Yarrawa Brush Rainforest on the Edge of the Escarpment

Overview

Robertson Nature Reserve protects a very small but remarkably intact pocket of Yarrawa Brush rainforest near Robertson, on the edge of the Illawarra Escarpment in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales. Although it covers only about 5.3 hectares, it preserves part of a once much larger rainforest system that formerly spread across the red basalt soils around Robertson.

This is one of those places where the scale can be misleading. The reserve is compact, but the forest itself feels dense, cool and enclosed, with a layered canopy and a strong sense of the older landscape that once covered much of the district.

Highlights

The reserve’s real appeal is its surviving warm temperate rainforest and the chance to see the character of the Yarrawa Brush up close. Mossy roots, tall trunks, vines and a shaded canopy give the forest a rich, sheltered feel, especially in damp weather when the vegetation looks at its best.

Its position near the escarpment adds to that sense of contrast, with this small remnant standing out against a region that was extensively cleared long ago. What remains here is one of the larger and less disturbed surviving pieces of this once widespread rainforest.

Best Time to Visit

Robertson Nature Reserve can be rewarding at any time of year, but it is especially appealing in the cooler, wetter months when the rainforest feels lush and the ferns, fungi and mossy surfaces are most vivid. Summer still suits the reserve well because the canopy helps keep the forest floor shaded and relatively cool.

After rain, the place often feels at its most atmospheric, with the enclosed forest and deep green understorey showing the damp conditions that rainforest plants thrive on.

Plants and Animals

The reserve protects a mix of rainforest species that once typified the Yarrawa Brush, including sassafras, featherwood, coachwood and possumwood. Beneath the canopy, soft tree ferns, shrubs, climbing vines and fungi add to the layered structure of the forest.

Birdlife is a strong part of the experience here. Crimson rosellas move through the trees, and the sharp call of the eastern whipbird is a familiar sound in the undergrowth. The forest floor also supports animals such as the short-beaked echidna, which suits the reserve’s moist, sheltered habitat.