World Heritage listing
The Greater Blue Mountains Area was unanimously listed as a
World Heritage Area by UNESCO on 29 November 2000, becoming the
fourth area in New South Wales to be listed. The area totals
roughly 10,000 square kilometres (3,900 sq mi), including the
Blue Mountains, Kanangra-Boyd, Wollemi, Gardens of Stone, Yengo,
Nattai and Thirlmere Lakes National Parks, plus the Jenolan
Caves Karst Conservation Reserve.
This site was chosen to be included on the World Heritage list
because:
Australia’s eucalypt vegetation is worthy of recognition as of
outstanding universal value, because of its adaptability and
evolution in post-Gondwana isolation. The site contains a wide
and balanced representation of eucalypt habitats from wet and
dry sclerophyll, mallee heathlands, as well as localised swamps,
wetlands, and grassland. 90 eucalypti tax (13% of the global
total) and representation of all four groups of eucalypts occur.
There is also a high level of endemism with 114 endemic taxa
found in the area as well as 120 nationally rare and threatened
plant tax. The site hosts several evolutionary relic species
(Wollemia, Microstrobos, Acrophyllum) which have persisted in
highly restricted micro sites.
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