Pullen Island (South Australia)

For other places named Pullen Island, see Pullen Island (disambiguation).

Pullen Island

View from the coast of Horseshoe Bay
Pullen Island
Geography
Coordinates	35°32′22″S 138°41′24″E[1]
Adjacent to	Encounter Bay
Administration
Australia

Pullen Island is a 1 ha granite island lying 0.5 km offshore from the town of Port Elliot on the southern coast of the Fleurieu Peninsula of South Australia. It was originally named Lipson Island but was renamed in 1839 by W.J.S. Pullen, the Colonial Marine Surveyor, after himself. The island is protected by designation as the Pullen Island Conservation Park.^[2]

Description

About 300 m long, the island that is largely a mass of weathered granite boulders, with a cove and beach on the northern side providing a landing for small boats. There is little vegetation, though pockets of soil on the higher part of the island support a few plants including the native common boobialla and introduced African boxthorn, tree mallow and buckthorn. Seabirds breeding on the island include little penguins and silver gulls. There is also a large roost of feral pigeons.^[2]

Little penguin colony

The 2013 Encounter Bay penguin census conducted by penguin ecologist Dr. Diane Colombelli-Négrel from Flinders University found no penguins and no active burrows on Pullen Island. The census' report concluded that the colony had not recovered from a prior collapse.^[3]

Protected area status

Pullen Island has enjoyed protected area status since 2 September 1948 when it was declared as a closed area for birds under the Animals and Birds Protection Act 1919-1946.^[2] On 16 March 1967, the island gained status as a Fauna Conservation Reserve.^[4] In 1972, the reserve was re-dedicated as the Pullen Island Conservation Park following the enactment of the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972.^[2]

References

1. "Search result for "Pullen Island, IS" with the following datasets selected – "NPW and Conservation Reserve Boundaries", "Suburbs and Localities", "Local Government Areas"and "Gazetteer'". Location SA Map Viewer. Government of South Australia. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
2. Island conservation parks of Backstairs Passage and Encounter Bay management plans (PDF). Adelaide: National Parks and Wildlife Service, Department of Environment and Planning. 1983. pp. iii, 23–29. ISBN 0-7243-4588-4.
3. Colombelli-Négrel, D. & Kleindorfer, S. Penguin monitoring and conservation activities in the Gulf St Vincent July 2013 – June 2014. Report to the Adelaide and Mt Lofty Natural Resources Management Board, Flinders University, South Australia (2014-04). Retrieved 2014-07-27.
4. "CROWN LANDS ACT, 1929-1966: FAUNA CONSERVATION RESERVES DEDICATED" (PDF). THE SOUTH AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT GAZETTE. Government of South Australia. 16 March 1967. pp. 961–962. Retrieved 5 February 2018.