Carnarvon Station Reserve
Encyclopedia
Carnarvon Station Reserve is a 59,000–hectare
nature reserve
in the Great Dividing Range
of south-eastern Central Queensland
, Australia
. It is adjacent to Carnarvon National Park
, and includes most of the Channin Creek valley. It is 600 km west of Bundaberg
, and 744 km north-west of Brisbane
. It is owned and managed by Bush Heritage Australia
(BHA), by which it was purchased in 2001. It is within the traditional lands of the Bidjara people.
. The property is composed of rocky hills and plains, with the north-eastern section being the highest and most rugged. All its streams are seasonal, though there are several permanent springs
. Vegetation communities include vine thickets, eucalypt
and angophora
woodland
s and open forest, Brigalow and Belah
, as well as grassland
s.
, are part of a high-altitude archipelago of areas of protected woodland in the Great Dividing Range that is critical to the conservation of the eastern Australian bird migration system. Threatened birds recorded from the property include the Square-tailed Kite
, Squatter Pigeon
, Glossy Black-Cockatoo
, Powerful Owl
and Black-chinned Honeyeater
.
Hectare
The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...
nature reserve
Nature reserve
A nature reserve is a protected area of importance for wildlife, flora, fauna or features of geological or other special interest, which is reserved and managed for conservation and to provide special opportunities for study or research...
in the Great Dividing Range
Great Dividing Range
The Great Dividing Range, or the Eastern Highlands, is Australia's most substantial mountain range and the third longest in the world. The range stretches more than 3,500 km from Dauan Island off the northeastern tip of Queensland, running the entire length of the eastern coastline through...
of south-eastern Central Queensland
Central Queensland
Central Queensland is an ambiguous geographical division of Queensland that centres on the eastern coast, around the Tropic of Capricorn. Its major regional centre is Rockhampton and the Capricorn Coast and the area extends west to the Central Highlands at Emerald, north to the Mackay Regional...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. It is adjacent to Carnarvon National Park
Carnarvon National Park
Carnarvon National Park is located in the Southern Brigalow Belt bioregion in Central Queensland , 593 km northwest of Brisbane...
, and includes most of the Channin Creek valley. It is 600 km west of Bundaberg
Bundaberg, Queensland
Bundaberg is a city in Queensland, Australia. It is part of the Local Government Area of the Bundaberg Region and is a major centre within Queensland's broader Wide Bay-Burnett geographical region...
, and 744 km north-west of Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
. It is owned and managed by Bush Heritage Australia
Bush Heritage Australia
Bush Heritage Australia is a non-profit organisation based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia that operates throughout Australia. It was previously known as the Australian Bush Heritage Fund, which is still its legal name. It purchases land, assessed as being of outstanding conservation value, from...
(BHA), by which it was purchased in 2001. It is within the traditional lands of the Bidjara people.
Landscape and plants
Carnarvon Station is a former cattle stationCattle station
Cattle station is an Australian term for a large farm , whose main activity is the rearing of cattle. In Australia, the owner of a cattle station is called a grazier...
. The property is composed of rocky hills and plains, with the north-eastern section being the highest and most rugged. All its streams are seasonal, though there are several permanent springs
Spring (hydrosphere)
A spring—also known as a rising or resurgence—is a component of the hydrosphere. Specifically, it is any natural situation where water flows to the surface of the earth from underground...
. Vegetation communities include vine thickets, eucalypt
Eucalypt
Eucalypts are woody plants belonging to three closely related genera:Eucalyptus, Corymbia and Angophora.In 1995 new evidence, largely genetic, indicated that some prominent Eucalyptus species were actually more closely related to Angophora than to the other eucalypts; they were split off into the...
and angophora
Angophora
Angophora is a genus of ten species of trees or large shrubs in the myrtle family , native to eastern Australia. It is closely related to Corymbia and Eucalyptus, and all three are often referred to as "eucalypts". The differences are that Angophora have opposite leaves rather than alternate, and...
woodland
Woodland
Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...
s and open forest, Brigalow and Belah
Belah
For the Biblical character, see List of minor Biblical figures#Bela.For the chiefly Australian tree of the genus Casuarina, see Beefwood.Belah is a suburb of Carlisle in the City of Carlisle district, in the county of Cumbria, England....
, as well as grassland
Grassland
Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...
s.
Animals
Carnarvon Station, with the adjacent national parks of Carnarvon and ExpeditionExpedition National Park
Expedition is a national park in Queensland, Australia, 490 km northwest of Brisbane. It is named for the Expedition Range of mountains....
, are part of a high-altitude archipelago of areas of protected woodland in the Great Dividing Range that is critical to the conservation of the eastern Australian bird migration system. Threatened birds recorded from the property include the Square-tailed Kite
Square-tailed Kite
The Square-tailed Kite is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as kites, eagles and harriers.-Conservation status:...
, Squatter Pigeon
Squatter Pigeon
The Squatter Pigeon is a species of bird in the Columbidae family.It is endemic to Australia.According to the Dept of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, the nominate subspecies, Southern Squatter Pigeon is listed as vulnerable.-References:* BirdLife International 2004....
, Glossy Black-Cockatoo
Glossy Black-Cockatoo
The Glossy Black Cockatoo , also known as the Casuarina Black Cockatoo after one of their preferred food items, is the smallest member of the subfamily Calyptorhynchinae found in Australia. Adult Glossy Black Cockatoos may reach 50 cm in length. They are sexually dimorphic...
, Powerful Owl
Powerful Owl
The Powerful Owl , also known as the Powerful Boobok, is a species of owl native to south-eastern and eastern Australia, the largest owl on that continent...
and Black-chinned Honeyeater
Black-chinned Honeyeater
The Black-chinned Honeyeater is a species of passerine bird in the Meliphagidae family. It is endemic to Australia. Two subspecies are recognised. Its natural habitats are temperate forests and subtropical or tropical dry forests.The Black-chinned Honeyeater was first described by John Gould in 1837...
.