Swanvale Jump Up (Kuungkari Country, South West Queensland)

            Jump Ups are a feature of both the Mitchell Grass Downs and the Channel Country. They can form spectacular visual features on an otherwise monotonous horizon as the traveller traverses the broad featureless plains common to this area of Australia. Their elevation in a flat landscape provides wonderful vantage points, with the landscape rolling away for as far as the eye can see, exposing geographic features clearly. 

These remnants of a much older landscape have not been worn down by erosion to the extent of the landscape below. They are capped by unusually hard rock formed when naturally occurring chemicals cement the surface creating a Lateritic formation, protecting the softer rock beneath. Laterite, derived from the Latin word for brick or tile, is a surface rock rich in iron and aluminium, formed in hot and wet tropical areas. It is developed by the intensive and long term weathering of underlying rock which has been decomposed by the combination of high rainfall and elevated temperatures. 

The rainwater has caused the dissolution of the primary rock minerals and a decrease of easily soluble elements such as sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium and silicon, giving rise to residual concentration or more soluble elements, predominately iron or aluminium. Laterites consist mainly of the minerals kaolinite, goethite, hematite and gibbsite which form in the course of weathering. Moreover, many laterites contain quartz as relatively stable relic material from the parent rock. The iron oxides, goethite and hematite, cause the red-brown colour of laterites. 

These formations are the product of former geologic epochs, 220 million years ago, the Great Artesian Basin was created when enormous tectonic forces down warped the region which then began to fill with the sediments of ancient rivers and lakes. The environment was more akin to that of the Amazon Basin of today.

A series of shallow inland seas then flooded the continent. Over the next twenty million years, the seas retreated north, leaving behind deep layers of sand and mud which compressed into rock. It was these layers that underwent heavy weathering and erosion carving the landscape we see today. These processes also formed the world-famous opal mined in the area. 

With thin, rocky soils, these jump ups support flora and fauna ideally adapted for survival in a harsh environment. Spinifex can fuel fantastic seasonal fires, either deliberately lite to clear dead plant material and promote new growth, or as a result of lightning strikes from summer storms. Mulga is often twisted and distorted as tress scrabble in search of a foothold and nutrition. After rains, the jump ups soften Hardy shrubs like cassia, turkey bush and senna burst into bloom. Water collects in deep rock holes. 

Aboriginal tribes passing through this inhospitable country carved native wells to converse precious water for dry times. The rock holes become a focal point for birds and animals while the water lasts. Domestic stock rarely venture up these formations, so they form natural barriers creating a refuge, particularly for a wide variety of reptiles. for wallaroos and for dingoes. However, they also create a haven for thousands of feral goats.

Source: Barcoo Shire Council.

Taken on: January 1, 2019

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Sets appears in: • Channel Country (Boulia, Bedourie, & Birdsville)

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Camera: Nikon D5600, f/14.0, 1/320 sec, 13mm (=19mm), ISO 100 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Nikon D5600
Lens:	TAMRON SP AF 10-24mm F3.5-4.5 Di II LD Aspherical IF B001N
Aperture:	f/14.0
Exposure Time:	0.003 sec (1/320)
Focal Length:	13mm (35mm equivalent: 19mm)
ISO:	100
Exposure Bias:	+2/3 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Manual
Exposure Mode:	Manual
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Saturation:	Low
Sharpness:	Hard
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classic 8.4.1 (Windows)
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