Flinders Island (South Australia) facts for kids
 Flinders Island
Location in South Australia
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| Geography | |
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| Location | Great Australian Bight |
| Coordinates | 33°42′49″S 134°29′49″E / 33.71367°S 134.49686°E |
| Area | 3,642 ha (9,000 acres) |
| Highest elevation | 66 m (217 ft) |
| Administration | |
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Australia
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Flinders Island is an island in the Investigator Group off the coast of South Australia approximately 32 kilometres (20 mi) west of mainland town Elliston. It was named by Matthew Flinders after his younger brother Samuel Flinders, the second lieutenant on HMS Investigator in 1802.
It is part of the Investigator Islands Important Bird Area and has a colony of little penguins, but has suffered from the feral cats, black rats and mice, which threaten the bird life. The island is privately owned and was used mostly for farming since 1911, although that tailed off as transport costs rose. In 2020 the owners signed an agreement with the Government of South Australia which places a conservation agreement over 3,400 hectares (8,400 acres), which is most of the island.
The island has been subject to diamond exploration following the discovery of a wide range of kimberlite indicator minerals there, which was continuing as of 2019[update].
Contents
Little penguin colony
Flinders Island supports a colony of little penguins which in 2006 was believed to be "probably declining", with a population of less than twenty birds. An account of Flinders Island's wildlife published in 1934 stated that penguins could "be seen waddling soldier-like among the rocks and cave entrances that constitute their homes."
History
European discovery and use
Flinders named the island after Samuel Flinders, the sloop’s second lieutenant and his younger brother on Saturday, 13 February 1802.
The Flinders Island Whaling and Sealing Site is listed on the South Australian Heritage Register.
Protected area status
Reserves declared by the South Australian government
A strip of land along the north coast of the island extending west from the island’s most northerly headland, Point Malcolm, has the subject of the subject of a heritage agreement since 29 August 1995. The parcel of land which is identified as No. HA1003 is sized at 279 hectares (690 acres)*.
Non-statutory arrangements
Flinders Island is one of the islands included in the Investigator Islands Important Bird Area (sic) identified by BirdLife International.
