Mount Gambier

History

Before British colonisation of South Australia, the Bungandidj (or Buandik/Boandik) people were the original Aboriginal inhabitants of the area. They referred to the peak of the volcanic mountain as 'ereng balam' or 'egree belum', meaning 'home of the eagle hawk', but the mountain itself was called Berrin. A sinkhole in the township was referred to as "thu-ghee". The peak of the dormant Mount Gambier crater was sighted in 1800 by Lieutenant James Grant from the survey brig, HMS Lady Nelson, and named after Lord James Gambier, Admiral of the Fleet. It was the first place named by the British in what was later to become the colony of South Australia. The peak is marked by Centenary Tower, built in 1901 to commemorate the first sighting by colonists. In 1839, Stephen Henty, one of the Henty brothers who occupied large landholdings at Portland and Merino, led an overland expedition to explore the Mount Gambier region. He was the first white man to climb the peak and view the blue crater lake. The Henty brothers subsequently laid claim to Mount Gambier in 1842 and established a sheep station there. Conflict with the local Aboriginal residents quickly ensued that same year with Henty's men shooting a number and burning their corpses. In March 1844, a band of Aboriginal people led by Koort Kirrup took a large number of Henty's sheep. Henty's men pursued and engaged them in a prolonged skirmish which resulted in the colonists having to retreat. Other British pastoralists and their shepherds in the region were being robbed, speared and murdered by the local Aboriginal population and they proposed to form hunting parties to shoot them indiscriminately. After the Aboriginal population destroyed between 200 and 300 sheep, the Henty brothers were forced to abandon the Mount…

Geography

Mount Gambier's urban area is located mainly along the northern slopes and plain of a maar volcano of the same name, Mount Gambier. Comprising several craters, it is part of the Newer Volcanics Province complex of volcanoes. One of these contains a huge lake of high-quality artesian drinking water which changes colour with the seasons. In winter, it is a steel grey and then changes to a spectacular cobalt blue in the summer, giving rise to its name, Blue Lake. This deep lake accommodates a range of unusual aquatic flora and fauna, in particular fields of large stromatolites. There are several other craters in the city including Valley Lake and the Leg of Mutton River. The region surrounding the city includes other volcanic features such as Mount Schank, along with many karst features such as water-filled caves, cenotès and sinkholes. Mount Gambier's urban area encompasses the City of Mount Gambier and parts of the District Council of Grant. The city's metropolitan area includes the following suburbs: Mount Gambier CBD (inner-city suburb), Suttontown (north-western suburb), Wandilo (north-western suburb), Mil-Lel (northern suburb), Worrolong (north-eastern suburb), Glenburnie (eastern suburb), Yahl (south-eastern suburb), Compton (western suburb), Moorak (southern suburb), Square Mile (south-eastern suburb), and OB Flat (south-eastern suburb). Mount Gambier has a temperate mediterranean climate (Csb), having mild to warm, dry summers with very cool mornings; mild springs and autumns with moderate rainfall; and cool winters with high rainfall. August is the wettest month, with an average of 100.4 mm falling on 21 days; and February normally records the lowest rainfall, with an average of 25.7 mm on 7 days. The highest temperature recorded in Mount Gambier…

Most-observed species

• Australian Magpie

  Gymnorhina tibicen (Latham, 1802) · Aves
  735
• Superb Fairywren

  Malurus cyaneus (Ellis, 1782) · Aves
  665
• Gray Fantail

  Rhipidura albiscapa Gould, 1840 · Aves
  575
• New Holland Honeyeater

  Phylidonyris novaehollandiae (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  535
• Crimson Rosella

  Platycercus elegans (Gmelin, 1788) · Aves
  505
• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  495
• Red Wattlebird

  Anthochaera carunculata (Shaw, 1790) · Aves
  485
• White-browed Scrubwren

  Sericornis frontalis (Vigors & Horsfield, 1827) · Aves
  465

Most recent

• M 2.8 — 2006-04-19
  50 km SW of Millicent, Australia
• M 3.6 — 2002-01-05
  44 km S of Moorak, Australia