The Brigalow Tropical Savanna stretches across inland Queensland and into northern New South Wales, Australia, forming a broad transition belt nearly eleven degrees of latitude long between the wetter coastal forests of the east and the semi-arid interior. It is named for the brigalow (Acacia harpophylla), a water-stress-tolerant acacia that dominates the heavy clay soils, intergrading with eucalypt woodlands such as ironbark and poplar box, cypress pine (Callitris glaucophylla) on sandier ground, bluegrass (Dichanthium) grasslands, and scattered Queensland bottle trees (Brachychiton). The climate shifts from warm tropical summer-rainfall conditions in the north to cooler-wintered south, with the dry interior receiving under 500 mm a year and coastal margins 750 mm or more. Over 400 bird species occur here, and the region shelters endangered mammals including the flagship bridled nail-tail wallaby and the northern hairy-nosed wombat, though extensive clearing for grazing and cropping has left it critically threatened. For gardeners in comparable warm, seasonally dry climates, the native cypress pine and the sculptural bottle tree are both established ornamentals.
Marker placed inside the RESOLVE 2017 polygon at 25.4°S, 149.0°E.
Climate snapshot for this ecoregion
°C
°F
Current zone range (2011–2040)
10a-13b
Plotwright
CHELSA-derived typical winter month at this ecoregion's bbox grid.
Projected (2041–2070)
10b-13b
Plotwright
Where the CHELSA models say the typical winter month is heading.
Average warming this ecoregion is on track for: +3.5°F by mid-century. SSP3-7.0 (current trajectory) · CHELSA v2.1 bio06 sampled across 10 of 10 points within this ecoregion's bounding box.
Nature Could Reach Half Protected (Dinerstein NNH 2)
About the tropical & subtropical grasslands, savannas & shrublands biome
Warm grasslands and savannas where grasses dominate and trees are scattered, maintained by seasonal rainfall, grazing, and fire. They support large herbivore communities and respond sharply to wet–dry cycles.
Catalog plants suited to this ecoregion
Computed from each plant's stated USDA zone range against this ecoregion's CHELSA-derived current zone range, with the CHELSA mid-century warming delta applied for the projection. Plants whose stated range falls outside both the current and projected zone end up dropped; the rest land in one of the three buckets below.
Climate-resilient picks · 79
These plants fit this ecoregion today AND remain in range under the mid-century SSP3-7.0 projection. Lead with these for a planting that holds up as the climate shifts.
No curated collection's plants all fit this ecoregion's zone range. We surface a collection only when every member would grow here — partial fits get filtered out rather than mislead. As the catalog and the curated set both grow, this section will fill in.
Related ecoregions
Other tropical & subtropical grasslands, savannas & shrublands ecoregions to explore: