Norseman Pea  |  

Daviesia microcarpa

Status: Endangered on the EPBC Act list

The Norseman Pea is a sprawling shrub, which grows to 40 cm high and 1 m wide. Needle-like
phyllodes, which are approximately 8-20 mm long, are arranged spirally on tangled stems.
Flowers are found towards the end of each stem and consist of three components: orange
standards with pink-red veins, pink-red wings with orange tips and pale orange-pink keels.
Flowers and pods (approximately 4-4.5 mm long) distinguish the Norseman Pea from nearly all
its relatives, as they are the smallest in the genus. This description is drawn from Crisp (1995)
and DEC (2011).

Government evidence of impact of climate change:

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  • Australian Government, Conservation Advice, Daviesia microcarpa

    The main factors that make the species eligible for listing in the Endangered category are restricted distribution; small population size and continuing decline due to climate change; habitat loss modification and invasive species.

    Threats The Norseman Pea is threatened by climate change; invasive species; habitat loss; disturbance or modification; and disease (Table 2).

    This type of event is increasingly likely to reoccur due to climate change.

    Northeast of Road reserve 1979 30 Moderate Grazing; hydrological Norseman 1984 0 poor changes; mining; recreational activities; 1985 inappropriate fire regimes 1994 2002 2016 2018 1b.

    Although disturbance events; such as Trend increasing fires; are required to trigger germination; high Extent across the entire fire frequency may also lead to depletion of range soil stored seeds (Crisp 1983 DEC 2011).

    The small population size and restricted distribution of the species may also increase population extinction risk; following stochastic events; such as fire (DEC 2011).

    Fire severity varied across the bushfire extent; with many patches burning at extreme severity while others remained unburnt (DPIE 2020).

    In particular; Extent across the entire grassy weeds can increase fuel load and alter range fire regimes (Milberg Lamont 1995 Setterfield et al. 2013).

    These altered fire regimes can create conditions that are detrimental to the maintenance of native species and favourable to the establishment and spread of weeds (D’Antonio Vitousek 1992 Grigulis et al. 2005).

    Drought is a threat to and has affected all subpopulations (DEC 2011 DBCA 2021).

    Drought stress; exacerbated by altered hydrology (caused by the Eyre Highway realignment in 1996) has caused continuing decline of mature individuals and poor no recruitment in subpopulation 1a b (DEC 2011 DBCA 2021).

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