Cape York Peninsula is a large peninsula located in

Far North Queensland Far North Queensland (FNQ) is the northernmost part of the Australian state of Queensland. Its largest city is Cairns and it is dominated geographically by Cape York Peninsula, which stretches north to the Torres Strait, and west to the Gulf C ...

, Australia. It is the largest unspoiled wilderness in northern Australia.Mittermeier, R.E. et al. (2002). Wilderness: Earth’s last wild places. Mexico City: Agrupación Sierra Madre, S.C. The land is mostly flat and about half of the area is used for grazing

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult mal ...

. The relatively undisturbed

eucalyptus ''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of over seven hundred species of flowering trees, shrubs or mallees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalypteae, including '' Corymbia'', they are commonly known as euca ...

-wooded savannahs,

tropical rainforests Tropical rainforests are rainforests that occur in areas of tropical rainforest climate in which there is no dry season – all months have an average precipitation of at least 60 mm – and may also be referred to as ''lowland equa ...

and other types of habitat are now recognised and preserved for their global environmental significance. Although much of the peninsula remains pristine, with a diverse repertoire of endemic

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 ...

and

fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is ''flora'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as '' biota''. Zoo ...

, some of its wildlife may be threatened by industry and overgrazing as well as

introduced species An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived there ...

and weeds.Mackey, B. G., Nix, H., & Hitchcock, P. (2001). The natural heritage significance of Cape York Peninsula. Retrieved 15 January 2008, fro
epa.qld.gov.au
. The northernmost point of the peninsula is Cape York (). The land has been occupied by a number of

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 ...

peoples for tens of thousands of years. In 1606, Dutch sailor

Willem Janszoon Willem Janszoon (; ), sometimes abbreviated to Willem Jansz., was a Dutch navigator and colonial governor. Janszoon served in the Dutch East Indies in the periods 16031611 and 16121616, including as governor of Fort Henricus on the island of S ...

on board the ''

Duyfken ''Duyfken'' (; Little Dove), also in the form ''Duifje'' or spelled ''Duifken'' or ''Duijfken'', was a small ship built in the Dutch Republic. She was a fast, lightly armed ship probably intended for shallow water, small valuable cargoes, bri ...

'' was the first European to land in Australia, reaching the Cape York Peninsula.

History

European exploration

StateLibQld 1 193451 Commemorative stone for Edmund B

In February 1606, Dutch navigator

landed near the site of what is now

Weipa Weipa () is a coastal mining town in the local government area of Weipa Town in Queensland. It is the largest town on the Cape York Peninsula. It exists because of the enormous bauxite deposits along the coast. The Port of Weipa is mainly invol ...

, on the western shore of Cape York Peninsula. This was the first recorded landing of a European in Australia, and it also marked the first reported contact between European and Aboriginal Australian people.

Edmund Kennedy Edmund Besley Court Kennedy J. P. (5 September 1818 – December 1848) was an explorer in Australia in the mid nineteenth century. He was the Assistant-Surveyor of New South Wales, working with Sir Thomas Mitchell. Kennedy explored the interio ...

was the first European explorer to attempt an overland expedition of Cape York Peninsula. He had been second-in-command to

Thomas Livingstone Mitchell Sir Thomas Livingstone Mitchell (15 June 1792 – 5 October 1855), surveyor and explorer of Southeastern Australia, was born at Grangemouth in Stirlingshire, Scotland. In 1827 he took up an appointment as Assistant Surveyor General of New Sou ...

in 1846 when the

Barcoo River The Barcoo River in western Queensland, Australia rises on the northern slopes of the Warrego Range, flows in a south-westerly direction and unites with the Thomson River to form Cooper Creek. The first European to see the river was Thomas ...

was encountered. The aim was to establish a route to the tip of the peninsula, where Sydney businessmen were attempting development of a port for trade with the

East Indies The East Indies (or simply the Indies), is a term used in historical narratives of the Age of Discovery. The Indies refers to various lands in the East or the Eastern hemisphere, particularly the islands and mainlands found in and around t ...

. The expedition set out from

Rockingham Bay Rockingham Bay is a bay in Far North Queensland, Australia. The bay opens onto the Coral Sea, part of the South Pacific Ocean. Adjacent to the bay is the Girramay National Park, south of which is the town of Cardwell. Goold Island is a smal ...

near the present town of Cardwell in May 1848, and it turned out to be one of the great disasters of Australian exploration. Of the thirteen men who set out, only three survived. The others died of fever or starvation, or were speared by hostile Aboriginal people. Kennedy died of spear wounds almost within sight of his destination in December 1848. The only survivor to complete the journey was

Jackey Jackey Jackey Jackey (also spelled Jacky Jacky) (1833–1854) is the name by which Galmahra (a.k.a. Galmarra), the Aboriginal Australian guide and companion to surveyor Edmund Kennedy was known. He survived Edmund Kennedy's fatal 1848 expedition int ...

, an Aboriginal man from

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

. He led a rescue party to the other two who had been unable to continue. The tip of the peninsula (Cape York) was finally reached by Europeans in 1864 when the brothers Francis Lascelles (Frank) and

Alexander William Jardine Alexander William Jardine (9 October 1843 – 20 March 1920), A.M.I.C.E., made a trip from Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia to Somerset, Queensland in 1864. Details are provided in the entry for his brother, Frank Jardine who also took ...

, along with eight companions, drove a mob of cattle from Rockhampton to the new settlement of

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

(on Cape York) where the Jardines' father was commander. En route they lost most of their horses, many of their stores and fought pitched battles with Aboriginal people, finally arriving in March 1865.

First contact

The first known contact between European and Aboriginal people occurred on the west coast of the peninsula in 1606, but it was not settled by Europeans until the 19th century when fishing communities, then stations and later mining towns were established. European settlement led to the displacement of Aboriginal communities and the arrival of

Torres Strait Islanders Torres Strait Islanders () are the Indigenous Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal people of the rest of Australia, they are often grouped ...

on the mainland.

Geography and geology

The west coast borders the Gulf of Carpentaria and the east coast borders the Coral Sea. The peninsula is bordered by water on three sides (north, east and west). There is no clear demarcation to the south, although the official boundary in the Cape York Peninsula Heritage Act 2007 of Queensland runs along at about 16°S latitude. Cape Flattery Cape York Peninsula

At the peninsula's widest point, it is from the

Bloomfield River The Bloomfield River is a river located in the Wet Tropics of Far North Queensland, Australia, noted for its Bloomfield River cod fish species, found only in the river. Course and features The river rises in the Great Dividing Range below Zi ...

in the southeast, across to the west coast just south of the aboriginal community of

Kowanyama Kowanyama is a town and coastal locality in the Aboriginal Shire of Kowanyama, Queensland, Australia. It is the site of the former Mitchell River Mission, founded in 1916, after the nearby Trubanamen Mission (established not far away on Tops ...

. It is some from the southern border of Cook Shire, to the tip of Cape York. At the tip of the peninsula lies Cape York, the northernmost point on the Australian mainland. It was named by

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

James Cook on 21 August 1770 in honour of

Prince Edward, Duke of York and Albany Prince Edward, Duke of York and Albany, (Edward Augustus;In ''The London Gazette'', the Prince is called simply 'Prince Edward'16 November 1756George III of the United Kingdom, who had died three years earlier: The tropical landscapes are among the most stable in the world. Long undisturbed by tectonic activity, the peninsula is an extremely eroded, almost level low plain dominated by

meander A meander is one of a series of regular sinuous curves in the channel of a river or other watercourse. It is produced as a watercourse erodes the sediments of an outer, concave bank ( cut bank) and deposits sediments on an inner, convex bank ...

ing

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

s and vast

floodplain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...

s, with some very low hills rising to elevation in the

McIlwraith Range The McIlwraith Range is a rugged, dissected granite plateau on Cape York Peninsula of Far North Queensland, Australia. Part of the Great Dividing Range, the McIlwraith Range covers about and lies about east of the town of Coen, and north ...

on the eastern side around Coen. The backbone of Cape York Peninsula is the peninsula ridge, part of Australia's Great Dividing Range. This mountain range is made up of ancient (1.5 billion-year-old) Precambrian and Palaeozoic rocks.Frith, D.W., Frith, C.B. (1995). Cape York Peninsula: A Natural History. Chatswood: Reed Books Australia. Reprinted with amendments in 2006. . To the east and west of the peninsula ridge lie the Carpentaria and Laura Basins, respectively, themselves made up of ancient

Mesozoic The Mesozoic Era ( ), also called the Age of Reptiles, the Age of Conifers, and colloquially as the Age of the Dinosaurs is the second-to-last era of Earth's geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceo ...

sediments. There are several outstanding landforms on the peninsula: the large expanses of undisturbed

dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, f ...

fields at the eastern coast around Shelburne Bay and Cape Bedford-Cape Flattery, the huge piles of black

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 under ...

boulders at

Kalkajaka National Park Kalkajaka National Park is a protected area in Shire of Cook, Queensland, Australia.Accessed 24 February 2009 United Nations University's Media Studio's (2008) video brief including Kuku Nyunkal woman (Marilyn Wallace) visiting KalkajakaAccess ...

and

Cape Melville Cape Melville is a headland on the eastern coast of the Cape York Peninsula in Australia. To its west lies Princess Charlotte Bay. It is part of the Cape Melville National Park. Cape Melville was named Stoney Cape in 1815 by Lieutenant Charles ...

, and the limestone

karst Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant ro ...

s around Palmerston in the peninsula's far south.

Soil

The soils are remarkably infertile even compared to other areas of Australia, being almost entirely laterised and in most cases so old and weathered that very little development is apparent today (classified in

USDA soil taxonomy USDA soil taxonomy (ST) developed by the United States Department of Agriculture and the National Cooperative Soil Survey provides an elaborate classification of soil types according to several parameters (most commonly their properties) and in ...

orthent Orthents are soils defined in USDA soil taxonomy as entisols that lack due to either steep slopes or parent materials that contain no permanent weatherable minerals (such as ironstone). Typically, Orthents are exceedingly shallow soils. They ar ...

s). It is because of this extraordinary soil poverty that the region is so thinly settled: the soils are so unworkable and unresponsive to

fertiliser A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...

s that attempts to grow commercial crops have usually failed.

Climate

The climate on Cape York Peninsula is

tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...

and

monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal oscil ...

al, with a heavy monsoon season from November to April, during which time the forest becomes almost uninhabitable, and a dry season from May to October. The temperature is warm to hot, with a cooler climate in higher areas. The mean annual temperatures range from at higher elevations to on the lowlands in the drier southwest. Temperatures over and below are rare. Annual rainfall is high, ranging from over in the Iron Range and north of Weipa to about at the southern border. Almost all this rain falls between November and April, and only on the eastern slopes of the Iron Range is the median rainfall between June and September above . Between January and March, however, the median monthly rainfall ranges from about in the south to over in the north and on the Iron Range.

Rivers

Jardine-river-cape-york-queensland-australia

The Peninsula Ridge forms the drainage divide between the Gulf of Carpentaria and the Coral Sea. To the west, a series of large, winding river systems including the

Mitchell Mitchell may refer to: People *Mitchell (surname) *Mitchell (given name) Places Australia * Mitchell, Australian Capital Territory, a light-industrial estate * Mitchell, New South Wales, a suburb of Bathurst * Mitchell, Northern Territo ...

, Staaten, Coleman, Holroyd, Archer, Watson, Wenlock, Ducie and Jardine catchments empty their waters into the Gulf of Carpentaria. During the

dry season The dry season is a yearly period of low rainfall, especially in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which moves from the northern to the southern tropics and back over the course of the year. The te ...

, those rivers are reduced to a series of waterholes and sandy beds. Yet, with the arrival of torrential rains in the

wet season The wet season (sometimes called the Rainy season) is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. It is the time of year where the majority of a country's or region's annual precipitation occurs. Generally, the sea ...

, they swell to mighty waterways, spreading across extensive floodplains and coastal wetlands and giving life to a vast array of freshwater and wetland species. On the Eastern slopes, the shorter, faster-flowing Jacky Jacky Creek, Olive, Pascoe, Lockhart, Stewart, Jeannie and Endeavour Rivers flow towards the Coral Sea, providing important freshwater and nutrients to the healthiest section of the

Great Barrier Reef The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over over an area of approximately . The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, ...

. On their way, those wild, undisturbed rivers are lined with dense rainforests, sand dunes or mangroves. Crossing the Wenlock River

The floodplains of the Laura Basin, which are protected in the Rinyirru and Jack River National Parks, are crossed by the Morehead, Hann, North Kennedy, Laura, Jack and Normanby Rivers. The Peninsula's river catchments are noted for their exceptional

hydrological Hydrology () is the scientific study of the movement, distribution, and management of water on Earth and other planets, including the water cycle, water resources, and environmental watershed sustainability. A practitioner of hydrology is calle ...

integrity. With little disturbance on both water flows and vegetation cover throughout entire catchments, Cape York Peninsula has been identified as one of the few places where tropical water cycles remain essentially intact. Cape York Peninsula contributes as much as a quarter of Australia's surface runoff. Indeed, with only about 2.7 percent of Australia's land area it produces more run-off than all of Australia south of the

Tropic of Capricorn The Tropic of Capricorn (or the Southern Tropic) is the circle of latitude that contains the subsolar point at the December (or southern) solstice. It is thus the southernmost latitude where the Sun can be seen directly overhead. It also reac ...

. Tapping those heavy tropical rainfalls, the peninsula's rivers are also of particular importance for replenishing central Australia's

Great Artesian Basin The Great Artesian Basin (GAB), located in Australia, is the largest and deepest artesian basin in the world, stretching over , with measured water temperatures ranging from . The basin provides the only source of fresh water through much ...

. The Queensland Government is currently poised to protect 13 of Cape York Peninsula's wild rivers under the Wild Rivers Act 2005.Office of the Queensland Parliamentary Counsel. (2005). Wild Rivers Act 2005. Retrieved 23 March 2008, fro
legislation.qld.gov.au
.

Geological history

The peninsula is formed from the northern part of the Great Dividing Range, folded during the

Carboniferous period The Carboniferous ( ) is a Period (geology), geologic period and System (stratigraphy), system of the Paleozoic that spans 60 million years from the end of the Devonian Period million years ago (Myr, Mya), to the beginning of the Permian Period, ...

some 300 million years ago, when Australia collided with what is now parts of South America and New Zealand. The range has experienced significant erosion since. Around 40 million years ago, the Indo-Australian tectonic plate began to split apart from the ancient

supercontinent In geology, a supercontinent is the assembly of most or all of Earth's continental blocks or cratons to form a single large landmass. However, some geologists use a different definition, "a grouping of formerly dispersed continents", which leav ...

Gondwana Gondwana () was a large landmass, often referred to as a supercontinent, that formed during the late Neoproterozoic (about 550 million years ago) and began to break up during the Jurassic period (about 180 million years ago). The final stages ...

. As it collided with the

Pacific Plate The Pacific Plate is an oceanic tectonic plate that lies beneath the Pacific Ocean. At , it is the largest tectonic plate. The plate first came into existence 190 million years ago, at the triple junction between the Farallon, Phoenix, and Iza ...

on its northward journey, the high mountain ranges of central

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

emerged around 5 million years ago. In the lee of this collision zone, the ancient rock formations of what is now Cape York Peninsula remained largely undisturbed. Throughout the

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...

epoch Australia and New Guinea were alternately land-linked and separated by water. During periods of

glaciation A glacial period (alternatively glacial or glaciation) is an interval of time (thousands of years) within an ice age that is marked by colder temperatures and glacier advances. Interglacials, on the other hand, are periods of warmer climate betw ...

and resulting low sea levels, Cape York Peninsula provided a low-lying land link. Another link existed between Arnhem Land and New Guinea, at times enclosing an enormous freshwater lake (Lake Carpentaria) in the centre of what is now the Gulf of Carpentaria. Australia and New Guinea remained connected in this way until the shallow

Torres Strait The Torres Strait (), also known as Zenadh Kes, is a strait between Australia and the Melanesian island of New Guinea. It is wide at its narrowest extent. To the south is Cape York Peninsula, the northernmost extremity of the Australian mai ...

was last flooded around 8,000 years ago.

People and culture today

Today the peninsula has a population of only about 18,000, of which a large percentage (~60%) are

Aboriginal people Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

and

.Woinarski, J., Mackey, B., Nix, H., Traill, B. (2007). The nature of northern Australia: Natural values, ecological processes and future prospects. Canberra: ANU E press.Cape York Peninsula Development Association. Homepage. Accessed 23 April 2008
cypda.com.au
. The administrative and commercial centre for much of Cape York Peninsula is

Cooktown Cooktown is a coastal town and locality in the Shire of Cook, Queensland, Australia. Cooktown is at the mouth of the Endeavour River, on Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland where James Cook beached his ship, the Endeavour, for repai ...

, located in its far southeastern corner while the peninsula's largest settlement is the mining town Weipa on the Gulf of Carpentaria. The remainder is extremely sparsely populated, with about half the population living in very small settlements and cattle ranches. Along the peninsula developmental road, there are small service centres at Lakeland, Laura and Coen. About offshore north of the tip of Cape York, there is a sizeable service centre on nearby

Thursday Island Thursday Island, colloquially known as TI, or in the Kawrareg dialect, Waiben or Waibene, is an island of the Torres Strait Islands, an archipelago of at least 274 small islands in the Torres Strait. TI is located approximately north of Cape ...

. Aboriginal communities are at

Hopevale Hope Vale (also known as Hopevale) is a town within the Aboriginal Shire of Hope Vale and a coastal locality split between the Aboriginal Shire of Hope Vale and the Shire of Cook, both in Queensland, Australia. It is an Aboriginal community. I ...

, Pormpuraaw, Kowanyama, Aurukun, Lockhart River, Napranum, Mapoon,

Injinoo The Injinoo were an Indigenous Australian people of the Cape York Peninsula, and their name now applies to a tribal aggregation of remnants of various tribes of the Cape York Peninsula. Country The traditional lands of the Injinoo Community ext ...

, New Mapoon and

Umagico Umagico is a town and coastal locality in the Northern Peninsula Area Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Umagico had a population of 427 people. Umagico is one of the five communities which collectively form the Northern Peninsula Area, al ...

. Torres Strait Islander communities on the mainland are at

Bamaga Bamaga ( , ) is a small town and locality about from the northern tip of Cape York in the north of Queensland, Australia. It is within the Northern Peninsula Area Region. It is one of the northernmost settlements in continental Australia and i ...

and

Seisia Seisia is a coastal town and a locality in the Northern Peninsula Area Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Seisia had a population of 260 people. Geography Seisia is the area north of New Mapoon and west of Bamaga on Cape York Peninsula. ...

. A completely sealed inland road links Cairns and the

Atherton Tableland The Atherton Tableland is a fertile plateau which is part of the Great Dividing Range in Queensland, Australia. The principal river flowing across the plateau is the Barron River. It was dammed to form an irrigation reservoir named Lake Tina ...

to Lakeland and Cooktown. The road north of Lakeland Downs to the tip of the peninsula is sometimes cut after heavy rains during the wet season (roughly December to May). The peninsula is a popular tourist destination in the dry season for camping, hiking, bird watching and fishing enthusiasts. Many people make the adventurous, but rewarding, drive to the tip of Cape York, the northernmost point of mainland Australia. Some of the world's most extensive and ancient Aboriginal rock painting galleries surround the town of Laura, some of which are available for public viewing. There is also a new interpretive centre from which information on the rock art and local culture is available and tours can be arranged.

Indigenous languages and peoples

Over 30

Aboriginal languages Aboriginal language may refer to: * Indigenous language * Australian Aboriginal languages * Taiwanese aboriginal languages * Indigenous languages of the Americas * Aboriginal Malay languages The Malayic languages are a branch of the Malayo-P ...

are spoken on Cape York Peninsula, including

Linngithigh Linngithigh (Liningitij) is an extinct Paman language formerly spoken on the Cape York Peninsula of Queensland, Australia, by the Linngithigh people Linngithigh (Liningitij) is an extinct Paman language formerly spoken on the Cape York Pen ...

, Umpila, Wik Mungkan, Wik-Me'nh, Wik-Ngathan,

Kugu Nganhcara The Kugu Nganhcara, also ''Wikngenchera, Wik-Ngandjara (Ngandjara)'' are an Australian group of peoples living in the middle western part of the Cape York Peninsula, Queensland in Australia. Today they are primarily concentrated at Aurukan an ...

, Guugu Yalandji, Guugu Yimithirr,

Kuuk Thaayorre Kuuk Thaayorre (Thayore) is a Paman language spoken in the settlement Pormpuraaw on the western part of the Cape York Peninsula, Queensland in Australia by the Thaayorre people. As of 2006, 250 of the 350 ethnic Thaayorre speak the language. It ...

and a multitude of

Australian Aboriginal sign languages Many Australian Aboriginal cultures have or traditionally had a manually coded language, a signed counterpart of their oral language. This appears to be connected with various speech taboos between certain kin or at particular times, such as ...

. Some of these languages are being acquired by children or are spoken by all generations in remote communities. Most Wik languages are being quickly absorbed by

Wik-Mungkan The Wik-Mungkan people were the largest branch of the Wik people, an Aboriginal Australian group of peoples, speaking several different languages, who traditionally ranged over an extensive area of the western Cape York Peninsula in northern Quee ...

, which seems to be the only aboriginal language on the peninsula that is developing very quickly, as it is the second language of the Wikalkan, Wik-Ngathana, and Wikngenchera. Djagaraga (also known as Yadhaigana, Dyagaraga and Yagulleone) is an

Australian Aboriginal language The Indigenous languages of Australia number in the hundreds, the precise number being quite uncertain, although there is a range of estimates from a minimum of around 250 (using the technical definition of 'language' as non-mutually intellig ...

from the tip of Cape York. The language region includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of the Northern Peninsula Area Regional Council. Traditionally the language was spoken on Eastern Cape York particularly in the localities of

Albany Island Albany Island or Pabaju is an island off the north-eastern coast of Cape York Peninsula in the Adolphus Channel and part of the Manar Group of islands of Queensland, Australia. It is within the locality of Somerset in the Shire of Torres. G ...

and Mount Adolphus Island.

(also known as Winda Winda and Linginiti) is an Australian Aboriginal language spoken by the Linngithigh people. The Linngithigh language region includes landscape within the local government boundaries of the

Cook Shire Council The Shire of Cook (The Shire) is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Australia. The Shire covers most of the eastern and central parts of Cape York Peninsula, the most northerly section of the Australian mainland. It covers an ar ...

: Western Cape York, Winda Winda Creek,

Mission River The Mission River is a river located in Texas, in the United States of America. It is formed by the confluence of Blanco and Medio creeks in central Refugio County (at 28°19' N, 97°19' W) and runs southeast, past Refugio, for to its mouth ...

, and

Archer River The Archer River is a river located on the Cape York Peninsula, Far North Queensland, Australia. Course and features The headwaters of the river rise in the McIlwraith Range and it flows west, traversing tropical savanna plains and wetlands, ...

. Luthigh (also known as Lotiga, Tepiti and Uradhi, see also Uradhi related languages) is an Australian Aboriginal language spoken by the Luthigh people. The traditional language area for Luthigh includes landscape within the local government boundaries of the

Cook Shire The Shire of Cook (The Shire) is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Australia. The Shire covers most of the eastern and central parts of Cape York Peninsula, the most northerly section of the Australian mainland. It covers an area ...

: Eastern Cape York,

Ducie River The Ducie River is a river located on the Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland, Australia. Formed by the confluence of the Palm Creek and South Palm Creek, the headwaters of the Ducie River drain the Richardson Range, part of the Great ...

, Northern Peninsula, New Mapoon,

, and

Cowal Creek Injinoo (formerly Cowal Creek) is a coastal town in the Northern Peninsula Area Region and a Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality split between Northern Peninsula Area Region and the Shire of Torres in Far North Queensland, Far North Que ...

. Teppathiggi (also known Tepithiki and Teyepathiggi) is an

of Western Cape York, Middle Dulcie River, Lower Batavia River,

, and Mapoon. The language region includes areas within the local government boundaries of

Thaynakwith Awngthim is an extinct Australian Aboriginal language formerly spoken in Cape York in Queensland, Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian contine ...

(also known as Awngthim, Tainikuit and Winduwinda) is an

spoken on Western Cape York in the Weipa area taking in Albatross Bay and

. The language region includes areas within the local government boundaries of Weipa Town Council and

. Uradhi (also known as Anggamudi, Ankamuti, Atampaya, Bawtjathi, and Lotiga) is an Australian Aboriginal language of the Western Cape York Peninsula. The traditional language region includes north of Mapoon and

Duyfken Point Duyfken Point is a Point (geography), point in the Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality of Mission River, Queensland, Mission River, Shire of Cook, Queensland, Australia (). Geography Duyfken Point is on the western coast of Cape York ...

and east of the coast strip to the north of

Port Musgrave Port Musgrave is a shallow, almost enclosed, estuarine bay located on the western coast of the Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland, Australia. Geography Two major rivers, the Wenlock and the Ducie discharge into it. The bay itsel ...

(Angkamuthi country) incorporating the mouth of the

, the lower reaches of the Dulhunty River and the upper reaches of the Skardon River in the north. Following the displacement of Indigenous people by British settlement, it was also spoken in the

Northern Peninsula Area Region The Northern Peninsula Area Region is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Australia, covering areas on the northwestern coast of Cape York Peninsula. It was created in March 2008 out of three Aboriginal Shires and two autonomous Isl ...

including the communities of New Mapoon,

and

. Yir Yiront (also known as Yiront, Jirjoront, Yir-yiront, and Kokomindjan) is an Australian Aboriginal language. Its traditional language region is in Western Cape York within the local government areas of

Aboriginal Shire of Kowanyama The Aboriginal Shire of Kowanyama is a special local government area which is located on western Cape York Peninsula in Queensland, Australia. It is managed under a Deed of Grant in Trust under the ''Local Government (Community Government Areas) ...

and

Shire of Cook The Shire of Cook (The Shire) is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Australia. The Shire covers most of the eastern and central parts of Cape York Peninsula, the most northerly section of the Australian mainland. It covers an area ...

, in the catchments of the

Coleman River Coleman River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 26, 2011 stream that is located in the Blue Ridge Mountains, mostly within Rabun County, Georgia. It is one of ...

and Mitchell River. Following the removal of Aboriginal people from their traditional lands, it is also spoken in Pormpuraaw and

. Kuuku Ya'u (also known as Gugu Yau, Yao, Ya'o, Koko Ya'o and Koka-yao) is an Australian Aboriginal language. The traditional language area of Kuuku Ya'u includes landscape within the local government boundaries of the

: Eastern Cape York, Uu'ungun south to Claudie River and hinterland.

(also known as Koko-Daiyuri, Kuku Yak, Thayorre, and used as a generic name for several related languages/dialects) is an Australian Aboriginal Language spoken on Western Cape York Peninsula, particularly in the area around Pormpuraaw (

Edward River Edward River, or Kyalite River, an anabranch of the Murray River and part of the Murray–Darling basin, is located in the western Riverina region of south western New South Wales, Australia. The river rises at Picnic Point east of Mathoura, a ...

). The Thaayorre language region includes the landscape within Pormpuraaw Community Council and the

. Kugu Yi'anh is a language of Cape York. The traditional language area of Kugu Yi'anh includes areas within Cape York.

(also known as Wik, Wiknantjara, Wik Nganychara, Wik Ngencherr) is a traditional language of the area which includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of the

. Kugu Muminh (also known as Kuku-Muminh) is one of the traditional languages which includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of the

. Kunjen (also known as Koko Wanggara, Ngundjan and Olkola) is a language of Western Cape York. The Kunjen language region includes the landscape within the local government boundaries of

Community Council and

Native title claims

On 25 November 2021, of land on the eastern side of the peninsula were handed back to the Kuuku Ya'u and Uutaalnganu peoples, in a

native title Aboriginal title is a common law doctrine that the land rights of indigenous peoples to customary tenure persist after the assumption of sovereignty under settler colonialism. The requirements of proof for the recognition of aboriginal title, ...

claim that was lodged seven years prior. The landmark ruling was delivered by Justice Debra Mortimer of the Federal Court of Australia, sitting at the Supreme Court of Queensland in Cairns. In December 2022 the Federal Court recognised the native title claims for the Kaurareg, Kulkalgal, Kemer Kemer Meriam, Ankamuthi and Gudang Yadhaykenu Peoples.

Ecology

Flora

Cape York Peninsula supports a complex mosaic of intact tropical rainforests, tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannahs, shrublands, heath lands, wetlands, wild rivers and

mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows in coastal saline water, saline or brackish water. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evoluti ...

swamps. The savannah woodlands consist typically of a tall dense grass layer and varying densities of trees, predominantly

eucalypt Eucalypt is a descriptive name for woody plants with capsule fruiting bodies belonging to seven closely related genera (of the tribe Eucalypteae) found across Australasia: ''Eucalyptus'', ''Corymbia'', ''Angophora'', '' Stockwellia'', ''Allosyn ...

of which the most common is Darwin stringybark ('' Eucalyptus tetrodonta''). These various habitats are home to about 3300 species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

s and almost the entire area of Cape York Peninsula (99.6%) still retains its native vegetation and is little fragmented.Neldner, V.J., Clarkson, J.R. (1994). Vegetation Survey of Cape York Peninsula. Cape York Peninsula Land Use Study (CYPLUS). Office of the Co-ordinator General and Department of Environment and Heritage, Government of Queensland: Brisbane. Although abundant and fully functioning on the peninsula, tropical savannahs are now rare and highly degraded in other parts of the world. Cape York Peninsula also contains one of the highest rates of

endemism 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 ...

in Australia, with more than 260 endemic plant species found so far. Therefore, parts of the peninsula have been noted for their exceptionally high wilderness quality.Abrahams, H., Mulvaney, M., Glasco, D., Bugg, A. (1995). Areas of Conservation Significance on Cape York Peninsula. Cape York Peninsula Land Use Strategy. Office of the Co-ordinator General of Queensland, Australian Heritage Commission. Accessed 15 January 2008, fro
environment.gov.au
. Pitcher-plant-cape-york-australia

The flora of the peninsula includes original Gondwanan species, plants that have emerged since the breakup of Gondwana and species from

Indomalaya The Indomalayan realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms. It extends across most of South and Southeast Asia and into the southern parts of East Asia. Also called the Oriental realm by biogeographers, Indomalaya spreads all over the Indi ...

and from across the Torres Strait in New Guinea with the most variety being found in the rainforest areas. Most of the Cape York Peninsula is drier than nearby New Guinea which limits the rainforest plants of that island from migrating across to Australia. >>Insert table with numbers for different plants--> Tropical rainforests cover an area of , or 5.6 percent of the total land area of Cape York Peninsula.Cofinas, M., Creighton, C. (2001). Australian Native Vegetation Assessment. National Land and Water Resources Audit. Accessed 20 April 2008, fro
anra.gov.au
. Rainforests depend on some level of rainfall throughout the long dry season, climatic conditions that are mostly found on the eastern slopes of the peninsula's coastal ranges. Being almost exclusively untouched, old-growth forests and supporting a disproportionately high biodiversity including flora of Gondwanan and New Guinean origin, the rainforests are of high conservation significance. The largest contiguous rainforest area on the peninsula occurs in the McIllwraith Range-

Iron Range The term Iron Range refers collectively or individually to a number of elongated iron-ore mining districts around Lake Superior in the United States and Canada. Much of the ore-bearing region lies alongside the range of granite hills formed by ...

area. The Gondwanan flora of this area includes

Araucariaceae Araucariaceae – also known as araucarians – is an extremely ancient family of coniferous trees. The family achieved its maximum diversity during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods and the early Cenozoic, when it was distributed almost worldw ...

and

Podocarpaceae Podocarpaceae is a large family of mainly Southern Hemisphere conifers, known in English as podocarps, comprising about 156 species of evergreen trees and shrubs.James E. Eckenwalder. 2009. ''Conifers of the World''. Portland, Oregon: Timber Pr ...

conifers and ''

Arthrochilus ''Arthrochilus'', commonly called elbow orchids, is a genus of about fifteen species of flowering plants from the orchid family (Orchidaceae) and is found in Australia and New Guinea. The flowers are pollinated by male thynnid wasps which attem ...

'', '' Corybas'', and ''

Calochilus ''Calochilus'', commonly known as beard orchids, is a genus of about 30 species of plants in the orchid family, Orchidaceae. Beard orchids are terrestrial herbs with a single leaf at the base of the plant, or no leaves. Their most striking feat ...

'' orchids. In all, this rainforest contains at least 1000 different plants, including 100 rare or threatened species, and 16% of Australia's orchid species. On poor, dry soils tropical heathlands can be found. Northeast Cape York Peninsula supports Australia's largest areas of this highly diverse ecosystem. The extensive wetlands on Cape York Peninsula are "among the largest, richest and most diverse in Australia". 19 wetlands of national significance have been identified, mostly on the large floodplains and in coastal areas. Important wetlands include the Apudthama Complex, Rinyirru systems and the

estuaries An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environmen ...

of the great rivers of the western plains. Many of these wetlands come into existence only during the wet season and support rare or uncommon plant communities. The peninsula's coastal areas and river estuaries are lined with

forests of Intsia bijuga, kwila and other trees. Australia's largest mangrove forest can be found at Newcastle Bay.

Fauna

The peninsula harbours an extraordinary biodiversity, with more than 700 vertebrate land animal species of which 40 are endemic. As a result, from its geological history, "the flora and fauna of Cape York Peninsula are a complex mixture of Gondwanan relics, Australian isolationists and Asian or New Guinean invaders" (p. 41). Birds of the peninsula include buff-breasted buttonquail (''Turnix olivii''), golden-shouldered parrot (''Psephotus chrysopterygius''), lovely fairywren (''Malurus amabilis''), white-streaked honeyeater (''Trichodere cockerelli''), and yellow-spotted honeyeater (''Meliphaga notata'') while some such as pied oystercatcher are found in other parts of Australia but have important populations on the peninsula. The peninsula is also home to the eastern brown snake, one of the world's most venomous snakes. Mammals include the rodent Cape York melomys, related to the extinct Bramble Cay melomys, which was found only on Bramble Cay in the Torres Strait and confirmed extinct in 2016. The rainforests of the Kutini-Payamu National Park support species that are also found in New Guinea, including the eclectus parrot and southern common cuscus. Other rainforest fauna includes 200 species of butterfly including 11 endemic butterflies one of which is the huge Ornithoptera priamus, green birdwing, the Morelia viridis, green tree python and the northern quoll, a forest marsupial that is now severely depleted from eating the introduced poisonous cane toads. The riverbanks of the lowlands are home to specific wildlife of their own while the rivers including the Jardine, Jackson River (Queensland), Jackson, Olive, Holroyd River, Holroyd and the Wenlock River, Wenlock are rich in fish. The wetlands and coastal mangroves are noted for their importance as a fish nursery and Saltwater crocodile, crocodile habitat, providing important drought refuge and finally the

lies off the east coast and is an important marine habitat. >>Insert table with numbers for different biota elements ( mammals, birds, fish, insects, etc.)--> >>insert info for more key species (e.g. termites, Saltwater Crocodile, Palm Cockatoo)-->

Threats and preservation

Cattle station leases occupy about 57% of the total area, mostly located in central and eastern Cape York Peninsula. Indigenous land comprises about 20%, with the entire West coast being held under Native title in Australia, native title. The remainder is mostly declared as National Park and managed by the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service. Land uses include broad-acre pastoralism, bauxite and silica sand mining, nature reserves, tourism and fishing. There are extensive deposits of bauxite along the west or Gulf of Carpentaria coast. Weipa is the centre for mining.Australian Government. Australian Natural Resource Atlas. Accessed 20 April 2008
anra.gov.au
. Much has been damaged by overgrazing, mining, poorly controlled fires and feral pigs, cane toads, weeds, and other introduced speciesanra.gov.au
but Cape York Peninsula remains fairly unspoilt with intact and healthy river systems and no recorded plant or animal extinction since European settlement. The "Cape York Peninsula Land Use Strategy" study was commissioned by the Australian government in 1990 to create plans to protect the wilderness and a nomination for World Heritage Site, World Natural Heritage is currently being considered by the Queensland and Australian Federal governments.Valentine, Peter S. (2006). Compiling a case for World Heritage on Cape York Peninsula. Retrieved 7 February 2008, from
epa.qld.gov.au
. Major national parks include the Apudthama National Park in the far north, Oyala Thumotang National Park near Aurukun, Queensland, Aurukun, and Rinyirru (Lakefield) National Park, Rinyirru National Park in the southeast of the bioregion.

Transport

There are two roads passing north–south through Cape York Peninsula to Cape York: the Peninsula Developmental Road (PDR) and the Bamaga Road, Northern Peninsula Road (also called Bamaga Road and Telegraph Road). Bamaga Road now bypasses the overland telegraph line (OTL) track, which is often referred to as the tele track. The tele track was used for construction and maintenance of the OTL until it was superseded by first microwave relay towers and then by fibre optic cables, and is now used by four-wheel drive vehicle enthusiasts in the dry season. Many crossings, such as the bridge over the Wenlock near Moreton station, have been upgraded; however, many Ford (crossing), fords remain. The roads are unsealed and in places are difficult to traverse. They are considered suitable for four-wheel-drive vehicles only and also considered only suitable to be driven in the dry season. In 1986, Cape York became the proposed site of a spaceport, which a consortium of companies, the Cape York Space Agency, promoted with support from the federal government. In 1992, investor support failed, and in 2017, legal ownership of of land required was returned to the Wudhadhi dialect, Wuthathi, Kuku Yau and Northern Kaanju language, Kaanju people. The development, which was heavily supported by Queensland premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen. would have included a new town, tourist resorts, an airport and a harbour.

Footnotes

References

* Holmes, John. 2011.
Contesting the Future of Cape York Peninsula
'' Australian Geographer, Vol, 42, No. 1. * Hough, Richard. 1994. ''Captain James Cook: a biography''. Hodder and Stroughton, London. . * Pike, Glenville. 1979. ''Queen of the North: A Pictorial History of Cooktown and Cape York Peninsula''. G. Pike. . * Moon, Ron & Viv. 2003. ''Cape York: An Adventurer's Guide''. 9th edition. Moon Adventure Publications, Pearcedale, Victoria. * Moore, David R. 1979. ''Islanders and Aborigines at Cape York: An ethnographic reconstruction based on the 1848-1850 'HMS Rattlesnake (1822), Rattlesnake' Journals of Oswald Walters Brierly, O. W. Brierly and information he obtained from Barbara Thompson''. Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies. Canberra. (hbk); 0-85575-082-0 (pbk). USA edition (hbk); 0-391-00948-6 (pbk). * Pohlner, Peter. 1986. ''Gangaurru''. Hopevale Mission Board, Milton, Queensland. * Trezise, P.J. 1969. ''Quinkan Country: Adventures in Search of Aboriginal Cave Paintings in Cape York''. A.H. & A.W. Reed, Sydney. * Trezise, Percy. 1973. ''Last Days of a Wilderness''. William Collins (Aust) Ltd., Brisbane. . * Trezise, P.J. 1993. ''Dream Road: A Journey of Discovery.'' Allen & Unwin, St. Leonards, Sydney. * Haviland, John B. with Hart, Roger. 1998. ''Old Man Fog and the Last Aborigines of Barrow Point''. Crawford House Publishing, Bathurst. * Premier's Department (prepared by Connell Wagner). 1989. ''Cape York Peninsula Resource Analysis''. Cairns. (1989). . * Roth, W.E. 1897. ''The Queensland Aborigines''. 3 Vols. Reprint: Facsimile Edition, Hesperian Press, Victoria Park, W.A., 1984. * Ryan, Michelle and Burwell, Colin, eds. 2000. ''Wildlife of Tropical North Queensland: Cooktown to Mackay''. Queensland Museum, Brisbane. (set of 3 vols). * Scarth-Johnson, Vera. 2000. ''National Treasures: Flowering plants of Cooktown and Northern Australia''. Vera Scarth-Johnson Gallery Association, Cooktown. (pbk); Limited Edition - Leather Bound. * Sutton, Peter (ed). ''Languages of Cape York: Papers presented to a Symposium organised by the Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies''. Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies, Canberra. (1976). * Wallace, Lennie. 2000. ''Nomads of the 19th Century Queensland Goldfields''. Central Queensland University Press, Rockhampton. * Wallace, Lennie. 2003. ''Cape York Peninsula: A History of Unlauded Heroes 1845-2003''. Central Queensland University Press, Rockhampton. * Wynter, Jo and John Hill. 1991. ''Cape York Peninsula: Pathways to Community Economic Development''. The Final Report of The Community Economic Development Projects Cook Shire. Cook Shire Council.

Bibliography

* McIvor, Roy (2010). ''Cockatoo: My Life in Cape York. Stories and Art''. Roy McIvor. Magabala Books. Broome, Western Australia. . {{Authority control Peninsulas of Queensland IBRA regions Landforms of Far North Queensland Arafura Sea Physiographic provinces Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands Extreme points of Australia