17-626: Diamantina National Park is a national park in the Channel Country of South West Queensland , Australia, 1,278 km (794 mi) west of Brisbane . Like the Diamantina River that flows through it, it is named for Lady Diamantina Bowen , wife of Sir George Bowen , the first Governor of Queensland. Established in 1993 after the Queensland Government purchased Diamantina Lakes Station in 1992 and gazetted
34-494: A monsoonal low from ex- Cyclone Olga created a period of exceptional rainfall. The primary land use is cattle grazing which has replaced sheep grazing. It is estimated that in the Queensland section alone there are between half to one million head of cattle. The area's towns and cattle stations are serviced by a mail run that is operated by West Wing Aviation which delivers goods and passengers as well as mail. In 2013,
51-402: A population of the critically endangered night parrot was discovered in the park. The parrot is Australia's rarest bird species. This discovery significantly expanded the known range and is the largest known population of the species. This Queensland protected areas related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Channel Country The Channel Country
68-423: A series of ancient flood plains from rivers which only flow intermittently. The principal rivers are Georgina River , Cooper Creek and the Diamantina River . When there is sufficient rainfall in their catchment area these rivers flow into Lake Eyre , South Australia. In most years the flood waters are absorbed into the earth or evaporate, however. One of the most significant rainfall events occurred in 2010 when
85-518: Is a region of outback Australia mostly in the state of Queensland but also in parts of South Australia, Northern Territory and New South Wales . The name comes from the numerous intertwined rivulets that cross the region, which cover 150,000 km². The Channel Country is over the Cooper and Eromanga geological basins and the Lake Eyre Basin drainage basin . Further to the east
102-639: Is the less arid Maranoa district. Birdsville and Windorah are the most prominent towns in the area. Other settlements include Betoota and Bedourie . Haddon Corner is also located in the Channel Country. The Channel Country is the location for a majority of Min Min light sightings. It is also home to at least two important bird areas, Lake Yamma Yamma and the Lake Machattie Area . The Channel Country features an arid landscape with
119-561: The 7,627 km (2,945 sq mi) Diamantina and Astrebla Grasslands Important Bird Area , identified by BirdLife International as such because it is one of few sites known for the critically endangered night parrot . It also supports globally important populations of the plains-wanderer , Australian bustard , straw-necked ibis , white-necked heron , inland dotterel , Bourke's parrot , black and pied honeyeaters , gibberbird , Hall's babbler , chestnut-breasted quail-thrush , cinnamon quail-thrush and spinifexbird . In 2016,
136-613: The Queensland Government placed caps on water extraction from the region's river to prevent the introduction of cotton growing . At the same time open-cut mining was banned but coal seam and underground mining have been permitted after changes were made to the Wild Rivers legislation. In 2021, 11 coal seam gas exploration licenses were granted to Origin Energy by the state government, covering 250,000 hectares of
153-414: The area for approximately 20,000 years, with over 25 tribal groups living in the Channel Country area. A vast trade network had been established running from north to south with goods such as ochre sent north with shells and pituri moved south. Birdsville was once a major meeting place for conducting ceremonies and trade. Originally known as Diamantina Crossing , it bore its current name by 1882, and
170-429: The couch following rain or minor flooding. The north-eastern section supports open lignum shrubland with patches of open woodland dominated by coolabah and Belalie . The lake, with its associated seasonal claypans and the nearby Barrolka Lakes to the north-east, has been identified by BirdLife International as a 1,218 km (470 sq mi) Important Bird Area (IBA) because it has supported over 1% of
187-407: The lake covers 72,000 ha (720 km ; 280 sq mi). It fills to capacity only about once every 25–30 years, most recently in 2000. The lake waters are fresh immediately after filling, but become increasingly saline as the lake dries out. When dry, the lake bed's cracking grey clay soils support extensive grasslands dominated by rat's tail couch . Several ephemeral forbs grow among
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#1732794360957204-568: The lease. 25°59′47.04″S 140°59′57.52″E / 25.9964000°S 140.9993111°E / -25.9964000; 140.9993111 Lake Yamma Yamma Lake Yamma Yamma is an ephemeral lake on the Cooper Creek system in the arid Channel Country of south-western Queensland , Australia . The lake, which is sometimes called Lake Mackillop, is the largest inland ephemeral lake in Queensland. The lake only holds water following major floods on Cooper Creek. When filled
221-552: The name was formalised at the proclamation of the town in 1887. Innamincka Station was established in 1872 by Robert Bostock and grew until it covered over 15,000 square kilometres (5,792 sq mi) and in 1881 it supported a herd of 8,000 cattle. The first station and permanent settlement set up along the Cooper Creek . The tender was accepted for the run named Caryapundy by J. C. Myers in 1872. Myers has also had his tenders accepted for other runs such as Bollwarry, Mount Wood, Teriwinda and Torrens Creek. Annandale Station
238-402: The park contain traditional aboriginal lands. These are noted for their food resources and numerous habitation sites. Aboriginals would roam the area, moving from the sandhills and gibber country in the wet season and returning to permanent water in the dry season. Average elevations of the terrain is 139 metres. With Astrebla Downs National Park , Diamantina National Park forms part of
255-523: The property as a national park with an area of 507,000 ha (1,250,000 acres), Diamantina National Park received an award in March 2007 from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) for being among the top 10 reserves of the decade. Recognition was given for the successful efforts to protect the bilby , an endangered mammal native to Australia. Livestock was removed from the park in 1998. Parts of
272-505: The region. Origin subsequently announced it is withdrawing from the region with a view to sell its exploration permits to another energy company or forfeit the sites. The Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia Channel Country Bioregion covers a larger area, extending into South Australia, the Northern Territory and New South Wales and includes the town of Innamincka . Indigenous Australians have inhabited
289-540: Was established when Patrick Drinan took up the run in July 1876. Other properties were settled soon afterward including Kaliduwarry and Glengyle Stations . Pandie Pandie Station was established in the same year by Robert Frew as was Alton Downs and Planet Downs. Nearby Haddon Downs station was also taken up by Frew in 1877. Diamantina Lakes Station was also established in 1876 with a partnership between John Arthur Macartney and Hugh Louis Heber-Percy who initially took up
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