Category World Famous National Parks

Coloured sand, large sand dunes, healthlands, untouched beaches, rainforests, swamps, creeks, freshwater lakes and mangrove forests – the Great Sandy National Park has got them all. This coastal national park is a geological marvel. Thousands of tourists come here every year to see the coloured sand.

The coloured sands were formed when the old sand get mixed with clay to form a consolidated mass. The colours are a reflection of the iron-rich minerals embedded in the sand for thousands of years. It is brought to the surface by wind and water eroding the land. One can find red, brown, and yellow sand in Great Sandy National Park.

Great Sandy National Park is divided into two sections – the Cooloola Recreation Area and Fraser Coast Important Bird Area. The Fraser Coast Important Bird Area supports a huge bird population including black-breasted button-quails, regent bowerbirds and mangrove honeyeaters.

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Though isolated from other landmasses of Australia, Christmas Island is spectacular. It is rich in biodiversity and home to several endemic species.

Christmas Island has uniquely structured rainforests and wetlands that shelter millions of animals, birds, insects and reptiles. You would be surprised to know that 45 million red crabs live in this island! Every year, around 80,000 birds nest in Christmas Island. Most of the animals and plants found in this national park are not found elsewhere in the world. Many of the animals here have Christmas Island gecko, Christmas Island blind snake and Christmas Island shrew.

At least 200 species of endemic plants are found in Christmas Island. The plant life here is influenced by warm temperatures, heavy rainfall and the soil type.

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Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park is named after two of Australia’s most spectacular sites-Uluru, a sandstone monolith and Kata Tjuta a conglomeration of red rock domes. Both Uluru and Kata Tjuta are regarded as sacred spots as some Aboriginal communities believe that their ancestral beings still live here. The Anangu are the traditional Aboriginal owners of Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park.

Uluru is made of a type of rock called arkose with flaky red surface containing grey patches. The flakes are in fact bits of rock left after water and oxygen have decayed the minerals in the rock. Kata Tjuta is a large dome-like structure made of pebbles and boulders that are cemented by sand and mud. Most of the pieces are granite and basalt, and look like a plum-pudding. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is home to hundreds of plants, birds, reptiles and animals.

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Most of us know about Port Campbell as a scenic coast with limestone formations that would make a good photograph.

We have seen these limestone formations near the Great Ocean Road on our desktop background. But, there is much more in Port Campbell than the cliffs, rock stacks, gorges, arches, and blow-holes.

A wide variety of birds thrive on the fragile ecosystem in Port Campbell National Park including honeyeaters, southern emu, fairy wrens, swamp harriers, Rufous bristlebird, peregrine falcons, pelicans, ducks, black swans and egrets.

These birds are found in the grasslands and health lands of Port Campbell. Along with these, Australasian gannets, wandering albatrosses and short-tailed shearwaters live out at sea. Penguins are also seen near the shore line.

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Undara Volcanic National Park is noted for its lava tubes and rich mineral deposits. For millions of years, Undara was an active shield volcano.

A massive eruption occurred in the volcano. The lava tubes and caves that we see today were formed when rivers of lava confined to a valley crusted over and formed a roof.

The lava tubes in the Undara Volcanic National Park contain the remains of the Earth’s longest flow of lava originating from a single volcanic crater. Numerous caves were formed within the lava tubes and these are now fertile pockets in which plant and animal species thrive.

Out of these, Bayliss Cave is considered one of the world’s most important, biologically diverse caves. The mineral wealth of the Park includes topaz, moonstone, peridot, aquamarine, gamet, quartz and gold. The Park also has many perennial springs which provide important habitats for a range of wildlife.

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Daintree rainforest is one of the oldest rainforests in the world. Home to many rare species, the Daintree rainforest has a significant bird population. This rainforest has more than 430 bird species, 23 reptiles and at least thirteen amphibians. The Daintree National Park is divided into two sections with an agricultural settlement in the middle.

The Daintree National Park is quite a spectacle; lush forests, the Daintree river and pristine beaches. Much of the national park is covered by tropical rainforest that has existed for more than 100 million year. The name comes from the Daintree river. The river was named by George Elphinstone Dalrymple, an early explorer of the area. He named the river after his friend Richard Daintree.

Picture Credit : Google