Naracoorte Caves
The Naracoorte Caves National Park is a world-renowned treasure, housing ancient fossils from four major vertebrate groups: amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. The onsite Wonambi Fossil Centre takes visitors on a journey through time, teaching about the region's past and its diverse former inhabitants, including 20 kangaroo species. The caves have served as natural traps and shelters for over 500,000 years, resulting in a rich repository of skeletal remains. The Flinders University Gallery demonstrates the research methods scientists use to uncover this fascinating history.
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Around 120 species of vertebrate animals have been recorded to date. They represent four of the major vertebrate groups: amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. The interpretive centre also shows you how the caves have acted as pitfall traps, dens and roosts for more than 500,000 years, leading to a vast accumulation of skeletal remains of reptiles, birds and mammals. The Fossil Centre recreates a time when the local animal community was more diverse than today. For example, 200,000 years ago there were some 20 kangaroo species in the area. Now there are just four. Find out about how scientists use the fossils to unravel the past in the Flinders University Gallery, a fascinating showcase of the different methods used to research the ancient history of the caves.
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