Strategic Management Prospects v4.0 Species Forecast Report created on 05 February, 2024

A Species Forecast Report is a summary of currently available information, the predicted 50-year outlook for the species, and potential pathways to recovery through species-specific and landscape-scale actions.

The report collates data from a range of sources including the Victorian Biodiversity Atlas, Strategic Management Prospects (SMP), Specific Needs Assessments, Threatened Species Action Statements, the Genetic Risk Index, and the IUCN Common Assessment Method.

Species Forecast Reports are intended to be used in conjunction with SMP and other spatial outputs in NatureKit, and Action Statements where relevant.

For more information on Species Forecast Reports, SMP and other biodiversity decision support tools, including user guides, visit Choosing actions for nature webpage on the DEECA website.


Species Overview

Taxon ID 501791
Scientific name Isopogon prostratus
Common name Prostrate Cone-bush
Group Dicotyledons
FFG status Critically Endangered
EPBC status
Prostrate Cone-bush (Image Source: Atlas of Living Australia)

Prostrate Cone-bush (Image Source: Atlas of Living Australia)


Species description

Description and life history

The taxon is a prostrate, spreading shrub, to 1 m or more diam.; branchlets reddish, pubescent. Leaves variously divided into acute linear lobes, to c. 10.5 cm long overall, glabrous but minutely scabrous, flattened; petiole to c. 6 cm long. Inflorescence sessile, to c. 2 cm diam.; involucral bracts sparsely hairy, ovate, acuminate; cone scales numerous, imbricate, broad, truncate, villous to woolly, except for the deciduous tip. Flowers to c. 12 mm long, yellow, glabrous, except for tufts of hairs on the apex of each tepal; pollen presenter at base minutely papillose, slightly swollen, constricted near midway then dilated into globular region, apical part glabrous, c. 4 mm long. Cones more or less globular, to c. 2 cm diam.; nuts villous, ovoid, tapered into a persisting style base, to c. 3 mm long. The taxon flowers from October to December. Older plants usually have a substantial lignotuber or rootstock (VicFlora no date). The occurrence of fire is probably of fundamental importance for regeneration. The taxon is adapted to regeneration following fire, both by resprouting from its base, lignotubers and from seed which is released from its cones following a fire (SAC 1994).

Distribution

The taxon is very rare in Victoria, with two disjunct occurrences, near Providence Ponds and on eastern slopes of the Howe Range. The small Providence Ponds population has diminished due to clearing and burning in recent decades, and the taxon is now regarded as endangered in Victoria (VicFlora no date). There are only two known occurrences of the taxon in Victoria. The population of the taxon located in the Providence Ponds Flora and Fauna Reserve, 3 km south-west of Fernbank, near Bairnsdale, is currently thought to be the largest in Victoria. It has declined from around 4000 plants in 1969 to a total of 51 known plants in 1993 scattered over an area of less than a hectare (SAC 1994). No juvenile plants or seedlings have been observed at the Providence Ponds site since 1989. It appears that all plants in the population are older plants (SAC 1994). The second population occurred at the foot of the Wau Wauka spur on the eastern slopes of Mount Howe, approximately 9.5 miles (15 km) east-north-east of the Mallacoota P.O. The taxon was last recorded there in 1969 and was described as a “small occurrence” and although the size is unknown, may consist of only a few plants. The Mallacoota population has not been relocated despite several intensive searches. In recent years a botanical survey team alerted to the possible presence of I. prostratus, failed to locate the plant. Neville Walsh recently carried out a brief search for the species at the Mallacoota site without success (SAC 1994).

Habitat

The taxon occurs mostly in heath and dry sclerophyll forest; sometimes in open grassy areas; usually on sand or sandy soils - in Gippsland on quaternary sand-dunes close to the coast. The average annual rainfall at Fernbank is between 600 and 700 mm and at the Mount Howe site is around 1000 mm (SAC 1994; VicFlora no date). Associated species at the Fernbank site include Banksia marginata, Eucalyptus consideniana, Eucalyptus cephalocarpa, Leptospermum myrsinoides, Monotoca scoparia, Restio spp., Acacia mitchellii, Brachyloma daphnoides, Dillwynia sericea, Epacris impressa, Hibbertia prostrata, Lomandra filiformis, and Rhytidosporum procumbens. Associated species at the Mallacoota site include Conospermum and Darwinia spp (SAC 1994).

Genetic Risk Index

No genetic risk information is currently available.


Species maps

Habitat Distribution Model

The Habitat Distribution Model (HDM) layer shows the modelled distribution of habitat for Prostrate Cone-bush in Victoria. Red shading indicates areas of habitat with relatively higher suitability, compared with yellow shaded areas. HDMs are developed by combining Victorian Biodiversity Atlas (VBA) occurrence records for the species with a range of environmental variables to predict where the most suitable habitat for the species is in Victoria. Species may not always occupy areas of suitable habitat. Threatening processes (prior or ongoing) and disturbance regimes (e.g. fire, timber harvesting) may stop species from occupying otherwise suitable habitat for periods of time. Management actions often focus on currently occupied areas, however management of unoccupied areas can also be important to allow populations to re-establish.

No Habitat Distrabution Model is currently available.


Species Forecast

No Species Forecast data is available because Prostrate Cone-bush is not yet included in our decision-support tools.

About Species Forecast

A Species Forecast is the estimated likelihood of a species being present in 50 years time. The data for Species Forecasts is drawn from DEECA’s decision support tools, Strategic Management Prospects and Specific Needs Assessments.

Many species benefit from the management of widespread threats, such as weeds and pests, and the benefit of these landscape-scale actions to ~4,200 species is modelled in Strategic Management Prospects. In addition to landscape-scale actions, some species also need actions that improve or protect habitat at certain sites, such as nest boxes or hollow logs, or actions to improve certain populations, such as gene mixing or translocation.

As part of a continuous improvement program for our decision-support tools, we are working to expand the scope of actions modelled in Strategic Management Prospects, and to build the dataset of species benefits from location-specific and population-specific actions.

We can use this data to consider how different actions may benefit a species and examine how different types of on-ground management may contribute to a species’ recovery in 50 years, to develop a Species Forecast.


Potential actions for species recovery

No Species Forecast data is available because Prostrate Cone-bush is not yet included in our decision-support tools.


Species prospects in SMP

The benefit data in SMP can be used to consider what the Prostrate Cone-bush’s prospects are if the landscape scale management actions in SMP are implemented.

No Species Prospects figure is available becuase Prostrate Cone-bush is not yet included in SMP.


How to get further information and provide feedback

For more information on the decision support tools, products and underlying data used in this report, and how the data is collected and developed into products, please visit the following links:

These links include information on how to provide data and feedback into these products.

The Species Forecast Reports will be updated periodically to reflect changes and improvements in the products and tools that inform them (e.g., following updates to SMP).

As the data contained in Species Forecast Reports is drawn from multi-species datasets, it is not currently possible to incorporate species-specific information or feedback directly.

For help or further information get in touch by visiting Choosing actions for nature webpage on the DEECA website.


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