Dragon Tree Soak Nature Reserve is located in the Great Sandy Desert in the southern part of the Kimberley region of Western Australia.
| Dragon Tree Soak Nature Reserve Western Australia | |
|---|---|
  Dragon Tree Soak Nature Reserve | |
 | |
| Coordinates | 19°41′S 123°20′E / 19.683°S 123.333°E |
| Established | 1979 |
| Area | 17,733 hectares (43,820 acres)[1][2] |
| Region | Great Sandy Desert, Kimberley, Western Australia |
| Managing authorities | Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions |
| See also | List of protected areas of Western Australia |
It covers an area of around 180 square kilometres (69 sq mi) and is 210 kilometres (130 mi) east of the Great Northern Highway.
Dragon Tree Soak is a swamp believed to be a relic of the riverine vegetation found along the Mandora Palaeoriver during its partial rejuvenation by the wetter climates of the early to mid Holocene Epoch.[3]
It is used by birds from the surrounding hummock grasslands but also has species generally associated with scrub or tree-lined watercourses elsewhere. Species not recorded elsewhere in the region but present in the Typha beds were the Clamorous Reed-Warbler and the Australian crake.[4]
It is a wetland of significance,[5] described as:
Dragon Tree Soak is a swamp with bullrush Typha domingensis and dragon tree Sesbania formosa. It includes a freshwater spring, a permanent freshwater marsh and peatland. It has an area of 5 ha (main water area: 1 ha). It forms an oasis supporting plants and animals that are absent or scarce elsewhere in the desert.[5]
Wild camel damage has been reported as extensive, and programmes to reduce their effect on the reserve have been conducted.[6]
Assessability edit
It is a reserve that contains old dry lake beds, and is well away from named tracks. It is accessible by driving east following the track at 19°41'54.6"S 121°14'19.9"E, near Eighty Mile Beach, until 20°03'52.9"S 123°18'37.0"E, then heading north by 37 km. Flying by helicopter from Broome or Port Hedland is also possible.
Notes edit
- ^ "Terrestrial CAPAD 2022 WA summary". dcceew.gov.au/. Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
- ^ "Australian Protected Areas Dashboard". dcceew.gov.au/. Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
- ^ Veth, Peter (1 January 1995), "Aridity and settlement in northwest Australia.(Special Issue)(Transitions: Pleistocene to Holocene in Australia & Papua New Guinea)", Antiquity, 69 (265), Antiquity Publications, Ltd: 733, doi:10.1017/S0003598X00082302, ISSN 0003-598X
- ^ "Dragon Tree Soak Nature Reserve WA".
- ^ a b "Australian Web Archive". Archived from the original on 9 August 2010.
- ^ "Australian Web Archive". Archived from the original on 12 February 2007.