Australia: it’s so big, you know it has to be hiding some secrets. And the biggest secret of all, known by the locals and everyone who visits, is that Australia’s cities are a long way from the outback.
While you might see kangaroos hopping down the streets of Halls Gap in the Grampians, the chances of a kangaroo being seen on the streets of Melbourne (other than as a stuffed toy) are pretty close to zero.
But while that’s an open secret, here are five things you might not have known about Australia.
1. Flinders Ranges National Park has around 200 earthquakes a year
Apart from a few small rumbles that shook Victoria last year, we don’t really think of Australia as being very earthquake prone. But Flinders Ranges National Park in South Australia often has over 200 earthquakes a year, and is an area of high seismic activity. This is due to a number of faults under the ancient landscape.
But if you’re visiting Flinders Ranges, don’t worry. Most of the earthquakes are so far underground or so small you’ll think the earth moving is your reaction to the spectacular scenery around you.
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2. Australia is home to a living fossil (and it’s not Dame Edna)
It won’t surprise you to know that lots of dinosaur skeletons, along with other fossilised ancient creatures, have been found in Australia. But Australia is also one of the last places on Earth you can see stromatolites.
While the stromatolites in Australia are only a few thousand years old, the first stromatolites lived 3.5 billion years ago.
So if you want to see an organism that has been around since what is basically the beginning of time, you’ll have to go to Shark Bay in Western Australia. There are only two other places in the world you can see stromatolites, and they are both in the Bahamas.
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3. Australia is home to one of the oldest cultures on Earth
It’s a common statement whenever an Aussie heads to Europe: ‘Oh, you must be here for the culture.’ And while it’s true that you’ll find more old buildings, museums and art galleries in densely populated Europe than you would in Australia, it’s not exactly accurate that we need to leave our shores to find culture.
As part of hundreds of different nations, Aboriginal people have lived in Australia for what is estimated to be around 50 000 years – and they’ve left the artwork behind to prove it. You’ll see fantastic examples of Aboriginal rock art, some of it estimated to be around 10 000 years old (for the record, that’s much much older than the Mona Lisa), mainly in national parks, including Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory and Chiltern–Mount Pilot National Park in Victoria.
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4. The French landed in Botany Bay just a few days after the First Fleet
Have you ever wondered why, amidst all of the British and Aboriginal names of national parks, a few stand out as being particularly … French? That’s because the French have had a presence in Australia for almost as long as the British. But their exploration of Australia was of a scientific bent.
The spot where the French first landed is now the suburb of La Perouse in Sydney. But the French also made significant movements into Tasmania and Western Australia. While on an expedition to find the missing French explorer La Perouse, Bruni D’Entrecasteaux mapped significant parts of Tasmania and also travelled along the southern coast, giving points along South Australia and the bottom of Western Australia French names they retain today.
You’ll find even more French names in Western Australia in tribute to Francois Peron, who undertook a significant study of Australia’s natural history. So Australia’s European history is not quite as English (and Dutch) as you might have thought!
Find out more about the French in Australia:
5. Vegemite is actually delicious
You’ll hear of many tourists complaining that Vegemite is disgusting. Don’t believe them – it’s actually delicious, and much better than Marmite.
What are your favourite ‘hidden’ facts about Australia?
