Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park is a
protected area
Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...
in the
Northern Territory of Australia
The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Aust ...
. The park is home to both
Uluru
Uluru (; pjt, Uluṟu ), also known as Ayers Rock ( ) and officially Gazette#Gazette as a verb, gazetted as UluruAyers Rock, is a large sandstone geological formation, formation in the centre of Australia. It is in the southern part of the ...
and
Kata Tjuta
Kata Tjuṯa / The Olgas (Pitjantjatjara: , lit. 'many heads'; ) is a group of large, domed rock formations or bornhardts located about southwest of Alice Springs, in the southern part of the Northern Territory, central Australia. Uluṟu / Aye ...
. It is located south of
Darwin by road and south-west of
Alice Springs
Alice Springs ( aer, Mparntwe) is the third-largest town in the Northern Territory of Australia. Known as Stuart until 31 August 1933, the name Alice Springs was given by surveyor William Whitfield Mills after Alice, Lady Todd (''née'' Al ...
along the Stuart and Lasseter Highways. The park covers and includes the features it is named after:
Uluru
Uluru (; pjt, Uluṟu ), also known as Ayers Rock ( ) and officially Gazette#Gazette as a verb, gazetted as UluruAyers Rock, is a large sandstone geological formation, formation in the centre of Australia. It is in the southern part of the ...
and, to its west,
Kata Tjuta
Kata Tjuṯa / The Olgas (Pitjantjatjara: , lit. 'many heads'; ) is a group of large, domed rock formations or bornhardts located about southwest of Alice Springs, in the southern part of the Northern Territory, central Australia. Uluṟu / Aye ...
. The location is listed as a
UNESCO World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
for
natural
Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are p ...
and
cultural landscape
Cultural landscape is a term used in the fields of geography, ecology, and heritage studies, to describe a symbiosis of human activity and environment. As defined by the World Heritage Committee, it is the "cultural properties hatrepresent the co ...
.
Overview
Uluru / Ayers Rock is recognised as "Australia's most natural icon" and has become a focal point for Australia and the world's acknowledgement of Australian indigenous culture. The sandstone
monolith
A monolith is a geological feature consisting of a single massive rock (geology), stone or rock, such as some mountains. For instance, Savandurga, Savandurga mountain is a monolith mountain in India. Erosion usually exposes the geological for ...
stands high with most of its bulk below the ground. To
Anangu (local indigenous people), Uluru / Ayers Rock is a place name and this "Rock" has a number of different landmarks where many ancestral beings have interacted with the landscape and/or each other, some even believed to still reside here.
Kata Tjuta / Mount Olga, meaning 'many heads' in his aboriginal name, is a sacred place relating to knowledge that is considered very powerful and dangerous, only suitable for initiated men. It is made up of a group of 36 conglomerate rock domes that date back 500 million years.
Anangu are the
traditional Aboriginal owners of Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. They believe that their culture was created at the beginning of time by ancestral beings. Uluru / Ayers Rock and Kata Tjuta / Mount Olga provide physical evidence of feats performed during the creation period. They often lead walking tours to inform visitors about the local flora and fauna, bush foods and the Aboriginal
Dreamtime
The Dreaming, also referred to as Dreamtime, is a term devised by early anthropologists to refer to a religio-cultural worldview attributed to Australian Aboriginal mythology, Australian Aboriginal beliefs. It was originally used by Francis Ja ...
stories of the area.
The ''
Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act'' was passed in 1976, meaning that after many years Aboriginal law and land rights were finally recognised in
Australian law
The legal system of Australia has multiple forms. It includes a written constitution, unwritten constitutional conventions, statutes, regulations, and the judicially determined common law system. Its legal institutions and traditions are substa ...
. Nine years later on 26 October 1985 the traditional owners were presented with the freehold title deeds for the park, who, in turn, leased the land back to the Australian Government through the
Director of National Parks
Director of National Parks is a government-owned corporation of the Government of Australia, Australian government responsible for the management of a portfolio of protected area, terrestrial and marine protected areas proclaimed under the ''Env ...
(formerly the Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service) for 99 years.
The Director is assisted by
Parks Australia
Director of National Parks is a government-owned corporation of the Australian government responsible for the management of a portfolio of terrestrial and marine protected areas proclaimed under the ''Environment Protection and Biodiversity Cons ...
, a division of the Australian Department of the Environment and Energy. Since hand-back, Anangu and Parks Australia staff have worked together to manage the park. This process of working together is known as 'joint management'.
History
Uluru and Kata Tjuta were formed about 350 million years ago during the
Alice Springs Orogeny
The Alice Springs Orogeny was a major intraplate tectonic (mountain building) episode in central Australia responsible for the formation of a series of large mountain ranges. The deformation associated with the Alice Spring Orogeny caused the ve ...
.
The
Anangu have connected to the area for thousands of years and some records suggested that they may have lived there for more than 10,000 years.
Europeans came to the
western desert area of Australia in the 1870s. Uluru and Kata Tjuta were first mapped by Europeans during the expeditionary period made possible by the construction of the
Overland Telegraph
The Australian Overland Telegraph Line was a telegraphy system to send messages over long distances using cables and electric signals. It spanned between Darwin, in what is now the Northern Territory of Australia, and Adelaide, the capital o ...
Line in 1872.
In separate expeditions,
William Ernest Powell Giles
William Ernest Powell Giles (20 July 1835 – 13 November 1897), best known as Ernest Giles, was an Australian explorer who led five major expeditions to parts of South Australia and Western Australia.
Early life
Ernest Giles was born in Bris ...
and
William Christie Gosse were the first European explorers to this area. In 1872 while exploring the area, Ernest Giles sighted Kata Tjuta from near
Kings Canyon and called it
Mount Olga, while the following year Gosse saw Uluru and named it
Ayers Rock
Uluru (; pjt, Uluṟu ), also known as Ayers Rock ( ) and officially gazetted as UluruAyers Rock, is a large sandstone formation in the centre of Australia. It is in the southern part of the Northern Territory, southwest of Alice Springs.
...
after Sir Henry Ayers, the
Chief Secretary of South Australia The Chief Secretary of South Australia (since 1856) or Colonial Secretary of South Australia (1836–1856) was a key role in the governance of the Colony of South Australia (1836–1900) and State of South Australia (from 1901) until it was abolishe ...
. Further explorations followed with the aim of establishing the possibilities of the area for pastoralism.
In the late 19th century, pastoralists attempted to re-establish themselves in areas adjoining the South-Western/Petermann Reserve and interaction between Anangu and white people became more frequent and more violent. Due to the effects of grazing and droughts, bush food stores were depleted. Competition for these resources created conflict between pastoralists and Anangu. As a result, police patrols became more frequent.
Between 1918 and 1921 large adjoining areas of
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
,
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
and the
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory ...
were declared as
Aboriginal reserves, as sanctuaries for a nomadic people who had virtually no contact with white people. In 1920, part of Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park was declared an Aboriginal Reserve (commonly known as the South-Western or Petermann Reserve) by the
Australian Government
The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminster-style systems of government, the Australian Government i ...
under the ''
Aboriginals Ordinance 1918
The ''Northern Territory Aboriginals Act 1910'' was an Act of the South Australian parliament (Act no. 1024/1910), assented to on 7 December 1910. The Act established the Northern Territory Aboriginals Department, to be responsible for the contr ...
''.
During the
Depression in the 1930s, the Anangu became involved in dingo scalping with "doggers" who introduced Anangu to European foods and ways. The first tourists visited the Uluru area in 1936.
The Ayers Rock National Park was recognised in 1950, and in the same year an Alice Springs resident Len Tuit accompanied a group of schoolboys on a trip to Uluru. He recognised the enormous tourism potential of the rock and began offering regular tours in 1955, with guests camping in tents and drinking water carted in from Curtin Springs. Kata Tjuta was added to the national park to create the Ayers Rock-Mount Olga National Park in 1958. The first permanent accommodation was constructed the same year, while a new airstrip allowed the first fly-in, fly-out tour groups.
In 1958, in response to pressures to support tourism enterprises, the area that is now the park was excised from the Petermann Aboriginal Reserve to be managed by the Northern Territory Reserves Board as the Ayers Rock – Mt Olga National Park. The first ranger was the legendary central Australian figure,
Bill Harney
The site came to attention on 17 August 1980 when two-month-old
Azaria Chamberlain
Azaria ( he, עֲזַרְיָה), or Azarya is a moshav in central Israel. Located in the Shephelah around five kilometres south-east of Ramle, it falls under the jurisdiction of Gezer Regional Council. In it had a population of .
Etymology ...
was found dead as a result of being taken by a dingo.
On 1 October 2015, traditional owners declared more than of Aboriginal freehold land surrounding the National Park an
Indigenous Protected Area
An Indigenous Protected Area (IPA) is a class of protected area used in Australia; each is formed by voluntary agreement with Indigenous Australians, and declared by Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islander representative organisations ...
(IPA) named Katiti Petermann Indigenous Protected Area. As the fourth largest IPA on
mainland Australia
Mainland Australia is the main landmass of the Australian continent, excluding the Aru Islands, New Guinea, Tasmania, and other Australian offshore islands. The landmass also constitutes the mainland of the territory governed by the Commonwealt ...
, it is larger than Switzerland, and completes a huge network of nine IPAs in Central Australia.
Geography
Geology
These domed rock formations are composed of
conglomerate, a
sedimentary
Sedimentary rocks are types of rock (geology), rock that are formed by the accumulation or deposition of mineral or organic matter, organic particles at Earth#Surface, Earth's surface, followed by cementation (geology), cementation. Sedimentati ...
rock consisting of cobbles and boulders of varying rock types including
granite
Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...
and
basalt
Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...
, cemented by a matrix of
sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...
. The crevasses are due to erosion, primarily by water. Although it is a dry region, the large area of these domes collects a lot of rainwater, which runs off in steep waterfalls during rain.
From a geological point of view, analysis of Uluru-Kata Tjuta and Watarrka National Parks reveals an awe-inspiring history. 500 million years ago, the entire area was covered by an inland sea and over many centuries, sand and mud fell to the bottom of the sea, creating rock and
sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...
. Kata Tjuta's domes are the eroded remains of sedimentary rock from the seabed, while Uluru is a
relict
A relict is a surviving remnant of a natural phenomenon.
Biology
A relict (or relic) is an organism that at an earlier time was abundant in a large area but now occurs at only one or a few small areas.
Geology and geomorphology
In geology, a r ...
of the coarse grained, mineral-rich sandstone called
arkose.
Climate and seasons
The park receives an average rainfall of 307.7 millimeters per year. Temperature extremes in the park have been
recorded at during the summer and during winter nights.
UV readings on
most extreme summer days reach between 11 and 15.
[Welcome to Aboriginal land: Uluru-Kata Tjuta
National Park; visitor guide and maps, Colemans Printing, Darwin, January 2006.] While the Central Australian environment may at first seem stark – a barren landscape supporting spectacular rock formations – closer inspection reveals it as a complex
ecosystem
An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syste ...
, full of life.
Plant and animal life have adapted to the area's extreme conditions and it subsequently supports some of the most unusual flora and fauna on the planet. Many of these have long been a valuable source of
bush tucker
Bush tucker, also called bush food, is any food native to Australia and used as sustenance by Indigenous Australians, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, but it can also describe any native flora or fauna used for culinary or ...
and medicine for local
Aboriginal people.
The Aboriginal Australians recognise six seasons:
# Piryakatu (August/September) – Animals breed and food plants flower
# Wiyaringkupai (October/November) – The really hot season when food becomes scarce
# Itanju- (January/February) Sporadic storms can roll in suddenly
# Wanitjunkupai (March) – Cooler weather
# Tjuntalpa (April/May) – Clouds roll in from the south
# Wari (June/July) – Cold season bringing morning frosts
Ecology
The park is ranked as one of the most significant arid land
ecosystem
An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syste ...
s in the world. As a Biosphere Reserve under the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Program, it joins at least 11 other reserves in Australia and an international network aiming to preserve the world's major ecosystem types.
Biology
Flora
Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park
flora
Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring (indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''.
E ...
represents a large portion of plants found in Central Australia. A number of these species are considered rare and restricted in the park or the immediate region. There are many rare and
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
plants at Uluru and
Kata Tjuta
Kata Tjuṯa / The Olgas (Pitjantjatjara: , lit. 'many heads'; ) is a group of large, domed rock formations or bornhardts located about southwest of Alice Springs, in the southern part of the Northern Territory, central Australia. Uluṟu / Aye ...
. A number of other species, while found elsewhere in central Australia, may be endangered within the park.
The desert flora has adapted to the harsh conditions. The growth and reproduction of plant communities rely on irregular rainfall. Some plants are able to survive fire and some are dependent on it to reproduce. Plants are an important part of
Tjukurpa
The Dreaming, also referred to as Dreamtime, is a term devised by early anthropologists to refer to a religio-cultural worldview attributed to Australian Aboriginal beliefs. It was originally used by Francis Gillen, quickly adopted by his c ...
, and there are ceremonies for each of the major plant foods. Many plants are associated with ancestral beings. Collection of plant foods remains a culturally important activity, reinforcing traditional links with country and Tjukurpa.
Flora in Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park can be broken into the following categories:
* Punu – trees
* Puti – shrubs
* – flowers
* Ukiri – grasses
Trees such as the
mulga and centralian
bloodwood
Bloodwood is a common name for several unrelated trees, including:
* '' Baloghia inophylla'' (Brush or Scrub bloodwood), '' Baloghia marmorata'' (Marbled bloodwood), '' Baloghia parviflora'' (Small-flowered bloodwood), all found in Australia
* ' ...
are used to make tools such as spearheads,
boomerang
A boomerang () is a thrown tool, typically constructed with aerofoil sections and designed to spin about an axis perpendicular to the direction of its flight. A returning boomerang is designed to return to the thrower, while a non-returning b ...
s and bowls. The red
sap
Sap is a fluid transported in xylem cells (vessel elements or tracheids) or phloem sieve tube elements of a plant. These cells transport water and nutrients throughout the plant.
Sap is distinct from latex, resin, or cell sap; it is a separa ...
of the bloodwood is used as a disinfectant and an inhalant for coughs and colds.
Others such as the
river red gum
''Eucalyptus camaldulensis'', commonly known as the river red gum, is a tree that is endemic to Australia. It has smooth white or cream-coloured bark, lance-shaped or curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven or nine, white flowers an ...
and
corkwood trees like
grevillea
''Grevillea'', commonly known as spider flowers, is a genus of about 360 species of evergreen flowering plants in the family Proteaceae. Plants in the genus ''Grevillea'' are shrubs, rarely trees, with the leaves arranged alternately along the b ...
and hakeas are a source of food themselves. The white flaky crust from river red gum leaves can be rolled into balls and eaten like a lolly and the nectar from the flowers of the corkwood trees can produce a sweet drink.
The witchetty bush looks like a shrubby mulga with broad round-ended leaves. Witchetty grubs are found in the roots of this tree.
Daisies and other ground flowers bloom after rain and during the winter. Others such as the wattles bloom as spring approaches. Anangu collect wattle seed, crush and mix it with water to make an edible paste which they eat raw. To make
damper
A damper is a device that deadens, restrains, or depresses. It may refer to:
Music
* Damper pedal, a device that mutes musical tones, particularly in stringed instruments
* A mute for various brass instruments
Structure
* Damper (flow), a mechan ...
, the seeds are parched with hot sand so their skins can be removed before they are ground for flour.
The prickly hard
spinifex hummocks have enormous root systems that prevent desert sands shifting. The hummock roots spread underground beyond the prickly clump and deeply into the soil, forming an immense cone. Anangu use a resin gathered from the gummy spinifex to make
gum. They thresh the spinifex until the resin particles fall free. These particles are heated until they fuse together to form a moldable black tar which Anangu work while warm. The gum is used for hunting and working implements, and to mend breaks in stone and wooden implements.
The naked woolybutt and native
millet
Millets () are a highly varied group of small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for fodder and human food. Most species generally referred to as millets belong to the tribe Paniceae, but some millets al ...
have seeds that are important Anangu foods. Women rub the seedheads from their stalks and then separate the seeds from the chaff by skilful winnowing. Using grinding stones, they then grind the seeds to flour for damper.
There are several rare and endangered species in the park. Most of them like adder's tongue ferns (
Ophioglossaceae
Ophioglossaceae, the adder's-tongue family, is a small family of ferns. In the Pteridophyte Phylogeny Group classification of 2016 (PPG I), it is the only family in the order Ophioglossales, which together with the Psilotales is placed in the sub ...
sp.) are restricted to the moist areas at the base of the
monolith
A monolith is a geological feature consisting of a single massive rock (geology), stone or rock, such as some mountains. For instance, Savandurga, Savandurga mountain is a monolith mountain in India. Erosion usually exposes the geological for ...
s, which are areas of high visitor use and subject to erosion.
Since the first Europeans arrived, 34 exotic plant species have been recorded in the park, representing about 6.4% of the total park flora. Some such as perennial buffel grass (''Cenchrus ciliaris'') were introduced to rehabilitate areas damaged by erosion. It is the most threatening weed in the park and has spread to invade water and nutrient rich drainage lines. Where infestation is dense, it prevents the growth of native grasses – a source of food for animals and humans. A few others such as burrgrass were brought in accidentally, carried on cars and people.
Fauna
Historically 46 species of native
mammal
Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur or ...
are known to have been living in the Uluru region; there are currently 21 according to recent surveys. Anangu allege that a decrease in the number has implications for the condition and health of the landscape. Moves are supported for the reintroduction of locally extinct animals such as
mallee fowl
The malleefowl (''Leipoa ocellata'') is a stocky ground-dwelling Australian bird about the size of a domestic chicken (to which it is distantly related). It is notable for the large nesting mounds constructed by the males and lack of parental ca ...
,
brushtail possum, rufous hare
wallaby
A wallaby () is a small or middle-sized Macropodidae, macropod native to Australia and New Guinea, with introduced populations in New Zealand, Hawaii, the United Kingdom and other countries. They belong to the same Taxonomy (biology), taxon ...
or ''
mala'',
bilby,
burrowing bettong
The boodie (''Bettongia lesueur''), also known as the burrowing bettong or Lesueur's rat-kangaroo, is a small, furry, rat-like mammal native to Australia. Once common throughout the continent, it is now restricted to a few coastal islands. A memb ...
and the
black-footed rock wallaby
The
mulgara
Mulgaras are the two small rat-sized species in the genus ''Dasycercus''. They are marsupial carnivores, closely related to the Tasmanian devil and the quolls, that live in deserts and spinifex grasslands of arid Australia. They are nocturnal, ...
, the only mammal listed as vulnerable, is mostly restricted to the transitional sandplain area, a narrow band of country that stretches from the vicinity of Uluru, to the northern boundary of the park, and into Ayers Rock Resort. This very important area also contains the
marsupial mole
Marsupial moles, the Notoryctidae , are highly specialized marsupial mammals, known from two species found at the Australian interior.
* ''Notoryctes typhlops'' (southern marsupial mole, known as the ''itjaritjari'' by the Pitjantjatjara and Yan ...
,
woma python
The woma python (''Aspidites ramsayi''), also known Common name, commonly as Ramsay's python, the sand python,O'Connor F (2008)Western Australian Reptile Species.Birding Western Australia. Accessed 20 September 2007.Mehrtens JM (1987). ''Living ...
, or kuniya, and great desert skink.
The bat population of the park comprises at least seven species that depend on day roosting sites within caves and crevices of Uluru and Kata Tjuta. Most of the bats forage for aerial
prey
Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill the ...
within an airspace extending only 100 m or so from the rock face.
The park has a very rich reptile fauna of high conservation significance, with 73 species having been reliably recorded. Four species of frog are
abundant at the base of Uluru and Kata Tjuta following summer rains. The great desert
skink
Skinks are lizards belonging to the family Scincidae, a family in the infraorder Scincomorpha. With more than 1,500 described species across 100 different taxonomic genera, the family Scincidae is one of the most diverse families of lizards. Ski ...
is listed as
vulnerable.
Anangu continue to hunt and gather animal species in remote areas of the park and on Anangu land elsewhere. Hunting is largely confined to the
red kangaroo
The red kangaroo (''Osphranter rufus'') is the largest of all kangaroos, the largest terrestrial mammal native to Australia, and the largest extant marsupial. It is found across mainland Australia, except for the more fertile areas, such as sou ...
, Australian
bustard
Bustards, including floricans and korhaans, are large, terrestrial birds living mainly in dry grassland areas and on the steppes of the Old World. They range in length from . They make up the family Otididae (, formerly known as Otidae). Bustards ...
,
emu
The emu () (''Dromaius novaehollandiae'') is the second-tallest living bird after its ratite relative the ostrich. It is endemic to Australia where it is the largest native bird and the only extant member of the genus ''Dromaius''. The emu' ...
and lizard such as the sand
goanna
A goanna is any one of several species of lizards of the genus '' Varanus'' found in Australia and Southeast Asia.
Around 70 species of ''Varanus'' are known, 25 of which are found in Australia. This varied group of carnivorous reptiles ranges ...
and
perentie
The perentie (''Varanus giganteus'') is the largest monitor lizard or goanna native to Australia. It is one of the largest living lizards on earth, after the Komodo dragon, Asian water monitor, crocodile monitor, and intersecting by size with ...
.
The pressures exerted by introduced predators and herbivores on the original mammalian fauna of Central Australia were a major factor in the extinction of about 40% of the native species.
Of the 27 mammal species found in the park, six are introduced: the
house mouse
The house mouse (''Mus musculus'') is a small mammal of the order Rodentia, characteristically having a pointed snout, large rounded ears, and a long and almost hairless tail. It is one of the most abundant species of the genus '' Mus''. Althoug ...
; camel; fox; cat; dog; and rabbit. These species are distributed throughout the park but their densities are greatest in the rich water run-off areas of Uluru and Kata Tjuta. Large numbers of rabbits led to the introduction of a rabbit control program in 1989. This has resulted in a great reduction of the rabbit population, a noticeable vegetation recovery and a reduction in
predator
Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill th ...
numbers. Camels have been implicated in the reduction of plant species, particularly the more succulent species such as the
quandong
Quandong, quandang or quondong, is a common name for the species '' Santalum acuminatum'' (desert, sweet, Western quandong), especially its edible fruit, but may also refer to
* '' Aceratium concinnum'' (highroot quandong)
* '' Peripentadenia mea ...
. The house mouse is a successful invader of disturbed environments and habitats that have lost native rodents. Subjective estimates of cat and fox numbers have been collected in association with the rabbit control program. The national threat abatement programs may provide the framework for controlling them. Anangu knowledge and tracking skills are invaluable in the management of these introduced animals. The park regulations prohibit visitors bringing animals into the park unless they are a
guide dog
Guide dogs (colloquially known in the US as seeing-eye dogs) are assistance dogs trained to lead blind or visually impaired people around obstacles. Although dogs can be trained to navigate various obstacles, they are red–green colour blin ...
for the blind or deaf, or a permit is granted by the Director of National Parks.
Iconic birds of Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park include the
pied butcherbird,
black breasted buzzard,
black-faced woodswallow
The black-faced woodswallow (''Artamus cinereus'') is a woodswallow of the genus Artamus native to Australia, New Guinea and the Sunda Islands, including Timor. It is long and is the most widespread species in the family Artamidae. Woodswallows ...
and
crimson chat
The crimson chat (''Epthianura tricolor'') is a species of small bird found in Australia. It is also known as the tricoloured chat, saltbush canary, and crimson-breasted nun.
Description
Crimson chats are usually in length and in weight. They h ...
.
Fire management
Fires have been a part of central desert land management for thousands of years and have shaped the landscape, habitats, survival of animals and patterns of vegetation. Controlled burning usually takes place during the winter months due to the cooler weather while natural fires mostly occur in the early summer months. They are usually started by the lightning strikes of dry electrical storms from the north west. When the storms arrive the weather is usually hot, dry and windy – conditions ideal for raging fires. Damage can be severe and widespread. Destructive bushfires burnt much of Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park and luxury accommodation at the Ayers Rock Resort was destroyed in 2002–03.
Traditional burning of the Uluru area stopped when Anangu were driven from the region during the 1930s. During the 1940s rainfall was good and vegetation flourished. The 1950 fire, fed by the fuel grown during the previous 20 years, wiped out about one third of Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park's vegetation. The pattern repeated itself and in 1976 two fires burnt 76% of the park. Over the same period more species of medium-sized mammals became extinct around Uluru and Kata Tjuta. Today most fires in the park are lit following land management patterns traditionally practiced by Anangu. Traditional fire and land management skills enable Anangu to burn in a way that will give the desired result. These skills are vital for the preservation of the central Australian ecology.
Activities
General facilities
The park is open year-round from sunrise to sunset. These times will vary depending on the season. Occasionally parts of the park may be temporarily closed for cultural reasons.
The park entrance fee for Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park is $25 per person 16 years of age and over. This fee is valid for 3 consecutive days and helps to maintain the park. One quarter goes back to
Anangu, the
traditional owners
Native title is the designation given to the common law doctrine of Aboriginal title in Australia, which is the recognition by Australian law that Indigenous Australians (both Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander people) have rights ...
, to help them maintain their families and the Mutitjulu community.
The Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park Cultural Centre by recognised Australian architect
Gregory Burgess
Gregory Burgess is an Australian architect based in Melbourne, Victoria. Burgess is especially notable for his buildings for Indigenous communities in Australia, and for his participatory design approach which has produced some remarkable and un ...
located inside the park on the main road to Uluru provides an introduction to Tjukurpa (law, knowledge, religion, philosophy), Anangu art, Anangu way of life (traditional and current), history, languages, wildlife and joint management of the park. There are also
art
Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas.
There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...
and
craft
A craft or trade is a pastime or an occupation that requires particular skills and knowledge of skilled work. In a historical sense, particularly the Middle Ages and earlier, the term is usually applied to people occupied in small scale prod ...
demonstrations,
bush tucker
Bush tucker, also called bush food, is any food native to Australia and used as sustenance by Indigenous Australians, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, but it can also describe any native flora or fauna used for culinary or ...
sessions, plants walks and cultural presentations.
There are displays featuring photo collages, oral history sound panels, Pitjantjatjara language learning interactives, soundscapes, videos and artefacts. Explanations are provided in Pitjantjatjara, English, Italian, Japanese, German and French. A touch wall for visually impaired people ensures that the messages are accessible to everyone. Entry to the Cultural Centre is free.
The Walkatjara Art Centre is owned and operated by the local Aboriginal artists from the Mutitjulu Community. Most weekdays the Walkatjara Artists come to paint and work in the Art Room and receive a percentage of sales.
Tourism
The development of tourism infrastructure adjacent to the base of Uluru that began in the 1950s soon produced adverse environmental impacts. It was decided in the early 1970s to remove all accommodation-related tourist facilities and re-establish them outside the park. In 1975 a reservation of 104 square kilometres of land beyond the park's northern boundary, 15 kilometres from Uluru, was approved for the development of a tourist facility and an associated airport, to be known as Yulara. The campground within the park was closed in 1983 and the motels finally closed in late 1984, coinciding with the opening of the Yulara resort. In 1992 the majority interest in the Yulara Resort held by the Northern Territory Government was sold and the resort was renamed 'Ayers Rock Resort'.
The listing of Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park ensures the park remains a world-class destination for both its
cultural
Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human Society, societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, and habits of the ...
and
natural heritage
Natural heritage refers to the sum total of the elements of biodiversity, including flora and fauna, ecosystems and geological structures. It forms part of our natural resources.
Definition
Heritage is that which is ''inherited'' from past gener ...
. Visitors will continue to have a unique cultural experience at the park and leave knowing that the park is managed according to cultural practices that date back tens of thousands of years.
Since the park was listed as a
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
, annual visitor numbers have risen to over 400,000 visitors in the year 2000. Increased tourism provides regional and national economic benefits. It also presents an ongoing challenge to balance conservation of cultural values and visitor needs.
There are a number of sightseeing and cultural tours to Uluru that offer walks that visitors can take around the major attractions of the park. The Base Walk is one of the best ways to see Uluru. Other walks surrounding Uluru include the Liru Walk, Mala Walk and Kuniya walk, while the sunrise and sunset viewing areas provide great photo opportunities.
The border of the national park is also home to the
Longitude 131° Eco resort.
Art centre gallery
Maruku Arts
Yulara is a town in the southern region of the Northern Territory, Australia. It lies as an unincorporated enclave within MacDonnell Region. At the , Yulara had a permanent population of 1,099, in an area of . It is by road from World Heritage ...
is a large and successful
Aboriginal Australian
Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the Torres Strait Islands ...
-owned and -operated enterprise, run by
Anangu (people of the
Western and Central Deserts of Australia). It has a warehouse based in
Mutitjulu
Mutitjulu is an Aboriginal Australian community in the Northern Territory of Australia located at the eastern end of Uluṟu (also known as Ayers Rock). It is named after a knee-shaped water-filled rock hole at the base of Uluṟu, and is loc ...
community (at the eastern end of the rock), a retail gallery at Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park Cultural Centre, as well as a
market stall
A market stall or a booth is a structure used by merchants to display and house their merchandise in a street market, fairs and conventions. Some commercial marketplaces, including market squares or flea markets, may permit more permanent ...
in
Yulara
Yulara is a town in the southern region of the Northern Territory, Australia. It lies as an unincorporated enclave within MacDonnell Region. At the , Yulara had a permanent population of 1,099, in an area of . It is by road from World Heritag ...
town square. Its artwork consists mainly of paintings and
woodcarving
Wood carving is a form of woodworking by means of a cutting tool (knife) in one hand or a chisel by two hands or with one hand on a chisel and one hand on a mallet, resulting in a wooden figure or figurine, or in the sculptural ornamentation ...
s. With about 900 artists in the collective, it provides an important source of income living in remote communities across central Australia. It seeks to "keep culture strong and alive, for future generations of artists, and
omake culture accessible in an authentic way to those that seek a more in-depth understanding".
Maruku is one of ten Indigenous-owned and -governed enterprises that go to make up the
APY Art Centre Collective
Aṉangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara, also known as APY, APY Lands or ''the Lands'', is a large, sparsely-populated local government area (LGA) for Aboriginal people, located in the remote north west of South Australia. Some of the aṉangu ...
,
established in 2013.
Hiking and climbing
The Uluru climb is the traditional route taken by ancestral Mala men upon their arrival to Uluru. Anangu do not climb Uluru because of its great spiritual significance.
The Valley of the Winds walk is an alternative to climbing Uluru and offers views of the landscape from two lookout points along the track. The walk is sometimes steep, rocky and difficult. For safety reasons this walk is closed under certain circumstances including heat, darkness and during rescue.
NT Government
'Department of Environment and water resources (www.environment.gov.au/parks/uluru)''
In November 2017, the national park's board voted unanimously to ban climbing on Uluru and climbing has been banned since October 2019.
Accommodations
The Aboriginal community of Mutitjulu
Mutitjulu is an Aboriginal Australian community in the Northern Territory of Australia located at the eastern end of Uluṟu (also known as Ayers Rock). It is named after a knee-shaped water-filled rock hole at the base of Uluṟu, and is loc ...
is inside the park area, but tourists must stay at the resorts in Yulara
Yulara is a town in the southern region of the Northern Territory, Australia. It lies as an unincorporated enclave within MacDonnell Region. At the , Yulara had a permanent population of 1,099, in an area of . It is by road from World Heritag ...
, just outside the national park. Ayers Rock Resort in Yulara offers a range of accommodation from camp sites to five-star luxury. There are also several dining options, a supermarket and a range of tour operators. The national park and town are served by Connellan Airport.
Slightly further afield is the luxury tented accommodation at Longitude 131, with views of Uluru from the tents.
Camping is not permitted in the park.
See also
* Kata Tjuta
Kata Tjuṯa / The Olgas (Pitjantjatjara: , lit. 'many heads'; ) is a group of large, domed rock formations or bornhardts located about southwest of Alice Springs, in the southern part of the Northern Territory, central Australia. Uluṟu / Aye ...
* Protected areas of the Northern Territory
The protected areas of the Northern Territory consists of protected areas managed by the governments of the Northern Territory and Australia and private organisations with a reported total area of being 24.8% of the total area of the Northern Te ...
*Protected areas managed by the Australian government
Protection is any measure taken to guard a thing against damage caused by outside forces. Protection can be provided to physical objects, including organisms, to systems, and to intangible things like civil and political rights. Although t ...
* List of national parks of Australia
This is a list of national parks within Australia that are managed by Australian, state and territory governments. The name may be a misnomer: nearly all parks are land owned and managed by the states and territories rather than the national go ...
* Tony Tjamiwa
* List of biosphere reserves in Australia
References
External links
World heritage listing for Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park
A Report on the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park
Webpage on the Protected Planet website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park
World Heritage Sites in Australia
Cultural landscapes of Australia
National parks of the Northern Territory
Biosphere reserves of Australia
Protected areas established in 1987
Australian National Heritage List
Commonwealth Heritage List places in the Northern Territory
1987 establishments in Australia
National parks managed by the Australian government