The Summerland Peninsula is located at the western end of Phillip Island in Victoria, Australia. The peninsula lies within the Gippsland Plain Bioregion and is a site of high conservation significance.
As part of a protected area the peninsula supports a diverse array of animal and plant life, including a number of species listed as of conservation concern by international, federal and state bodies including the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act), the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 (FFG Act) and it is a BirdLife International Important Bird Area.Phillip Island Nature Parks Department of Environment. (2012). "Environment Plan 2012 - 2017" (PDF) Phillip Island Nature Parks. Retrieved 2016-05-01. It is home to one of the largest little penguin (Eudyptula minor) breeding colonies in Australia, the second largest breeding colony of Australian fur seals (Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus) in the world, one of the largest breeding colonies of greater crested terns (Sterna bergii) in Victoria and an important breeding ground for short-tailed shearwaters (Puffinus tenuirostris). Several plants regarded as rare or threatened in either Victoria or Australia have been recorded on the peninsula, including river swamp wallaby-grass (Amphibromus fluitans) listed as vulnerable in Australia.Oates A., & Frood, D. (2011). "Summerland Peninsula Native Vegetation Management Plan".. Newhaven: Oates Environmental Consulting and Pathways: Bushland and Environment. Retrieved 2016-05-02.
The peninsula was significantly modified by agricultural, residential and recreational developments until the 1980s causing overall ecosystem degradation, however protection, management and restoration efforts over the past 30 years has seen the area's biodiversity recover. Today Phillip Island Nature Parks (PINP) manage the peninsula as an area of ecological significance under the Crown Land Reserves Act 1978. The peninsula is also home to two major state tourism assets managed by PINP, the Penguin Parade and the Nobbies Centre, which receive over 600,000 visitors annually. As a not-for-profit organisation operating revenue from these eco-tourism activities fund conservation work across PINP managed land.Phillip Island Nature Parks. (2015). "Phillip Island Nature Parks Annual Report 2014-15" (PDF). Phillip Island Nature Parks. Retrieved 2016-05-02.
Description
The Summerland Peninsula is approximately in area and is an exposed coastal plateau surrounded by coastlines of sandy and basalt boulder beaches and rock platforms among rocky basalt cliffs. Other major landforms include a coastal dune system and wetlands, made up of a freshwater lagoon, Swan Lake, and swamp, Green Lake. The north coast of the peninsula faces into the calm waters of Western Port Bay and the south coast into the more turbid waters of Bass Strait. The area includes the offshore rock formations of the Nobbies, three small islands, and Seal Rocks (Seal Rock and Black Rock) two rocky islets of 8 hectares, about 1.5 km off the western tip of the peninsula in Bass Strait.
The area has a temperate climate, with cool wet winters (June – August) and hot and dry summers (December – February). The majority of rainfall occurs in winter, with between 500mm and 1100mm per year, and the area is exposed to the full force of southwest gales.
Vegetation communities are determined by wind exposure, salt-spray, soil composition, geology, presence of seabird colonies and past land management practices. Ecological vegetation classes on the plateau include Grassy Woodland and Coastal Tussock Grassland; the steep, exposed coastal cliffs of the peninsula consist of Coastal Tussock Grassland and Coastal Dune Scrub, and extensive areas of Bird Colony Succulent Herbland are found on the southern cliff faces and cliff tops among little penguin and short-tailed shearwater colonies, including the Nobbies.
History
Modification of Phillip Island and its Summerland Peninsula began after European Settlement in the 1830s and 1840s. In 1839 the entire island (approximately 10,000 hectares) was cleared by burning to make way for agriculture, by 1872 farmers had settled the peninsula cultivating chicory and bringing cattle and rabbits which further decimated the land. Residential developments and recreational activities soon followed in the 1900s.
Tourism In the late 1920s tourism became an established business in the area after three locals began taking tourists to view the nightly "penguin parade", where little penguins arrive ashore at Summerland Beach and head to their burrows and rock cavities on the peninsula to rest, breed, feed chicks and moult. By the late 1980s the Penguin Parade was recognised as one of the most popular attractions in Victoria with 500,000 visitors annually.
Summerland Estate
Between 1920 and 1961, the peninsula was subdivided into 776 residential allotments. Further buildings and infrastructure were erected within the penguin colony and the area became known as the Summerland Estate. As human activity grew so did introduced threats such as invasive weeds, red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) and traffic which was negatively impacting biodiversity. Slowly the importance of protecting the area's natural values for the benefit of both wildlife and tourism were recognised and a large penguin reserve was established by the government. Scientific research into little penguin breeding and survival on the peninsula only began in 1968 with the formation of the volunteer Penguin Study Group (PSG).
Little penguin population decline Despite this new focus on conservation, studies by the PSG and a newly established Scientific Advisory Committee revealed the island's penguin population was in decline due to habitat destruction, introduced plants and animals, road traffic and disturbance in the penguin colony, however direct impacts from tourism were slight. Research indicated that introduced predators, namely foxes, were adversely effecting breeding success and adult survival, and that habitat reduction and destruction due to developments was significantly depressing the population. By the late 1970s nine out of Phillip Island's ten little penguin colonies were extinct with the last colony restricted to the Summerland Peninsula. Ecological modelling estimated that if threats were not managed the Summerland Peninsula penguin colony would also be extinct by 1998-99 and the Penguin Parade cease to be a viable tourist attraction.
Preventing little penguin extinction In 1985, presented with these research findings, the Victoria State Government accepted the need for urgent action to assist, and with the then Penguin Reserve Committee of Management developed the Penguin Protection Plan. Under this plan, the government instituted a buy-back program for all infrastructure on the Summerland Peninsula and allocated funds for substantial further scientific research into better understanding penguins on land and their lives at sea.
In the late 1980s, revegetation of penguin habitat and installation of artificial nesting boxes had been initiated, as well as improved control of tourists and vehicles. While some fox control was in place, improved strategies were imperative to reduce the mortality of predator-killed penguins of which 56% of deaths were attributed to foxes between 1986 and 1989. Control of visitors to the Penguin Parade was improved with the installation of boardwalks and stands to prevent trampling through the colony and allowing only 10% of the penguin population to be viewed by the public for 1–2 hours after dusk.
Restoration In 2010 the Summerland Peninsula buy-back was completed and in 2011 a subsequent Summerland Restoration Project initiated with a $3.4 million grant from the State Government of Victoria. The program included under-grounding power, demolition and removal of the last remaining houses and redundant infrastructure, revegetation and the provision of artificial nests and pest and predator control.
These extensive conservation efforts have helped the little penguin population on the Summerland Peninsula grow from an estimated 12,000 birds in the 1980s headed for extinction to an estimated 31,000 breeding individuals in 2014.
the Summerland Estate's population of little penguins was estimated at 40,000. After many penguins had died in a 2019 heatwave, native plants such as bower spinach were planted around penguin boxes to insulate them. Grass fires, largely due to poor practices since settlement, and projected to occur more frequently as a result of climate change, threaten the penguins' habitat, and it has been observed that they do not move away from fire. A project is under way to replace more flammable introduced plants with less flammable endemic species, creating natural firebreaks.
Flora
The peninsula supports a variety of ecological vegetation communities which are of conservation concern within the Gippsland Plains Bioregion. These include grassy woodland (endangered), bird colony succulent herbland (rare), estuarine flats grassland (endangered), coastal tussock grassland (vulnerable) and coastal dune scrub (depleted). Overall vegetation of the Summerland Peninsula is dominated by coast tussock-grass (Poa poiformis), bower spinach (Tetragonia implexicoma), seaberry saltbush (Rhagodia candolleana), rounded noon-flower (Disphyma crassifolium subsp. davellatum) and coastal tea-tree (Leptospermum laevigatum).
Several species of plant found on the peninsula are listed as either rare or threatened in Victoria or Australia, including river swamp wallaby-grass (Amphibromus fluitans) listed as vulnerable in Australia, purple blown-grass (Lachnagrostis punicea subsp. filifolia) listed as vulnerable in Victoria, and pale-flower cranesbill (Geranium sp. 3), Creeping Rush (Juncus revolutus), Dune Wood-sorrel (Oxalis rubens) and Dune Poa (Poa poiformis var. ramifer) all listed as rare in Victoria.
Pest plants and weeds are a significant threat on the peninsula, impacting wildlife and habitat as well as threatened plant species and vegetation communities. African boxthorn (Lycium ferocissimum), gorse (Ulex europaeus), kikuyu grass (Pennisetum clandestinum) and Melaleuca species have been given priority for management as they threaten seabird habitat and provide shelter for feral cats and foxes. Introduced species such as marram grass (Ammophila arenaria) and sea wheat-grass (Thinopyrum junceiforme) have become well-established in many areas affecting dune development and morphology.
Intensive revegetation and weed control work continues on the peninsula with the aim of restoring it nearer to the pre-European settlement environment, in 2015 over 2,500 plants were planted with works focused on Allocasuarina shrubs to assist in slowing the spread of Melaleuca.
Fauna