FLORA & FAUNA
Nature loving visitors are in for a treat. The landscape explodes into life during wildflower season and bird watching in and around Carnarvon at any time of the year is a very special experience. Rare thorn-bills, waders, kites, fantails, kingfishers and honey-eaters are all attracted to the diverse habitats, from mangroves to mudflats, sandy bays, grasslands and the bush, to the harbour itself. Don’t forget your binoculars and be prepared to be amazed. In the ocean, the fauna wonderfest continues, with schools of manta rays, dolphins, whale sharks and humpback whales living alongside brightly coloured coral reef fish and other sea creatures. It’s a wonderland, on land and at sea.
FEATHERED FRIENDS
Carnarvon is known as a popular Bird Watching spot for nature lovers. Some of the birds found in the area include the Whistling Kite, Wedge-tailed Eagle, Little Eagle and Brown Falcon. Flocks of Cockatiel, Budgerigar and Galah may be sighted. Honeyeaters wander over the region in search of flowering shrubs such as Eremophila species.
Locations around Carnarvon such as Chinaman’s Pool, Miabooyla Beach and New Beach Bush Bay are great spots for bird watching. Click here to read more about prime bird watching locations in Carnarvon.
IN FULL BLOOM
If you're in the region during July and September, you're in for a treat. Wildflowers begin to appear in early July when the region has had its sprinkle of rain. The spectacle is over all too soon by the end of September, when it starts to warm up.
Here's what can be found in our region:
RED BLOOMS
- Cape Range Grevillea (Grevillea Variifolia) found along the Quobba Coastline
- Sturt's Desert Pea (Swainsona Formosa) found at Gascoyne Junction and Mount Augustus
- Namana (Euphorbia Australis) on the Quobba Coastline and around Gascoyne Junction
PINK BLOOMS
- Coastal Hibiscus (Alyogyne Cuneiformis) found along the Quobba Coastline
- Sand Hibiscus (Alyogyne Cuneiformis) found along the Quobba Coastline and east of Carnarvon at Rocky Pool and Kennedy Range
- Perennial Tar Vine (Commicarpus Australis) found at Mt Augustus and Kennedy Range
- Grey ScurfPea (Cullen Cinereum)
- Gascoyne Mulla Mulla (Ptilotus Helipteroides) found along the Blowholes Road and east of Carnarvon at Gascoyne Junction and Kennedy Range
- Mountain Nancy (Wurmbea Inframediana) found at Mount Augustus
PURPLE BLOOMS
- Velvt ScurfPea (Cullen Martinii) on the Tramway Walk Trail
- Dampier Pea (Swainsona Pterostylis) at Miabooyla Beach
- Rough Bluebell (Trichodesma Zeylanicum) found around Gascoyne Junction
- Sturt's Nightsade (Salanum Sturtianum) around Gascoyne Junction
- Bush Tomato (Solanum Diversiflorum) in Gascoyne Junction
- Marsh Stemodia (Stemodia Grossa) at Mt Augustus
- Camel Weed (Scaevola Parvifolia) at Gascoyne Junction & Mt Augustus
- WedgeLeaved Eremophila (Eremophila Cuneifolia)
- Purple Mouth (Dipteracanthus Australasicus) at Mt Augustus
GREEN BLOOMS
- Green Birdflower, known as Carnarvon Bird Flower (Cratalaria Cunninghamii) found in Carnarvon and at Kennedy Range
- Native Poplar (Codonocarpus Cotinifloius) found in Carnarvon and Gascoyne Junction
- Tassel Top (white Ptilotus Clementii) found at Miabooyla and Gascoyne hinterland
- Crinkled Heliotrope (Heliotropium Crispatum) found at Gascoyne Junction