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Billabong Sanctuary
The Billabong Sanctuary is an wildlife sanctuary in Nome, south of Townsville, North Queensland, Australia. Animals The sanctuary is a permanent home to over 100 species of Australian mammals and reptiles such as kangaroos, wallabies, koalas, wombats, crocodiles, and birds including parrots and cassowaries. In addition, the natural billabong (lake) at the center of the sanctuary is host to many visiting animals, some of which will breed and raise their young at the sanctuary. Visitors to the sanctuary can take guided or self-guided tours through the natural tropical bush. Breeding programs Breeding programs at the sanctuary include the southern cassowary, estuarine crocodile, northern bettong, common wombat, koala, nail-tail wallaby, eclectus parrot, black-headed python, and from September 2016 Greater Bilby. Awards The Billabong Sanctuary has won several awards, including the North Queensland Tourism Awards for Eco-tourism (2002 & 2006) and the Townsville City Council ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nome, Queensland
Nome is a rural locality in the City of Townsville, Queensland, Australia. In the , Nome had a population of 1,016 people. Geography The Bruce Highway forms the southern boundary of the locality. The North Coast railway line enters the locality from the east ( Cape Cleveland) and roughly follows Nome's southern boundary before exiting to the west ( Julago). There were a number of railway stations in the locality, all now abandoned (from north to south): * Nome railway station () * Alligator Creek railway station () * Killymoon railway station () Oolbun is a neighbourhood on the northern boundary in the locality (). The locality has the following mountains: * Mount Matthew () * Woodstock Hill () Nome has an area of 53.1 square kilometers and an average elevation of 39 meters above sea level. History The locality's name is derived the from railway station name, which in turn is believed to be a corruption of NQME (North Queensland Meat Export) Siding. In the , Nome had a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Bush
"The bush" is a term mostly used in the English vernacular of Australia and New Zealand where it is largely synonymous with '' backwoods'' or ''hinterland'', referring to a natural undeveloped area. The fauna and flora contained within this area must be indigenous to the region, although exotic species will often also be present. The Australian and New Zealand usage of the word "bush" for "forest" or scrubland, probably comes from the Dutch word "bos/bosch" ("forest"), used by early Dutch settlers in South Africa, where it came to signify uncultivated country among Afrikaners. Many English-speaking early European settlers to South Africa later migrated to Australia or New Zealand and brought the term with them. Today, in South Africa Fynbos tends to refer to the heath vegetation of the Western Cape and Eastern Cape. It is also widely used in Canada to refer to the large, forested portion of the country. The same usage applies in the US state of Alaska. History Indigenous A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zoos In Queensland
A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility in which animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for conservation purposes. The term ''zoological garden'' refers to zoology, the study of animals. The term is derived from the Greek , , 'animal', and the suffix , , 'study of'. The abbreviation ''zoo'' was first used of the London Zoological Gardens, which was opened for scientific study in 1828 and to the public in 1847."Landmarks in ZSL History" , Zoological Society of London. In the alone, zoos are visited by over 181 million people annually. Etymology [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tourist Attractions In Queensland
Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as being limited to holiday activity only", as people "travelling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure and not less than 24 hours, business and other purposes". Tourism can be domestic (within the traveller's own country) or international, and international tourism has both incoming and outgoing implications on a country's balance of payments. Tourism numbers declined as a result of a strong economic slowdown (the late-2000s recession) between the second half of 2008 and the end of 2009, and in consequence of the outbreak of the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus, but slowly recovered until the COVID-19 pa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Zoos Established In 1985
A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility in which animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for conservation purposes. The term ''zoological garden'' refers to zoology, the study of animals. The term is derived from the Greek , , 'animal', and the suffix , , 'study of'. The abbreviation ''zoo'' was first used of the London Zoological Gardens, which was opened for scientific study in 1828 and to the public in 1847."Landmarks in ZSL History" , Zoological Society of London. In the alone, zoos are visited by over 181 million people annually. Etymology [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1985 Establishments In Australia
The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a new agreement on fishing rights. * January 7 – Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency launches ''Sakigake'', Japan's first interplanetary spacecraft and the first deep space probe to be launched by any country other than the United States or the Soviet Union. * January 15 – Tancredo Neves is elected president of Brazil by the Congress, ending the 21-year military rule. * January 20 – Ronald Reagan is privately sworn in for a second term as President of the United States. * January 27 – The Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) is formed, in Tehran. * January 28 – The charity single record "We Are the World" is recorded by USA for Africa. February * February 4 – The border between Gibraltar and Spai ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Townsville City Council
The City of Townsville is a local government area (LGA) located in North Queensland, Australia. It encompasses the city of Townsville, together with the surrounding rural areas, to the south are the communities of Alligator Creek, Woodstock and Reid River, and to the north are Northern Beaches and Paluma, and also included is Magnetic Island. In June 2018 the area had a population of 194,072, and is the 28th-largest LGA in Australia. Townsville is considered to be the unofficial capital of North Queensland. History Prior to 2008, the new City of Townsville was an entire area of two previous and distinct local government areas: * the former City of Townsville; * and the City of Thuringowa. The City of Townsville was first established as the Borough of Townsville under the ''Municipal Institutions Act 1864'' on 15 February 1866. The surrounding rural area, which was given the name Thuringowa Division, was established on 11 November 1879 as one of 74 divisions around Queensl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eco-tourism
Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving responsible travel (using sustainable transport) to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide funds for ecological conservation, to directly benefit the economic development and political empowerment of local communities, or to foster respect for different cultures and for human rights. Since the 1980s, ecotourism has been considered a critical endeavor by environmentalists, so that future generations may experience destinations relatively untouched by human intervention. Ecotourism may focus on educating travelers on local environments and natural surroundings with an eye to ecological conservation. Some include in the definition of ecotourism the effort to produce economic opportunities that make conservation of natural resources financially possible. Generally, ecotourism deals with interaction with biotic components of the natura ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greater Bilby
The greater bilby (''Macrotis lagotis''), often referred to simply as the bilby since the lesser bilby (''Macrotis leucura'') became extinct in the 1950s, is an Australian species of nocturnal omnivorous animal in the order Peramelemorphia. Other vernacular names include dalgyte, pinkie, or rabbit-eared bandicoot. Greater bilbies live in arid parts of northwestern and central Australia. Their range and population is in decline. Etymology and other names The term ''bilby'' is a loan word from the Yuwaalaraay Aboriginal language of northern New South Wales, meaning long-nosed rat. It is also known as ''dalgyte'' in Western Australia by the Noongar people. The Wiradjuri of New South Wales also call it ''bilby''. Other names include pinkie and rabbit-eared bandicoot. Taxonomy Nomenclature A scientific description of the greater bilby was first published in 1837 by a Mr J. Reid. Reid based his description on a specimen that he erroneously stated to have come from Van Diemen's ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aspidites Melanocephalus
The black-headed python (''Aspidites melanocephalus'') Mehrtens JM (1987). ''Living Snakes of the World in Color''. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. . is a species of snake in the Pythonidae (the python family). The species is endemic to Australia. No subspecies are currently recognized. Description Adults of ''A. melanocephalus'' typically grow to in total length (including tail), Burnie D, Wilson DE (Editors-in-Chief) (2001). ''Animal''. London: Dorling Kindersley. 624 pp. . but can grow to a maximum of . The body is muscular with a flattened profile, while the tail tapers to a thin point. The top of the head is covered by large, symmetrical scales. The dorsal scales, which are smooth and glossy, number 50-65 rows at midbody, while 315-355 ventral scales occur. The tail has 60-75 mainly single subcaudal scales and the anal scale is single. The posterior subcaudals tend to be divided, often irregularly. The color pattern consists of shades of black, dark grey, brow ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eclectus Parrot
The eclectus parrot (''Eclectus roratus'') is a parrot native to the Solomon Islands, Sumba, New Guinea and nearby islands, northeastern Australia, and the Maluku Islands (Moluccas). It is unusual in the parrot family for its extreme sexual dimorphism of the colours of the plumage; the male having a mostly bright emerald green plumage and the female a mostly bright red and purple/blue plumage. Joseph Forshaw, in his book ''Parrots of the World,'' noted that the first European ornithologists to see eclectus parrots thought they were of two distinct species. Large populations of this parrot remain, and they are sometimes considered pests for eating fruit off trees. Some populations restricted to relatively small islands are comparably rare. Their bright feathers are also used by native tribespeople in New Guinea as decorations. Taxonomy Ornithologists usually classify the eclectus parrot as a member of tribe Psittaculini in the family Psittacidae of order Psittaciformes. However, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nail-tail Wallaby
Nail-tail wallaby refers to ''Onychogalea'', a genus describing three species of macropods, all of which are found in Australia. Related to kangaroos and wallabies, they are smaller sized species distinguished by a horny spur at the end of their tail. The northern nail-tail wallaby is still common in the northern part of Australia, the crescent nail-tail is now extinct, and the bridled nail-tail is considered rare and endangered, with probably fewer than 1100 mature individuals in the wild.International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resource"Onychogalea fraenata" The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, 2008 Nail-tail wallabies are smaller than many other wallabies. Taxonomy There are three recognised species of the genus ''Onychogalea'', the nail-tailed wallabies, they are: * '' Onychogalea fraenata'', the bridled nailtail, whose range and population has greatly declined since colonisation; * ''Onychogalea lunata'', the crescent nailtail, warong, once abundant ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
