Australia Native Woodland Reserve (ANWaR)
The Australian Native Woodland Reserve (ANWaR) is a 0.7 hectare native plant reserve developed for education, research and conservation at UniSQ Toowoomba.
The Reserve consists of over 500 native plant specimens planted in three different representative native woodlands found in southern inland Queensland:
- Darling Downs Mountain Coolibah Open Woodland - this area has dominant tree species of Mountain Coolibah (Eucalyptus orgadophila), Poplar Box (Eucalyptus populnea) and River Red Gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis) and a diverse understorey including Wild Apricot (Pittosporum phylliraeoides), Brigalow (Acacia harpophylla), Wilga (Geijera parviflora) and the rare native thistle species, Stemmacantha australis.
- Red Gum-Ironbark Open Woodland - containing already established Forest Red Gums (Eucalyptus tereticornis) and Rough-barked Apple (Angophora floribunda). Some of the main additions have been Narrow-leaved Ironbark (Eucalyptus crebra), Black Wattle (Acacia concurrens), and Green Wattle (Acacia decurrens).
- Dry Stringybark Woodland - this area has tree species such as Red Stringybark (Eucalyptus resinifera), Spotted Gum (Eucalyptus maculata), Bastard Tallowwood (Eucalyptus planchoniana) and Bailey's Stringybark (Eucalyptus baileyana). The understorey consists of native grass such as Kangaroo Grass (Themeda triandra), shrubs such as Silver Wattle (Acacia podalyriifolia), Austral Indigo (Indigofera australis), Slender Rice flower (Pimelea linifolia) and a number of Banksia species.
In addition, a sclerophyll heath vegetation, typical of sandstone soils, comprises a fourth type in the extended area.
The vegetation types represented within the Reserve are some of the most at risk ecosystems in the region.
There are a number of rare or endangered plant species within the Reserve:
- Stemmacantha australisis currently listed as a vulnerable plant species that is considered at risk of disappearing within 20-50 years. It is now presumed extinct outside Queensland.
- Eucalyptus argophloia (Chinchilla white gum) is also listed as vulnerable nationally. This species is restricted to a small area of about 16 x 24 km north of Chinchilla.
- Callitris baileyi (Bailey's cypress pine) is currently listed as rare; it now occurs in only a few isolated populations in the Darling Downs region and northern New South Wales.
The Reserve is available for use for educational purposes by schools, tertiary institutions and other organisations.