Yelverton

Yelverton National Park is a 6,870-hectare protected area in the Leeuwin-Naturaliste region of southwestern Western Australia, situated in the southern Margaret River-Augusta area. The park protects coastal plain and Leeuwin Block habitats including peppermint woodland, heath, and wetlands near the southwest tip of the Australian continent. The park connects the Cape Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park system to the southern coast conservation reserves. It is managed by DBCA.

Yelverton supports coastal southwest WA fauna. The critically endangered western ringtail possum uses peppermint woodland and marri trees for food and shelter. Forest red-tailed black-cockatoos and Carnaby's black-cockatoos are resident. The coastal wetlands attract waterbirds. Australian sea lions may occur at the adjacent coast. Short-beaked echidnas, brush wallabies, quendas, and western grey kangaroos inhabit the woodland and heath.

Peppermint (Agonis flexuosa) woodland is characteristic of the coastal southwest, forming distinctive forests in sheltered positions. Banksia-kwongan heath on sandy coastal soils transitions to karri and jarrah-marri on deeper soils inland. Wetland communities include paperbarks and sedges. The Leeuwin-Naturaliste area is botanically rich, with many endemic species in the southwest coastal flora.

Yelverton overlies the Leeuwin Block — a terrane of Proterozoic granites and metamorphic rocks approximately 600–800 million years old, representing a fragment of ancient Gondwana. Coastal calcarenite (Tamala Limestone) dune deposits overlie older basement rocks near the coast. The southwest coastline has been dramatically shaped by wave erosion on hard granites and calcarenite.

Cool temperate Mediterranean climate with high rainfall (900–1,200 mm in the Augusta area). The southwest tip of Australia receives some of the most consistent rainfall in WA. Winters are stormy with Southern Ocean swells. Summers are mild.

Yelverton lies within Bibbulmun Noongar country. The Augusta-Cape Leeuwin area was one of the first regions of WA explored by European mariners, visited by the Leeuwin (1622), Vlamingh (1696), and Flinders-Baudin expeditions in the early nineteenth century. Bibbulmun people have maintained connections to the southwest tip for thousands of years.

Yelverton National Park was proclaimed to protect coastal plain and Leeuwin Block habitats in the southern Margaret River region, extending conservation coverage in the Cape Leeuwin-Naturaliste system. DBCA manages the park as part of the integrated southwestern conservation framework.

Bushwalking through peppermint woodland and coastal heath. Spring wildflower observation. Wildlife spotting for western ringtail possums and black-cockatoos. The adjacent Cape Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park and Augusta are nearby.

Located near Augusta in the southern Margaret River region. Access via Caves Road and local roads. Minimal facilities. Augusta provides accommodation and services. Margaret River (approximately 45 km) offers full tourist services.

Western ringtail possum conservation requires fox control. Phytophthora cinnamomi dieback threatens coastal heath proteaceous flora. Climate change reducing winter rainfall in the southwest is a long-term concern for the moisture-dependent forest communities.