Aroona Sanctuary is a private protected area in the Australian state of South Australia located in the gazetted localities of Leigh Creek and Puttapa and whose north-western boundary is within 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) of the locality's town centre.[4]

Aroona Sanctuary
South Australia
Aroona Sanctuary is located in South Australia
Aroona Sanctuary
Aroona Sanctuary
Nearest town or cityLeigh Creek
Coordinates30°34′24″S 138°21′10″E / 30.573410°S 138.352830°E / -30.573410; 138.352830
Established26 October 1995 (1995-10-26)[1]
Area43 km2 (16.6 sq mi)[1]
Managing authoritiesElectricity Trust of South Australia (1995-2000)
NRG Flinders & its successors (2000 onwards) [2][3]
FootnotesCoordinates[4]
Nearest town[4]

The sanctuary occupies crown land in the cadastral units of the part section 373, and sections 641 and 1290, all identified as being "Out of Hundreds (COPLEY)."[1][5] It occupies most of the land in the locality of Leigh Creek including the Aroona Dam with exception to land in the locality's north used for the township and the Leigh Creek Airport, the alignments of The Outback Highway and the Marree railway line, and some land at the locality's southern boundary.[6]

Part of its extent was within the boundaries of the Myrtle Springs Station and was used for the grazing of sheep during this tenure.[2] It was declared as 'sanctuary' under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972 by the Government of South Australia on 26 October 1995.[1] In 1996, it was the site of a release of a group of Yellow-footed rock-wallaby which consisted of members of the sub-species known as P. x. xanthopus and which was breed in captivity.[2] The release was conducted by the Royal Zoological Society of South Australia, NRG Flinders and the South Australian Department of Environment and Heritage.[2]

It was described in 2001 as follows:[2]

Aroona Sanctuary includes the rocky Aroona range, clay plains and hill slopes, wetland and sandy desert. Camping is permitted in three designated areas within the sanctuary, but rarity of facilities means that few people utilize the camping grounds. A permanent caretaker lives in the sanctuary and NRG Flinders staff regularly visit the dam for water sampling.

As of 2016, the sanctuary was not listed as part of the Australian National Reserve System and as of 2014, it had not been given an IUCN protected area category.[7][8]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "NATIONAL PARKS AND WILDLIFE ACT, 1972, Declaration of Aroona Sanctuary" (PDF). The South Australian Government Gazette. Government of South Australia: 1195. 26 October 1995. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d e Lapidge, Steven James (2001). Reintroduction biology of yellow-footed rock wallabies (Petrogale xanthopus celeris and P. x. xanthopus (Thesis). University of Sydney. Biological Sciences. pp. i, vi, 43 & 44. hdl:2123/851 – via Sydney Digital Theses.
  3. ^ Northern Flinders Ranges Soil Conservation Board (2004), Soil Conservation Board district plan: Northern Flinders Ranges (PDF), Soil Conservation Council of South Australia, pp. i, 26, 47 & 49, ISBN 978-0-9757587-3-1
  4. ^ a b c "Search result for "Aroona Sanctuary" (Record no SA0003248) with the following layers selected - "Suburbs and Localities" and "Place names (gazetteer)"". Property Location Browser. Government of South Australia. Archived from the original on 12 October 2016. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  5. ^ "Shore-based recreational fishing at Aroona Dam, Frequently Asked Questions". Government of South Australia. Retrieved 20 May 2017.
  6. ^ "Search result for "Leigh Creek, LOCB" with the following layers selected - "Suburbs" and "Sanctuaries"". Nature Maps. Government of South Australia. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
  7. ^ "Protected Areas Information System - reserve list (as of 11 July 2016)" (PDF). Department of Environment Water and Natural Resources. 11 July 2016. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
  8. ^ "Terrestrial Protected Areas of South Australia (see 'DETAIL' tab)". CAPAD 2014. Australian Government, Department of the Environment (DoE). 2014. Retrieved 20 June 2016.