Mac Clark (Acacia peuce) Conservation Reserve is a

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...

in the

Northern Territory of Australia The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...

located in the locality of Ghan. It is located approximately south of

Ltyentye Apurte Community Ltyentye Apurte, also known as Santa Teresa, is a community in the Northern Territory, Australia, many residents of the locality are members of the Arrernte indigenous community, whose origins are located about south-east of Alice Springs. ...

and south east of

Alice Springs Alice Springs () is a town in the Northern Territory, Australia; it is the third-largest settlement after Darwin, Northern Territory, Darwin and Palmerston, Northern Territory, Palmerston. The name Alice Springs was given by surveyor William ...

. The reserve is surrounded by the pastoral lease and operating cattle station, Andado, the area also lies on the western edge of the

Simpson Desert The Simpson Desert is a large area of dry, red sandy plain and dunes in the Northern Territory, South Australia and Queensland in central Australia. It is the fourth-largest Deserts of Australia, Australian desert, with an area of . The Wangka ...

. The area is fenced to protect it from stock. It can be accessed via the old Andado track or the Binns track via

or from Kulgera via the

Stuart Highway Stuart Highway is a major Australian highway. It runs from Darwin, Northern Territory, Darwin, in the Northern Territory, via Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, to Port Augusta in South Australia; it has a distance of . Its northern and souther ...

. Occupying an area of the landscape in a flat, stony windswept plain in one of the hottest places in Australia. with temperatures often exceeding in summer and an annual rainfall of about . The

traditional owners Native title is the set of rights, recognised by Australian law, held by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander groups or individuals to land that derive from their maintenance of their traditional laws and customs. These Aboriginal title rig ...

of the area are the Arrente peoples who lived and travelled through the area for thousands of years. The area is rich in Aboriginal artefacts and the name of the pastoral lease is derived from the Arrente word meaning ''stone tool''. Europeans arrived in the area in the 1880s and settled the lands for

pastoralism Pastoralism is a form of animal husbandry where domesticated animals (known as "livestock") are released onto large vegetated outdoor lands (pastures) for grazing, historically by nomadic people who moved around with their herds. The anim ...

, raising both sheep and more recently cattle. Malcolm ''Mac'' Clark and his wife Molly arrived at Andado Station in 1955, Mac Died of a heart attack in 1978. The reserve bears his name as a result of his interest in conserving the trees found there. The reserve was established to preserve the rare Acacia peuce tree, also known as Waddywood, of which there is a stand of 1,000 mature trees found within the reserve. During the 1900s most of these trees had been cut down to make shelters and stockyards until there were only three populations left: One at Andado, another near to

Birdsville Birdsville is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Diamantina, Queensland, Australia. The locality is on the Queensland border with both the Northern Territory and South Australia. The town is situated north of the South Australian bord ...

and the last near

Boulia Boulia () is an outback town and locality in the Shire of Boulia, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Boulia had a population of 314 people. Boulia is the administrative centre of the Boulia Shire, population approximately 600, whi ...

. In an area where only a few shrubs and grasses are able to survive Acacia peuce thrives and is able to grow to a height of and can live for up to 500 years. Prolonged drought, fire, rabbits and livestock are all a threat to any seedlings. Studies are being conducted in the area on regeneration rate and growth rate of the trees. In 1991, The conservation reserve was listed on the now-defunct

Register of the National Estate The Register of the National Estate was a heritage register that listed natural and cultural heritage places in Australia that was closed in 2007. Phasing out began in 2003, when the Australian National Heritage List and the Commonwealth Heri ...

in 1991 and was added to the

Northern Territory Heritage Register The Northern Territory Heritage Register is a heritage register, being a statutory list of places in the Northern Territory of Australia that are protected by the Northern Territory statute, the '' Heritage Act 2011''. The register is maintained ...

on 14 September 1994.

References

{{Protected areas of the Northern Territory, state=collapsed Conservation reserves in the Northern Territory 1982 establishments in Australia Protected areas established in 1982 Northern Territory places listed on the defunct Register of the National Estate Northern Territory Heritage Register

See also

References