Formerly known as Shanes Park Reserve, Yiraaldiya National Park is located in western Sydney on the Cumberland Plain. It’s about 40km north-west of the Sydney CBD and 10km north-east of Penrith. The park lies in the traditional country of the Darug People.

Yiraaldiya National Park protects a significant remnant of mostly unchanged Cumberland Plain bushland, in a landscape that has been significantly altered by agriculture and urban development. The park protects 9 threatened animal species, 5 threatened plant species and 6 threatened ecological communities.

Yiraaldiya National Park is also a feral predator-free area. This means that feral predators, such as red foxes and feral cats, are being eradicated from the park. Locally extinct native wildlife are being reintroduced, including eastern bettongs, koalas, long-nosed bandicoots, and the New Holland mouse. The New Holland mouse was presumed extinct in NSW until it was rediscovered in Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park in 1967.

For this reason, there is no access to the park while the feral predator-free area is being established. Once complete, the park will open for sustainable visitor access and enjoyment, and educational and research opportunities.

Find out more about the feral predator-free areas project.