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The whole of
the Kimberley region lies within the tropics.
It encompasses many ecological zones: coasts, rivers,
estuaries, semi-arid savannah woodlands, lush rainforest
and deserts.
Biogeographical Regions of the Kimberley
- click the map to view a larger version. |
Plants and Animals
The vegetation and wildlife vary from one zone to another,
and according to the water supply at different times of
year. Much of the region has low rainfall, and plants have
adapted features that help them resist or evade drought.
Trees tend to be small in stature, with deep roots and
tough, often narrow or shiny leaves. Others lose their leaves
during the dry season. Shrubs and grasses die off altogether,
springing back to life from seed at the first fall of rain.
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Best
known of the Kimberley flora is the magnificent Boab
tree. |
Boab trees live to a great age and the broad and pitted
trunk provides shelter for small birds and animals. Acacias
are the most common in variety and distribution. Throughout
the dry season, one species or another is in brilliant yellow
bloom.
The fifteen hundred or so pockets of rainforest are home
to more than three hundred known species of plants, eighty
per cent of them found only in this region. The rainforest
and other inaccessible niches amongst rocks and hills are
refuges for remnant populations of rare and declining animals
such as the Scaly-tailed Possum.
Red
Kangaroo near Eighty Mile Beach, WA
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Birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish are the more obvious
fauna of the Kimberley. Most mammals, apart from kangaroos
and wallabies, are small and nocturnal. Many, such as the
Ghost Bat, are in decline or, like the Golden-backed Tree-rat
and Tunney's Rat, thought to be extinct.
Birds such as the White-browed Robin and the Purple-crowned
Wren are found in the remoter reaches of the Fitzroy Valley,
where the once common but now endangered Gouldian Finch
is also still holding its own.
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In
the remoter reaches of the Fitzroy Valley, the once
common but now endangered Gouldian Finch is still
holding its own. |
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Loss of species
People are often surprised to learn that the Kimberley,
with so much land still free of human settlement, is suffering
such serious loss of mammal species.
Habitats have been disturbed or reduced by changes in human
activities since white settlement, including pastoralism,
fire, recreation and tourism. Feral animals, especially
cats and foxes, are also believed to be responsible for
the decline and disappearance of native mammals.
Invertebrates
Insects and other invertebrates abound, but relatively few
have been described. The most obvious to casual observers
are mound-building termites and excavating ants, but during
and following the Wet, multicoloured butterflies, dragonflies
and damselflies emerge as if from nowhere.
Less obvious but of greater interest to the ecologist are
highly localised species, such as the large number of land
snails and cave-dwelling invertebrates restricted to the
Napier Range. Each of the Oscar, Geike and Napier Ranges
has its own association of species different from, though
related to, those of the others.
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The Kimberley Coast
The Kimberley coastline, with its innumerable islands and
inlets, is both spectacular and varied.
Coastline near Broome
There are wide, white beaches, rocky coves, cliffs and
dunes. The bird and marine life are abundant. Fishing pressure
is not yet great enough to make a serious impact on fish
stocks. Whales, dolphins, dugong, turtles, swim these waters.
Roebuck
Bay, near Broome, is famous for its huge annual migration
of shorebirds from the Arctic, which spend the northern
hemisphere winter feeding on the rich invertebrate fauna
of the mudflats.
Planning for the Protection of Roebuck Bay - Community groups, government and industry have initiated a community-based planning process for Roebuck Bay through the formation of the Roebuck Bay Working Group.
Kimberley tides are amongst the largest in the world.
To find out why and to learn more about Kimberley tides
and
tidal life check out Big Tide Country by Stuart Garrow
at www.bigtidecountry.net.
Proceeds from sales go to Environs Kimberley.
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Another vital habitat
for wildlife, particularly wader birds, is Eighty
Mile Beach, south of Broome on the WA coast.
If you want to learn more about migratory birds or
assist with netting and banding, contact the Broome
Bird Observatory or your local CALM
office. |
View more info on Eighty Mile
Beach birds.
(Eighty Mile.pdf
328kb)
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Freshwater species
Non-coastal aquatic species are confined mainly to the permanent
river systems. They include the freshwater crocodile, the
barramundi, catfish and cherrabin, all good eating fish,
as well as unusual species such as the freshwater variety
of the usually marine Leichardt's Sawfish and the Coach-whip
Stingray, found only in Geikie Gorge.
Our treasure
The scientific inventory of this treasure house of diversity
is by no means complete, and we must protect our treasure
from those who want, thoughtlessly, to plunder it.
As the world loses species at a frightening rate and becomes
environmentally poorer, the natural values of the Kimberley
can only increase, provided we keep it safe. The economic
argument for its exploitation on the grand scale must be
resisted. Some places are priceless.
The red-soil country of the West Kimberley
is known as the Pindan, a word adopted from a local
language. It applies to the soil type and to the vegetation
that grows on it. Recently released Pindan Woodlands
Booklet is available by mail order.
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© Environs Kimberley
2003 |
