Sydney Turpentine-Ironbark Forest

Sydney Turpentine-Ironbark Forest (STIF) is often found on the edges of Blue Gum High Forest and is dominated by Turpentine, Eucalypts and Ironbarks, together with smaller trees such as the Parramatta Wattle and White Dogwood, and a mixture of grasses.

STIF has recently been upgraded to a Critically Endangered Ecological Community under the NSW Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016.

Communities listed as critically endangered are deemed to be facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the near future.

STIF fact sheet(PDF, 725KB)  

Local wildlife

This forest provides layers of habitat for wildlife, with mature trees providing nest hollows for Australia’s largest owl - the Powerful Owl and also for the Glossy Black-Cockatoo.

Visit the forest

The combined area of STIF and BGHF once covered 46,000 hectares, but just 0.5 per cent of the original STIF remains in Ku-ring-gai due to land clearing. In Ku-ring-gai it is found along Mona Vale Road, St. Ives, the southern end of Fox Valley Road and Bicentennial Park. 

What can you do?

There’s lots you can do to help preserve STIF:

If you live near the forest, there’s even more you can do to help preserve it:

  • Plant some of the forest’s native species, such as Parramatta Wattle, Native Peach and Pastel Flower, in your garden. This will help attract birds, mammals and butterflies.
  • Be careful when mowing your lawn. Mowing underneath STIF trees prevents seedlings from establishing. Hand weed or poison weeds instead.
  • Remove weeds from your own garden to stop them spreading into the forest.
  • If you’re using greywater in your garden, use low phosphorus detergents.

More info

Contact us on 9424 0866 or email naturalareas@krg.nsw.gov.au.

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