Piccaninnie Ponds Conservation Park, formerly the Piccaninnie Ponds National Park, is a protected area of 862 ha located in southeastern South Australia near Mount Gambier.

Description

The Piccaninnie Ponds Conservation Park is located in the south-east of South Australia in the gazetted locality of Wye on the continental coastline overlooking Discovery Bay about 490 km southeast of the state capital of Adelaide and 30 km south-east of the city of Mount Gambier. The conservation park conserves a wetland fed by freshwater springs in a karst landscape. It is close to the border with Victoria and is part of the Discovery Bay to Piccaninnie Ponds Important Bird Area, identified by BirdLife International as being of global significance for several bird species. It is a listed Ramsar site. The park contains a walking track through coastal woodland to a viewing platform overlooking the wetlands.

Recreational diving

Piccaninnie Ponds is a popular site for both snorkelling and cave diving. In 1964–1965, prior to its proclamation as a national park in 1969, underwater explorer Valerie Taylor described the ponds as "one of the most beautiful sights in Australia" and said that the crystal clear water gave her a feeling of unhindered flight. It contains three main features of interest to cave divers. The ‘First Pond’ is an open depression about 10 m deep with a silt floor and vegetated fringe supporting much aquatic life. The ‘Chasm’ is a sinkhole with a depth of over 100 m, and the ‘Cathedral’ is an enclosed area with limestone formations and a depth of about 35 m. Underwater visibility is excellent and may exceed 40 m. Snorkelling and cave diving at Piccaninnie Ponds is by permit only.

Accidents

Several divers have died while exploring the caves beneath Piccaninnie Ponds, in 1972, 1974 and 1984.

Flora and fauna

Piccaninnie Ponds contains a number of rare and endangered species of native plants and animals including fish, crustaceans and tortoises.