Whicher Range, also known as Whicher Scarp, is a range in the South West region of

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

. The range has an average elevation of above sea level. Bounded by the

Swan Coastal Plain The Swan Coastal Plain in Western Australia is the geographic feature which contains the Swan River as it travels west to the Indian Ocean. The coastal plain continues well beyond the boundaries of the Swan River and its tributaries, as a geol ...

to the west and the south, the Darling Scarp to the north and the Blackwood Plateau to the east, the range is approximately south of

Busselton Busselton is a city in the South West (Western Australia), South West region of the States and territories of Australia, state of Western Australia approximately south-west of Perth. Busselton has a long history as a popular holiday destin ...

. The range has the form of a crescent shaped scarp. Composed of lateritic

Mesozoic The Mesozoic Era is the Era (geology), era of Earth's Geologic time scale, geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous Period (geology), Periods. It is characterized by the dominance of archosaurian r ...

sediments, the range marks the southern and western edge of the Yilgarn Block.

Ecological fragility

The range is also the location of endemic rare flora and this had been identified in the 1970s. It has also been surveyed more recently in 2008, showing that further interest in the range's floristic uniqueness deserved more study. The most critically endangered species that inhabits the Whicher range is '' Petrophile latericola'' also known as Laterite petrophile, Ironstone Petrophile or the Ironstone Pixie Mop, which has a range of approximately within the range. Another threatened species that inhabits the range is ''Grevillea elongata'' or the Ironstone grevillea which is found mostly in one single community known as ''Southern Ironstone''; this species is under continuous threat from weeds such as ''Watsonia''. A National Park, Whicher National Park, has been created on the range.

Issues

Despite its unique environmental features of rare flora and residual native vegetation the range is under pressure as a water and gas supply location. The Abba River and the

Vasse River The Vasse River is a river in the South West of Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territor ...

both rise in the range and then flow north before finally discharging into the Vasse-Wonnerup Estuary near Busselton. The Margaret River and its tributary Margaret River North also rise from the Whicher Range and then flow west before discharging into the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...

. Large gas reserves are known to exist under the range. Discovered over 30 years ago, the field is estimated to be over 4 trillion cubic feet in size. However, working out means of extracting the gas proved difficult for an earlier company Amity Oil in 2004. In 2011, the player for the gas resource included Westralian Gas and Power, which endorses hydraulic fracturing or "fracking" to release the gas. The Western Australian Minister for Mines and Petroleum, Norman Moore has also made public comments regarding legislation in relation to fracking. Also at the same time Whicher Range Energy is in the process of drilling on the location. The range and the rivers that originate in its area were under review for potential dam sites and water allocation.http://portal.water.wa.gov.au/portal/page/portal/PlanningWaterFuture/AllocationPlanning/Content/Whicher/080610%20Draft%20Whicher%20area%20surface%20wmp_web.pdf WA Government allocation planning document

Notes

{{coord, 33, 48, S, 115, 22, E, display=title, region:AU_type:mountain_source:GNS-enwiki South West (Western Australia)