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Norfolk Island Flora & Fauna Society

Author Archives: Geoff Edwards

Freshwater resources: A review

Updated on date by author


Emeritus Professor Angela Arthington visited the Island in 2025. She consulted widely with residents and experts including CSIRO – including Society President Margaret Christian – about the freshwater resources of the Island and coordinated the preparation of a scientific paper which was published in February 2026 in the prestigious international journal Frontiers in Environmental Science. The full citation is:

Arthington A.H., Christian M., Coyne P., Edwards G., Greenwood D., Mills K., Petheram C., Prior S. and Vanderzalm J.L. (2026). “Norfolk Island’s freshwater ecosystems: a case history and exemplar of freshwater biodiversity inventory, threat assessments, ecological recovery and conservation planning.” Front. Environ. Sci., 19 February 2026 Sec. Freshwater Science Volume 13 – 2025. The paper is available free of charge online (open access) from https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenvs.2025.1688368.

The DOI reference is https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2025.1688368. (DOI references are enduring links to scholarly articles via an international registry). Co-authors marked in red are current residents of the Island.

Abstract

Norfolk Island is a small remote island in the Southwest Pacific Ocean distinguished by its volcanic origins, topographic, pedological and hydrological complexity, and endemic biodiversity. This review presents Norfolk Island as a case history and exemplar of freshwater biodiversity inventory, threat assessments, ecological recovery and conservation planning on a neglected Pacific Island. It makes the case that the procedural steps and learnings of this review can be applied to the recovery and conservation of freshwater biodiversity and ecosystems of any island, but especially islands in the Pacific Ocean. The review collates information on the biodiversity of the island’s freshwater ecosystems and the processes that threaten them, for the first time. It finds that Norfolk Island’s freshwater biodiversity is patchily documented and seriously threatened by water quality issues, habitat disturbance, introduced species (woody weeds, aquatic plants, freshwater snails and live-bearing fishes) and a drying climate. The review sets out methods and options for restoring Norfolk Island’s creek and wetland habitats in conjunction with planning to protect and conserve freshwater biodiversity and threatened species at catchment scale based on ecological principles and systematic conservation planning. These methods and recovery options can guide similar investigation and restoration/conservation actions on other islands, but especially islands in the Pacific Ocean. The paper calls for a program of comparative Pacific Island freshwater science, management and conservation, similar to the procedural steps and processes presented for Norfolk Island, to protect unique repositories of freshwater species that risk being lost forever.

 

LinkedIn Feed

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/angela-h-arthington-25718626_frontiers-norfolk-islands-freshwater-ecosystems-activity-7430468612928458752-V43c?

 

Posted in Freshwater, Water Management |

The Heino Lepp and Diana Leemon gallery of fungi photographs

Updated on date by author

We are privileged to be able to showcase a portfolio of photographs by Heino Lepp, Honorary Manager of the Mycology section of the Australian National Botanic Garden. who photographed the Island’s fungi in 1994, 1995 and 1997, identifying as many as he could.

The photographs have been digitised by Society Life Member Mark Hallam and the images matched with names by Dr Diana Leemon, of the Queensland Mycological Society, who has also contributed some additional images.

Catalogue list

In the gallery, hover on each image to ascertain the file name which embodies the identification. Refer to the Catalogue list or the list in alphabetical order of botanical names for further information.

(Supplementary note: Since the Catalogue was uploaded, Heino Lepp has provided the following additional identifications:

Resupinatus applicatus: collection number HL1188 and HL 1159

Asproinocybe sp.: collection number HL1206).

 

The gallery has been subdivided into parts to avoid web instability:

Part 1 includes 100 images by Heino Lepp.

Part 2 includes another 113 images by Heino Lepp.

Part 3 includes images by Diana Leemon.

Part 4 includes images of Lepista sublilacina by Diana Leemon.

 

Heino Lepp has also submitted the first of an anticipated number of descriptions in textual pdf format.

 

Amaurodon.

Posted in Uncategorized |

The Heino Lepp and Diana Leemon gallery of fungi photographs – Part 1

Updated on date by author

We are privileged to be able to showcase a portfolio of photographs by Heino Lepp, Honorary Manager of the Mycology section of the Australian National Botanic Garden. who photographed the Island’s fungi in 1994, 1995 and 1997, identifying as many as he could.

Catalogue list

In the gallery, hover on each image to ascertain the file name which embodies the identification. Refer to the Catalogue list or the list in alphabetical order of botanical names for further information.

 

Part 1 (this part) includes 100 images by Heino Lepp. Since the gallery was uploaded, he has identified no. 1188 – 21 rows down or 5 rows up, second column from left – as Resupinatus applicatus. Another photo of this species is available, identified by doctoral student Jennifer McDonald.

 

 

 

Posted in Endemic Flora |

The Heino Lepp and Diana Leemon gallery of fungi photographs – Parts 3 and 4

Updated on date by author

 

As explained in the first post in this series, Heino Lepp was Honorary Manager of the Mycology section of the Australian National Botanic Garden. He photographed the Island’s fungi in 1994, 1995 and 1997, identifying as many as he could. His photographs have been digitised by Society Life Member Mark Hallam and the images matched with names by Dr Diana Leemon, of the Queensland Mycological Society, who has also contributed some additional images, in this gallery, Part 3.

For Part 3, hover your mouse over each photo to read the file title which embodies the identification. Then refer to the Catalogue list and the list in alphabetical order of botanical name for further information.

 

Part 3 – 52 images

 

Part 4 – Lepista sublilacina – 35 images

Posted in Endemic Flora |

The Heino Lepp and Diana Leemon gallery of fungi photographs – Part 2

Updated on date by author

Another tranche of images from the Heino Lepp collection. Hover your mouse over each photo to read the file title which embodies the identification. Then refer to the Catalogue list and the list in alphabetical order of botanical name for further information.

As explained in the Part 1 post, Heino Lepp was Honorary Manager of the Mycology section of the Australian National Botanic Garden. He photographed the Island’s fungi in 1994, 1995 and 1997, identifying as many as he could. These photographs have been digitised by Society Life Member Mark Hallam and the images matched with names by Dr Diana Leemon, of the Queensland Mycological Society, who has also contributed some additional images, in Parts 3 and 4.

Posted in Endemic Flora |

Nearshore and Coastal Habitat Mapping

Updated on date by author

Nearshore and Coastal Habitat Mapping

From 21 to 24 July 2021 onboard M/V Offshore Solution, a team from Ocean Infinity (Australia) Pty Ltd (formerly iXblue Pty Ltd), in partnership with other experts, conducted an aerial survey and a hydrographic survey as part of the Norfolk Island Nearshore and Coastal Habitat Mapping project. The team covered 108.6km2 of the Norfolk Shelf with a multibeam echosounder, a total of 44 locations of Baited Remote Underwater Videos in the north-east and south of the Island and a couple of sub-surface profiles with the Sub-Bottom Profiler. The coastal survey was conducted by Tellus4D Geoimaging in November 2021. The drone Mavic 2 was deployed from shore, to obtain high resolution photogrammetry at seven coastal sites: Captain Cook Lookout, Anson Bay, Puppy’s Point, Headstone Point, Slaughter Bay and Bumboras Beach, and Cemetery and Emily Bay, for a total of 14km2.

 

Prior to this project, Norfolk Island Marine Park dataset was limited to a terrestrial lidar survey from CSIRO and a nearshore seafloor classification from satellite bathymetry (EOMAP).

 

This seafloor mapping survey provides information about some of the coastal sites of the Island and its marine shelf condition (morphology, nature, fish communities…). The information will help to manage the park and guide further studies, such as additional bathymetric survey within sensitive areas, investigation on the coastline, protection of fish and other marine species programs and a ground-truthing campaign to challenge hypotheses on the seabed nature and habitats.

 

We thank Dr Kellie Pendoley for her persistence in obtaining permission to republish this benchmark report Norfolk Island Nearshore and Coastal Habitat Mapping.

 

Posted in Marine, Offshore Stacks, The Island |

EcoNorfolk

Updated on date by author

EcoNorfolk Foundation was a non-profit organisation dedicated to promoting ecologically sustainable development on Norfolk Island.

Founded by environmental activist Denise Quintal, the Foundation aimed to assist in advancing the science of sustainability with the wider international community to lead the way for sustainability in the South Pacific. Its role was to support the preservation of natural resources through education, publicity campaigns, scientific research and development, and merging this with the everyday activities and practices of the Norfolk Island people.

EcoNorfolk Foundation was involved in projects such as Footprinting and Experimental Prototype Communities, to foster awareness of the global context of local environmental issues. For example, the ‘Sustainable Islands Project’ focused on the training of skilled professionals from small remote islands, in the area of sustainable environmental and economic development.

EcoNorfolk at the date of writing (May 2024) is in recess.

Posted in Get Involved |