Lake Bathurst (New South Wales)
Encyclopedia
Lake Bathurst is a lake
27 km south-east of Goulburn, New South Wales
, Australia
. The Aboriginal name for the lake was Bundong. It is a shallow lake that can vary in area from a few square kilometers to up to ten square kilometres, depending on the inflow and evaporation rates. It was named by surveyor James Meehan
for Earl Bathurst
, Secretary of State for the Colonies.
A 19 km2 area of the lake and its immediate surrounds has been identified by BirdLife International
as an Important Bird Area
(IBA) because it regularly supports significant numbers of near threatened
Blue-billed Duck
s and over 1% of the world population of Australasian Shoveler
s. It is an important drought refuge
, sometimes supporting over 1% of the world populations of Freckled Duck
s, Black Swan
s, Chestnut Teal
s and Sharp-tailed Sandpiper
s.
Lake
A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...
27 km south-east of Goulburn, New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The Aboriginal name for the lake was Bundong. It is a shallow lake that can vary in area from a few square kilometers to up to ten square kilometres, depending on the inflow and evaporation rates. It was named by surveyor James Meehan
James Meehan
James Meehan was an Irish-Australian explorer and surveyor.Meehan was born in Ireland in 1774, and was one of a number of political prisoners who arrived in Australia in February 1800. Two months later he became an assistant to Charles Grimes, the surveyor-general, and went with him to explore the...
for Earl Bathurst
Earl Bathurst
Earl Bathurst, of Bathurst in the County of Sussex, is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1772 for Allen Bathurst, 1st Baron Bathurst. He was a politician and an opponent of Sir Robert Walpole...
, Secretary of State for the Colonies.
Birds
BirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global Partnership of conservation organisations that strives to conserve birds, their habitats and global biodiversity, working with people towards sustainability in the use of natural resources...
as an Important Bird Area
Important Bird Area
An Important Bird Area is an area recognized as being globally important habitat for the conservation of bird populations. Currently there are about 10,000 IBAs worldwide. The program was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife International...
(IBA) because it regularly supports significant numbers of near threatened
Near Threatened
Near Threatened is a conservation status assigned to species or lower taxa that may be considered threatened with extinction in the near future, although it does not currently qualify for the threatened status...
Blue-billed Duck
Blue-billed Duck
The Blue-billed Duck is a small Australian stiff-tailed duck, with both the male and female growing to a length of 40 cm . The male has a slate-blue bill which changes to bright-blue during the breeding season, hence the duck’s common name . The male has deep chestnut plumage during breeding...
s and over 1% of the world population of Australasian Shoveler
Australasian Shoveler
The Australasian Shoveler is a species of dabbling duck in the genus Anas. It ranges from 46–53 cm. It lives in heavily vegetated swamps. In Australia it is protected under the National Parks and Wildlife Act, 1974...
s. It is an important drought refuge
Drought refuge
A drought refuge is a site that provides permanent fresh water or moist conditions for plants and animals, acting as a refuge habitat when surrounding areas are affected by drought and allowing ecosystems and core species populations to survive until the drought breaks...
, sometimes supporting over 1% of the world populations of Freckled Duck
Freckled Duck
The Freckled Duck is a moderately large, broad-bodied duck native to southern Australia. The duck is protected by law...
s, Black Swan
Black Swan
The Black Swan is a large waterbird, a species of swan, which breeds mainly in the southeast and southwest regions of Australia. The species was hunted to extinction in New Zealand, but later reintroduced. Within Australia they are nomadic, with erratic migration patterns dependent upon climatic...
s, Chestnut Teal
Chestnut Teal
The Chestnut Teal is a dabbling duck found in southern Australia. It is protected under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974.-Description:The Chestnut Teal is darker and a slightly bigger bird than the Grey Teal....
s and Sharp-tailed Sandpiper
Sharp-tailed Sandpiper
The Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Calidris acuminata is a small wader.- Taxonomy :More recently, a review of new data has indicated that this bird should perhaps better be placed into the genus Philomachus- as P...
s.