Traditional knowledge
Traditional Custodians have recorded sea level changes, volcanic shifts and meteoric events for over 10,000 years through story, song, dance and art.
Bush Heritage Australia has made a significant purchase of the quirkily named Dodgey Downs, creating nearly 4,000 hectares of connected bushland in this globally significant biodiversity hotspot for threatened species such as Noolbenger (Honey Possum), Gnow (Malleefowl) and Ngoolark (Carnaby’s Cockatoo).
Located 430 km southeast of Perth on Goreng-Noongar Country, Dodgey Downs is 762-hectares of mostly cleared land in between the leading conservation organisation's existing reserves, Red Moort and Monjebup Reserves.
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If we can purchase Dodgey Downs, the paddock on the left will begin to resemble the remnant vegetation on the right. Photo Grassland Films.
Alex Hams, Healthy Landscapes Manager for Southwest Western Australia, is excited about the prospect of connecting Dodgey Downs to these properties.
“The name, while funny, doesn’t represent the conservation potential of this property,” he said. “Dodgey Downs has been on my wish list for years. It’s a dream block that will provide connection from Red Moort through to Monjebup. This new property enhances our ability to continue to have a positive impact in the Fitz-Stirling region – one of the most incredible places on our continent.”
The landscape in southwestern Australia is one of the oldest on the planet, and without glacier or volcano disturbance for over 200 million years, the ancient soils of the region have evolved an estimated 7,380 vascular plant species, of which 40 percent are found nowhere else in the world.
The region, dubbed the Fitz-Stirling region between the Fitzgerald River and Stirling Ranges National Parks, is one of 20 priority places in the Australian Government's 2022-2032 Threatened Species Action Plan and is also one of only two global biodiversity hotspots in Australia.
“Years of land clearing has seen the remnant bushland habitat in this region shrink and become increasingly disconnected,” said Chantal Fowler, Bush Heritage’s Head of Region in Western Australia and South Australia. “Our work in this region aims to restore connectivity and Dodgey Downs provides a critical piece of the puzzle.”
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Our acquisition and management of Dodgey Downs would give Ngoolark (Carnaby’s Cockatoo) a safer and stronger future. Photo Krysta Guille.
