Flora and Fauna
The park forms the basis of the internationally recognised Biosphere Reserve recognised by the UNESCO Man and Biosphere Program. The site contains over 1800 species of plant with 250 of these being rare and 62 being known to be found only within the confines of the park. Some species of interest include the royal hakea, qualup bell, scarlet banksia, showy banksia, bell-fruit mallee, pea flowers, feather flowers, many species of eucalypts and bottlebrushes.
Three populations of the Crowned Mallee all exist within the park and have a total number of 140 trees. An endangered species, Boronia clavata, has five populations totalling only 100 individuals all of which are located in the area. Another two endangered species, the Barrens Wedding Bush and the Fan-leaf Grevillea, are also found within the park although in the case of the Barrens Wedding Bush, not exclusively.
The park is also home to 22 species of mammal, 200 bird species, 41 species of reptile and 12 species of frog. It is recognised as an Important Bird Area; some of the rarer species are the Western Bristlebird, Western Ground Parrot and the Western Whipbird. The endangered Malleefowl is also known to inhabit the park with seven known and recorded sightings having been made 1998. Some of the mammals found are the very rare Dibbler and the Heath Rat, both of which were thought to be extinct at one time or another. The Tammar Wallaby and Woylie, both of which are threatened species, are known to inhabit the mallee and heath areas of the park. Other species such as the Quenda, Chuditch and the Red-tailed Phascogale also inhabit the area.
Migratory birds find refuge in the wetland and coastal regions and species that temporarily inhabit the area include the White-bellied Sea Eagle, Fork-tailed Swift and the Caspian Tern.
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Barren Mountain Range
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Looking south towards the coast.
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Quaalup Homestead
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Royal Hakea
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Fitzgerald River National Park from Point Ann
Read more about this topic: Fitzgerald River National Park
Famous quotes containing the words flora and/or fauna:
“A man’s interest in a single bluebird is worth more than a complete but dry list of the fauna and flora of a town.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“The whole fauna of human fantasies, their marine vegetation, drifts and luxuriates in the dimly lit zones of human activity, as though plaiting thick tresses of darkness. Here, too, appear the lighthouses of the mind, with their outward resemblance to less pure symbols. The gateway to mystery swings open at the touch of human weakness and we have entered the realms of darkness. One false step, one slurred syllable together reveal a man’s thoughts.”
—Louis Aragon (1897–1982)