Critically Endangered Project
Towards recovery of 10 Critically Endangered plants
Project overview
Our work is built on collaboration, and one of our most important partnerships is with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (RBG) through the Millennium Seed Bank Partnership. For over 20 years, this global initiative has helped us build capacity and deliver projects to collect and bank Australia’s native plant species.
With generous funding provided from RBG, our Critically Endangered Project was a two-year conservation effort that focused on securing and protecting some of Australia’s most at-risk plants through seed banking, germination research, and restoration efforts.
Working across Western Australia and Tasmania between 2022-2024, the project targeted 10 Critically Endangered species, conducting field surveys, seed collection, germination trials, and on-ground restoration to strengthen wild populations and improve species survival.
This work would not have been possible without the support of RBG, Kew and the MSBP, whose commitment to global plant conservation continues to drive real impact for Australia’s threatened flora.
Project Aims
- Undertake field surveys to locate populations, and estimate when seed will be ready for collection.
- Secure seed from species not currently in Australian Seed Banks, and improve the diversity and quantity of exisiting collections.
- Determine optimum germination conditions and produce protocols to guide restoration.
- Complete restoration activities including establishment of Seed Production Areas and Translocations.
Project outcomes
Seed collections
92 collections secured for 15 CE species,
plus 16 collections for 6 other listed taxa.
These seeds are vitally important, acting as insurance against widespread loss in case of future environmental crises. They ensure genetic material is represented and secured in long-term ex situ conservation seed banks, providing opportunities for future conservation and research.
Germination trials
20 trials completed for 12 CE species,
plus 3 trials completed for 3 other listed taxa)
Germination trials produce valuable data about the germination cues and viability of seeds collected under the project. The results improve the conservation potential for the species stored in seed banks and managed in situ.
Restoration activites
5 Seed Production Areas for 5 CE species,
5 Translocations for 5 CE species,
plus 1 Translocation for 1 other listed taxa.
Seed production areas provide a controlled environment for cultivating plants and producing seeds, ensuring a sustainable supply for restoration efforts. Translocations help reintroduce or bolster wild populations, increasing resilience.
In-kind support
The project also benefited from more than $132,000 in in-kind support from its partners. This initiative underscores the vital role of seed banking, restoration, and research in addressing biodiversity loss, while highlighting the power of long-term partnerships in securing the future of Australia’s most threatened plants.
Project highlights
A recipe for success: Innovation in orchid conservation
The critically endangered Golfers leek orchid (Prasophyllum incorrectum) is native to damp native grassland and banksia woodland in the midlands of Tasmania. Under this project the Tasmanian Seed Conservation Centre undertook experimentation with new orchid germination media using alternate cereals as carbon sources for the mycorrhizal fungi. Traditionally oatmeal has been the primary cereal used in symbiotic propagation of terrestrial orchids. Germination media using brown rice flakes, quinoa flakes and polenta have been trialed and the resulting germination scored at six weeks. These results established a new highly effective germination protocols for P. incorrectum as well as six other orchid species. Germination of leek orchids to the green leaf stage in six weeks had not previously been observed. These seedlings have grown rapidly, many reaching dropper initiation by twelve weeks. This work is anticipated to improve seedling survival rates once transferred into nursery.
Rising from the Ashes: Grevillea batrachioides makes a comeback
Grevillea batrachioides is a Critically Endangered plant species known only from a single location in the Midwest region of Western Australia which currently numbers less than twenty plants in the wild. A translocation of the species commenced in 2004, with these plants growing and seeding well. Then, in 2011 a wildfire burnt through the translocation site killing all the plants. Subsequently, fifty seedlings were observed naturally recruiting in the translocation site. These seedlings were later augmented with additional, nursery grown seedlings which were planted in 2012. By 2024, 95 of these plants were known to be surviving. In September 2024, the WA Seed Centre, Kensington planted 61 seedlings to the existing translocation site as part of the Critically Endangered Project. This work has helped ensure the long-term sustainability of this population.
From lab to landscape: Conserving Caladenia viridescens
The Dunsborough Spider-orchid (Caladenia viridescens) is listed as Critically Endangered in WA due to limited distribution, habitat fragmentation and continuing population decline. At the beginning of this project, the WA Seed Center, Kings Park completed germination trials for the species developing information about baseline viability and fungal efficacy, and accessioning fungal isolates in long term cryostorage. Germinants from this work were then utilised to establish a Seed Production Area (SPA) at Kings Park and Botanic Garden. In September 2024, 10 of the SPA orchids were then incorporated into pollinator surveys to identify potential translocation sites and critical habitat for the species. This aspect of the work was provided in-kind as part of Kings Parks larger orchid conservation program.
Acknowledgements
The Critically Endangered Project was made possible through generous funding from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
The following Partners were involved in this project
Tasmanian Seed Conservation Centre
Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens
The Western Australian Seed Centre
Kings Park, Botanic Gardens and Parks Authority
The Western Australian Seed Centre
Kensington, Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions
