South Island (South Australia)
South Island as viewed from the nearby coastline circa 1912
(State Library of South Australia PRG 280/1/3/237) |
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 South Island
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| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Location | Spencer Gulf |
| Coordinates | 35°14′S 136°50′E / 35.23°S 136.83°ECoordinates: 35°14′S 136°50′E / 35.23°S 136.83°E |
| Highest elevation | 18 m (59 ft) |
| Administration | |
South Island (also called Peter Island, South Islet and West Bay Island) is an island located in the Australian state of South Australia at the south end of Pondalowie Bay on the south-west extremity of Yorke Peninsula about 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) north-west by west of the town of Stenhouse Bay. The island has enjoyed protected area status since 1970 and since 1977, it has been part of the Innes National Park.
South Island is an island located on the south-west extremity of the Yorke Peninsula in South Australia at the southern end of Pondalowie Bay about 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) north-west by west of the town of Stenhouse Bay. The island has “sheer cliffs” on its exposed north and west coasts where a maximum elevation of 18 metres (59 ft) exists while its relatively protected east and south coasts have “low cliffs and ledges” created by swells diffracted within the bay. The island is connected to the mainland by a “neck of drying rock and sand” which does allow access by fauna.
South Island was formed about 6000 years ago following the rise of sea levels at the start of the Holocene. South Island consists of a calcarenite layer over a granite base. South Island is the permanently exposed part of a submerged reef system extending from the southern headland of Pondalowie Bay.
A survey carried out during 1982 on South Island found that its vegetation consisted of two groups defined by exposure to the weather, sea spray and amount of available soil.
The western half of the island is occupied by a "low, open heath” that “clings to any soil-filled hollow and crack” and includes plant tolerant of a “saline rocky coastal or island environment” such as round-leaved pigface, creeping brookweed, marsh saltbush, southern sea heath and bassia.
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