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An early Ocean Beach Reserve was
established at Sorrento last century, with walking tracks
and shelters. Cape Schanck Coastal Park was established in
1975, to become Point Nepean National Park in 1988, when
part of the historic Point Nepean area, previously closed to
the public for more than 100 years, was transferred from the
Commonwealth to the State. In 1995, the park was renamed
Mornington Peninsula National Park. As well as the rich Aboriginal history,
dating back over 40,000 years, the region includes the remains of European
settlement. The area known as Point Nepean includes the Quarantine Station,
established on the shores of Port Phillip Bay in 1852. It was used to protect
the colony of Melbourne from ship borne diseases. The Point Nepean Cemetery
contains burials from the 1850's and are historically linked to the early
European settlement, quarantine, shipwrecks and defence. Fort Nepean contains an
extensive system of fortifications built from the 1880's through to the World
War I and II, and interpretive displays and audiovisuals located in several
areas, tell the story of the defence.
The Australian Heritage Commission has listed the historic values on Point
Nepean on the Register of National Estate. and the area is also classified by
the National Trust for its landscape values, including the western extremity of
the Nepean Peninsula. Flora and
Fauna
Mornington Peninsula National Park, together with Arthur's Seat State Park
contain the largest and most important areas of native vegetation remaining on
the Mornington Peninsula. This native vegetation include coastal dune scrub and
grassy forests, banksia woodlands, coastal heathlands, heathy woodlands,
riparian forests, and swamps. The park is also home to 32 mammal species, 167
birds, 22 reptiles, 7 amphibians and 2 freshwater fish species. Greens Bush
supports the largest population of Eastern Grey Kangaroos on the Mornington
Peninsula, with Highfield being a good area for viewing kangaroos. A remote
and protected location in Point Nepean is a home to animals that include
bandicoots and the New Holland Mouse, and the intertidal zone is a habitat for a
wide variety of shellfish and marine invertebrates. Some important regionally
species include the White-footed Dunnart, Long-nosed Bandicoot, Black Wallaby,
Singing Honeyeater, Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater, Blue-winged Parrot and Hooded
Plover.Source: Parks Victoria -
Mornington Peninsula National Park
For further information contact Parks Victoria at: |
