The not-so-plain Nullarbor

Today the Nullarbor Plain is jokingly referred to as “Nullaboring” for its vast, arid landscape, devoid of trees and colour.

But there’s a secret to the Nullarbor that has only just been revealed: its hidden past as a once-lush, vegetation-dense forest of gums and eucalyptus trees, banksias and other flowering plants now found exclusively on Australia’s east coast.

Just 3.5 million years ago, it was a very different place. How do we know this?

It all comes down to our new approach to deciphering the environmental history of arid regions.