The Patho Plains Important Bird Area comprises a 794 km² tract of mainly pastoral farmland near the town of

Gunbower Gunbower is a town in northern Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The town is located in the Shire of Campaspe, north of the state capital, Melbourne on the banks of Gunbower Creek. At the , Gunbower had a population of 551. Gunbower Po ...

in north-central Victoria, south-eastern

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. It contains several relatively small nature conservation reserves as well as the 38 km²

Terrick Terrick National Park The Terrick Terrick National Park is a national park located in the region of Victoria, Australia. The national park was declared in June 1988 and is situated approximately northwest of Melbourne, north of the town of Mitiamo and north of Be ...

Description

The site encompasses remnants of native grassland inhabited by an endangered grassland bird in a

monotypic family In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...

– the

plains-wanderer The plains-wanderer (''Pedionomus torquatus'') is a bird, the only representative of family Pedionomidae and genus ''Pedionomus''. It is endemic to Australia. The majority of the remaining population is found in the Riverina region of New So ...

– with the intervening farmland. The area has a Mediterranean climate with cool, damp winters and hot dry summers, supporting native tussock grassland dominated by '' Austrostipa'' and '' Austrodanthonia'' species. Other vegetation types are temperate grassy woodlands dominated by white cypress-pine, grey box and yellow box. There are also small areas of black box riparian woodland and granite outcrop

shrubland Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity. It m ...

.BirdLife International. (2011). Important Bird Areas factsheet: Patho Plains. Downloaded from on 15/09/2011.

Birds

The site has been identified by

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...

as an

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

(IBA) because it supports most of Victoria's population of plains-wanderers. As well as the land used by the species, the IBA includes extensive areas of unsuitable farmland which has the potential for restoration to habitat suitable for plains-wanderers. It includes an area of woodland which supports the largest regional population of

diamond firetail The diamond firetail (''Stagonopleura guttata'') is a species of estrildid finch that is endemic to Australia. It has a patchy distribution and generally occupies drier forests and grassy woodlands west of the Great Dividing Range from South Ea ...

s. Birds of prey that breed in the area include

spotted harrier The spotted harrier (''Circus assimilis'') also known as the smoke hawk, is a large Australasian bird of prey belonging to the family Accipitridae. Taxonomy The spotted harrier belongs to the family Accipitridae. Accipitridae is the largest fami ...

s and

black falcon The black falcon (''Falco subniger'') is a medium-large falcon that is endemic to Australia. It can be found in all mainland states and territories and yet is regarded as Australia's most under-studied falcon.Debus, S.J.S. & Olsen, J. (2011). So ...

s. Bush stone-curlews and painted honeyeaters have been recorded. The woodland area is important for

brown treecreeper The brown treecreeper (''Climacteris picumnus'') is the largest Australasian treecreeper. The bird, endemic to eastern Australia, has a broad distribution, occupying areas from Cape York, Queensland, throughout New South Wales and Victoria to Po ...

black-chinned honeyeater The black-chinned honeyeater (''Melithreptus gularis'') is a species of passerine bird in the family Meliphagidae. It is endemic to Australia. Two subspecies are recognised. Its natural habitats are temperate forests and subtropical or tropical d ...

grey-crowned babbler The grey-crowned babbler (''Pomatostomus temporalis'') is a species of bird in the family Pomatostomidae. It is found in Australia, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea. Its natural habitats are temperate forests and subtropical or tropical moist lo ...

s and

hooded robin The hooded robin (''Melanodryas cucullata'') is a small passerine bird native to Australia. Like many brightly coloured robins of the Petroicidae, it is sexually dimorphic; the male bears a distinctive black-and-white plumage, while the female i ...

s. Inland species near the south-eastern limit of their range include Australian ringnecks,

chestnut-crowned babbler The chestnut-crowned babbler (''Pomatostomus ruficeps'') is a medium-sized bird that is endemic to arid and semi-arid areas of south-eastern Australia.Higgins, P. J. and Peter, J. M. (2002). Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Bird ...

s and white-winged fairy-wrens.

References

Important Bird Areas of Victoria (Australia) Murray-Darling basin {{VictoriaAU-geo-stub