National Ecosystem Accounts, experimental estimates

Latest release

Estimates of the extent, condition and services provided by Australia's ecosystems, including Terrestrial, Freshwater, Coastal and Marine realms

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Reference period
2022-23 financial year
Release date and time
23/04/2026 11:30am AEST

Key statistics

  • In 2020−21, Intensive land-use and Artificial wetlands biomes accounted for 95.7 million hectares (or 12.4%) of Australia’s terrestrial landmass while natural and semi-natural ecosystems covered approximately 673.5 million hectares (87.6%).
  • Carbon retention services across the selected ecosystems were estimated at 34.6 million kilotonnes of stored carbon (ktC) in 2021–22. The 2019–20 Black Summer bushfires caused a noticeable decrease in carbon stocks in 2019–20 followed by recovery in recent years, aligned with a reduction in bare ground cover.
  • Between 2010–11 and 2020–21, areas of Saltmarsh associated with Conservation or natural environments fell 4.5% while the proportion of Mangroves with at least 80% canopy cover increased 6.9%.
  • All years from 2012–13 to 2022–23 experienced above average Sea Surface Temperatures with the highest anomalies of 0.46 degrees Celsius in 2015–16 and 2021–22. 

The statistics in this publication are experimental in nature and constantly evolving. All figures should be treated as estimates. They show what is possible with existing data sources and methods. The ABS has consulted widely on the current methodologies. Further research and engagement will continue to refine future releases, as such, estimates and methods are likely to change in future releases. 

This release reflects the latest methodological developments, applied to all available data. As an experimental series, users are advised not to compare estimates across releases whilst development work continues. Details on recent methodological changes are provided in National Ecosystem Accounts, experimental estimates methodology, 2022−23 financial year.

Account Overview

The estimates in this publication represent Australia’s second National Ecosystem Accounts (NEA). They include estimates for the extent and condition of Australia’s ecosystems, as well as measures of selected ecosystem services and the values these services contribute to economic activity and human wellbeing.

Ecosystems, water availability and climate are intrinsically linked through a set of closely connected natural processes. Large-scale climate dynamics, such as Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) and El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), influence rainfall and temperature patterns across Australia. Rainfall governs the availability of surface and groundwater that ecosystems, agriculture and human communities depend on. Adequate rainfall supports healthy soil moisture levels, enabling vegetation growth. Vegetation health also feeds back into the climate-water system. Healthy plant cover improves water infiltration, reduces runoff and erosion and helps regulate local temperatures through evapotranspiration. Conversely, prolonged droughts, heatwaves or altered rainfall patterns can reduce water availability, weaken vegetation and lead to land degradation. When vegetation declines, landscapes become less able to retain moisture, amplifying the effects of climate extremes. Together, these relationships form a dynamic system in which changes can cascade through and shape the condition and health of ecosystems, and therefore the services ecosystems provide.

The second release of the NEA delivers a suite of improvements to the spatial and temporal resolution of the accounts. 

The temporal resolution is not consistent across account outputs due to data availability, however trends are identified where possible. The publication focuses on the most recent reference years available, please refer to our methodology for more information.

National Overview

Extent

The ecosystems in the NEA are classified hierarchically based on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s Global Ecosystem Typology (IUCN GET). Realms are the highest classification, which are divided into biomes, which are further divided into ecosystem functional groups (EFGs). Where commentary relates to specific IUCN GET ecosystems, the text will refer to them as ‘EFGs’.

The main realms are Terrestrial, Marine and Freshwater, with Transitional realms being those that cross between Terrestrial, Marine and Freshwater realms, for example the Coastal realm. 

In 2020–21, Australia’s:

  • Terrestrial realms covered 716.0 million hectares or 49.2% of Australia’s extent (a)
  • Rivers and streams totalled 4.3 million km in length
  • Waterbodies (b) totalled 11.4 million hectares or 1.48% of Australia’s terrestrial extent (a)
  • Marine realm covered 687.3 million hectares or 47% of Australia’s extent (a).

(a) Australia’s extent is defined by the area within the outer boundary of Australia’s contiguous exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Please refer to our methodology for more information.

(b) Waterbodies include Lakes biome, Artificial wetlands biome and Palustrine wetlands biome.

Condition

  • Between 2021−22 and 2022−23, the vegetation productivity of Australian ecosystems remained fairly stable.
  • The intensity of land use surrounding freshwater ecosystems increased between 2015 and 2020.
  • 48.5% of all Mangroves were closed forest (>80% canopy cover).
  • Annual average Sea Surface Temperatures were 22.62 degrees Celsius in 2022–23, 0.23 degrees Celsius higher than the long-term annual average.

Ecosystem services

A selection of ecosystem services has been estimated for this publication. This does not represent an exhaustive list of the services provided by Australia’s ecosystems. Expanding the range of ecosystem services will be a focus of future accounts.

In 2021−22, the environment:

  • stored 34.6 million ktC or $59.5 billion worth of carbon in Grasslands, Native forests, Savannas and Mangroves
  • provided storm and tidal surge protection to 104,103 dwellings and 207,250 residents from a 1-in-100-year coastal inundation event
  • provided $463.0 million or 161,721 tonnes of fish from State-managed and Commonwealth-managed fisheries.

In 2022−23, the environment:

  • provided 120.2 million tonnes of natural feed for sheep and cattle
  • contributed 10.8 million megalitres of surface water for drinking and use as a material at a value of $864 million. A further 51.7 million megalitres of surface water was used as an energy source.

Terrestrial realm

The Terrestrial realm represents all dry land ecosystems in Australia and includes natural, semi-natural and anthropogenic ecosystems. Transitional ecosystems refer to ecosystems that cross between terrestrial, marine and freshwater ecosystems, such as estuaries and wetlands and are reported under this section.

Terrestrial extent

The Deserts and semi-deserts biome had the highest coverage of Australia’s terrestrial landscape (50.6%). This biome has been excluded from the graph below due to its substantially larger magnitude, which limits meaningful visual comparison with other biomes.

The Savannas and grasslands are the next most prevalent biome (24.4%).

The Intensive land-use biome, which includes all intensively-managed ecosystems like agricultural lands and cities, extends over 12.3% of Australia’s terrestrial landmass (a). 

In 2020–21, on the terrestrial landmass (a):

  • Sclerophyll hot deserts and semi-deserts were the most common EFG at 277.1 million hectares or 36.2%. Of all the states and territories, Western Australia had the greatest area (158.6 million hectares), followed by the Northern Territory (58.2 million hectares) and South Australia (35.1 million hectares).
  • Pyric tussock savannas were the second most common EFG at 87.9 million hectares or 11.5%. Queensland had the greatest extent (42.5 million hectares).
  • Semi-arid open woodlands were the third most common EFG at 57.0 million hectares or 7.4%. Western Australia had the greatest extent (16.6 million hectares).

(a) Ecosystems on the terrestrial landmass includes those from the Terrestrial, Marine-Terrestrial, Terrestrial-Freshwater and Freshwater realms.

Due to data source limitations, changes between natural ecosystems cannot be adequately detected. All changes observed in the data are those between the Intensive land-use biome or from encroachment of the Intensive land-use biome into natural ecosystems.

Terrestrial ecosystem extent remained fairly stable at the national level across 2010–11 to 2020–21.

From 2019–20 to 2020–21, the greatest changes were for the:

  • Savannas and grasslands biome, which decreased by 176,658 hectares (down 0.1%).
  • Urban and industrial ecosystems, which increased 151,957 hectares (up 2.7%). This was driven by the conversion from 47,675 hectares of Sown pastures and fields and 40,114 hectares of Temperate pyric sclerophyll forests and woodlands.
  • Sown pastures and fields, which increased 953,649 hectares (up 2.0%). This was driven mainly by the conversion from 310,250 hectares of Annual croplands, 264,334 hectares from Pyric tussock savannas and 263,253 hectares from Sclerophyll hot deserts and semi-deserts.
  • Sclerophyll hot deserts and semi-deserts decreased by 309,986 hectares (down 0.1%) and was the natural ecosystem with the greatest encroachment from the Intensive land-use biome. 263,253 hectares were converted to Sown pastures and fields and 45,834 hectares to Annual croplands.

Terrestrial condition

Terrestrial extent data are available from 2010−11 to 2020−21, while condition data are available from 2010−11 to 2022−23. Although the period of coverage differs, comparisons between terrestrial extent and condition estimates are considered appropriate, as terrestrial extent is relatively stable over time.

Five terrestrial condition measures are included in the accounts:

  • Bare Soil Index (BSI) or bare ground cover estimates the proportion of exposed soil, it can be used to identify land clearing or degradation, soil disturbance or erosion. It can be used to monitor land condition, identify disturbed areas and track land clearing and recovery.
  • Kernel Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (kNDVI) or vegetation productivity is used as a proxy for canopy cover by measuring photosynthetic activity. It can be used to track vegetation growth, stress or decline to provide an indication of vegetation condition.
  • Normalised Burn Ratio (NBR) or burnt area ratio highlights recently burned areas. It can be used to support fire management and monitor post-fire recovery.
  • Normalised Difference Moisture Index (NDMI) or canopy moisture represents moisture content in vegetation. It can be used to detect water stress and fire-prone areas as well as monitor droughts.
  • Normalised Difference Water Index (NDWI) or surface water availability represents water availability (presence of water bodies). It can be used to track changes in waterbodies over time as well as monitor flood and drought events.

Below are examples of two terrestrial condition measures, focusing on four ecosystems that are characteristic of Australia.

Bare ground cover

  • The highest BSI is associated with sparsely vegetated ecosystems such as deserts, grasslands, savannas and floodplains. BSI in these drier ecosystems has remained fairly stable across 2010–11 to 2022–23.
  • The lowest BSI occurs in areas with minimal exposed soil, usually due to dense vegetation cover or moist surfaces such as forest and woodland ecosystems.

The BSI of select ecosystems have fluctuated over time. Despite the ongoing Tinderbox Drought (2017 to 2019) in the southeastern states, there was a general decrease in BSI until 2017−18, reflecting decreasing levels of bare ground. From 2019−20 onwards, BSI increased, reflecting increased levels of bare ground, this coincided with the 2019−20 Black Summer bushfires. After 2020−21, BSI continued to fall until the latest reference year (2022−23). This period coincided with 3 consecutive La Niña events and associated wetter conditions.

Vegetation productivity

Forest ecosystems have the highest kNDVI, with rainforests showing the greatest vegetation productivity while desert ecosystems have the lowest kNDVI.

Vegetation productivity is driven by similar factors as BSI. kNDVI increased from 2011−12 to 2012−13 and from 2021−22 to 2022−23 due to the increased rainfall from La Niña events. A slight decrease from 2019−20 aligns with the Black Summer bushfires.

Terrestrial ecosystem services

Terrestrial ecosystems provide many ecosystem services. This account estimates grazed biomass provisioning and global climate regulation for select ecosystems.

Grazed biomass provisioning

As experimental statistics, components may be refined, added or removed over time. In this release, monetary estimates of grazed biomass provisioning have been removed pending further methodological development work. Physical estimates for grazed biomass provisioning remain unaffected.

In Australia, livestock are grazed on Improved pastures, including Sown pastures and fields from the Intensive land-use biome and Other grazed lands, such as natural pastures/grasslands, rangelands, woodland/shrubland and forested areas.

Climatic conditions influence herd size and forage consumption through their effects on forage availability and quality. During periods of drought, farmers often reduce herd size in response to constrained feed resources. Under more favourable climatic conditions, such as with increased rainfall from La Niña events, improvements in pasture quality and quantity provide capacity to support larger herds.

During 2022–23, these ecosystems provided 120.2 million tonnes of forage for grazed sheep and beef cattle.

  • Improved pastures provided 57.0 million tonnes while other grazed lands provided 63.2 million tonnes.
  • Queensland had the highest contribution to grazed biomass (49.5 million tonnes/year).
  • Beef cattle and calves consumed 98.0 million tonnes/year of forage. Beef cattle and calves were more commonly grazed on Other grazed lands (57.7 million tonnes/year, 58.8%) than Improved pastures.
  • Sheep and lambs consumed 22.2 million tonnes/year of forage. Sheep and lambs mainly foraged on Improved pastures (16.7 million tonnes/year, 75.2%).

Global climate regulation

Global climate regulation services are the ecosystem contributions to reducing concentrations of greenhouse gases (GHG) in the atmosphere through the removal (sequestration) of carbon from the atmosphere and the retention (storage) of carbon in ecosystems.

Carbon retention reflects the ability of ecosystems to accumulate and retain the stock of carbon.

Carbon retention services across the selected ecosystems were estimated at 34.6 million kilotonnes of stored carbon (ktC) nationally in 2021–22. The 2019–20 Black Summer bushfires caused a noticeable decrease in carbon stocks in 2019–20 followed by recovery in recent years.

Nationally, in 2021−22:

  • Grasslands contained the most carbon (14.4 million ktC), the top contributors were Western Australia (5.4 million ktC) and South Australia (2.9 million ktC)
  • Native forests contained over 14.2 million ktC, dominated by Queensland (5.4 million ktC), then New South Wales (3.5 million ktC) and Western Australia (2.5 million ktC)
  • Savannas, located in the Northern Territory, Queensland and Western Australia, contained 5.7 million ktC
  • Western Australia (9.5 million ktC) and Queensland (9.1 million ktC) stored the most carbon, followed by the Northern Territory (5.4 million ktC) and New South Wales (4.9 million ktC).

Carbon retention estimates were produced for a subset of ecosystems, including Mangroves, Savannas, Native forests and Grasslands. Estimates for other ecosystem types are not included due to limitations in available input data.

In 2021–22, Grasslands and Native forests contributed to 82.9% of the total physical estimate of carbon retention. The monetary estimate of carbon retention value was $59.5 billion.

The carbon retained by ecosystems remained fairly stable across the time series, while the monetary value of the carbon retained was more variable. The divergence between the physical and monetary trends is driven by changes in carbon prices and the nominal price level growth. In 2021–22, the monetary value of carbon retention increased by 37.6% compared to 2020–21, while the carbon stock rose by only 0.2%. The increase in monetary value reflects higher carbon prices and nominal price levels due to increased interest in domestic activities associated with reducing emissions and inflationary pressures in the economy.

Freshwater realm

The Freshwater realm includes all permanent and intermittent freshwater bodies as well as saline waterbodies that are not directly connected to the ocean. Rivers and streams are measured by length in kilometres, lakes and wetlands are measured by area in hectares.

Freshwater extent

In 2022–23, there were 161,222 km of perennial (permanent) rivers and streams across Australia.

  • Permanent upland streams accounted for 82,274 km.
  • Permanent lowland rivers accounted for 78,947 km.
  • New South Wales contained almost 60% of Australia’s perennial rivers.

In 2022–23, there were a total of 4.13 million km of non-perennial (intermittent) rivers and streams across Australia.

  • Seasonal upland streams were the most widespread (2.29 million km).
  • Freeze-thaw rivers and streams were the least common and limited to New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania (496 km in total).
  • Queensland was home to the greatest share (34.2%) of non-perennial rivers. 

The greatest area of Australia’s lakes and wetlands fell within South Australia (36.0%) and Western Australia (35.2%). Most of these were seasonal or ephemeral waterbodies.

In 2020–21:

  • Ephemeral salt lakes covered 6.9 million hectares, for example Kati Thanda / Lake Eyre in South Australia
  • Seasonal freshwater lakes accounted for 23.1% of all lakes and wetlands (2.6 million hectares). The greatest share of these was in Western Australia (66.3%).

Artificial wetlands covered 1.1 million hectares, accounted for 9.4% of all freshwater bodies nationally. Most of these (799,201 hectares) were large reservoirs, which accounted for the majority of freshwater bodies in Tasmania and the Australian Capital Territory.

Other includes Rice paddies, Freshwater aquafarms, Canals, ditches and drains, Freeze-thaw freshwater lakes.

Freshwater condition

Land-use intensity

How land is used impacts the condition of freshwater, with higher intensity land uses associated with deterioration in quality from factors such as run-off, water extraction and pollution.

Land-use intensity (LUI) is a measure of condition inferred from the surrounding land use and is reported as an indicator. Values close to one indicate good condition and relatively natural land uses compared to zero which indicates more intensive land uses (e.g. mining or intensive animal production).

In 2023:

  • Alpine EFGs (Freeze-thaw rivers and streams and Freeze-thaw freshwater lakes) were surrounded by the least intensive land uses
  • Artificial wetlands were surrounded by the most intensive land uses, particularly for Rice paddies and Canals, ditches and drains
  • The LUI surrounding all EFGs except Rice paddies increased between 2015 and 2020, indicating the reduced overall condition of these EFGs.

Fringing zone photosynthetic vegetation

Vegetation cover affects the condition of neighbouring freshwater ecosystems by regulating water runoff and providing shade and food for aquatic organisms.

Fringing zone photosynthetic vegetation measures the proportion of ground covered by green vegetation around freshwater ecosystems. A high minimum measurement (PV10) indicates that the area around the freshwater ecosystem was consistently covered by green vegetation in that year.

In 2023:

  • Alpine EFGs (Freeze-thaw rivers and streams, Freeze-thaw freshwater lakes and Permanent upland streams) had the highest PV10 which indicates that they had the greatest proportion of green vegetation
  • Ephemeral and episodic ecosystems were surrounded by less vegetation than other ecosystems. Ephemeral salt lakes had the lowest PV10.

Over the period between 2014 and 2023, green vegetation cover around permanent lowland rivers:

  • was the highest in Tasmania, covering around 50% of the fringing zone
  • was the lowest in South Australia, covering around 20% of the fringing zone
  • fell in response to low rainfall in 2019 to 2020 before partially recovering until 2023.

Freshwater ecosystem services

Rivers and streams (surface water ecosystems) provide freshwater ecosystem services by supplying water for drinking and as an input to production, supporting households and economic activity across Australia.

Water provisioning services

In 2022–23, Rivers and streams supplied freshwater primarily for consumptive uses, with production activities dominating demand.

  • 10.8 million ML of freshwater was supplied for consumptive use, comprising 9.3 million ML (86.2%) for use as a material in production and 1.5 million ML (13.8%) for drinking, representing water supplied to households for a range of household uses.
  • Freshwater used for energy generation totalled 51.7 million ML, exceeding consumptive use but representing an abiotic flow, as water passes through turbines and is returned to the river system rather than being consumed as a material input.
  • The monetary value of freshwater provisioning more than halved between 2015–16 and 2022–23, from $1.85 billion in 2015–16 to $864 million in 2022–23, reflecting wetter climatic conditions and reduced water scarcity rather than changes in physical volumes used.

The supply of freshwater provisioning services varied across states and territories, reflecting differences in population, climate and the location of major water‑using activities.

  • New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland accounted for the largest volumes of surface water supplied for drinking and use as a material, consistent with population size and the concentration of agricultural and industrial activity.
  • Tasmania dominated surface water used for energy generation, accounting for 70.9% of national use in 2022–23, reflecting its reliance on hydroelectricity.
  • Other states and territories contributed relatively small volumes across freshwater provisioning uses.

Coastal realm

Mangroves and Saltmarsh are coastal wetlands that are regularly inundated with tidal sea water.

Coastal extent

In 2021–22, Mangroves covered 1.3 million hectares of Australia’s coastal areas. 

  • Most Mangroves were located in the Northern Territory (40.5%), Queensland (38.3%) and Western Australia (18.5%).
  • There were no Mangroves in Tasmania or the Australian Capital Territory.

In 2021–22, Saltmarsh covered 785,144 hectares of Australia’s coastal areas.

  • Most Saltmarsh were located in Queensland (43.0%), the Northen Territory (38.7%) and Western Australia (8.6%).
  • The Australian Capital Territory has no Saltmarsh.

Coastal condition

Mangrove canopy cover

Mangrove canopy cover reflects canopy density and is used as a measure of condition to indicate the overall health and productivity of mangrove forests. Monitoring changes to mangrove canopy cover can help describe how mangrove forests are responding to environmental changes as reduction in canopy cover is typical when mangroves experience ecosystem disturbance. The classifications of canopy cover are:

  • Woodland – 20–50% canopy cover
  • Open forest – 50–80% canopy cover
  • Closed forest – 80–100% canopy cover
  • Unclassified – Data on canopy cover not available.

In 2021–22, almost half of Australian Mangroves consisted of closed forest, the most dense canopy cover.

  • Closed forest was the most prevalent type in Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory, where 97% of Mangroves are located.
  • Open forest was more prevalent across the small extent of Mangroves in South Australia and Victoria at the southern end of the distribution of mangrove species.
  • Closed forests increased between 2010–11 and 2021–22, from 40.7% to 48.5%.
  • Both open forest and woodland Mangroves decreased in this time, down to 19.6% and 7.5% respectively.
  • Canopy cover for the remaining extent of Mangroves (24.4%) in 2021–22 was unknown. 

Saltmarsh condition

Development and disturbances in the surrounding catchment can pose a threat to saltmarsh and can have negative impacts such as changes in river flows and salinity, as well as increases in sedimentation. Land-use intensity (LUI) of surrounding catchments can therefore be used as a proxy for inferring Saltmarsh condition. 

Saltmarsh condition is expressed as the area (hectares) of Saltmarsh associated with each LUI class. Saltmarsh in catchments of exclusively water or no LUI classification and Saltmarsh outside catchments are assigned to ‘Unclassified’.

Saltmarsh area associated with Conservation and natural environments (LUI 1), has consistently decreased over time as surrounding land-use conditions have intensified.

  • Saltmarsh area associated with LUI 1 has fallen 4.5% between 2010–11 and 2020–21.
  • Saltmarsh area associated with LUI 2 and 3 increased by 5.5% and 60.6%, respectively, across the same ten-year period.

Coastal ecosystem services

Coastal protection

As experimental statistics, components may be refined, added or removed over time. In this release, monetary estimates of coastal protection service have been removed pending further methodological development work. Physical estimates for coastal protection service remain unaffected.

Mangrove and Saltmarsh ecosystems reduce damage to dwellings during a storm or tidal surge by attenuating and dissipating wave and wind energy. In 2021–22:

  • Mangroves and Saltmarsh provided coastal protection to a total of 104,013 dwellings and 227,250 people from approximately a 1-in-100-year inundation event
  • Mangroves protected 69,426 dwellings and 156,856 people from a 1-in-100-year inundation event
  • Saltmarsh provided protection to 44,330 dwellings and 90,328 people from a 1-in-100-year inundation event.

Mangroves and Saltmarsh can provide protection to the same dwellings or people, as such, the total combined protection will be less than the sum of the two.

The states and territories with the highest number of dwellings protected in 2021–22 were:

  • Queensland, with 47,793 dwellings protected by Mangroves and Saltmarsh.
  • New South Wales with 38,471 dwellings protected by Mangroves and Saltmarsh.

Although the Northern Territory was the second largest contributor to extent of Mangrove and Saltmarsh in Australia, its low population density results in relatively few dwellings protected (1,144) compared to more densely populated states.

Marine realm

The Marine realm includes all ocean waters, including benthic and pelagic ecosystems.

Marine extent

The marine environment of Australia covers a total of 687.3 million hectares across the Marine shelf and Deep sea floor biomes. In 2021–22: 

  • Marine shelf occupied 30% of Australia’s oceans and Deep sea floors occupied 69%, with the remaining area unclassified
  • Continental and island slopes covered 266.8 million hectares, 39% of Australian waters
  • Abyssal plains covered 190.6 million hectares (28%)
  • Seamounts, ridges and plateaus covered 15.4 million hectares (2%)
  • The Marine shelf was dominated by Subtidal sand beds, at 180.9 million hectares (88% of this biome)
  • Photic coral reefs comprised 2% of Australia’s marine environment (13.7 million hectares).

Integrated Marine and Coastal Regionalisation of Australia (IMCRA) Provincial Bioregions are a national spatial framework that group Australia’s marine and coastal environments into broad ecological regions, supporting consistent reporting, analysis and management of marine ecosystems at a national scale. 

In 2021–22:

  • The Northern Shelf Province had the greatest extent of Marine shelf, at 53.8 million hectares
  • The Southern Province had the greatest extent of Deep sea floors, at 76.9 million hectares.

The Pelagic ocean waters biome represents the water column above these benthic ecosystems, with separate layers showing the three-dimensional aspect of the marine environment.

Marine condition

Sea Surface Temperature

Sea surface temperature (SST) represents the temperature of the Epipelagic ocean waters, which is the top layer of the ocean’s water column. SST is a proxy ecosystem condition metric and influences marine ecosystem structure, function and health. Changes in SST can affect marine ecosystems, such as causing coral bleaching or altering species distribution and physiology. These changes can then affect ecosystem services. SST anomaly is the difference between SST and the long-term mean.

  • SST around Australia show an overall warming trend with all annual anomalies between 2012–13 and 2022–23 above the long-term mean.
  • The warmest years were 2015–16 and 2021–22, with annual anomalies 0.46°C above the long-term mean.
  • March 2016 recorded the highest average SST at 25.18°C, with an anomaly of 0.72°C.
  • The Southeast Transition and the Tasmania Province IMCRA Provincial Bioregions experienced the strongest warming with an annual anomaly of 1.31°C and 1.20°C, respectively in 2015–16.

Sea Surface Temperature (degrees Celsius) by IMCRA Provincial Bioregion, 2012–13 to 2022–23

Sea surface temperature anomalies 2012–13 to 2022–23

This series of 11 maps of Australia show sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies for financial years 2012–13 to 2022–23. The maps display data by IMCRA v4.0 Provincial Bioregions, which are marine regions describing broad patterns in biodiversity. The maps cover contiguous marine waters within Australia’s exclusive economic zone. 

Each map shows SST anomalies for each Provincial Bioregion representing how mean SST differs from the long-term mean for that region. Anomalies were calculated relative to the long-term mean using the 1992 to 2016 SSTAARS climatology. The following diverging colour range is used:

  • Cooler than average: -0.1 to -1.3 degrees Celsius (light blue to dark blue)
  • No anomaly: 0.0 (very light green)
  • Warmer than average: 0.1 to 1.3 degrees Celsius (light yellow to dark red)

SST anomalies changed over time, with an overall increase in warming evident across the financial years. Consistent warming was observed in waters surrounding Tasmania and the east coast of Queensland. The strongest warming (shaded in dark red) occurred in the Southeast Transition Provincial Bioregion in 2015–16 driven by periods of a strengthened East Australian Current bringing warm northern waters south. Cooler than average temperatures (shaded light blue to blue) were noticeable in 2018–19 on the west coast of Australia associated with a positive Indian Ocean Dipole and in 2016–17 on the southern and south-western coasts of Australia. 

Accessibility statement: We are committed to providing information and services to the widest possible audience. We’ve designed this image to comply with the Australian Government Digital Service Standard and aim to meet the latest WCAG Guidelines which describe how to make web content more usable and accessible for everyone. All data underlying these maps can be downloaded in table format from the Data downloads section of this publication. For further information or assistance or to advise of accessibility issues with this product, please email client.services@abs.gov.au.

Marine ecosystem services

The marine environment provides several ecosystem services including Wild fish provisioning, which has been estimated for State-managed and Commonwealth-managed fisheries in this release.

Physical estimates of Wild fish provisioning vary according to market demand, fishery management, stock assessments, and environmental conditions. In contrast, monetary value is shaped by market factors such as changes in prices, export demand, quotas, and licence fees, which are influenced by supply and demand as well as fishery management settings.

Wild fish provisioning

In 2021–22, the Marine realm provided 161,721 tonnes of wild fish to Australian fisheries, with an ecosystem service value of $463 million. 

  • Most of the catch came from Epipelagic ocean waters (85,351 tonnes, 52.8%) with an ecosystem service value of $38.3 million (8.3%).
  • Subtidal sand beds provided 60,631 tonnes (37.5%) with the highest ecosystem service value of $311.0 million (67.2%).
  • Subtidal rocky reefs supplied 4,245 tonnes (2.6%) with an ecosystem service value of $81.1 million (17.5%).

'Other ecosystems' includes Seagrass meadows, Photic coral reefs, Photo-limited marine animal forests, Submarine canyons, Abyssal plains and Seamounts, ridges and plateaus.

In 2021–22, the proportion of wild fish provisioned by weight was:

  • Finfish (123,819 tonnes, 76.6%)
  • Crustaceans (28,595 tonnes, 17.7%)
  • Molluscs (9,259 tonnes, 5.7%)
  • Other (48 tonnes, <0.1%).

Between 2017–18 and 2021–22:

  • Finfish catch increased by 11.5% and ecosystem service value declined by 14.0%
  • Crustacean catch decreased by 14.5% and ecosystem service value declined by 27.8%
  • Mollusc catch decreased by 30.4% and ecosystem service value declined by 5.2%
  • Catch allocated to other species decreased by 79.3% and ecosystem service value declined by 59.0%.

The divergence between physical and monetary value was driven by compositional changes in the supply and demand of different fish taxa. From 2017–18 to 2021–22, catch of finfish continued to rise due to an increase in total allowable catch. However, demand for high value crustaceans declined, causing a large decrease in the total monetary value of fish. The COVID-19 pandemic reduced demand domestically and restrictions to export markets further reduced both catch volumes and market prices.

In 2021–22:

  • 33.8% of the total annual catch (54,659 tonnes) was from Spencer Gulf Shelf Province located off the South Australian coast with an ecosystem service value of $70.6 million
  • 15.8% of the total annual catch (25,526 tonnes) was from Southeast Shelf Transition with an ecosystem service value of $18.0 million
  • 34.6% of the total ecosystem service value ($160.3 million) was from the Southwest Shelf Transition with a total annual catch of 6,293 tonnes (3.9%).

Total annual wild fish catch by IMCRA Provincial Bioregion, 2021–22

This map of Australian waters presents the total annual wild fish catch (tonnes) in 2021–22 by Integrated Marine and Coastal Regionalisation of Australia (IMCRA) v4.0 - Provincial Bioregions. The data includes a breakdown of total catch (tonnes) and ecosystem service value (thousands of dollars) for finfish, crustaceans, molluscs and other. Values with an 'na' indicate data is not available. Data is for both Commonwealth-managed and State-managed fisheries. 

IMCRA provincial bioregions provide geographic coverage of the waters surrounding Australia and are defined by broad patterns in biodiversity, represented by deep-water demersal fish assemblages. 

Total annual fish catch is divided into six categories. These are listed below along with their category display colour.  

  • 10,000 or more (very dark blue)
  • 4,000 to less than 10,000 (dark blue)
  • 2,000 to less than 4,000 (blue)
  • 1,000 to less than 2,000 (green)
  • Less than 1,000 (light green)
  • No Published Data (transparent with dot pattern)

This map shows that the IMCRA Provincial Bioregion with the highest wild fish catch in 2021–22 was the Spencer Gulf Shelf Province, located off the South Australian coast. The Southeast Shelf Transition had the second highest catch and is located along the eastern coastline of Victoria extending to the top of Tasmania. Its total catch was approximately half of the Spencer Gulf Shelf Province.

Accessibility statement: We are committed to providing information and services to the widest possible audience. We’ve designed this image to comply with the Australian Government Digital Service Standard and aim to meet the latest WCAG Guidelines which describe how to make web content more usable and accessible for everyone. However, some functions of this interactive map may be inaccessible or difficult to use with assistive technology. All data underlying these maps can be downloaded in table format from the Data downloads section of this publication. For further information or assistance or to advise of accessibility issues with this product, please email client.services@abs.gov.au.

Source

ABS IMCRA v4.0 Wild Fish Catch by Category for 2021–22 - Overview

Biodiversity

Biodiversity plays an essential role in supporting human wellbeing through maintaining functioning ecosystems that, in turn, deliver essential services such as:

  • provisioning services (such as food, timber, fuel)
  • regulating services (such as pollination, water purification, erosion control, climate regulation)
  • as well as other benefits such as the aesthetic enjoyment of natural landscapes. 

Biodiversity is especially important and valuable for Australia’s agriculture and tourism industries.

Biodiversity measures have been collated by calendar year due to data availability.

Species Persistence

Species persistence estimates the proportion and number of species expected to persist in the long term across their 1750 range, given the underlying biodiversity patterns and the changes in ecosystem condition over time. The year 1750 is used as a reference point to represent Australian ecosystems prior to European colonisation, which have been cared for and maintained by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, their land management, knowledge systems, and cultural practices for millennia. Species persistence is reported for birds, fungi, reptiles and vascular plants.

Every taxonomic group in scope has declined between 1750 and 2023. As of 2023, for each taxonomic group, the proportion of species that were expected to persist from their 1750 ranges were:

  • 87% (19,967) of vascular plant species
  • 88% (43,412) of fungi species
  • 89% (740) of bird species
  • 86% (926) of reptile species.

Bird species persistence, 2023

This map of Australia displays species persistence of birds as a proportion of native bird species expected to persist in 2023 from 1750. The year 1750 is used as a reference point to represent Australian ecosystems prior to European colonisation, which have been cared for and maintained by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, their land management, knowledge systems, and cultural practices for millennia. The data is displayed for each Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2 2021), shaded based on a species persistence proportion. A darker colour represents a higher proportion and a lighter value represents a lower one. The six ranges are:

  • 90 or more (dark green)
  • 85 to less than 90 (medium green)
  • 81 to less than 85 (light green)
  • 79 to less than 81 (medium yellow)
  • Less than 79 (light yellow)
  • No Data (light grey)

The map shows bird species communities as most intact (highest species persistence) in central Australia. There is a noticeable pattern of lower species persistence across the sheep-wheat belt of southwest Western Australia and southeast Australia, which demonstrates the impact of changed land use on bird assemblages.

Accessibility statement: We are committed to providing information and services to the widest possible audience. We’ve designed this website to comply with the Australian Government Digital Service Standard and aim to meet the latest WCAG Guidelines which describe how to make web content more usable and accessible for everyone. However, some functions of this interactive map may be inaccessible or difficult to use with assistive technology. All data underlying this map can be downloaded in table format from the Data downloads section of this publication. For further information or assistance or to advise of accessibility issues with this product, please email client.services@abs.gov.au.

Source

ABS ASGS Ed3 SA2 2021 Bird Species Persistence 2023 - Overview

Threatened Species Habitat

Threatened species habitat is an indicator which estimates the proportion of threatened species habitat that remains, since European colonisation, for nationally-listed threatened terrestrial species in Australia. This is based on combining spatial extent and condition information of ecosystems with the expected number of threatened species occurring in each location as of 1750.

The amount of threatened species habitat was generally stable across Australia between 2010 and 2023, with some EFGs showing a decrease while others showed an increase. These results align with drivers such as flooding events and drought periods.

From 2010 to 2023, within Terrestrial-Freshwater transitional EFGs:

  • there has been a steady increase in the proportion of available threatened species habitat for Tropical flooded forests, with the proportion almost doubling over the time series to 0.12
  • Boreal and temperate fens remain the ecosystem with the highest proportion of threatened species habitat, this proportion has declined gradually across the time series, but has increased to 0.17 in 2023
  • Marsh and wetland ecosystems remained relatively stable across the time series.

Threatened Species Status

The number of threatened species listed under the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act in 2023 was 2,103 species, up from 1,770 species in 2010 (18.8% increase).

  • In 2010, plants had 1,341 species listed as threatened and this figure climbed to 1,457 species by 2023. Of these, the largest number of species were in the ‘endangered’ category for both years.
  • For birds, there were 176 species threatened in 2023, 48 more species than in 2010.
  • Mammals had 123 species threatened in 2010 and 150 species threatened in 2023, an increase of 27 species.

The total number of threatened species listed under the EPBC Act has increased between 2010 and 2023 for all taxonomic groups. The number of critically endangered species increased the most, from 163 species in 2010, to 413 species in 2023. Further changes to threatened species listings will have occurred since 2023.

Threatened Species Index

The Threatened Species Index (TSX) is compiled for threatened plants, birds, mammals and amphibians and represents average change in population size of threatened species relative to a reference year of 2000 (when the index equals 1). The threatened species categories included are: vulnerable, endangered and critically endangered.

Between 2010 and 2021:

  • The TSX has declined across all taxonomic groups.
  • All results were lower than the reference year of 2000.
  • Average populations of threatened species have declined across the country.

Feral animal and weed species

Many animal and plant species have been accidentally or deliberately introduced to Australia and some of these have developed into populations of feral animals or weeds. Feral animals and weeds can be a major problem for humans, pets, livestock, agriculture, forestry and our natural ecosystems.

  • Plants considered to be weeds (that is, those listed on the Weeds of National Significance (WoNS)) constitute the majority of introduced species in scope for this account, with 41 plant species listed.
  • Out of the feral animal taxonomic groups in scope for this account, mammals were the largest group of species (18 species), while birds had 12 species, invertebrates had 10 species, freshwater fish had 9 species and amphibians one species.

Several feral animal species have increased their range to new states and territories since 2010. The number of WoNS weed plant species observed across the country has increased in most states and territories between 2010 and 2023.

Data downloads

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Related information

Measuring and Valuing Australia's Ecosystems

Methodology

National Ecosystem Accounts, experimental estimates methodology, 2022-23 financial year

Articles