Toonumbar National Park
Encyclopedia
Toonumbar is a national park in New South Wales
, Australia
, 617 km north of Sydney.
The Park is part of the Focal Peak Group World Heritage Site
Gondwana Rainforests of Australia inscribed in 1986 and added to the Australian National Heritage List
in 2007.
and yellow-bellied glider
. The rainforests on Dome Mountain and the Murray Scrub are part of the World Heritage listed Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves of Australia. The rugged landscape of Mount Lindesay, Dome Mountain and Edinburgh Castle have provided the inspiration for many local Aboriginal legends.
The Murray Scrub and the Dome Mountain Forest contain significant areas of subtropical and temperate rainforest and are listed as part of the World Heritage Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves of Australia. There are also drier and cooler places in the park and this has resulted in incredible diversity of flora, from eucalypt
woodlands and tall gum forests, to forests of bangalow palm
s.
Animals in the park include Marbled Frogmouth
, Koala
, Albert lyrebird and rainforest reptiles and frogs. The rainforest area is an important refuge for a number of fruit-eating pigeons and insectivorous bats. Pademelons also live there.
The parks contains Focal Peak Volcano, which was active 23 million years ago. The eroded volcanic remains of Mount Lindesay, Dome Mountain and Edinburgh Castle dominate the landscape today. The high rainfall combined with fertile soil have created lush rainforests.
On average, the park receives 1035.8 mm of rain each year. Its highest recorded rainfall was 449.4 mm in one day.
.
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...
, 617 km north of Sydney.
The Park is part of the Focal Peak Group World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
Gondwana Rainforests of Australia inscribed in 1986 and added to the Australian National Heritage List
Australian National Heritage List
The Australian National Heritage List is a list of places deemed to be of outstanding heritage significance to Australia. The list includes natural, historic and indigenous places...
in 2007.
Description
The park features subtropical rainforests protecting threatened plants and animals, such as the Sooty Owl, Red-legged PademelonRed-legged Pademelon
The Red-legged Pademelon is a species of small macropod found on the northeastern coast of Australia and in New Guinea. In Australia it has a scattered distribution from the tip of Cape York Peninsula in Queensland to around Tamworth in New South Wales...
and yellow-bellied glider
Yellow-bellied Glider
The Yellow-bellied Glider is an arboreal and nocturnal gliding possum that lives in a narrow range of native eucalypt forests down eastern Australia, reaching from northern Queensland to Victoria.-Habitat:...
. The rainforests on Dome Mountain and the Murray Scrub are part of the World Heritage listed Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves of Australia. The rugged landscape of Mount Lindesay, Dome Mountain and Edinburgh Castle have provided the inspiration for many local Aboriginal legends.
The Murray Scrub and the Dome Mountain Forest contain significant areas of subtropical and temperate rainforest and are listed as part of the World Heritage Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves of Australia. There are also drier and cooler places in the park and this has resulted in incredible diversity of flora, from eucalypt
Eucalypt
Eucalypts are woody plants belonging to three closely related genera:Eucalyptus, Corymbia and Angophora.In 1995 new evidence, largely genetic, indicated that some prominent Eucalyptus species were actually more closely related to Angophora than to the other eucalypts; they were split off into the...
woodlands and tall gum forests, to forests of bangalow palm
Archontophoenix cunninghamiana
Archontophoenix cunninghamiana, the Bangalow Palm or King Palm, is an Australian palm. It can grow up to and over 20 metres tall. Its flower colour is violet and the red fruits are attractive to birds. It flowers in mid-summer and has evergreen foliage...
s.
Animals in the park include Marbled Frogmouth
Marbled Frogmouth
The Marbled Frogmouth is a species of bird in the Podargidae family.It is found in Australia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and Solomon Islands....
, Koala
Koala
The koala is an arboreal herbivorous marsupial native to Australia, and the only extant representative of the family Phascolarctidae....
, Albert lyrebird and rainforest reptiles and frogs. The rainforest area is an important refuge for a number of fruit-eating pigeons and insectivorous bats. Pademelons also live there.
The parks contains Focal Peak Volcano, which was active 23 million years ago. The eroded volcanic remains of Mount Lindesay, Dome Mountain and Edinburgh Castle dominate the landscape today. The high rainfall combined with fertile soil have created lush rainforests.
On average, the park receives 1035.8 mm of rain each year. Its highest recorded rainfall was 449.4 mm in one day.
Native title claim
Toonumbar National Park was part of the successful Githabul Nation native title claim. The Native title claimant Trevor Close an Aboriginal lawyer fought the NSW Government fifteen years to win the Native Title claim in memory of his grandfather Rory Close. Inside Toonumbar National Park there are a number of jurabihls (increase sites). Dome Mountain is the Githabul sacred site for rain. Edinburgh Castle is the Goanna site and owned by the Williams who reside at the Aboriginal Reservation Muli Muli, which is six miles west of the town of WoodenbongWoodenbong, New South Wales
Woodenbong is a rural village in northern New South Wales, Australia, in Kyogle Council. It is 10 km south of the Queensland border. It is situated five kilometres south of the junction of the Summerland Way and the Mount Lindesay Road, which leads to Legume and eventually Tenterfield...
.