Banyule Flats Reserve (Viewbank)

Banyule Flats Reserve is a 46.47 hectare reserve which connects to the Yarra Valley Parklands and the Warringal Parklands, and there are many walking tracks. The Main Yarra Trail follows the Banyule Swamp and Silt Pond, with many unofficial tracks leading off to Banyule Creek, stockyards, Banyule Swamp, and down to the Yarra River.

Activities in the park include sports, walking/bike trails and wildlife observation.

History

The Wurundjeri people occupied land around Banyule Swamp and the Yarra River. Artefact scatters and scar trees are nearby.

This land was one of the earliest rural allotments, being sold in 1838. It was a part of Woods Station, a large sheep farm straddling both sides of the Yarra River. The woodlands were cleared prior to settlement, with many small mills built. Settlers bought land as quickly as it was cleared. Rich soils supported agricultural and pastoral uses, including market gardens, orchards and vineyards.

The remnant stockyards, seen at the southern end of Plymouth Street, Heidelberg, were relocated from a different part of Banyule by Alan Baxter, who took over cattle farming from the Lyon family. The swamp is created by stormwater from surrounding streets. It was drained in the early 19th Century, and had cattle grazing on it until the 1990s. The southern edge of the swamp was changed so that it could be refilled in 1999.

Flora and Fauna

There are many remnant indigenous and exotic historic vegetation, swamps, billabongs, parklands and sporting facilities throughout the reserve. There are 10 ecological vegetation classes, including floodplain riparian woodland, creekline grassy woodland, aquatic herbfield and plains grassy woodland, with some being endangered.

The Yarra River and the Banyule Swamp keep bird plentiful; 153 bird species have been sighted, some rare or threatened in Victoria, and others are migrants, such as the latham's snipe. Kangaroos, wombats, echidnas and wallabies have been spotted.