Whicher Range, also known as Whicher Scarp, is a range in the

South West The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each se ...

region of

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

. The range has an average elevation of above sea level. Bounded by the Swan Coastal Plain to the west and the south, the

Darling Scarp The Darling Scarp, also referred to as the Darling Range or Darling Ranges, is a low escarpment running north–south to the east of the Swan Coastal Plain and Perth, Western Australia. The escarpment extends generally north of Bindoon, to t ...

to the north and the Blackwood Plateau to the east, the range is approximately south of Busselton. The range has the form of a crescent shaped scarp. Composed of lateritic

Mesozoic The Mesozoic Era ( ), also called the Age of Reptiles, the Age of Conifers, and colloquially as the Age of the Dinosaurs is the second-to-last era of Earth's geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretace ...

sediments, the range marks the southern and western edge of the Yilgarn Block.

Ecological fragility

The range is also the location of endemic rare flora and this had been identified in the 1970s. It has also been surveyed more recently in 2008, showing that further interest in the range's floristic uniqueness deserved more study. The most critically endangered species that inhabits the Whicher range is '' Petrophile latericola'' also known as Laterite

petrophile ''Petrophile'' is a genus of evergreen shrubs, in the family Proteaceae. The genus is endemic to Australia. Commonly known as conebushes, they typically have prickly, divided foliage and produce prominently-displayed pink, yellow or cream fl ...

, Ironstone Petrophile or the Ironstone Pixie Mop, which has a range of approximately within the range. Another threatened species that inhabits the range is ''Grevillea elongata'' or the Ironstone

grevillea ''Grevillea'', commonly known as spider flowers, is a genus of about 360 species of evergreen flowering plants in the family Proteaceae. Plants in the genus ''Grevillea'' are shrubs, rarely trees, with the leaves arranged alternately along the b ...

which is found mostly in one single community known as ''Southern Ironstone''; this species is under continuous threat from weeds such as ''Watsonia''. A National Park, Whicher National Park, has been created on the range.

Issues

Despite its unique environmental features of rare flora and residual native vegetation the range is under pressure as a water and gas supply location. The Abba River and the

Vasse River The Vasse River is a river in the South West of Western Australia. The headwaters of the river are in the Whicher Range below Chapman Hill and it flows in a northerly direction through the City of Busselton until discharging into the Vasse E ...

both rise in the range and then flow north before finally discharging into the

Vasse-Wonnerup Estuary The Vasse-Wonnerup Estuary is an estuary in the South West region of Western Australia close to the town of Busselton. The estuary is listed with DIWA. It was also recognised as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Conventi ...

near Busselton. The

Margaret River The Margaret River is a river in southwest Western Australia. In a small catchment, it is the eponym of the town and tourist region of Margaret River. The river arises from a catchment of just 40 square kilometres in the Whicher Range. ...

and its tributary Margaret River North also rise from the Whicher Range and then flow west before discharging into the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by t ...

. Large gas reserves are known to exist under the range. Discovered over 30 years ago, the field is estimated to be over 4 trillion cubic feet in size. However, working out means of extracting the gas proved difficult for an earlier company Amity Oil in 2004. In 2011, the player for the gas resource included Westralian Gas and Power, which endorses hydraulic fracturing or "fracking" to release the gas. The Western Australian Minister for Mines and Petroleum, Norman Moore has also made public comments regarding legislation in relation to fracking. Also at the same time Whicher Range Energy is in the process of drilling on the location. The range and the rivers that originate in its area were under review for potential dam sites and water allocation.http://portal.water.wa.gov.au/portal/page/portal/PlanningWaterFuture/AllocationPlanning/Content/Whicher/080610%20Draft%20Whicher%20area%20surface%20wmp_web.pdf WA Government allocation planning document

Notes

{{coord, 33, 48, S, 115, 22, E, display=title, region:AU_type:mountain_source:GNS-enwiki South West (Western Australia)