tolerant (DT) seeds, only one is expected to be viable in long-term storage by standard seedbanking methods. The oil content and thermal analysis of oils is described for 5 of these species and indicates the need to investigate alternative storage, particularly cryopreservation, for these species.

Promoting Gondwana: presentation of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area in tourist brochures

An 800 km stretch of the Eastern coast of Australia contains some of the last remnant fragments of the sub-tropical rainforests that once covered much of the region. This natural resource – declared as World Heritage in 1986 as the Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves of Australia, but now known as the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia – serves as an important drawcard for tourist visitation to the region. Using a content analysis of 343 tourism brochures collected across one section of the Gondwana Rainforests area, this study examined the extent to which ‘rainforest’, ‘World Heritage’ and the ‘Gondwana Rainforests’ are present within text and imagery. Findings reveal a low prevalence of this ‘branding’; indeed only 3% of brochures mention ‘Gondwana’ or ‘Gondwana Rainforests’. As presentation is a key component of World Heritage-listed forests like Gondwana, the study's results reveal the importance of building awareness of the brand in the minds of users and the community.

Creating Web-based Environmental Education Resources through Community and University Partnerships

Community groups often seek to engage with schools in promoting environmental education goals. A collaborative initiative is described in which university pre-service teacher education students were encouraged to create Web-based teaching and learning resources, related to rainforests and world heritage areas, for use at primary and secondary levels. The partnership between Southern Cross University and the Advisory Committees of the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage Area took the form of a voluntary competition, which was integrated with students’ university assessment requirements. The factors that influenced students’ decisions to get involved were identified through telephone interviews. Insight was also gained into pre-service teachers’ understanding and willingness to engage in environmental education. The data was interpreted through the lens of participatory partnerships and incentives in environmental education. The study reveals implications for universities, professional associations and community organisations who may seek to similarly collaborate in educational resource development.

Distribution, habitat and conservation status of the freshwater crayfishes,Euastacus dalagarbe, E. girurmulayn, E. guruhgi, E. jagabarandE. mirangudjin

This paper examines the distribution, habitat and conservation status of five species of the freshwater crayfish genus Euastacus from eastern Australia: E. dalagarbe, E. girurmulayn, E. guruhgi, E. jagabar and E . mirangudjin. Although the five species have discrete distributions, they have similar habitat requirements, occurring only at highland (310-960 m) sites in the Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves of Australia. They all occur in minor or peripheral habitats (i.e. small tributaries, damp gullies and wet soaks) and are sympatric with the much larger species, E. sulcatus. On the basis of their restricted ranges, E . girurmulayn, E. guruhgi, E. jagabar and E. mirangudjin satisfy the IUCN criteria for listing as ‘Vulnerable’ (VU D2). Euastacus dalagarbe is close to qualifying for listing as vulnerable, and can be considered as ‘Near Threatened’. Potential threats for these species are discussed.

A taxonomic and biogeographic review of the invertebrates of the Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves of Australia (CERRA) World Heritage Area, and adjacent regions

The Gondwanan World Heritage rainforests of Australia’s subtropics support an invertebrate biota that reflects diverse evolutionary histories. A high proportion of the fauna is identifiably autochthonous in origin. Four major generalizations, as to the invertebrate “values” of the Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves of Australia (CERRA) World Heritage Area, can be derived from the taxonomic and biogeographic information acquired during this project: (a) The CERRA region, loosely defined as that area extending from the Barrington Tops, northern New South Wales, to southeast Queensland, is a significant zoogeographic refugium in terms of the evolution of Australian invertebrate taxa. Examples occur extensively within the taxa listed in Appendix 1 and are discussed in the Overview. Particular examples are the terrestrial snail family Charopidae, the freshwater snail family Hydrobiidae, the beetle taxa Adeliini, Cyphaleini, Coprini, Denticollinae, Rutelinae, Melolonthinae, Lucanidae, flightless beetles in the family Carabidae, the fly family Drosophilidae and dolichopodid subfamily Sciapodinae, parastacid crayfish, aradid bugs, the Onychophoran family Peripatopsidae and mygalomoph spiders. (b) The CERRA region includes a high proportion of taxa with “Gondwanan” or “Old Southern Endemic” affiliations. This group includes taxa with relatives on other Gondwanan landmasses such as South America, Africa and the Indian subcontinent, and those restricted to Australasia. Some taxa are restricted to Australia but with close relatives in either New Caledonia or New Zealand, but not both. Within known ranges, individual taxa can be widespread or relictual. Examples of “southern” fauna exist across all taxonomic levels—from species to that of subphylum. Notable higher taxonomic rank examples are the megascolecid earthworms, mygalomorph and amphectid spiders, harvestmen in the family Acropsopilionidae, the mite family Pheroliodidae, and the terrestrial snail families Athoracophoridae, Charopidae, Cystopeltidae and Rhytididae. The insects are well represented, and include the beetle family Phloeostichidae and tribes Pamborini, Migadopini, Adeliini, Epistomentini and Stigmoderini, flies in the family Pelecorhynchidae, the subfamily Arachnocampinae and the tribe Pangoniini, the moth families Hepialidae and Micropterigidae, the “birdwing” butterfly genus Ornithoptera, the hemipteran bug families Idiostolidae and Peloridiidae, the neuropteran lacewing subfamilies Kempyninae and Stenosmylinae, ambositrine and hyptiogastrine wasps, and the plecopteran families Austroperlidae, Eustheniidae and Gripopterygidae. Technical Reports of the Australian Museum (2002) No. 16. ISSN 1031-8062, ISBN 0-7347-2307-5 2 Technical Reports of the Australian Museum (2002) No. 16 (c) There is a substantial level of endemism within the fauna. This is very high at the species and genus level, and many of these are currently known only from single localities or from geographically restricted ranges within the CERRA region. Instances of generic and species endemism are particularly high in the snail families Hydrobiidae and Charopidae, the earthworm family Megascolecidae, the crayfish family Parastacidae, the subphylum Onychophora, and the spider suborder Mygalomorphae. Examples within the insects are the fly families Dolichopodidae, Platystomatidae, Exeretonevridae, Pelecorhynchidae and Tipulidae, the beetle tribes Onthophagini and Scarabaeini, the beetle family Carabidae and subfamily Melolonthinae, australembiid webspinners, cicadelloid and mezirine Hemiptera, oechophorine moths, and the lacewing family Hemerobiidae and the subfamily Kempyninae. The beetle family Rhinorhipidae, and the mite family Platyameridae, are restricted to the CERRA region. (d) Significant invertebrate heritage values are not restricted to taxa inhabiting rainforest vegetation. The intervening matrix of sclerophyll forests, and more rarely woodlands, shrub, heath and swamp complexes, and associated freshwater ecosystems, sustain distinctive non-rainforest invertebrate heritage values. Important higher taxa inhabiting these ecosystems are ruteline “christmas beetles” in the tribe Anoplognathini, the family Elateridae, the speciose buprestid genus Castiarina, the tenebrionid tribe Heleini, the fly genera Pelecorhynchus and Trichophthalma, and athoracophorid, helicarionid and glacidorbid snails. Limestone outcrops are important focal points of terrestrial snail endemism and diversity. Cave systems are important for the conservation of associated, often endemic or localized, arachnid and insect faunas. WILLIAMS, GEOFF, 2002. A taxonomic and biogeographic review of the invertebrates of the Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves of Australia (CERRA) World Heritage Area, and adjacent regions. Technical Reports of the Australian Museum 16: 1–208.