Priority threat management to protect Kimberley wildlife

[摘要] In the northwest corner of Australia lies a landscape of extraordinary character. Known as the Kimberley, its ancient landforms have been shaped by wind and water over millions of years. The Kimberley is vast tracts of savanna, dotted by boab trees and dissected by mountain ranges, gorges and valleys hiding pockets of rainforest. The region was named after the Kimberley diamond fields in South Africa due to broad similarities between the two. However, the Australian Kimberley is home to its own unique and diverse assemblage of plants and animals, many of which are found nowhere else in the country or indeed the world. In fact, the region contains more of these endemic species than are known anywhere else in Australia. This makes the Australian Kimberley one of the most ecologically precious regions on earth. The unique character of this region also lies in its people. Much of the Kimberley is owned and managed by Indigenous Australians whose connections to the region over thousands of years are revealed through some of the richest repositories of Indigenous rock art in the world. European settlers brought with them the culture of pastoralism and the industry of pearl diving off the Kimberley coastline. The region’s remoteness has provided protection from the scale of habitat loss and degradation seen in most other parts of Australia. As a result, the Kimberley is one of the few relatively intact examples of Australia’s unique ecosystems, animals and plants.

[发布日期] 2011-02-17 [发布机构] CSIRO

[学科分类] 地球科学(综合)