Urban Forest Habitat Creation and Augmentation

Urbanisation has resulted in the destruction of vast natural areas, including mature, hollow-bearing, habitat trees. Habitat fragmentation due to urbanisation has created small, isolated bushland pockets, which are difficult for many fauna species to move between.

Despite Lane Cove Council’s impressive Tree Preservation policies mature canopy loss in the urban environment is still a major issue affecting biodiversity loss in the region. Many native fauna species require hollows for habitat, including several threatened species of birds and mammals.  

This Sustainability Levy-funded project (2026-27) aims to provide vital hollows throughout urban wildlife corridors in Lane Cove LGA. Select dead, retained stag trees in the urban landscape and bushland fringes are undergoing augmentation by qualified contractors to provide hollows as habitat for local fauna. Where augmentation is not suitable, nestboxes may be installed as substitute habitat. Signage will be erected on some of these habitat trees to help educate the community on the importance of hollows. 

Some of the local fauna species which may inhabit these augmented hollows and nestboxes include parrots, possums, gliders, microbats, native bees and owls.