Managing biodiversity in our cotton 'landscapes'

Balonne local government area

Area of cotton landscape:
1,051,400 ha

Area of cotton properties:
494,000 ha

Area of remnant vegetation in the cotton landscape:
230,200 ha. (22%)

Area of remnant vegetation on cotton properties:
95,400 ha. (19%)

Area of threatened ecological communities in the cotton landscape:
127,800 ha. (56%)

Area of threatened ecological communities on cotton properties:
64,000 ha. (67%)

Area of priority zones for native vegetation restoration and enhancement:
31,260 ha

Area of priority zones for vegetation:
38,010 ha


Main vegetation types on cotton properties:

Coolibah woodlands, White Cypress woodlands, Poplar Box woodlands, Carbeen woodlands, Gidgee woodlands

Main threatened ecological communities on cotton properties:

Coolibah-Black Box woodland of the Brigalow Belt South and Darling Riverine Plains bioregions (E)
Brigalow (Acacia harpophylla dominant and co-dominant) (E)


Named wetlands in the cotton landscape:

Balonne River Floodplain, Lake Kajarabie, Lake Bokhara, Jack Taylor Weir, Buckinbah Weir

Area of wetlands in the cotton landscape:
104,600 ha. (10%)

Area of wetlands in the cotton properties:
66,700 ha. (14%)

Length of major rivers in the cotton landscape:
927 km

Length of major rivers on cotton properties:
671 km

Length of minor water courses in the cotton landscape:
1,752 km

Length of minor streams on cotton properties:
1,076 km

Main rivers in the cotton landscape:

Ballandool River, Balonne River, Barwon River, Bokhara River, Culgoa River, Little Weir River, Maranoa River, Moonie River, Braire Creek, Mogila Creek, Narran River, Toobee Creek, The Gleer


Area of national park in the cotton landscape:
0 ha

Area of state forests in the cotton landscape:
1,956 ha

Area of travelling stock routes in the cotton landscape:
52,495 ha

Examples of public land reserves in the cotton landscape:


Examples of iconic species in the cotton landscape:

 Animals: Brolga, Channel-billed Cuckoo, Echidna, Emu, Koala, Major Mitchell’s Cockatoo, Pelican, Red Kangaroo, Sand Goanna, Silver Perch, White-bellied Sea Eagle, Willie Wagtail, Yellow-belly

Plants: Brigalow, Carbeen, River Red Gum, Queensland Bottetree

Examples of threatened species in the cotton landscape:

Animals: Australian Painted Snipe (E), Common Death Adder (Q), Common Sandpiper (M), Rufous Fantail (M), Grey-crowned Babbler (N), Koala (V), Northern Hairy-nosed Wombat (CE), Silver Perch (CE), White-bellied Sea Eagle (M); Woma Python (N)

Plants: Cymbonotus maidenii (Q); Vittadinia decora (Q)

View Balonne management actions