Hiltaba Nature Reserve

The traditional owners of the Gawler Ranges are the Barngarla, Kokatha, and Wirangu peoples, who have inhabited the area for at least 30,000 years and are known collectively as the Gawler Ranges Aboriginal People. The tribal land of a man called "Whipstick Billy", who was "one of the last Gawler Ranges natives" still alive by around 1910, was said to have been centred on Hiltaba. Around 1844, John Charles Darke explored the region, using an ox-drawn cart (known as a bullock dray in Australia). Around 1857, Aboriginal guides led a government-equipped party with pack horses, headed by Stephen Hack from Streaky Bay, through the Gawler Ranges, on a search for sheep-farming land. Hiltaba was one of the first three pastoral leases taken up in the area in the 1860s, along with Yardea and Paney Station, all with names of Aboriginal origin. Hiltaba Station was bought by the Nature Foundation in 2012, with the assistance of the Federal Government's Caring for Our Country fund and the Government of South Australia, with the intention of returning the property to its natural state. There was a special dedication at the opening ceremony to Damien Pearce, a DEWNR employee who had worked hard to achieve the corridor in the arid lands but died in 2010, before the purchase of the property. == Description ==

Hiltaba Nature Reserve adjoins the Gawler Ranges National Park, which is managed by the South Australian Department for Environment & Water, in consultation with the traditional owners.), with the town of Wudinna (population 549 in 2016), around away. The area is part of the northern Eyre Peninsula Not far from its western border lies the Yellabinna Regional Reserve. The foundation has created driving and walking tracks, as well as fireplaces and accessible fuel for campers. The property remains a pastoral lease, and adjoining landholders help to manage issues like stray stock, dingoes, and feral goats. Apart from the substantial bungalow built by Slinger Nitschke, there are also several other structures on the property: • The woolshed, which has been substantially restored by volunteers • Shearers' Quarters, now used as accommodation for guests • Several dams • The original home built by the Fitzgerald brothers • The "Governes's cottage • The grave of an 11-month-old infant who lived in Kondoolka Station to the north-west, who died on the way to Streaky Bay hospital by horse and cart == Flora and fauna ==

Several species of both plants and animals identified on a "Bush Blitz" survey in 2012 are rare species, endangered species, or vulnerable species, according to the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972 (SA). The acacia shrublands, casuarina woodlands, mallee forest, and tussock grasslands provide habitat for over 40 state-listed species and nine species listed by the Government of Australia (under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999). ;Fauna • Slender-billed thornbill • Short-tailed grasswren • Yellow-footed rock-wallaby ;Flora • Delicate podolepis (copper-wire daisy) • Desert greenhood orchid • Gawler Ranges hop bush • Gawler Ranges slipper-plant Other plant species that can be seen on the property include bullock bush, eucalyptus socialis (a type of mallee), lobe-leaf hop bush (Dodonaea lobulata), paperbark, black oak, native apricot, and western myall. There are many species of kangaroos and wallabies, as well as southern hairy-nosed wombats, echidnas, dunnarts, and various types of lizards, including Gould's goannas, black-headed monitors, and snakes. Bird species include the emu, mulga parrot, and Port Lincoln parrot. == Geological significance ==

The geology of the area is highly complex and of great significance. with this one known as the Gawler SLIP. Mount Hiltaba ( is one of the highest peaks in the Gawler Ranges and has a large cairn at the top. There are also cairns on Mount St Mungo and Mount Friday, being erected as trig points. In 2015 to 2016 detailed geological mapping was undertaken as part of mineral exploration, as the property lies in the Iron Oxide Copper Gold province of the GRV. == Kids on Country ==

The Nature Foundation runs the "Kids on Country" program at both Hiltaba and the Witchelina Nature Reserve. In the third camp of the programme at Hiltaba in 2018, 16 students aged from 12 to 14 years old from Ceduna spent a week on the property, where they helped to improve the property as a nature reserve, while at the same time learning about Aboriginal peoples' unique connection to country, along with STEM learning. The aim was to help the children to connect the Aboriginal, palaeontological, and geological stories of the area. The students helped to prepare bush tucker such as kangaroo tail and wombat meat, and to clean the rock holes. Educators, Aboriginal elders, and Indigenous rangers are involved in the programme. == For visitors ==

The park is open today and staying visitors between 1 April and 31 October. There are two bush campgrounds, 9 rooms for up to 17 people at the Shearers' Quarters, and two cottages accommodating five people each. There are numerous walking and driving tracks, with the five walks named after the founders and other early supporters of the foundation. == See also ==