Current view: Text account
Site description (2008 baseline):
Site location and context
The IBA is comprised of a 17 km length of beach and associated coastal dune scrub from between Port Fairy and Warrnambool in western Victoria. The IBA extends along the coast from Reef Point to Levy's Beach (approximately 17 km) and inland to include Ruttledge's Cutting, Kelly Swamp and surrounding pasture. The IBA supports two prominent vegetation types: dense coastal dune scrub comprised of medium shrubs (e.g. Coast Wattle, Coast Beard-heath) above a ground cover of grasses, herbs and sedges; and a mosaic of aquatic herbland, coastal saltmarsh and damp saline pasture supporting species such as Beaded Glasswort, Creeping Brookweed, Shiny Swamp-mat, Buck's-horn Plantain and Fathen. The stretches of beach west of Port Fairy from Taylor Bay to Griffith Island (approximately 7 km) and east of Warrnambool from eastern Lady Bay to Gaul's Cave (approximately 5 km), could also be added to the IBA for their relatively high population densities of Hooded Plovers.
Small numbers of Pacific Gull occur along this stretch of coast (Dodd & Woodrow 2007; G. Maguire pers. comm. 2007; C. Tzaros pers. comm. 2007). One count of 500 Sanderling (Australasian Wader Studies Group database). Surveys suggest that Striated Fieldwrens are abundant in coastal scrub and saltmarsh habitats (Dodd and Woodrow 2007; Atlas of Australian Birds database). Flame Robins are uncommon non-breeding visitors to the IBA (Atlas of Australian Birds database).
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
Minimise human and associated disturbance through erection of signage, management of horse riding and introduction of defined beach access routes at selected control points. Reduce the cover of exotic vegetation by implementing a revegetation program for native species. Minimise the impact of livestock on habitat values by excluding stock from coastal reserves (Moyne Shire Council 2001).
IBA overlaps with the Port Fairy-Warrnambool Coastal Reserve.
State or local government; private.
Chris Tzaros and Glenn Ehmke of the Orange-bellied Parrot Recovery Team and Grainne Maguire of the Hooded Plover project provided data and helped define the boundaries.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Port Fairy to Warrnambool (Australia). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/port-fairy-to-warrnambool-iba-australia on 23/12/2024.
