Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62[ 11 ] The Fortescue Marsh Ranger Parks are part of an internationally recognised Important Bird and Biodiversity Area that is home to over 270,000 waterbirds. The extremely rare Night Parrot has been sighted on the proposed Meentheena Ranger Park. Ranger Parks will extend the Kennedy Range National Park, providing opportunities to reintroduce the threatened Black-flanked Rock-wallaby. The incredibly rare lily, Thysanotus sp. Lochada, is found only on one hill on the proposed Lochada Ranger Park. The Ranger Parks around Shark Bay will create a continuous land-to- sea corridor of over 1.2 million hectares around the existing World Heritage Area. Safeguarding remarkable natural places Among the dazzling wildflowers, wetlands and cragged vistas of the Ranger Parks lies an abundance of plants and animals that are incredibly special. The former pastoral lease properties were selected because they are home to threatened species and unique landscapes that should be conserved for future generations. Ranger Parks will help to protect species and habitats unique to Western Australia, including many which are on the edge of survival such as northern quolls, bilbies and night parrots. Protection for world heritage sites at Shark Bay, wetlands of national importance, important bird areas and special breeding locations will be improved. Ranger Parks will connect reserves, buffer marine areas and build resilience against future threats, as well as safeguarding the vistas, wildlife and heritage that make Western Australia so special. Ranger Parks will increase the area set aside for conservation in Western Australia from just 7% of the state to 9%, an increase of 5 million hectares.7 While this in itself is impressive, what is even more noteworthy is the fact that many of the Ranger Parks are situated within bioregions that currently enjoy little or no protection in existing reserves. Increased protection of many of these bioregions is a national priority. For example, Ranger Parks will increase protection of the Tallering subregion twelvefold from less than 2% to 24%, and the Fortescue subregion tenfold from less than 1% to 10%.8 Ranger Parks contain many rare and important species that are not found within any existing national park or nature reserve. A species of lily known as Thysanotus sp. Lochada is found only on one hill in the proposed Lochada Ranger Park9 and a species of wattle, Acacia woodmaniorum, survives within a range just 10km wide on the proposed Karara Ranger Park.10 What’s more is that very few of the proposed Ranger Parks have been surveyed in detail and it is likely that many more unique and interesting species are yet to be discovered. In addition to the abundance of flora, Ranger Parks will offer protection to a range of animals, from tiny underground crustaceans known as Mangkurtu kutjarra that have called the proposed Roy Hill Ranger Park home since pre-Gondwanan times11 , to the elusive Night Parrot that has been sighted at the proposed Meentheena Ranger Park12 , as well as a number of threatened and endangered mammals such as the Bilby, the Black-flanked Rock-wallaby and the Northern Quoll. The endangered Bilby is found in several Ranger Parks in the Pilbara region.