Category Social Sciences

The Westland Tai Poutini National park stretches from the highest peaks of Southern Alps to a remote coastline. Within this stretch, it contains glaciers, lakes, dense temperate rainforests, the remains of old gold mining towns along the coast and even hot springs. There are sixty named glaciers in Westland Tail Poutini National Park!

Both rain and snow falls on the park. There are three main rivers that originate in the park; they empty into the Tasman Sea. The diverse geological forms support a variety of plant and animal life. Gillespies Beach in the park is home to the only species of fur seal breeding on the New Zealand mainland. A sizeable bird population thrives on the vegetation in the park that includes huge pines and cypresses, and subalpine scrubs. The birds in the park range from ducks and kingfishers to skylarks and falcons. Himalayan tahr too can be spotted here.

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The sand dunes in Sigatoka became the first national park in Fiji. These sand dunes were continuously forming for thousands of years as a result of coastal erosion and are 20-60 metres tall.

Sigatoka National Park supports a sand dune ecosystem, and is home to different varieties of plants and 22 species of birds. This place is of archaeological importance as well. Several excavations have been carried out in this site and the findings include pottery that is more than 2600 years old. The dunes came under the management of the National Trust of Fiji in 1989.

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Freycinet National Park, noted for its range of rare and endemic flora and fauna, as well as the diversity of landscapes and communities is also the oldest national park in Tasmania. Granite mountains, sandy beaches, dunes and estuaries dominate the landscape of Freycinet National Park.

A place of scenic beauty, Freycinet National Park is also noted for its flora and fauna; forty-nine endemic species are found at Freycinet. Whales, particularly southern right whales are frequent visitors here. The fauna of Freycinet include brushtail possum, sugar glider, humpback whale and bottlenose dolphins. The Tasmanian devil was once a common sight at the park. Now there is a significant drop in their numbers due to a cancer known as the Devil Facial Tumour Disease. The Park has a vivid plant life as well; more than 500 plants have been recorded within the park including more than 80 species of orchids.

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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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