The Warby–Chiltern Box–Ironbark Region comprises a cluster of separate blocks of remnant box-ironbark forest habitat, with a collective area of 253 km², in north eastern

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

, south-eastern

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

Description

This site lies to the east of the Rushworth Box-Ironbark Region IBA. It includes the Reef Hills and

Warby-Ovens National Park The Warby-Ovens National Park is a national park located on the lands of the Bangerang clan of the Yorta Yorta Nation in the Hume region of Victoria, Australia near Killawara. The national park is situated approximately west of Wangaratta and ...

s, Killawarra Forest, Chesney Hills, Mount Meg Reserves, Winton Wetlands Reserve, the Boweya Flora and Fauna Reserve, Rutherglen Conservation Reserve, Mount Lady Franklin Reserve and part of Chiltern-Mount Pilot National Park. Most of it lies within protected areas or state forests, encompassing only small blocks of private land.BirdLife International. (2011). Important Bird Areas factsheet: Warby-Chiltern Box-Ironbark Region. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 2011-11-20.

Birds

The site has been identified as an

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

(IBA) by

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding i ...

because it provides feeding habitat for relatively large numbers of non-breeding

swift parrot The swift parrot (''Lathamus discolor''), also known by the palawa kani name swift waylitja, is a species of broad-tailed parrot, found only in southeastern Australia. The species breeds in Tasmania during the summer and migrates north to south ...

s when flowering conditions are suitable, as well as the last few

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...

regent honeyeater The regent honeyeater (''Anthochaera phrygia'') is a critically endangered bird endemic to southeastern Australia. It is commonly considered a flagship species within its range, with the efforts going into its conservation having positive effec ...

s in Victoria. It also supports small numbers of

painted honeyeater The painted honeyeater (''Grantiella picta'') is a species of honeyeater in a monotypic taxon, monotypic genus. Taxonomy A member of the family Meliphagidae, ''Grantiella picta'' is the sole species under this genus. The painted honeyeater was ...

s, diamond firetails and non-breeding

flame robin The flame robin (''Petroica phoenicea'') is a small passerine bird native to Australia. It is a moderately common resident of the coolest parts of south-eastern Australia, including Tasmania. Like the other two red-breasted ''Petroica'' robins ...

s. Declining woodland birds still present in the IBA include brown treecreepers,

speckled warbler The speckled warbler (''Pyrrholaemus sagittatus'') is a species of bird in the family (biology), family Acanthizidae. It is Endemism, endemic to eastern Australia. Its natural habitat is temperate forests. Taxonomy The speckled warbler was first ...

hooded robin The hooded robin (''Melanodryas cucullata'') is a small passerine bird native to Australia. Like many brightly coloured robins of the Petroicidae, it is sexually dimorphic; the male bears a distinctive black-and-white plumage, while the female i ...

s, grey-crowned babblers,

Gilbert's whistler Gilbert's whistler (''Pachycephala inornata'') is a Monotypic taxon, monotypic species of bird Endemism, endemic to Australia, scattered in Semi-arid climate, semi-arid zones of southern Australia. Taxonomy The family Pachycephalidae originate ...

and, occasionally, migrant

black honeyeater The black honeyeater (''Sugomel nigrum'') is a species of bird in the honeyeater family (biology), family Meliphagidae. The black honeyeater exhibits sexual dimorphism, with the male being black and white while the female is a speckled grey-brown ...

crested bellbird The crested bellbird (''Oreoica gutturalis'') is a medium-sized passerine bird in the family Oreoicidae. It is native to drier parts of Australia where its typical habitats are acacia scrublands, eucalypt woodlands, spinifex and saltbush plains ...

s are locally extinct.

References

Important Bird Areas of Victoria (state) Box-ironbark forest {{VictoriaAU-geo-stub