Naracoorte Caves National Park

Naracoorte Caves National Park South Australia
IUCN category II (national park)
Skeleton of a marsupial lion (Thylacoleo carnifex) in the Victoria Fossil Cave
Naracoorte Caves National Park
Nearest town or city	Naracoorte
Coordinates	36°57′00″S 140°45′00″E / 36.95000°S 140.75000°E / -36.95000; 140.75000Coordinates: 36°57′00″S 140°45′00″E / 36.95000°S 140.75000°E / -36.95000; 140.75000
Established	27 April 1972 (1972-04-27)^[1]
Area	6.60 km² (2.5 sq mi)^[1]
Managing authorities	Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources
Website	Naracoorte Caves National Park
See also	Protected areas of South Australia

UNESCO World Heritage Site
Australian Fossil Mammal Sites (Riversleigh/Naracoorte)
Name as inscribed on the World Heritage List
Type	Natural
Criteria	viii, ix
Reference	698
UNESCO region	Asia-Pacific
Inscription history
Inscription	1994 (18th Session)

Naracoorte Caves National Park is a national park near Naracoorte in the Limestone Coast tourism region in the south-east of South Australia (Australia). It was officially recognised in 1994 for its extensive fossil record when the site was inscribed on the World Heritage List, along with Riversleigh. The park preserves 6 km² of remnant vegetation, with 26 caves contained within the 3.05 km² World Heritage Area.^[2]

Visitor attraction

The park is a visitor destination in itself, with a camping ground and caravan park, dormitory accommodation for groups, picnic grounds and a licensed cafe. The range of visitor activities is extensive. Show cave tours are guided by professional interpreters through highly decorated caves with some tours visiting amazing fossil deposits. Modern technology has been utilised to show visitors the normally inaccessible interior of Bat Cave, where thousands of Southern Bent-wing bats breed each year. Other opportunities include adventure caving, a selection of specialty tours and special events. The Wonambi Fossil Centre, the park's visitor centre, features displays of fossils and bones found in the caves and dioramas of extinct animals.

Structure

The limestone of the area was formed from coral and marine creatures 200 million years ago and again 20 million years ago when the land was below sea level. Ground water since then has dissolved and eroded some of the limestone, creating the caves. The caves, such as the Victoria Fossil Cave and Blanche Cave, are often not far below ground, and holes open up creating traps for the unwary. This is the source of the remarkable collection of fossils. Mammals and other land creatures have fallen into open caves and been unable to escape. The fossil record has been preserved in strata formed from eroded topsoil washed and blown in. In some places, the fossil-bearing silt is up to 20 metres thick. Some of these areas are being preserved for future research when better methods of dating and reconstructing fossil records may have been found. These fossil traps are especially significant for tracing Australian megafauna.

References

1 2 "Protected Areas Information System - reserve list (as of 25 November 2014)" (PDF). Department of Environment Water and Natural Resources. Retrieved 8 January 2015.
↑ "Australian Fossil Mammal Sites (Riversleigh / Naracoorte)". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Retrieved 17 May 2015.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Naracoorte Caves National Park.

Limestone Coast, South Australia

Cities

Mount Gambier

Towns and localities

Governance

Federal division	Division of Barker

State electoral districts	Electoral district of MacKillop Electoral district of Mount Gambier

Local Government	City of Mount Gambier District Council of Grant District Council of Robe Kingston District Council Naracoorte Lucindale Council Tatiara District Council Wattle Range Council

Hills, mountains and volcanoes

Caves, sinkholes and freshwater lakes

Islands

Coastal features

Protected areas

National parks	Canunda Coorong (southern end only) Naracoorte Caves

Conservation parks	Aberdour Baudin Rocks Bangham Beachport Belt Hill Big Heath Butchers Gap Calectasia Carpenter Rocks Christmas Rocks Custon Dingley Dell Douglas Point Ewens Ponds Fairview Furner Geegeela Glen Roy Gower Grass Tree Guichen Bay Gum Lagoon Hacks Lagoon Hanson Scrub Jip Jip Kungari Lake Frome Lake Hawdon South Lake St Clair Little Dip Lower Glenelg River Mary Seymour Mount Monster Mount Scott Nene Valley Ngarkat Padthaway Paranki Lagoon Penambol Penguin Island Penola Piccaninnie Ponds Pine Hill Soak Reedy Creek Talapar Tantanoola Caves Telford Scrub Tilley Swamp Vivigani Ardune Woakwine Wolseley Common

Game reserves	Bool Lagoon Bucks Lake Lake Robe Poocher Swamp

Conservation reserves	Desert Camp Bernouilli

Related and uncategorised

Limestone Coast zone (wine)

World Heritage Sites in Australia

New South Wales	Australian Convict Sites¹ Gondwana Rainforests¹ Blue Mountains Lord Howe Island Group Sydney Opera House Willandra Lakes Region

Northern Territory	Kakadu National Park Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park

Queensland	Australian fossil mammal sites¹ Riversleigh Fraser Island Gondwana Rainforests¹ Great Barrier Reef Wet Tropics of Queensland

South Australia	Australian fossil mammal sites¹ Naracoorte

Tasmania	Australian Convict Sites¹ Macquarie Island Tasmanian Wilderness

Victoria	Royal Exhibition Building Carlton Gardens

Western Australia	Australian Convict Sites¹ Ningaloo Coast Purnululu National Park Shark Bay

External territories	(Norfolk Island) Australian Convict Sites¹ Heard Island and McDonald Islands

¹ Shared with other states/territories

Protected areas of South Australia

National parks	Adelaide International Bird Sanctuary Belair Canunda Coffin Bay Coorong Flinders Chase Ikara-Flinders Ranges Gawler Ranges Great Australian Bight Marine Innes Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre Lake Gairdner Lake Torrens Lincoln Malkumba-Coongie Mount Remarkable Murray River Naracoorte Caves Nullarbor Onkaparinga River Vulkathunha-Gammon Ranges Witjira

Conservation parks	Acraman Creek Aldinga Scrub Althorpe Islands Angove Avoid Bay Islands Baird Bay Islands Bakara Baudin Baudin Rocks Beachport Beatrice Islet Beyeria Busby Islet Billiatt Bird Islands Black Hill Breakaways Butchers Gap Cap Island Cape Blanche Cape Gantheaume Cape Willoughby Carpenter Rocks Carribie Chadinga Cleland Clinton Cooltong Cox Scrub Cygnet Estuary Danggali Deep Creek Douglas Point Dudley Eba Island Ediacara Elliot Price Eric Bonython Ewens Ponds Fairview Ferguson Finniss Fort Glanville Fowlers Bay Franklin Harbor Gambier Islands Gawler Ranges Giles Goose Island Greenly Island Guichen Bay Gum Laqoon Kelly Hill Hacks Lagoon Hale Hallett Cove Hincks Horsnell Gully Ironstone Hill Kaiserstuhl Kellidie Bay Lake Gilles Lake Newland Lashmar Lathami Laura Bay Lesueur Leven Beach Lincoln Lipson Island Little Dip Mamungari Mantung Marino Martindale Hall Minlacowie Moana Sands Montacute Moody Tank Morialta Mount Brown Mount Dutton Bay Mount Magnificent Mount Taylor Munyaroo Nene Valley Nepean Bay Neptune Islands Newland Head Nicolas Baudin Island Ngarkat Nuyts Archipelago Nuyts Reef Olive Island Para Wirra Paranki Lagoon Parndana Peebinga Penguin Island Pelican Lagoon Pigface Island Point Bell Point Davenport Point Labatt Piccaninnie Ponds Pinkawillinie Port Gawler Pualco Range Pullen Island Rocky Island (North) Ramsay Rocky Island (South) Salt Lagoon Islands Sceale Bay Scott Creek Seal Bay Searcy Bay Seddon Simpson Simpson Desert Sinclair Island Sir Joseph Banks Group Sleaford Mere Spring Gully Talisker Tallaringa Telowie Gorge The Dutchmans Stern The Pages Torrens Island Troubridge Island Tumby Island Venus Bay Vivonne Bay Wabma Kadarbu Mound Springs Wahgunyah Waitpinga Waldegrave Islands Warrenben West Island Whidbey Isles Whyalla Wills Creek Winninowie Wittelbee Yumbarra

Game reserves	Bool Lagoon Bucks Lake Chowilla Currency Creek Lake Robe Loch Luna Moorook Mud Islands Poocher Swamp Tolderol

Recreation parks	Anstey Hill Blackwood Forest Brownhill Creek Caratoola Cobbler Creek Granite Island Greenhill Long Island O'Halloran Hill Onkaparinga River Shepherds Hill Sturt Gorge Totness

Regional Reserves	Chowilla Innamincka Lake Frome Nullarbor Simpson Desert Strzelecki Yellabinna

Conservation reserves	Bernouilli

Wilderness Protection Areas	Billiatt Cape Bouguer Cape Gantheaume Cape Torrens Danggali Hambridge Hincks Investigator Group Memory Cove Nullarbor Nuyts Archipelago Ravine des Casoars Western River Yellabinna

Aquatic reserves	American River Aldinga Reef Bales Beach Barker Inlet-St Kilda Blanche Harbour-Douglas Bank Coobowie Goose Island Great Australian Bight Marine Park Whale Sanctuary Point Labatt Port Noarlunga Reef Seal Bay St Kilda – Chapman Creek Troubridge Hill West Island Encounter Bay Whyalla - Cowleds Landing Yatala Harbour

Other protected areas	Arkaroola Protection Area

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Naracoorte Caves National Park

Visitor attraction

Structure

See also

References

Further reading

External links