Both Dragonflies and Damselflies are superb hunting carnivores. A common sight around dams and springs throughout the Flinders Ranges, nymph (juvenile) casings are located at the lower parts of trees and shrubs, or rocks, near the water’s edge. The transition between nymph and adult occurs during the night, with the new adult emerging with a soft, pale exoskeleton which hardens and brightens into the full complement of striking colours by sunrise.
Murray River turtles (Emydura macquarii) are native to the Murray Darling Basin and introduced to Aroona Dam in the northern Flinders Ranges.
At Copley Retention Dam in the northern Flinders Ranges, the indigenous Musk Duck (Biziura lobata) can be observed in its natural habitat. Males are larger than females and feature a distinctive fleshy lobe beneath their bill. Known for a unique musk scent emitted from a gland near their rump, these ducks are powerful divers that forage for aquatic animals beneath the water’s surface.
The diverse Emu diet includes the seeds of a wide range of plants in the Flinders Ranges including Sandalwood, Quandong, Nitrebush, Eremophilas, Myoporum and Ruby Saltbush. Emus carry seeds in their gut from 3 hours to 10 months (depending on the type of seed) and can walk 13.5 km daily, making them significant agents of seed dispersal.
Sand Goanna (Varanus gouldii gouldii), also known as the Gould’s goanna or Sand Monitor seen at Aroona Sanctuary in the northern Flinders Ranges.
The Sharp-tailed Sandpiper (Calidris acuminata) is a migratory shorebird that breeds in the Siberian tundra and spends the non-breeding season across Australia, inhabiting both freshwater and saline inland wetlands as well as coastal tidal flats. This couple were seen at Copley Retention Dam in October.
