320 million years ago, when the supercontinent of Pangea was breaking up to form smaller supercontinents including Gondwana, southern Bruny Island lay below the ocean. Muddy sediments and sand deposited on the ocean floor gradually became rock, and between 280 and 220 million years ago this formed part of a broad freshwater plain that deposited sandy sediments on top of previous layers.
Over time these layers of sediment became the sandstone of today.
Then 174 million years ago, huge volumes of magma rose from deep inside the Earth's crust, then hardening to form the dolerite that dominates the Southern part of Bruny Island today and can be seen prominently in the dolerite cliffs of places like Fluted Cape.
This coincided with the breaking up of Gondwanaland and the formation of the continental formations of today.
At the end of the last ice age, sea levels rose to around their present levels 6,000 years ago, and in the process of the rising of sea levels, large volumes of sand were brought from the ocean floor and can be found in parts of Southern Bruny such as Cloudy Bay and the Labillardiere Peninsula.
Reference: Buckman, G. (2002, p.247-248). Tasmania's National Parks - A Visitor's Guide. Lindisfarne, Tasmania. Advance Publicity/Greg Buckman
Lead Photo: "Cliffs of Gold" by Warwick Berry.
320 million years ago, when the supercontinent of Pangea was breaking up to form smaller supercontinents including Gondwana, southern Bruny Island lay below the ocean. Muddy sediments and sand deposited on the ocean floor gradually became rock, and between 280 and 220 million years ago this formed part of a broad freshwater plain that deposited sandy sediments on top of previous layers.
Over time these layers of sediment became the sandstone of today.
Then 174 million years ago, huge volumes of magma rose from deep inside the Earth's crust, then hardening to form the dolerite that dominates the Southern part of Bruny Island today and can be seen prominently in the dolerite cliffs of places like Fluted Cape.
This coincided with the breaking up of Gondwanaland and the formation of the continental formations of today.
At the end of the last ice age, sea levels rose to around their present levels 6,000 years ago, and in the process of the rising of sea levels, large volumes of sand were brought from the ocean floor and can be found in parts of Southern Bruny such as Cloudy Bay and the Labillardiere Peninsula.
Reference: Buckman, G. (2002, p.247-248). Tasmania's National Parks - A Visitor's Guide. Lindisfarne, Tasmania. Advance Publicity/Greg Buckman
Lead Photo: "Cliffs of Gold" by Warwick Berry.
Bruny is a lovely, beautiful and fun place to explore by bicycle, with a wide variety of natural vistas and landscapes – a microcosm of the nature of Tasmania - packed into a remote yet accessible island.
Experienced advocate for environmental and social change, Paul Oosting, reflects on how childhood experiences led him to a lifetime commitment to nature
Dr Eric Woehler has been asked a few times where his passion and interest came from. He grew up in Hobart in a caring home, but nature wasn’t something that was a thread in conversations. That inspiration happened at university.
I really enjoy watching it all happen. Just slowly, observing the cycles. I really notice the bird life, because that comes to your door. Then, there's a lot of marine life. It's a big part of every day, reflects composer and guitarist Julius Schwing, on his connection to Nature and a childhood spent "amongst it all" on Bruny Island.
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