Special Wildlife Reserves
© Bush Heritage Australia
Special wildlife reserves protect areas of private land in Queensland that are identified as containing exceptional natural and cultural resources and values. Like national parks, special wildlife reserves are protected from incompatible land uses, such as mining, commercial grazing, and native timber harvesting.
An Australian first
Queensland is the first jurisdiction in Australia to create a protected area of this kind for private land. Since the legislation was introduced in 2019, Queensland has established two special wildlife reserves with the national, not-for-profit conservation organisation Bush Heritage Australia.
- In 2020, the 56,000-hectare Pullen Pullen Special Wildlife Reserve was declared to protect the critically endangered night parrot, which had been rediscovered.
- In 2024, the 8,000-hectare Edgbaston Special Wildlife Reserve was declared to protect the most biodiverse natural springs complex in the Great Artesian Basin, home to more than 26 species found nowhere else on earth.
Establishing and managing special wildlife reserves
A proposed special wildlife reserve must be considered as one of the most important places in the landscape for conserving a particular resource or value. Establishing special wildlife reserves involves extensive consultation with a broad range of stakeholders, including engagement with First Nations People to understand the area’s cultural significance.
Special wildlife reserves are governed by a perpetually binding conservation agreement and a separate management program, which outlines the conservation management actions and monitoring and reporting requirements necessary to protect the reserve’s exceptional natural and cultural resources and values.
© Bush Heritage Australia