Penola Conservation Park (formerly the Penola National Park) is a protected area located in the Australian state of South Australia in the locality of Monbulla about 329 kilometres (204 mi) south-east of the state capital of Adelaide and about 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) west of the town of Penola.[2][5]
Penola Conservation Park Monbulla, South Australia | |
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IUCN category III (natural monument or feature)[1] | |
Penola Conservation Park | |
Nearest town or city | Penola[2] |
Coordinates | 37°21′20″S 140°41′50″E[1] |
Established | 19 February 1970 (1970-02-19)[3] |
Area | 2.27 km2 (0.9 sq mi)[4] |
Managing authorities | Department for Environment and Water[4] |
Website | Penola Conservation Park |
See also | Protected areas of South Australia |
The conservation park occupies land in sections 255 and 256 of the cadastral unit of the Hundred of Monbulla. It is bounded by roads on three sides - Clay Wells Road (also known as the Robe - Penola road) to the south, Searle Road to the east and Rifle Range Road to the west. A wetland called Green Swamp located in its south-west was described in 1990 as “a semi-permanent wetland of approximately 10 hectares (25 acres)” while in its south-east corner, there is a “small disused quarry.” [2][5]
It originally acquired protected area status as one of two parcels of land proclaimed as a fauna sanctuary on 19 February 1970 under the Fauna Conservation Act 1964-1965 with the other parcel being located in the Hundred of Penola.[4][3] On 10 September 1970, Sections 255 and 256 in the Hundred of Monbulla were proclaimed under the National Parks Act 1966 as the Penola National Park.[6] On 27 April 1972, it was renamed as the Penola Conservation Park upon the proclamation of the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972 which repealed both of the above-mentioned acts along with other statutes concerned with conservation.[3][7] The land was reported in 1990 as being previously used for grazing on the basis of the condition of the vegetation and the presence of a well at the edge of the Green Swamp.[5] As of 2016, it covered an area of 2.27 square kilometres (0.88 sq mi).[4]
In 1980, the conservation park's listing on the now-defunct Register of the National Estate argued it to be significant for the following reasons:[8]
A fine reserve preserving a range of habitat types representative of the stranded dune and swale terrain of the lower south-east of South Australia. The Park incorporates both dune and swale with associated seasonal swamp. Macropus rufogriseus, Trichosurus vulpecula, Tachylglossus aculeatus and Rattus leutreolus. The diverse avifauna is augmented by a winter influx of waterbirds.
In 1990, the conservation park was described as follows:[5]
…underlain by consolidated calcarenite dunes, overlain with red, weakly structured sandy soils and unconsolidated stranded dunes of bleached sands with a yellow-grey B horizon. Two large wetland areas have a marl base and black organic soils. River red gum flats have sandy, mottled-yellow duplex soil.
In 1990, the following vegetation associations were present:
As of 1990, visitation consisted of use “mainly by local residents and schools groups” and “occasional” use for “bush camping.”[5]
The conservation park is classified as an IUCN Category III protected area.[1]
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