Aldinga Scrub Conservation Park


Aldinga Scrub Conservation Park is a protected area in the Australian state of South Australia located in the suburb of Aldinga Beach about south by west of the state capital of Adelaide.
The conservation park consists of land in the cadastral unit of the Hundred of Willunga consisting of section 821 and land identified as allotments 4, 14, 15 and 100. It came into existence on 7 November 1985 by proclamation under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972 in respect to section 821. The remainder of the land holding was proclaimed on 14 March 1991. As of 2016, it covered an area of.
The conservation park was proclaimed for the purpose of protecting a parcel of undeveloped land considered to be 'a significant remnant of the natural habitat that once occurred all along the southern Adelaide coastline'.
It is positioned in the Willunga sub-basin and is characterised by a backdrop of sand dunes, sand blows and small coastal vegetation. The Park consists of an extensive range of rare plants and is considered as an important region for the conservation of flora and fauna. Some of the rare plants include Lacy coral lichen, nardoo, hairy sedge and various species of orchids. Short-beaked echidnas, lizards, bats and several birds form a part of its ecosystem.
The conservation park is a part of the region which was inhabited by the Kaurna aboriginal people and the first European settler, Mr F Culley arrived here in 1857. Much effort was made to farm on the land before the World War I, but they all proved futile. The Willunga Council feared that the area may cause erosion and thus 300 hectares were purchased to be supervised by the State Planning Authority as an Open Space Reserve.
The conservation park is classified as an IUCN Category III protected area.