Hosted by Charles Sturt University, Albury Use of plant species vital attributes and fire history to manage fire in Grampians National Park, Victoria Tolhurst, K. G . Forestry and Resource Conservation, University of Melbourne, Water Street, Creswick VIC 3363. The Grampians National Park consists of a series of prominent sandstone mountain ranges in the otherwise flat Western Volcanic Plains of Victoria. Over 1000 vascular plant species occur in the Park, representing nearly one quarter of all the plant species in Victoria. Many species are endemic to the Grampians.
Fire is an important feature of the Park.
The combination of regular lightning strikes, high levels of human activity and very flammable fuels leads to regular occurrences of fire within the Park. Parks Victoria are charged with the responsibility to manage fire and protect the biotic and physical features of the Park. To this end, Parks Victoria are preparing a Fire Management Plan which is ecologically based. A key component of this Plan is the use of a database of Vital Attributes for each plant species in the Park and the fire history in each vegetation type represented in the Park. The fire response of each plant species within each defined vegetation type has been used to define ecologically defined fire regimes.