# Ikara–Flinders Ranges National Park

The Ikara–Flinders Ranges National Park, formerly Flinders Ranges National Park, is a national park situated approximately 430 km (270 mi) north of Adelaide. It lies northeast of the small town of Hawker, in the northern central part of South Australia's largest mountain range, the Flinders Ranges, and covers an area of 95,000 ha (370 sq mi) between Hawker and Blinman. It is known for the land formation known as Wilpena Pound, while other well-known features include the Heysen Range and the Brachina and Bunyeroo gorges. The Heysen Trail and Mawson Trail pass through the park.

## History

For millennia, the Adnyamathanha people have inhabited the Flinders Ranges. On 12 February 2016 the park was renamed to include the Adnyamathanha word, Ikara, "meeting place", referring to the traditional name for Wilpena Pound.

## Geology

The Flinders Ranges are largely composed of folded and faulted sediments of the Adelaide Geosyncline. This very thick sequence of sediments were deposited in a large basin during the Neoproterozoic on the passive margin of the ancient continent of Rodinia. During the Cambrian, approximately 540 million years ago, the area underwent the Delamerian orogeny where the geosynclinal sequence was folded and faulted into a large mountain range. Since this time the area has undergone erosion resulting in the relatively low ranges today.
Most of the high ground and ridgetops in the Flinders are sequences of quartzites that outcrop along strike. The high walls of Wilpena Pound are formed by the outcropping beds of the eponymous Pound Quartzite in a synclinal structure. The same formation forms many of the other high parts of the Flinders, including the high plateau of the Gammon Ranges and the Heysen Range. Cuesta forms are also very common in the Flinders.

## Features and accessibility

The park lies around 430 km (270 mi)} north of Adelaide city centre, and covers 95,000 ha (370 sq mi), between Hawker and Blinman.
The park's most characteristic landmark is Wilpena Pound, a large, sickle-shaped, natural amphitheatre covering nearly 80 km$^2$ (31 sq mi), containing the range's highest peak, St Mary Peak (1,170 metres (3,840 ft)). The Heysen Range is within the park. There are many lookouts, scenic vistas, small canyons, and unusual rock formations located in the park, including Brachina Gorge, Bunyeroo Gorge, Arkaroo Rock, Wilkawillina Gorge, and Hucks Lookout. The park has some stone ruins from early European settlement and Aboriginal rock art sites. A rock formation called the Great Wall of China is located just outside the park.
The park centre at Wilpena Pound is accessible by sealed road from Hawker. Other areas in the park can be reached by unsealed roads, which are mostly accessible by two-wheel drive vehicles except in bad weather or after heavy rain. Camping is permitted at many locations in the park.
The park is co-managed by the National Parks and Wildlife Service South Australia, which is part of the Department for Environment and Water, and the Adnyamathanha Traditional Lands Association (since 2011).

## Flora and fauna

The flora of the Flinders Ranges is composed largely of species adapted to a semi-arid environment such as cypress-pine, mallee, and black oak. Moister areas near Wilpena Pound support grevilleas, Guinea flowers, lilies and ferns. Reeds and sedges grow near permanent water sources such as springs and waterholes.
Since the eradication of dingos and the establishment of permanent waterholes for stock, the numbers of red kangaroos, western grey kangaroos and euros in the Flinders Ranges have increased. The yellow-footed rock-wallaby, which neared extinction after the arrival of Europeans due to hunting and predation by foxes, has now stabilized. Other endemic marsupials include dunnarts, planigales. Efforts to reintroduce the western quoll and the brushtail possum in the park have been ongoing since 2014. Echidnas are the sole monotreme species in the park. Insectivorous bats make up significant proportion of mammals in the area. Reptiles include goannas, snakes, dragon lizards, skinks and geckos. The streambank froglet is an endemic amphibian.

### Birds

There are a large number of bird species including various parrots, emus, the wedge-tailed eagles and small numbers of waterbirds. The land within the national park has been identified by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area (IBA) because it contains an apparently sustainable population of the range-restricted short-tailed grasswren.

## Heritage listings

There are a number of heritage-listed sites within the national park:
* Eddie Pumpa Outstation
* Hayward Homestead Ruins
* Impact Ejecta Horizon Late Precambrian Shales Geological Site
* Enorama Mail Station and Rubbish Dump
* Oraparinna Diapir
* Wilpena Homestead Complex
* Wilpena Pound (geological landform)
* Stromatolites in the Precambrian Trezona Formation, Enorama Creek
* Wills Homestead Complex Ruins
* Appealinna Mine Ruins and Miners Hut
* Wilkawillina Archaeocyathae Geological Site
* Dingley Dell Homestead Ruins
* Hill's Cottage, Wilpena Pound
* Enorama Diapir
* Oraparinna Station Blacksmith's Shop