Biolinks Map – South Gippsland Landcare Network

Biolinks Map for South Gippsland

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Feedback deadline extended to 14 July 2026

The public feedback period (round 2) for the South Gippsland Biolinks Map has been extended to 14 July 2026. We welcome your input – please submit feedback below.

South Gippsland is home to remarkable wildlife and the Biolinks Map will help our community protect it — showing where native species move through the landscape and where voluntary action could make the biggest difference. The map was developed using a combination of publicly available government biodiversity data and roadside surveys, carries no obligations for landholders and has no effect on property rights.

Before providing feedback on the draft, we suggest watching the below videos first, to help you understand how the maps have been developed.

View the draft Biolinks Map and input feedback HERE.

Progress Update Meeting Recording

Watch the below recording of our project progress meeting, held on 10 June 2026, where James Garden demonstrated the habitat layer that has been developed, along with examples of draft modelling outcomes.

How to Give Feedback Using the Draft Webmap

For those looking for extra support with the feedback process, further instruction is provided here.

For further information on the Biolinks Mapping Project, contact Cassie, cassie@sgln.net.au, 0448 739 559.

Biolinks Map – Project Summary

The Biolinks Map is a key action within the Biodiversity Protection Plan. James Garden of Ecology Systems supported by Yasmin Kelsall of Confluence Ecology and Community have been engaged for this process.

Similar biolink plans have been developed for a number of municipalities across the state, including nearby in the Cardinia Shire region, utilising the General Approach to Planning Connectivity from Local Scales to Regional (GAPCLoSR) method.

This GAPCLoSR method will also be used for the South Gippsland Biolinks Map. It will combine a connectivity modelling approach with feedback from key regional stakeholders including local Landcare representatives and landholders. It will also take into account all existing data on vegetation, land mapping and fauna records. Representative groups of fauna with similar ecological and dispersal requirements will be identified. These will be used to model and understand connectivity in the landscape. And this will be used to identify where on-ground action will have the most impact.

We can then, as a community, focus our resources on the most effective actions to address those gaps so native species can maintain or increase their numbers. This will be via an opt-in approach – this tool will help Landcare work with the farmers who wish to undertake works on their land.

image credit: James Garden Ecology Systems

Image provided by James Garden Ecology Systems

Community Information Session

To introduce the project to our members and the broader community, we held an online information session about the project on Wednesday 7 May 2025. See the recording below where James introduces the Biolinks Mapping concept, how it will be created and what it will look like. NOTE: To skip the introduction, go to the second chapter which starts at 5min. James’s 30min presentation is followed by questions.

Public Consultation

2025

As part of this project, we invited stakeholders and local community members with on-ground knowledge of the landscape to share details about the habitat they know well. Their insights have helped strengthen our understanding and refine the modelling process.

We received valuable feedback from across the South Gippsland community, and we sincerely appreciate all the information contributed during this period, particularly observations about vegetation, habitat, and wildlife at specific locations.

The community feedback period has now closed, and the project team is using the collected information to inform the next stage of mapping.

For more information about our Biolinks Mapping project, contact Cassie: cassie@sgln.net.au, 0448 739 559.