Các hệ sinh thái núi cao của Châu Đại Dương có sự khác biệt từ tất cả các lục địa khu vực núi cao ở thiếu một hiệp hội với áp lực chăn thả từ động vật móng guốc. Động vật móng guốc được tìm thấy ở vùng núi của châu Phi, châu Á, châu Âu, và Bắc và Nam Mỹ. Đông Nam của đường Wallace, New Guinea và Úc đã phát triển một hệ động vật, trong đó các động vật ăn cỏ lớn thú có túi. Trong những hòn đảo cô lập của New Zealand, các động vật. | 15 Alpine Grazing in the Snowy Mountains of Australia Degradation and Stabilization of the Ecosystem Ken Green Roger B. Good Stuart W. Johnston and Lisa A. Simpson INTRODUCTION The alpine ecosystems of Oceania differ from all other major continental alpine areas in lacking a long association with grazing pressure from ungulates. Ungulates are found in the mountains of Africa Asia Europe and North and South America. Southeast of the Wallace Line New Guinea and Australia evolved a fauna in which the large grazing animals were marsupials. In the isolated islands of New Zealand the largest grazing animals were birds. The Snowy Mountains of New South Wales 36 30 S 148 15 E consist of 250 km2 of alpine and 1065 km2 of subalpine vegetation Costin et al. 1979 . The alpine zone extending from the treeline at about 1830 m to the highest summit Mt. Kosciuszko at 2228 m is characterized by a continuous snow cover for at least 4 months per year and 6 to 8 months with daily minimum temperatures below 0 C. Precipitation is in the range of 1800 to 3100 mm per year with about 60 of this falling as snow Costin 1957 . The subalpine zone extending from the treeline down to the winter snowline at about 1500 m is characterized by a continuous snow cover for 1 to 4 months per year and daily minimum temperatures below 0 C for about 6 months per year. Precipitation is in the range of 770 to 2000 mm per year Costin 1970 . The Snowy Mountains are the headwater catchments of the three major rivers in south eastern Australia the Murray Murrumbid-gee and Snowy rivers. Costin 1955 called the Snowy Mountains soil mountains because of the contrast with mountains elsewhere which are predominantly rocky or have a mantle of peat. The major rock types in the Snowy Mountains are gneisses and granites with smaller areas of metamorphic rocks and basalts Costin 1955 . The soils are well developed with as many as eight groups and six subgroups occurring in the alpine zone. The major soil type is alpine .
