Minilya River
| Minilya River | |
|---|---|
| Mouth | Lake MacLeod |
| Basin countries | Australia |
| Length | 210 kilometres (130 mi) |
| Source elevation | 275 metres (902 ft)[1] |
| Mouth elevation | sea level |
| Avg. discharge | 44847 ML/annum[2] |
| Basin area | 52,662 square kilometres (20,333 sq mi)[3] |
The Minilya River is a river in the Gascoyne of Western Australia.
The headwaters of the river rise in the south-west of the Black Range then flows in a westerly direction crossing the North West Coastal Highway near the Minilya Roadhouse then later discharging into Lake MacLeod. The area is semi-arid with a landscape of woodland and scrub used for sheep and cattle grazng.
The Minilya has three tributaries; Minilya River South, Bee Well Creek and Naughton Creek.
The name of the river is aboriginal in origin but its meaning is unknown. The first Europeans to discover the river were the explorers who named it; Charles Brockman and George Hamersley who visited the area in 1876.[4] Brockman and Hamersley also named the Lyndon River and Brockman later took up a 40,000 acres (16,187 ha) lease known as Boolathana then another property, Minilya Station.[5]
The traditional owners of the area is the Targari and Baljungu peoples.[6]
The soils throughout the river basin are eroded and the regional ecology is degraded as a result of cattle grazing from the numerous pastoral stations found through the area. As a result fencing has been installed through the length of the river, water tanks and troughs installed and establishment of new grazing yards.[7]
The Minilya is prone to occasional flooding following heavy rain events as it did in 1905.[8] More flooding occurred 1918 when Minilya Station recorded 7.58 inches (193 mm) in just over two months isolating the homestead.[9] Further flooding occurred in 1942 with many station homesteads being left isolated.[10]
References
- ↑ "Bonzle Digital Atlas – Map of Minilya River". 2010. Retrieved 6 June 2010.
- ↑ "Department of Water – River Monitoring Stations – Minilya River". 2010. Retrieved 6 June 2010.
- ↑ "Australian Natural Resources Atlas – Water Resources Overview". 2009. Retrieved 10 June 2010.
- ↑ Western Australian Land Information Authority. "History of river names". Retrieved 6 June 2010.
- ↑ "Pioneers of the Gascoyne". The West Australian (Perth: National Library of Australia). 9 February 1935. p. 5. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
- ↑ "Ausanthrop – Australian Aboriginal Tribal Database". 2010. Retrieved 6 June 2010.
- ↑ "Rangelands – Case Study – Protection and Conservation of the Minilya/Lyndon River Basin". 2008. Retrieved 10 June 2010.
- ↑ "Heavy rain in the north". The Daily News (Perth: National Library of Australia). 27 December 1905. p. 3. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
- ↑ "Minilya Station". The Northern Times (Carnarvon, Western Australia: National Library of Australia). 9 March 1918. p. 5. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
- ↑ "Carnarvon Isolated.". The Daily News (Perth: National Library of Australia). 10 February 1942. p. 9. Retrieved 28 September 2013.
Coordinates: 23°47′15″S 114°4′40″E / 23.78750°S 114.07778°E