Alexander Morrison National Park

Welcome, fellow naturalists and scholars, to Al-ex-an-der Mor-ri-son National Park. Situated in the Mid-West region of Western Australia, approximately 300 kil-o-me-ters north of Perth, this park is a pre-em-i-nent example of the…

We begin our bo-tan-i-cal inquiry in the heart of the kwon-gan heath-land. 'Kwon-gan' is a Noong-ar word for 'open sandy country,' and it defines the land-scape of the Western Australian wheat-belt and mid-west. …

Interspersed with the low heath are pockets of mal-lee woodland. 'Mal-lee' refers to a growth form of Eu-ca-lyptus where multiple stems arise from a large underground woody swel-ling known as a lig-no-tu-ber. …

To understand the flora of Alexander Morrison, we must look at the underlying geology. In certain parts of the park, the sand-plain gives way to lat-er-ite breakaways. …

While the flora is the star of Alexander Morrison, the park's avian population is equally wor-thy of study. The heath-land is a dynamic environment for birds, par-tic-u-lar-ly those that have evolved to exploit the year-round…

As we walk these trails, we are follow-ing in the footsteps of Al-ex-an-der Mor-ri-son himself. Born in Scotland and educated in medicine, Morrison became Western Australia's first official Gov-ern-ment Bot-an-ist in 1897. …

Finally, we must address the chal-lenges facing the future of Alexander Morrison National Park. Despite its rug-ged appearance, the kwon-gan is a high-ly fragile ecosystem. …

Our scholarly journey through Alexander Morrison National Park has revealed a world of extra-or-di-na-ry com-plex-i-ty hidden within a seemingly simple landscape. We have analyzed the an-cient Gond-wa-nan lin-e-ages of the…