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Site description (2008 baseline):
Site location and context
This IBA is centred on Innes National Park and Warrenben Conservation Park, on the southern tip of the Yorke Peninsula, 300 km east of Adelaide. The IBA is defined as these protected areas and contiguous natural habitat extending north to Ilfracombe Road and east to Hundred Line Road and along Happy Valley Road to Foul Bay. This large network of remnant native vegetation supports breeding Malleefowl and two species restricted to the mallee biome, Purple-gaped Honeyeater and Western Whipbird; outside of this area, most of the native vegetation on the Yorke Peninsula has been cleared for cropping and grazing. Other remnants around Innes have no active Malleefowl mounds and are judged too small to include within this IBA. The IBA is an undulating plain with calcareous sands and loams forming dunes overlying limestone, with salt lakes and coastal cliffs. It has a variety of habitats, including intertidal ecosystems, beaches and dunes, coastal heathlands, mallee woodlands and inland salt lakes. Temperatures average 28
oC in summer and 13
oC in winter with an average of 500 mm of rainfall per year.
111 species of native birds have been recorded in Innes NP including Pacific Gull, Sooty Oystercatcher, Hooded Plover, Osprey, White-bellied Sea-Eagle and Emu (Department for Environment and Heritage 2003; Atlas of Australian Birds database).
Non-bird biodiversity: Vegetation in Innes National Park includes Cockies Tongue, Coastal White Mallee, Tea-tree and Red Mallee, along with heath, grasses and herbs. These habitats support approximately 333 native plant species, 115 of which are of conservation significance. Ten species of native mammals including the Western Grey Kangaroo are found in the park, along with 17 species of native reptiles including Brown Snake, Bearded Dragon and Sleepy Lizard. The South Australian mainland subspecies of Tammar Wallaby became extinct around the late 1920s; however individuals of a second subspecies endemic to Kangaroo Island have been introduced to Innes NP.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
Fire management should be monitored. Continue intensive fox baiting to minimise predation on malleefowl.
Conservation responses/actions for key biodiversity
Fox baiting is undertaken every two weeks at Innes NP.
The IBA includes Innes National Park and Warrenben Conservation Area.
Land ownership is mixed. Innes National Park and Warrenben Conservation Park are owned by the South Australian government and managed by the Department for Environment and Heritage. Other areas are private land.
Andrew Black, Graham Carpenter and Sharon Gillam provided data on Malleefowl and Western Whipbird.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Southern Yorke Peninsula (Australia). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/southern-yorke-peninsula-iba-australia on 22/11/2024.
