Location

Flinders Island is located offshore about 30 kilometres west of Elliston on the west coast of Eyre Peninsula.

Most of the holes drilled to test for kimberlites were directly under the indicator mineral anomalies, and no kimberlites were located. However, a number of indicator anomalies in samples just above basement are the strongest evidence of a local kimberlite source. The photo (Fig 1) of the granite-sandstone unconformity shows that bedrock clasts of local derivation are present. FMS’s interpretation of the data is that the indicator minerals have been blown to their present position by the south to southwesterly prevailing winds which deposited their host calcareous sandstone Bridgewater Formation. FMS is intending to explore for source kimberlites upwind to the southwest in an area that has not been previously drill tested.

Flinders Island

A review of the basement contours and ground gravity surveys over the northwest of Flinders Island, in the GEM Valley area, shows a coincidence of highest indicator counts in the basal gravels, with the topographic and gravity lows (map below). Although the topographic low may represent a buried bay, the fact that the high indicator counts appear to be concentrated in a relatively small area, of 300 metres by 300 metres over this buried bay, suggests a local source. It is planned to pattern drill this potential source of the kimberlite indicators during late 2008 or early 2009.

No field work was conducted on the Flinders Island project during the June 2008 - July 2009. As with Venus Bay, better understanding of the sub-surface geology is considered critical to explain previously recovered KIMs and diamonds.