Sturt National Park

Coordinates: 29°05′37″S 141°30′31″E / 29.09361°S 141.50861°E / -29.09361; 141.50861
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Sturt National Park
NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service
WebsiteSturt National Park
See alsoProtected areas of
New South Wales

The Sturt National Park is a

Tibooburra
, 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) away.

Established in 1972, the park is named in honour of Charles Sturt, a colonial explorer. The park features typical outback scenery of flat, reddish-brown landscapes.[2] It was resumed from five pastoral properties.[3] The Sturt National Park was featured in British documentary called Planet Earth. The Dingo Fence was built along the national park's northern boundary.

Flora

Flora consists mostly of

Sturt's desert pea.[5]

Fauna

Mammals

At least 31 species of mammal have been recorded in the park.[6] The most obvious to visitors include the red kangaroo, western grey kangaroo,[7] eastern grey kangaroo and Euro.[6] Other terrestrial mammals found at Sturt NP also include the dingo, stripe-faced dunnart, paucident planigale, narrow-nosed planigale, dusky hopping mouse and desert mouse.[6] Nine species of bat have also been recorded in the park, including the eastern long-eared bat,[8] little broad-nosed bat, yellow-bellied sheath-tailed bat, inland forest bat and little pied bat.[6] Several introduced pest species occur, including the European fox, European rabbit, feral cat, feral goat and feral pig.[6]

Several mammal species that previously occurred prior to the arrival of Europeans are also being reintroduced into the park.

Greater Bilby, Western barred bandicoot, Burrowing bettong, Greater stick-nest rat, Golden bandicoot and Western quoll.[9]

Reptiles and amphibians

At least 67 species of reptile have been recorded in the park.

Interior blind snake[8] and woma python.[6]

Several frog species can also be found in the park, including the

water-holding frog.[6]

Birds

At least 197 bird species have been recorded in the park, with the most obvious to visitors being the emu.[4] Significant ground-nesting birds include the inland dotterel, stubble quail, Australian pratincole and spotted nightjar.[6] 13 species of parrot, which rely on tree hollows for nesting, have also been recorded in the park. These include flocks of cockatiels, galahs, corellas and less frequently budgerigars that appear after rain events.[6] A wide variety of birds of prey are also present in the park, including the wedge-tailed eagle, black-breasted buzzard, Grey falcon, Australian hobby and nankeen kestrel.[6]

The

Ramsar-listed Lake Pinaroo, present within the park, also acts as an important stopover and drought refuge for at least 40 species of waterbird, including several threatened species, such as the Australian painted-snipe.[6] Other waterbird species also include the Freckled duck, Blue-billed duck[8] and Caspian tern.[6]

Invertebrates

Ants, termites, native bees and spiders are all common within the park, however existing knowledge of species and interactions are poor.[6] The aquatic invertebrates found in the park include the common yabby and freshwater crab, while populations of shield shrimp can commonly be found in temporary water pools after rain events.[6]

Attractions

The park contains aboriginal middens and stone relics.[5] There are many walking trails and an extensive network of roads. Most roads in the park are gravel with some sandy stretches and can be driven on with a conventional vehicle.[5] A 4WD vehicle is needed after heavy rains.

In the east of the park are flood plains, dotted with occasional trees which then give way to small rocky gorges and creek beds. Located here is Mount Wood, Gorge Lookout and the Mount Wood camping ground.[5]

The Mt. Wood shearers quarters after 10mm of rain

Towards the middle of the park, The Olive Downs, or "Jump Up" country has flat topped mesas rising up to 150 metres (490 ft) above the surrounding plains, granite outcrops and flat valleys.[2] The Jump Ups are the remains of an ancient mountain range.[2] The park's second camping site called Dead Horse Gully camping ground is located here.[5] Amongst the boulders north of Tibooburra is another camping ground. All camp grounds have toilets, gas barbecues and water provided.[3]

In the far west of the national park, the gibber plains are replaced by

waterbirds when it contains water.[10]

Heritage listings

The Mount Wood Station is a heritage-listed former cattle station in the national park.[11]

Conservation projects

Wild Deserts program

A Crest-tailed Mulgara, re-discovered in Sturt NP in 2017 during wildlife surveys undertaken as part of the Wild Deserts program

The Wild Deserts program is an ongoing program aiming to reintroduce 7 locally extinct mammals back into Sturt National Park. A partnership between the

Greater Bilby, Western barred bandicoot, Burrowing bettong, Greater stick-nest rat, Golden bandicoot and Western quoll.[9][12]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Sturt National Park: Park management". Office of Environment & Heritage. Government of New South Wales. Retrieved 13 October 2014.
  2. ^ a b c Pritchard, Chris (7 December 2008). "Corner Country's where three states meet and tourists roam". Courier Mail. Retrieved 5 July 2009.
  3. ^ a b c d "Tibooburra". The Sydney Morning Herald. 1 January 2009. Retrieved 5 July 2009.
  4. ^ a b "Sturt National Park: Learn more". New South Wales Parks and Wildlife Service. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  5. ^
    ISBN 1-875992-47-2. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help
    )
  6. ^
    ISBN 978-1-76039-991-7. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 September 2018. Retrieved 25 September 2018. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help
    )
  7. ^ "Sturt National Park Travel Information and Travel Guide". Lonely Planet Publications. 17 February 2009. Archived from the original on 24 January 2009. Retrieved 5 July 2009.
  8. ^ a b c "Lake Pinaroo (Fort Grey Basin) Ramsar site". NSW Ramsar sites. Dept of Environment & Heritage, NSW. 23 November 2017. Retrieved 26 July 2018.
  9. ^ a b c "Wild Deserts Information Sheet" (PDF). Wild Deserts Program. January 2017. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
  10. ^ "Lake Pinaroo (Fort Grey Basin) Ramsar site". Office of Environment & Heritage. Government of New South Wales. 26 October 2012. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  11. Department of Planning & Environment. H01001. Retrieved 2 June 2018. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC-BY 4.0 licence
    .
  12. ^ "Reintroducing locally extinct animals to Sturt National Park". University of New South Wales. Retrieved 14 June 2018.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sturt National Park.
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