initial phases of this sludy. «ft 

 kld gcd with Ihc National Museum 



gf Victoria. 



Pennys Saddle, an open plain 12- 

 l| hectares (30-40 ac) in extent is 

 Siiimlei! on a ridge separating Loch 

 Valley from the loorongo S 'alley. 

 aI ;,n altitude nf 733 m (2ft00ft| 

 \.s.l about tS km ir.: mis) nroxtti- 

 north east ol Noojec. on the Noojce- 

 Mallock Koad llat. 37" 47' S. lung. 

 ,10 dl (-'). this loealily is about 

 nSkni (4-mlis) from Loch Valley 

 I'ine Plantation, the s.le of WainckcV 

 (19601 rediscovery of M<i\nuomy\ 

 although it is some 300 m (1000 ft) 

 Higher to altitude In June [jfifi Wfl 

 .unilt male V/. futCUA were napped 

 mi .i shallow gully at the eastern end 

 .a ihfl saddle In the author Bolh 

 mimals were tfappeil under thick, 

 Inishv Nollio tonus- rnnniunluimii. 



Soils at loch Valley arc deep 

 |,i.,Me reddish clavs derived from 

 metamorphosed Silurian sediments 

 and Devonian granites ol ihe loor- 

 ongo Range (Warncke 1954), It is 

 IlkeK thai Ihc soils al Ibis present 

 site Hie mainly derived from ihc 

 roorongo granites. The Atlas ol 

 Australian Soils (1462/ elassilies 

 Ihe.u as Brown Friable Porous 

 Inrihs. 



Meteorological eharactcristies of 

 Pennys Saddle are probably similar 

 tp those at l.och Valley. Warncke 

 (1964) has collated the climato- 

 logies! data lor that station. These 

 shuw that the average annual rain- 

 fall i* |4V3ent. muinlv ot winter 

 incidence Ihe dtiest months arc 

 Ijimaiy. February aiul March, each 

 of which has a mean of about 7.n 

 em Inly and Allgusi aie the only 

 months thul noimallv receive snow 

 tails. although snow has been 



recorded for all months except 

 January and February. Summer, 

 arc warm to hot with mean maxi- 

 mum temperatures usually below 

 27'C and mean minima about 

 7 K'C. January is the hottest month. 

 Frosts arc common, and winter tem- 

 jeratuies oflen fall below 0T, al- 

 though mean maximum in winter is 

 14.4 C wnh mean minimum .iboul 

 I.7T in July. Ihe eoldesl month. 



ThB vegetation of the Saddle itself 

 is short grass, sedges, rushes and 

 low bracken merging with regenerat- 

 ing StiMbptUi M#W»M forest, with 

 associated shrubs Ihe gully in which 

 •V/uvfurrwivr was trapped was very 

 wet al Ihe lime, with a small stream 

 developing in it. Ihe Horn of the 

 gully wus densely covered, with 

 C.irix appussti the dominant spec- 

 ies. Fallen trees, iree fern stumps 

 and occasional outcrops of granite 

 bioke Ihe continuity of the ground 

 cover. Tussocks of Gaitnia raihlu, 

 Ji<n<it\ spp. and St int l<> Hnctiii- 

 lolitn weie scatteicd throughout Ihe 

 sedge, as weie the ferns Polypi- 

 (hum prttliffrimt. Rleifmiitn nudum 

 and H. prmt'iitm. Small ground 

 plants such as Atiu'iut (OlMtiuitoliti, 

 Viola lifdftiKctt fiytlrochl? sp, 

 and GiTuniuiu sp were also prc- 

 si-m Raihei open shrub cover to 

 about % m (10 ft) was provided by 

 Olrmiti phloyopti/jpii with scatlctev] 

 planls of CuMimu tuulciitu and 

 .\owofaxus ctiniiinxhitmii Near the 

 gully edge, saplings of Afniti dcul- 

 bnta, A. mfltinnAvlon and Lucalyp- 

 regndtts appeared, and us the 

 eully deepen^ down the slope and 

 rice cover ot Ihesc three species 

 became more complete. Ireeferns 

 were common liiouinl cover was 

 less, and was composed of small 

 terns. eg.. Htcdmum IlinitUilc, 

 herb* such as AliVHtli/ui miulleri 

 and many specie* of moss. 



313 



