It is a pastoral lease on the southern border of Arnhem Land, and is 120 kilometres (75 mi) south-east of Kakadu National Park.
[1] The sanctuary occupies an area of 1,910 square kilometres (737 sq mi),[2] it is owned and managed by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC), which acquired it in 2007 following a public fundraising campaign and assistance from the Australian Government in the form of a grant of A$2.1 million from its National Reserve System Program.
[1] The landscape of Wongalara includes spinifex-covered ranges, sandstone plateaus and escarpments, eucalypt forests and woodlands, patches of monsoon rainforest and wetlands.
[3] Scientists come to the sanctuary during the dry season to trap and study mammals and conduct other research projects.
[5] By 2013 a 1,000 square kilometres (386 sq mi) section of the property has been fenced to protect wildlife from feral pests.