| Birriliburu Indigenous Protected Area | |
|---|---|
  Location of Birriliburu Indigenous Protected Area in Western Australia | |
| Nearest city | Wiluna, Western Australia |
| Coordinates | 24°17′06″S124°21′00″E / 24.2851°S 124.3500°E /-24.2851; 124.3500 |
| Area | 5,571.99 km2 (2,151.36 sq mi) |
| Designation | Indigenous Protected Area |
| Designated | 2013 |
 | |
TheBirriliburu Indigenous Protected Area, also known asBirriliburu IPA, is anIndigenous Protected Area (IPA) covering an area of 6,600,000 hectares (16,000,000 acres) in theWestern Desert region ofWestern Australia, was declared in 2013.[2][3]
Stretching from the nationally significantCarnarvon Range (Katjarra[4]) to Constance Headland, along the famousCanning Stock Route, the IPA covers three central Western Desert regions: theLittle Sandy Desert,Gibson Desert and theGascoyne. The land belongs to the Birriliburunative title holders, known as theMartu people.[2] Three native title claims, dating from 2008, 2010 and 2011, were decided in 2016.[5]
There is a high level ofbiodiversity in this IPA, ranging from redsand dunes andsandstone mountain ranges tosalt lakes andclaypans. The area is home to a high number of nationally significant species, including theblack-flanked rock-wallaby,great desert skink,night parrot and theslender-billed thornbill.[2]
Ancientrock art sitesculturally significant to the Martu exist throughout Birriliburu IPA,[2] includingKarnatukul (Serpent's Glen).[6]
In 2014, the Birriliburu traditional owners and rangers reopened Katjarra for the month of July after it had been closed since 2008, with the hope of opening it to the public each July in the future. Permits were issued for 70 visitors, with an access fee of $100 access fee per vehicle. It was also hoped that more Aboriginal people, especially young people, would visit to reconnect with their culture.[4]
Text may have been copied from this source, which is available under aAttribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence. (seehere.The re-excavation of Karnatukul (Serpent's Glen) has provided evidence for the human occupation of the Australian Western Desert to before 47,830 cal. BP (modelled median age). This new sequence is 20,000 years older than the previous known age for occupation at this site