Lake Newland Conservation Park

Lake Newland Conservation Park
South Australia
IUCN category VI (protected area with sustainable use of natural resources)
Lake Newland Conservation Park
Nearest town or city Elliston
Coordinates 33°24′18″S 134°51′16″E / 33.40500°S 134.85444°E / -33.40500; 134.85444Coordinates: 33°24′18″S 134°51′16″E / 33.40500°S 134.85444°E / -33.40500; 134.85444
Established 1 August 1991[1]
Area 88.8 km2 (34.3 sq mi)[1]
Managing authorities Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources
Website Lake Newland Conservation Park
See also Protected areas of South Australia

Lake Newland Conservation Park protects a 20-kilometre (12 mi) long hypersaline lake and associated wetland complex lying on the west coast of the Eyre Peninsula of South Australia. It is separated from the sea by sand-dunes. The southern end of the conservation park is about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) north of the small town of Elliston, and the northern end about 20 kilometres (12 mi) south of Venus Bay. The conservation park was proclaimed in 1991; some additional areas were added in 1996.[2]

Description

The conservation park has a relatively recent geological history, with Holocene sand-dunes creating a barrier between the Southern Ocean and a depression in the Bridgewater Formation of Pleistocene limestone that is common throughout the western Eyre Peninsula. The dunes continue to encroach on the lake, lagoons and other wetlands in the park which are also fed by freshwater springs in the limestone. Average annual rainfall (recorded at Elliston) is 427 millimetres (16.8 in).[2]

The conservation park is classified as an IUCN Category VI protected area.[3]

Vegetation

The park contains mobile sand dunes and sub-coastal wetlands. The vegetation includes areas of previously cleared land with patches of regenerating drooping sheoak woodland and scattered native shrubs. The lake margins are dominated by salt-tolerant Sarcocornia and Tecticornia species. The coastal shrublands that cover much of the reserve are mainly composed of coastal daisybush, with coast beard-heath, seaberry saltbush, long-pod wattle, coastal umbrella bush and cockies tongues. The foredunes behind the beach contain Spinifex hirsutus grassland as well as coast saltbush and knobby club-rush. Swales are characterised by swamp paperbarks and dryland tea-trees over salt-tolerant shrubs.[2]

Other protected status

Important bird area

The conservation park is an important area for Cape Barren geese

The full extent of the conservation park is overlapped by an Important Bird Area (IBA) known as the Lake Newland Important Bird Area. The IBA which is a non-statutory arrangement has been identified by BirdLife International because it regularly supports over 1% of the world population of Cape Barren geese, as dry-season visitors from their offshore island breeding grounds, and significant numbers of fairy terns and hooded plovers.[4] Slender-billed thornbills also occur in the park.[2]

References

  1. 1 2 "Protected Areas Information System - reserve list (as of 25 November 2014)" (PDF). Department of Environment Water and Natural Resources. Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Durant, M.D. (2009). Lake Newland Conservation Park: Opportunities for Implementation of the WildEyre Conservation Action Plan (PDF). Report to the WildEyre project group. Greening Australia SA.
  3. "Terrestrial Protected Areas of South Australia (see 'DETAIL' tab)". CAPAD 2012. Australian Government - Department of the Environment. 6 February 2014. Retrieved 6 February 2014.
  4. "IBA: Lake Newland". Birdata. Birds Australia. Retrieved 2011-07-29.

External links


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