Wingello State Forest

Category: Forest Biomes.

Geographic Location: Australia.

Summary: This temperate forest contains a mixture of non-native softwood pine plantations and native hardwood eucalypt forests.

Wingello State Forest is a mixed-use public forest located in Camden County in the Australian state of New South Wales, near the cities of Sydney and Goulburn; it is part of the Australian Southern Highlands region. Other forests located within New South Wales include the Penrose, Belanglo, Meryla, and Yalwal State Forests. The forests of New South Wales comprise approximately 44 percent of Australia’s eucalypt open forests and approximately 19 percent of Australia’s total plantation forest area.

Wingello features a temperate climate and is generally dry. Temperatures average from 53 degrees F (11 degrees C) in July to 82 degrees F (28 degrees C) in January. Some summer days can be much hotter. There are an average of 75 days of rain each year, providing an average of 25 inches (64 centimeters) of precipitation.

The soil is moderately fertile, and terrain consists of hills and valleys. The Wingello State Forest biome is comprised of a mixture of softwood pine plantations and native hardwood eucalypt forests. Radiata and other pine stands are grown for commercial purposes. Wingello’s status as a state forest places it under the ownership of the New South Wales state government. Key environmental threats to the forest include logging operations, fires, and the introduction of non-native plants and animals.

Biodiversity

Much of Wingello’s forest cover consists of non-native tree species planted for commercial purposes. The radiata pines (Pinus radiata), which are exotic to Australia and were first planted in the region in 1919 in nearby Belanglo State Forest, grow well in temperate climates with medium rainfall; these are the most common tree within Australia’s softwood pine plantations. Wood produced from softwood conifers tends to be light in color as well as soft, and can be used for a variety of commercial and artisanal purposes.

Wingello State Forest also houses stands of native hardwood eucalypt forests, which are not accessible to logging operations. Eucalypt forests are among the most common and best-known of Australia’s forest types, with most of the more than 700 species of eucalyptus trees being unique to the country. Eucalypts belong to the Myrtaceae family; in Australia, they appear in approximately 80 percent of the country’s native forest area. Eucalypts grow in a variety of climates and rainfall levels, with species of eucalypts varying by forest and region. Native eucalyptus trees found within Wingello include peppermint, manna gum, and various stringybarks. These hardwoods have broad leaves, flowers, and dense wood, and are angiosperms.

Native forests generally feature greater density and wider variety of flora and fauna than their non-native counterparts do. They are also key to protecting soil and water quality. Many native forests in the region have been reduced to small remnant patches co-existing within other areas, such as within the pine plantations of Wingello.

However, Wingello State Forest supports a wide variety of wildlife. Mammals that are found here include southern brown bandicoot, koala, eastern pygmy-possum, white-footed dunnart (another small marsupial), wallaby, grey-headed flying fox, a variety of bat species, and, notably, the wombat. There are many bird species here, including parrot and owl species. There are at least six amphibian and three reptile species sustained by this forest.

Human Impact

Wingello State Forest’s pine plantations support commercial logging, although the forest is not considered to be a large commercial forest operation. Overall, the Southern Highlands of Australia house approximately 13.5 square miles (35 square kilometers) of commercial pine plantations. Benefits of the forest plantation areas include windbreaks, erosion reduction, and a host of outdoors recreational activities. Camping is permitted with some environmental safety restrictions, such as limits to the times of the year when campfires may be set. The presence of commercial pine plantations has been controversial, however, because of their non-native nature and invasive threats to the ecosystem.

Direct threats to Wingello and other local forests have included natural and human-made fires, clearing for agricultural and urban development, heavy traffic from tourism, environmental degradation such as soil and water pollution, and the introduction of exotic and feral species of plants and animals. In January 2020, a large brushfire tore through the town of Wingello and much of the state forest. Because of the fire and extreme weather, the state park remained closed to visitors for more than two years.

New South Wales has implemented sustainable forest management practices and adapted its timber production regime to prevent environmental degradation and reduce threats to the forest’s biodiversity. Codes and regulations include restrictions on road building, chemical and pesticide use, as well as fire protection requirements. The Australian national government’s Department of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Forestry monitors forest issues and publishes an annual State of the Forests report.

Bibliography

Boland, D., M. Brooker, G. Chippendale, N. Hall, B. Hyland, R. Johnston, et al. Forest Trees of Australia, 5th ed. Melbourne, Australia: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, 2006.

Dargavel, John. Fashioning Australia’s Forests. New York: Oxford University Press, 1995.

Davidson, Helen, and Christopher Knaus. "‘We Realised We Can’t Stop This’: Locals Flee Wingello Fires Inferno That Smashed NSW Village." The Guardian, 5 Jan. 2020, www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/jan/05/we-realised-we-cant-stop-this-locals-flee-inferno-that-smashed-nsw-village-of-wingello. Accessed 17 Aug. 2022.

Davidson, J., S. Davey, S. Singh, M. Parsons, B. Stokes, and A. Gerrand. “The Changing Face of Australia’s Forests.” Canberra, Australia: Bureau of Rural Sciences, 2008.