The Willandra Lakes Region is a World Heritage Site located in the Far West area of New South Wales, Australia. This area has been the traditional meeting place of the Muthi Muthi, Ngiyampaa, and Paakantyi Aboriginal peoples for many years. The region covers about 2,400 square kilometers (930 square miles) and was added to the World Heritage List during the 5th Session of the World Heritage Committee in 1981.
The area includes important natural and cultural features, such as significant examples of ancient human life, including the world's oldest known evidence of cremation. A small part of the region is protected as Mungo National Park.
The World Heritage status was established in 1981 through negotiations. The site was officially listed on the Australian National Heritage List on May 21, 2007, under the Environment and Heritage Legislation Amendment Act (No. 1), 2003 (Cth). It is also included on the New South Wales State Heritage Register.
History
Willandra Lakes formed over the last 2 million years. The ancient shorelines have three main layers of sediment that were added at different times in the lakes' history.
The oldest layer is more than 50,000 years old and has an orange-red color. Above this layer are clay, clean quartz sand, and soil that were added along the lake’s edge when the lake was full of deep, fresh water between 50,000 and 19,000 years ago. The top layer is mostly made of wind-blown clay particles that piled up on the lunettes during times when the lake’s water level changed, before the lake dried up completely.
Aboriginal people lived near Willandra Lakes from 40,000 to 35,000 years ago. This area is one of the oldest known places in Australia where humans lived. Evidence shows that Aboriginal people lived there for at least 10,000 years.
European explorers first visited the area mainly through pastoralists, who followed famous explorers. Captain Charles Sturt had the most influence in drawing attention to the area. In 1829, he reached the upper part of the Darling River and named it after Governor Ralph Darling. He returned to the area in 1844 while trying to explore the interior of the continent.
Surveyor George Boyle White explored the Darling River in 1833, from the Peel River junction to Fort Bourke. In 1835, Major Thomas Mitchell, the Surveyor-General of New South Wales, explored the same area to see if the Darling River connected to the Murray River as Sturt had suggested. Mitchell did not get along well with Aboriginal people, and after one of his men killed an Aboriginal person, he left the area. In 1836, Mitchell returned to explore the Darling River from its meeting point with the Murray River but soon stopped exploring after confirming Sturt’s findings.
After 1836, the route between the Murrumbidgee and Murray Rivers became a common path for stockmen moving sheep and cattle to South Australia. Squatters, who wanted new land, followed government surveyors and explorers and claimed land in these areas. The first pastoral station in the lower Darling region was established in 1845 by George Hobler on the Lachlan River, which he called Paika.
The area between the Murrumbidgee and Darling Rivers was officially recognized as the Darling Pastoral District on December 4, 1847.
The development of river navigation on the Murray and its tributaries helped the pastoral industry grow. In 1853, Francis Cadell and William Randell began exploring the Darling River by boat. Within six months, the value of river properties doubled.
The first pastoral lease in the region was granted to George Lee for Turlee on February 28, 1850. George Mory received a lease for Boomiaricool in December 1853, and James Scott received a lease for Arumpo in October 1859. Because these areas were remote and had little natural water, holding land was uncertain.
Improving these areas was expensive. Fencing and building water sources, like wells and tanks, required a lot of money and often failed. Between 1875 and 1881, 83 trial wells were dug near Gol Gol at a cost of 1,260 pounds.
Despite the challenges, pastoralists remained hopeful that profit was possible with enough money. It took time for them to understand that the environment was fragile and could not support large numbers of livestock as easily as other areas.
In 1900, Royal Commissions noted that people had overestimated the land’s ability to support livestock. They observed that pastoralists had not realized the risks of letting animals eat edible shrubs, which did not regrow after every rain.
Overstocking often happened when expected rains did not come. Moving livestock away from the land could cost money, but many pastoralists focused on quick profits. For example, JH Patterson bought Gol Gol in 1875, sold it in 1882, and had to take it back in 1886 after others failed financially.
Remote areas made it expensive to transport supplies and wool. Carriers often avoided remote stations, and livestock had to be sent to market instead of being sold directly on the land.
Rabbits caused problems by competing with sheep for food in the fragile environment. In 1883, the government passed the Rabbit Nuisance Act, which paid trappers for rabbit scalps. This effort continued until the 1950s, when a disease called myxomatosis helped control the rabbit population.
Pastoralists often struggled to find enough workers for their remote stations. Aboriginal people became important workers during the 1860s labor shortage. However, the use of wire fencing in the 1870s made Aboriginal shepherds unnecessary. Chinese workers were also present, though there is little evidence of their numbers. One example is Ah Tin, who worked on Gol Gol Station. By 1883, there was a camp in Narrandera with 303 Chinese workers looking for temporary jobs.
In the 1890s, drought, rabbits, remoteness, and a lack of workers worsened due to an economic downturn across Australia. Only the most financially stable pastoralists survived the long drought from 1895 to 1903.
In 1901, the Royal Commissioners recommended new laws to help pastoralists in the Western Division. New legislation was passed quickly, and the Western Lands Board was created to manage the area. Leases were extended by 42 years to provide more secure land rights. These laws shaped pastoral life in the region for the rest of the 20th century.
Technology changed life in the area. Mechanical shearing machines were introduced to Gol Gol and Mungo stations, which required more shearers. Other tools, like tractors, helped with farming. In 1924, telephones were installed at Arumpo, Pan Ban, and Mulurulu, reducing the feeling of isolation.
After World War I, many pastoralists worked on smaller stations as owners instead of managers for large landowners. Life was difficult for these new owners, who had to build necessary infrastructure. Some, like Ewan and Nagus Cameron, who took over Mungo Station, were lucky because they inherited a homestead.
Description
Willandra Lakes is located in south-western New South Wales. The lakes system, a remnant of the Lachlan River drainage pattern, is approximately 150 km long by 40 km wide and runs generally in a north–south direction from Lake Mulurulu in the north to Lake Prungle in the south. The approximate area is 600,000 hectares. Parallel to the eastern shores, white sand and clay dunes rise 40 metres above the plain, while deep gullies have been cut through the lake shore deposits. The landscape surrounding the system is one of low, parallel ridges of fine red sand.
Lake Mungo, the best known of the lakes in the area, is located in the centre of the Willandra Lakes system about 100 km north-east of Mildura.
The dry lake beds support mallee eucalypt and saltbush communities, while the sand dunes are occasionally bare of vegetation, or support mallee and spinifex communities.
The area is representative of south-east Australian lunettes or dry lake beds with wind-blown dunes on their eastern margins and flat floors, formerly lake bottoms. A lunette is a crescent-shaped dune ridge commonly found on the eastern (lee) margin of shallow lake basins in eastern Australia, developed under the influence of dominant westerly winds. The lunettes provide the area with a special scenic quality. Stabilised dunes, crescent-shaped, edge the lakes, and where erosion has occurred, deep gullying has created miniature grand canyons of great beauty, as at the Walls of China, where the multicoloured strata of the lunette of Lake Mungo is exposed.
Willandra Lakes is a fossil waterway developed during the Pleistocene Geological Period when the climate was considerably colder and wetter than in the same area today. Thirty thousand years ago, the Lachlan was a much larger river than today. It broke up into four or five major channels, forming large lakes in the sand dunes west of Hillston. These large lakes were predominantly filled, covering 1,088 square kilometres, but now carry water only during peak or flood discharges.
The area is semi-arid, average rainfall being approximately 250 mm per annum.
Twenty species of mammals are currently recorded at Willandra, of which bats are the most diverse group. There are some 40 species of reptiles and amphibians. There are 137 recorded species of bird life, including parrots, cockatoos, and finches.
New South Wales State Heritage listing
Willandra's archaeological record shows that people have lived in the area for at least 40,000 years. It is part of the history of inland exploration, such as the Burke and Wills expedition, and the growth of the pastoral industry in western New South Wales. The area has an old lake system. The sediments, land shapes, and soils here show a detailed record of a low-altitude, non-glaciated Pleistocene landscape. The area has excellent examples of lunettes, including Chibnalwood Lunette, which is the largest clay lunette in the world. People living in the area can experience the natural harshness and beauty through all seasons. The Willandra's traditionally connected Aboriginal people proudly identify with this land. The Willandra's primary producer landholder families have links to the European settlement of the region. The area's remoteness creates a strong sense of community and neighborly support during difficult times, while the isolation also encourages self-sufficiency. The region has a valuable Pleistocene archaeological record that helps understand early human development in this area. The area is where the Mungo Geomagnetic Excursion was discovered, one of the most recent major changes in Earth's magnetic field. The area can provide information about the changes in climates and environments in southeastern Australia. It is important for studying Earth's magnetic field reversal. The Willandra Lakes Region, covering 240,000 acres, was added to the World Heritage List in 1981 for its cultural and natural significance. It represents major stages in Earth's history, shows important geological processes, and provides evidence of an ancient civilization.
Willandra Lakes was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on April 2, 1999, because it meets certain criteria.
The place is important for showing the history of cultural or natural events in New South Wales. Willandra's archaeological record shows people lived there for at least 40,000 years. It is part of the history of inland exploration, such as the Burke and Wills expedition, and the development of the pastoral industry in western New South Wales.
The place is important for showing aesthetic features or creative and technical achievements in New South Wales. The area has an old lake system. The sediments, land shapes, and soils here show a detailed record of a low-altitude, non-glaciated Pleistocene landscape. The area has excellent examples of lunettes, including Chibnalwood Lunette, the largest clay lunette in the world.
The place is strongly connected to a community or cultural group in New South Wales for social, cultural, or spiritual reasons. People living in the area can experience the natural harshness and beauty through all seasons. The Willandra's traditionally connected Aboriginal people proudly identify with this land. The Willandra's primary producer landholder families have links to the European settlement of the region. The area's remoteness creates a strong sense of community and neighborly support during difficult times, while the isolation also encourages self-sufficiency.
The place has the potential to provide information that helps understand the cultural or natural history of New South Wales. The region has a valuable Pleistocene archaeological record that helps understand early human development in this area. The area is where the Mungo Geomagnetic Excursion was discovered, one of the most recent major changes in Earth's magnetic field. The area can provide information about the changes in climates and environments in southeastern Australia. It is important for studying Earth's magnetic field reversal.
The place is important for showing the main features of a type of cultural or natural place in New South Wales. The area is representative of southeastern Australian lunettes or dry lake beds with wind-blown dunes on their eastern edges and flat floors.