On a national scale, the land and sea area of Victoria is relatively small at 30 million hectares. But despite its size, Victoria embraces many different landscapes, from alpine peaks and rugged mountains to the dry semi-arid plains of the north-west, the shallow coastal bays and the ocean waters of Bass Strait. Each landscape has a range of habitats which support a particular suite of plants and animals (species diversity). The variety of landscapes and environments affects the way they interact with each other and the non-living parts of the environment (ecosystem diversity). Even within a particular species, there is genetic diversity.

Victoria owes its complex range of ecological communities to climatic and geological evolution over tens of millions of years. Even so, some of our ecological communities are relatively young. The marine communities of our bays and inlets, for example, have developed only over the last 6000 years. We share many of our plant and animal species with neighbouring states and the rest of Australia (for example, the waters of Bass Strait). We also share species with other parts of the world.⁵ But many species exist only in Victoria, and the large number of these ‘endemic’ species reinforces our responsibility to protect our biodiversity.

On land we know of 4000 species and subspecies of native vascular plants in Victoria. Our 260 orchid species and subspecies are just 10 fewer than the number found in North America and Europe combined. While much of our natural wealth is relatively well known through biological surveys, we can still expect more species diversity to be revealed in the decades to come. Surveys have shown that the coastal seafloor off eastern Victoria has the highest levels of species diversity and endemism known in the world.

Victoria also forms part of the habitat for species that range across the globe. For example, each spring Southern Right Whales visit Victorian waters to calve and suckle their young; and in summer tiny Red-necked Stints feed in our intertidal areas to gain weight before flying to northern Siberia to breed.

Having habitats for wide-ranging species, and having species found nowhere else, gives Victorians particular responsibilities and opportunities. Fortunately, in world terms, we have a high standard of living and a small human population, giving us the opportunity to look after our biodiversity.