Gascoyne (Western Australia)

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Location of Gascoyne in Western Australia

The Gascoyne region is one of the nine regions of Western Australia. It is located in the north west of Western Australia, and consists of the local government areas of Carnarvon, Exmouth, Shark Bay and Upper Gascoyne. The Gascoyne contains about 600 km of Indian Ocean coastline, and extends inland about 500 km; altogether it has an area of 137,938 km² (including islands). It has the lowest population and lowest population density of any region of Western Australia, with a population of just over 10,000 people, most of whom live in the main towns of Carnarvon, Exmouth, Denham, Gascoyne Junction and Coral Bay.

The Gascoyne has a moderate arid tropical climate. It is generally warm all year round, with mean maximum daily temperatures ranging from 22°C (72°F) in July to 35°C (95°F) in January. The region receives about 320 days of sunshine per year. Annual rainfall is low and variable, averaging about 200 mm (8 in), most of which occurs as a result of cyclonic activity. Because of the semi-arid climate, most of the Gascoyne is covered in scrub, primarily Spinifex and Mulga, with very little tree cover.

The Gascoyne has a diverse economy. Tourism is a major industry, due to the warm, dry climate and the long coastline, which includes the Ningaloo Reef and the World Heritage listed nature reserve at Shark Bay. Pastoralism is an important industry, and represents the region's main land use: 84% of the Gascoyne's land area is covered by pastoral leases. The Gascoyne also has a substantial mining sector, mainly based on extraction of salt and gypsum.

Before its discovery by Westerners, the Gascoyne had been home to Indigenous Australians for many thousands of years. The first known westerner to land in the region was Dirk Hartog in 1616; other early visitors include Willem Jansz, William Dampier, Nicolas Baudin, and Phillip King. In 1839, George Grey explored the area and gave the Gascoyne River its name. Shark Bay became the site of Australia's first pearling industry in the 1850s. In 1858 Francis Gregory explored the region and subsequently publicised it as highly suitable to pastoralism. Settlement began in the 1860s, and Carnarvon was gazetted in 1883.