The reserves of Canberra Nature Park are located on Ngunnawal Country, an ancient and diverse landscape managed by Ngunnawal people for tens of thousands of years. For time immemorial Ngunnawal people have maintained a tangible and intangible cultural, social, environmental, spiritual, and economic connection to these lands and waters.
Canberra Nature Park is made up of 39 nature reserves in and around Canberra. Most Canberrans reside within walking distance of a Canberra Nature Park reserve, where they can explore quiet grasslands, walk through woodlands filled with birdsong, or hike to the summits of Canberra's peaks and ridges to enjoy eagle's-eye views.
Nature reserves are created to protect and conserve animals and plants that have high conservation value, and their habitat. Reserves are also an important place for scientific research, education, and nature-based recreation.
A plan of management is in place to ensure the protection of a healthy ecosystem for the plants and animals that live in the reserves of Canberra Nature Park and so that visitors' enjoyment of the reserves is sustainable. Park rangers are guided by the plan in their efforts to:
- protect and restore biodiversity
- preserve heritage sites
- research and monitor natural values
- manage threats (weeds, pest animals, visitor impacts, the effects of urbanisation and climate change)
- manage fire
- engage with the community
Canberra Nature Park reserves form part of valuable wildlife corridors, supporting the movement of some species through urban Canberra and into surrounding bushland within the broader region. Protected areas like Canberra Nature Park are increasingly recognised as critical links to building and improving ecological connectivity across the wider landscape, and strengthening resilience against disturbance or threats such as climate change.
Many heritage sites, both Aboriginal and European, are protected within the reserves of Canberra Nature Park and listed on the ACT Heritage Register.
The ACT Parks and Conservation Service manages Canberra Nature Park. ParkCare volunteers also care for many reserves – ParkCare groups, active since the 1980s, have done much to improve the condition of reserves and promote their values. In some reserves, they have transformed the landscape removing massive quantities of woody weeds and replacing them with native plants.
Canberra Nature Park reserves are protected under the Nature Conservation Act 2014. Thank you for taking care of the natural environment.
