Polytelis anthopeplus -Wyperfeld National Park -Australia-8

Banrock Station Wetland Complex is a

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

complex located in

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

which has been recognised as being of international importance by designation under the

Ramsar Convention The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of Ramsar sites (wetlands). It is also known as the Convention on Wetlands. It i ...

. It was listed on 21 October 2002 as Ramsar site 1221. It lies in the

Riverland The Riverland is a region of South Australia. It covers an area of along the Murray River, River Murray from where it flows into South Australia from New South Wales and Victoria (Australia), Victoria downstream to Blanchetown, South Australia ...

region of south-eastern South Australia and is adjacent to the

Murray River The Murray River (in South Australia: River Murray) (Ngarrindjeri: ''Millewa'', Yorta Yorta: ''Tongala'') is a river in Southeastern Australia. It is Australia's longest river at extent. Its tributaries include five of the next six longest r ...

. It is a

floodplain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...

wetland subject to an ongoing

environmental restoration Environmental restoration is closely allied with (or perhaps sometimes used interchangeably with) ecological restoration or environmental remediation. In the U.S., remediation is the term used more in the realms of industry, public policy, and c ...

program by a commercial organisation which manages the wetlands and promotes ecologically

sustainable Specific definitions of sustainability are difficult to agree on and have varied in the literature and over time. The concept of sustainability can be used to guide decisions at the global, national, and individual levels (e.g. sustainable livin ...

land use practices. In 2002 Banrock Station Wines received the

Ramsar Wetland Conservation Award The Ramsar Wetland Conservation Award honours the work of governments, organisations and individuals in promoting the wise use and conservation of wetlands. The Ramsar Wetland Conservation Award was established in 1996 at the 6th meeting of the co ...

in recognition of its conservation efforts.Secretariat of the Ramsar Convention, 2002.

History

In 1952 Peter and Mavis (May) Jackson bought Peter's father, Bill Jackson's property, Banrock near Kingston on Murray. The property had many kilometres of frontage on to the River Murray, but since the installation of a downstream lock in 1923, much of its shore line had been flooded and degraded. They were mainly sheep and cattle farmers and were among the first people to plant wine grapes in the Riverland — planting Grenache, Doradillos and Gordos in the late 1950s. They sold Banrock in 1973 to Mr Langdon of Adelaide who onsold it later when it was used as a potato farm. BRL Hardy bought Banrock in 1994 Banrock Station is a largely

viticultural Viticulture (from the Latin word for ''vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, ran ...

property owned by, and producing wine for,

Accolade Wines Accolade Wines is an international wine business with headquarters in South Australia and corporate offices in Melbourne. It has been owned by The Carlyle Group, an American private equity company, since 2018. Accolade, which predominantly uses ...

, the former Hardy Wine Company. The wetlands on the property had been permanently flooded since the early 20th century. In 1992 a program began to restore the natural hydrological regime of alternate wetting and drying cycles that the wetlands had before

locks Lock(s) may refer to: Common meanings *Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance *Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal Arts and entertainment * ''Lock ...

and

weir A weir or low head dam is a barrier across the width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the river level. Weirs are also used to control the flow of water for outlets of l ...

s were installed on the Murray, with the first major drying out taking place in 2007.

Flora and fauna

The 1,375-ha wetland comprises a lagoon with associated swamp vegetation. It supports several regionally or nationally

threatened Threatened species are any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensat ...

animals, including the

southern bell frog The growling grass frog (''Ranoidea raniformis''), also commonly known as the southern bell frog, warty swamp frog and erroneously as the green frog, is a species of ground-dwelling tree frog native to southeastern Australia, ranging from sout ...

regent parrot The regent parrot or rock pebbler (''Polytelis anthopeplus'') is a bird found in southern Australia. It has predominantly yellow plumage with a green tail. The bird is found primarily in eucalyptus groves and other wooded areas of subtropical s ...

and

river snail Viviparidae, sometimes known as the river snails or mystery snails, are a family (biology), family of large operculum (gastropod), operculate freshwater snails, Aquatic animal, aquatic gastropod mollusks. This family is classified in the inform ...

. It provides habitat seasonally for several species of migratory waterbirds. It offers a route for

fish Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing 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. Approximately 95% of li ...

migrating around Lock 3 on the Murray during spring floods and provides

spawning Spawn is the eggs and sperm released or deposited into water by aquatic animals. As a verb, ''to spawn'' refers to the process of releasing the eggs and sperm, and the act of both sexes is called spawning. Most aquatic animals, except for aquati ...

and nursery habitats for them. Potential threats to the wetlands include invasion by introduced species and rising saline

groundwater Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit of rock or an unconsolidate ...

References

Notes

Sources

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External links

Banrock Station Wetland Complex webpage on protected planet

Banrock StationBanrock Station floods its internationally significant wetland 04 September 2013
Wetlands of South Australia Ramsar sites in Australia DIWA-listed wetlands Murray River Ecological restoration Riverland {{SouthAustralia-geo-stub