Warby-Ovens National Park
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Warby-Ovens National Park Victoria |
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IUCN category II (national park)
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 Warby-Ovens National Park
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| Nearest town or city | Wangaratta |
| Coordinates | 36°19′47″S 146°11′17″E / 36.32972°S 146.18806°ECoordinates: 36°19′47″S 146°11′17″E / 36.32972°S 146.18806°E |
| Established | October 2010 |
| Area | 146.55 km2 (56.6 sq mi) |
| Managing authorities | Parks Victoria |
| Website | Warby-Ovens National Park |
| See also | Protected areas of Victoria |
The Warby-Ovens National Park is a national park located in the Hume region of Victoria, Australia. The 14,655-hectare (36,210-acre) national park is situated approximately 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) west of Wangaratta and 240 kilometres (150 mi) northeast of Melbourne.
The park draws its name from the Warby Ranges, which are named in honour of Ben Warby, a pastoralist who settled in the area in 1844, and the Ovens River. Initially reserved as a state park in 1978, the national park was declared in June 2010. Parts of the national park are contained within the 25,300-hectare (63,000-acre) Warby–Chiltern Box–Ironbark Important Bird Area because of its importance for the conservation of Box-Ironbark forest ecosystems and several species of threatened woodland birds dependent on them.
The park is within the Northern Inland Slopes bioregion, which encompasses the granite, metamorphic and sedimentary lower foothills north of the Great Dividing Range in North East Victoria. The area surrounding the park has been cleared for agriculture, with the park making up 16% of the protected areas within the bioregion. Mount Glenrowan, located within the national park, provided a good vantage point for bushranger Ned Kelly and The Kelly Gang in the late 1800s, who had an easy view of Glenrowan.
Twelve ecological vegetation classes exist within the park, including eight which are classified as vulnerable or endangered within the Northern Inland Slopes bioregion, those being the Alluvial Terraces Herb-rick Woodland, Alluvial Terraces Herb-rick Woodland/Creekline Grassy Woodland, Woodland Mosaic, Box-Ironbark Forest, Creekline Grassy Woodland, Grassy Woodland, Plains Grassy Woodland, Spring Soak Woodland and Valley Grassy Forest. Box-Ironbark Forest, which is characterised by an over-storey of Mugga Ironbark (Eucalyptus sideroxylon), Red Box (Eucalyptus polyanthemos) and Grey Box (Eucalyptus macrocarpa), makes up 27% of the park, and is found predominantly in the northern area of the park. The plateau and higher areas of the Warby Range are characterised by Healthy Dry Forest, which makes up 24% of the park. Vegetation within these areas consists of an over-storey of Red Stringybark (Eucalyptus macrorhyncha), Red Box (Eucalyptus polyanthemos) and Long-leaf Box (Eucalyptus goniocalyx). Granitic Hill Woodland occurs on the steep slopes of the western side of the park, and is characterised by Blakely’s Red Gum (Eucalyptus blakelyi), Red Stringybark (Eucalyptus macrorhyncha) and White Cypress Pine (Callitris glaucophylla). The park contains almost 500 species of native plants, 23 of which are classified as threatened, including the Northern Sandalwood (Santalum lanceolatum) and the Narrow Goodenia (Goodenia macbarronii), both of which have action statements under the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 (Vic), and the Spur-wing Wattle (Acacia triptera), which only occurs in Victoria in the Warby ranges.
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