It’s All About the Plants
Tuesday, 3 March 2015, 10:00–12:00
Lecture Theatre, Goodman Building

by Katherine Ryan
Senior Project Officer, CLLMM Recovery Project

Come and hear how an excavator can be used for positive outcomes in large- scale aquatic plant restoration.

The aquatic plant, Ruppia tuberosa is a key primary producer in the Coorong, providing food (foliage, turions, seeds) for waterbirds, and habitat for fish and invertebrates. During the millennium drought, the population of R. tuberosa in the Coorong was severely depleted, including its seed bank. Therefore when improved water conditions returned, the plant was not able to respond quickly without intervention.

The Coorong, South Australia. Photo by Katherine Ryan

The Ruppia Translocation Project is helping to restore R. tuberosa to the Coorong. Long term monitoring was coupled with research trials to develop the large-scale project which commenced in 2013. Seed is taken from a healthy donor site and then scattered on the Coorong mudflats. To date over 60 hectares of Coorong mudflat have been treated.

The talk will cover how the project method was developed, implementation, initial results and what an amazing little plant Ruppia tuberosa is.

This work is part of the Coorong, Lower Lakes and Murray Mouth Recovery Project which is jointly funding by the Australian Government and the Government of South Australia.

All Herbarium staff, honoraries, volunteers, students and guests welcome.
Morning tea provided at 10:00, seminar starts at 10:30.