Mt Stirling, Victoria.
Image: Benjamin Healley
Source: Museum Victoria
Mt Stirling, Victoria
Image: Benjamin Healley
Source: Museum Victoria
Snowgums, Mt Stirling.
Image: Melinder Iser
Source: Museum Victoria
Summer in the Victorian Alps.
Image: Peter Walton
Source: Parks Victoria
The Victorian Alps extend from the plateaus of Lake Mountain and Mt Baw Baw to peaks such as Mt Feathertop and the headwaters of the Murray River. A rich mosaic of heathland, grassland and alpine bog communities grow above the tree line. Snowgum woodlands grow at slightly lower altitudes. Many species and ecological communities are found only in the alps. Some are at risk of extinction, such as the Baw Baw Frog, Alpine Water Skink, Mountain Pygmy-possum and Stirling Stonefly. The Victorian Alps remain largely intact and protected in National Parks, but climate change is a threat to species that can survive only in alpine habitats.