Nilpena Ediacara Park Expansion Spurs Tourism, Biodiversity
Nilpena Ediacara National Park, South Australia’s newest national park, will expand by 26,000 hectare after the South Australian Government acquired the adjacent Nilpena Station.
The addition will bring the total area of the park to around 86,000 ha boosting the national target to protect and conserve 30 per cent of Australia’s landmass by 2030.
Located in the western fringes of the Flinders Ranges, roughly 500 km north of Adelaide, the Nilpena Ediacara National Park officially opened in April 2023.
It is treasured for its collection of fossils containing Earth’s earliest complex animal life. The fossil bed known as ‘Alice’s Restaurant Bed’ is the focal point of a visit and showcases multicellular animal life that lived 560 million to 542 million years ago.
Visitors to the site can take guided tours and immerse themselves in a state-of-the-art audio-visual show in the former blacksmith shop.
As well as the impressive fossil beds, the Nilpena National Park is known to support native species such as dunnarts, quolls, snakes and lizards. The newly acquired land will facilitate conservation work to protect the endangered thick-billed grasswren and the possible re-introduction of the bilby to the region.
The Nilpena Station land has been carefully managed by its previous owners and now under NPWS management its biodiversity values will be protected in perpetuity through the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972.
The land also includes a homestead, dwellings and outbuildings which will be used by NPWS staff to facilitate caring for the park and its operations.
Converting this area to public land enables the Adnyamathanha, the traditional owners, ongoing so that they can engage in traditional cultural activities.
The expansion of Nilpena Ediacara National Park is a continuation of efforts to see the Flinders Ranges granted World Heritage listing.
Visitors to Nilpena Ediacara National Park can book guided tours of the Ediacaran fossil fields and the restored Blacksmith Shop where visitors are immersed in an audio-visual display that brings Earth’s earliest complex animal life back to life. Pre-booking at least a week in advance is recommended as the tours are very popular.
For more information about the Nilpena Ediacara National Park, please click here.
As put by Susan Close
The expansion of the Nilpena Ediacara National Park is important in terms of protecting an area that is already rich in biodiversity.
The addition of Nilpena Station to the existing park is a positive step towards conservation work in the region and for safeguarding endangered species.
The acquisition of Nilpena Station brings greater possibilities for conservation work including the potential re-introduction of the bilby and to protect thick-billed grasswrens.
The built assets will improve park management across the park and the region more broadly.