Inappropriate fire regimes Invasive species Altered hydrology Climate change.

Monsoon rainforests; such as the ecological community; are also used opportunistically by savanna adapted mammals in order to avoid climatic extremes; predators and savanna fires (Bowman and Woinarski; 1996).

Climate Change Climate change is now understood to pose a serious long term threat to terrestrial; coastal and aquatic ecosystems and to have the potential to change the ecology of these environments.

Not only does climate change directly threaten species that cannot adapt; it could also exacerbate existing threats; including loss of habitat; altered hydrological regimes; altered fire regimes; and invasive species.

The potential large scale impacts of climate change could influence the species composition of this ecological community through their responses to disturbance and the very nature of those disturbances.

As a consequence of greenhouse gas induced global warming; trends suggest northern Western Australia will become warmer with more hot days and fewer cold nights (CSIRO and Bureau of Meteorology; 2007).

The modelled impacts of climate change on temperature; rainfall and the severity and frequency of extreme weather events are likely to directly affect the hydrological and fire regimes that impact on the nature and persistence of the ecological community.

Monsoon vine thickets on the coastal sand dunes of Dampier Peninsula Key threatening processes The following EPBC Act listed Key Threatening Processes are considered relevant to the Monsoon vine thickets on the coastal sand dunes of Dampier Peninsula ecological community Invasion of northern Australia by gamba grass and other introduced grasses Land clearance Loss of terrestrial climatic habitat caused by anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases Predation; Habitat Degradation; Competition and Disease Transmission by Feral Pigs The biological effects; including lethal toxic ingestion; caused by cane toads (Bufo rhinella marinus) Monsoon vine thickets on the coastal sand dunes of Dampier Peninsula Appendix F Eligibility for listing against the EPBC Act criteria This Appendix presents the detailed analysis relevant to the listing criteria in regard to the Dampier Monsoon Vine Thickets.

It is also important to consider the surrounding environment and landscape context outlined on Summary of threats The key threats to the ecological community are summarised below Inappropriate fire regimes.

Trends suggest that increased frequency and severity of weather events are likely to adversely affect the hydrological and fire regimes operating on the ecological community.

Many of the plant species in the ecological community are fire sensitive and do not readily recover.

In addition to the impacts of altered fire regimes and weed invasion; other disturbances are acting on the ecological community.

The effects of severe fragmentation; the small size and isolation of most remnants; the combined impacts from inappropriate fire regimes; invasive weeds and pest animals have severely reduced the community s integrity; disrupted ecological processes and consequently impaired its ability to respond to natural and anthropogenic pressures.

However; as the dry season progresses; plant fuels dry and the severity of fire increases (Gill et al.; 1996 Russell Smith and Edwards; 2006) combining to increase the vulnerability of vine thickets to fire damage.

Monsoon vine thickets on the coastal sand dunes of Dampier Peninsula Appendix E Description of threats Clearing fragmentation disturbance While the ecological community is naturally fragmented due to landscape position; fire regimes; hydrological requirements and availability of suitable habitat; it functions as a network ecosystem.

Additional pressures including edge effects and altered fire regimes can further reduce opportunities for pollination and dispersal of plant propagules.

Key fire regime issues confronting the Dampier Monsoon Vine Thickets relate to the contemporary frequency of very extensive; relatively non patchy and severe late dry season wildfires (Yates et al.; 2008 Edwards and Russell Smith; 2009 Val English; pers. comm.; 2012).

The most vulnerable vegetative components of the Dampier Monsoon Vine Thickets to fire impacts are the patch edges.

Russell Smith and Stanton (2002) found that contemporary fire impacts on monsoon rainforests in northern and northwestern Australia indicated significant widespread damage to the margins of typically small monsoon rainforest patches.

Significant fire events may have long term impacts on the ecological community.

Vegetation disturbances such as damage to canopy species; and ground cover and litter removal due to cattle; vehicles and the formation of tracks and campsites can exacerbate fire impacts.

By opening up the canopy of the ecological community; annual and exotic grasses; such as Cenchrus ciliaris (buffel grass); can invade a patch leading to an increased fuel load which in turn increases fire intensity (Black et al.; 2010).

Clumps of buffel grass near trees and shrubs can increase localised fire intensity and flame height; damaging woody species (CRC; 2008) (also see Appendix F Criterion 4).

Monitoring suggests that fire sensitive vegetation; such as the ecological community remain vulnerable to inappropriate contemporary fire regimes (Woinarski et al.; 2005 2010 Yates et al.; 2008).

Buffel grass can cause changes in fire regimes; as it is fire tolerant and can induce a grass fire cycle.

The grass fire cycle occurs when flammable invasive grasses establish and lead to an increased fire frequency and; in some cases; intensity.

The Dampier Monsoon Vine Thickets will be particularly vulnerable to extended dry periods with associated desiccation of plant fuels and resultant likely increased fire risk.

A number of factors potentially contribute to the degradation of the ecological community; however; altered fire regimes and invasive weeds are two factors in particular that are reducing the integrity of the ecological community.

The data collected include the frequency and area of the Dampier Monsoon Vine Thickets affected by fire for 70 of the 77 known patches; and show that the incidence of fire in the ecological community has increased markedly in the preceding decade (Table F1).

Even if this value overestimates the total amount burnt over the decade; the data indicate that the ecological community is impacted by fire and that fire recurs at repeated; sometimes short; intervals.

Many plant species that occur in the Dampier Monsoon Vine Thickets are fire sensitive and do not recover well after fire.

The impacts of fire on patches of the Dampier Monsoon Vine Thicket also include a reduction in the cover of trees; shrubs and vines and loss of accumulated ground litter.

Once established they adversely affect native species through direct competition or by altering ecosystem processes; such as disrupting food webs or Monsoon vine thickets on the coastal sand dunes of Dampier Peninsula dispersal agents (as when natural pollinators visit weed rather than native species) or changing fire regimes (for instance the establishment of more flammable invasive grass species into a patch).

Buffel grass also is tolerant of fire and can significantly increase fire fuel loads where it has established on the edge or within patches of the ecological community.

This contributes to a change in the fire regime of a patch by promoting the spread of fires into the ecological community.

They are contributing to a reduction in integrity of the ecological community and their impacts can be exacerbated by the changes to fire regimes noted above.

Monsoon vine thickets on the coastal sand dunes of Dampier Peninsula Reduction in integrity through other disturbances; e.g. invasive pest animals Altered fire regimes and weed invasions are key factors that are reducing the integrity of the Dampier Monsoon Vine Thickets but other disturbances also contribute.

These activities help to spread weeds into thickets and; in so doing; increase the susceptibility of patches to fire and erosion.

There are clear adverse impacts from altered fire regimes that have lead to increased frequency and intensity of burn; but also various impacts due to weed invasion; feral animals and human activities.

Trends suggest that increased frequency and severity of weather events are likely to adversely affect the hydrological and fire regimes operating on the ecological community.