The Fleurieu Peninsula () is a peninsula in the Australian state of South Australia located south of the state capital of Adelaide. History Before British colonisation of South Australia, the western side of the peninsula was occupied by the Kaurna people, while several clans of the Ngarrindjeri lived on the eastern side. The people were sustained by the flora and fauna of the peninsula, for food and bush medicine. The bulrushes, reeds and sedges were used for basket-weaving or making rope, trees provided wood for spears, and stones were fashioned into tools. The Fleurieu Peninsula was named after Charles Pierre Claret de Fleurieu, the French explorer and hydrographer, by the French explorer Nicolas Baudin as he explored the south coast of Australia in 1802. The name came into official use in 1911 after Fleurieu's great-nephew, Count Alphonse de Fleurieu, visited Adelaide and met with the Council of the Royal Geographical Society of South Australia, which recommended to the state government that the unnamed peninsula terminating in Cape Jervis be given the name Fleurieu Peninsula "in honour of one who is worthy to be remembered in the annals of Australian geography". The government approved the name later that year. Extent The Geographical Names Advisory Committee advised in 2001 that the extent of the peninsula is:that portion of land between Gulf St. Vincent and the Southern Ocean (sic), a line from Aldinga (sic) (southern end of Aldinga Bay) to Middleton (eastern end) being the cut-off for the peninsula. This boundary has not to be gazetted at present, and is intended to be the extent of the geographic feature only and is not to be applied to any industry or interest group regional identification. The coast of the peninsula stretches from around from Sellicks Beach in the north to Middleton in the south-east. Features Towns on the peninsula include Victor Harbor, Normanville, Yankalilla and Rapid Bay. Districts include Inman Valley and Hindmarsh Valley. A ferry travels between Cape Jervis, at the tip of the peninsula, and Kangaroo Island. There is surfing on both the west and south facing coasts – known locally to Adelaide surfers as the Mid South Coast and the Far South Coast. Surf spots of note include Waitpinga and Middleton on the Far South Coast. Flora and fauna In the past, there were extensive swamps and woodlands, which provided habitat and food sources for a range of birds, fish, and