Edgbaston Reserve
Encyclopedia
Edgbaston Reserve, formerly Edgbaston Station, is a 8100 hectares (20,015.5 acre) nature reserve
in central Queensland
, Australia
, 140 kilometres (87 mi) north-east of Longreach. It lies in the upper catchment of Pelican Creek, which flows into the Thomson River
and, ultimately, into Lake Eyre
. It lies within the Great Artesian Basin
and is notable for its many artesian springs
and their plants and animals. It is owned and managed by Bush Heritage Australia
(BHA), by which it was purchased in 2008. The reserve is within the Bush Heritage anchor region, the Queensland Uplands and Brigalow Belt.
until acquisition by BHA. Purchase of the property was assisted by a contribution from the Australian Government’s Maintaining Australia’s Biodiversity Hotspots program.
wetland
s, the reserve’s landscape includes grass
y eucalypt
woodland
s and rocky escarpment
s.
species, the Edgbaston Goby
and the Red-finned Blue-eye
, as well as many rare and geographically restricted kinds of invertebrate
s and plant
s.
Nature reserve
A nature reserve is a protected area of importance for wildlife, flora, fauna or features of geological or other special interest, which is reserved and managed for conservation and to provide special opportunities for study or research...
in central Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, 140 kilometres (87 mi) north-east of Longreach. It lies in the upper catchment of Pelican Creek, which flows into the Thomson River
Thomson River (Queensland)
The Thomson River is situated in western Queensland, Australia, and forms part of the Lake Eyre Basin. The river was named by the explorer, Edmund Kennedy, in the 1840s....
and, ultimately, into Lake Eyre
Lake Eyre
Lake Eyre is the lowest point in Australia, at approximately below sea level, and, on the rare occasions that it fills, it is the largest lake in Australia and 18th largest in the world...
. It lies within the Great Artesian Basin
Great Artesian Basin
The Great Artesian Basin provides the only reliable source of freshwater through much of inland Australia. The basin is the largest and deepest artesian basin in the world, stretching over a total of , with temperatures measured ranging from 30°C to 100°C...
and is notable for its many artesian springs
Artesian aquifer
An artesian aquifer is a confined aquifer containing groundwater under positive pressure. This causes the water level in a well to rise to a point where hydrostatic equilibrium has been reached. This type of well is called an artesian well...
and their plants and animals. It is owned and managed by Bush Heritage Australia
Bush Heritage Australia
Bush Heritage Australia is a non-profit organisation based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia that operates throughout Australia. It was previously known as the Australian Bush Heritage Fund, which is still its legal name. It purchases land, assessed as being of outstanding conservation value, from...
(BHA), by which it was purchased in 2008. The reserve is within the Bush Heritage anchor region, the Queensland Uplands and Brigalow Belt.
History
Edgbaston was a pastoral leasePastoral lease
A pastoral lease is Crown land that government allows to be leased, generally for the purposes of farming.-Australia:Pastoral leases exist in both Australian commonwealth law and state jurisdictions....
until acquisition by BHA. Purchase of the property was assisted by a contribution from the Australian Government’s Maintaining Australia’s Biodiversity Hotspots program.
Landscape
As well as the artesian springs and their associated freshwaterFreshwater
Fresh water is naturally occurring water on the Earth's surface in ice sheets, ice caps, glaciers, bogs, ponds, lakes, rivers and streams, and underground as groundwater in aquifers and underground streams. Fresh water is generally characterized by having low concentrations of dissolved salts and...
wetland
Wetland
A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....
s, the reserve’s landscape includes grass
Grass
Grasses, or more technically graminoids, are monocotyledonous, usually herbaceous plants with narrow leaves growing from the base. They include the "true grasses", of the Poaceae family, as well as the sedges and the rushes . The true grasses include cereals, bamboo and the grasses of lawns ...
y eucalypt
Eucalypt
Eucalypts are woody plants belonging to three closely related genera:Eucalyptus, Corymbia and Angophora.In 1995 new evidence, largely genetic, indicated that some prominent Eucalyptus species were actually more closely related to Angophora than to the other eucalypts; they were split off into the...
woodland
Woodland
Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...
s and rocky escarpment
Escarpment
An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that occurs from erosion or faulting and separates two relatively level areas of differing elevations.-Description and variants:...
s.
Fauna
Edgbaston’s springs contain two nationally threatened fishFish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
species, the Edgbaston Goby
Edgbaston goby
The edgbaston goby is a species of fish in the Gobiidae family. It is endemic to Australia.-Source:* Wager, R. 1996. . Downloaded on 4 August 2007....
and the Red-finned Blue-eye
Red-finned blue-eye
The Red-finned Blue-eye is a species of fish in the Pseudomugilidae family. It is endemic to Australia, with the remaining population restricted to four springs on Bush Heritage's Edgbaston Reserve in Central Queensland.-Conservation status:It is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red...
, as well as many rare and geographically restricted kinds of invertebrate
Invertebrate
An invertebrate is an animal without a backbone. The group includes 97% of all animal species – all animals except those in the chordate subphylum Vertebrata .Invertebrates form a paraphyletic group...
s and plant
Plant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
s.