Habitat fact sheet | Field of Mars EEC

What is a habitat?

A habitat is the natural environment of an animal. It provides the shelter, food, water and other requirements that animals need for survival. Natural areas usually contain many different habitat components that work together to support a variety of living things. 

A good habitat meets all an animal’s needs in one place.

The black jezebel butterfly is common in bushland habitats along the east coast of Australia.

Habitat components

Living habitat components include trees,  shrubs  and ground cover plants. A good quality habitat also contains non-living components including leaf litter,  rocks, logs  and water. Together, these features create places to hide, nest, hunt and find food.

Dead leaves and branches together with different types of living plants makes this bushland a perfect home for a variety of species.

Good habitat

A habitat that contains a variety of components can support a greater diversity of animals. For example, a ground cover of native grasses and herbs provides seeds for finches and homes for lizards, small mammals and butterfly larvae. Trees and shrubs attract nectar- and pollen-feeding birds, as well as leaf eaters such as possums and many insects. 

Flowering shrubs provide food in the form of nectar for many birds, mammals and invertebrates.

Habitat diversity

Across Australia there are many unique natural environments such as deserts, sub-tropical rainforests, grassy box woodlands and coastal heath. Each environment looks different and contains its own range of habitats, supporting different plants and animals.

River red gums growing along the Murrumbidgee River provide habitat when they are both living and dead.

Lizards burrow into the sandy soil amongst ground cover plants in the arid environment of Mungo National Park.

Mountain streams located in Mount Jerusalem National Park provide habitats for freshwater yabbies.

Related fact sheets

Habitats

• Habitat fact sheet – overview
• Tree habitats fact sheet – explores tree canopies, hollows and bark as habitat.
• Shrub habitats fact sheet – explains how shrubs provide food and shelter between trees and ground cover.
• Ground cover habitats fact sheet – shows how grasses and low plants shelter small animals.
• Leaf litter habitats fact sheet – focuses on decomposing leaves and the animals that live in them.
• Rock and log habitats fact sheet – explains how rocks and logs create cool, moist shelters.
• Water habitats fact sheet – explores ponds, creeks and wetlands as habitats.

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