Australia: the plant world. Flora and fauna of Australia

According to one of the versions of scientists, Australia is the oldest continent on our planet. The plant world, fauna, relief and all other natural features began to form here about 3 billion years ago. Paradoxically, people discovered these lands relatively recently, which is why the local nature is still much more unique and unique than in other parts of the world. Well, let's find out in more detail what it is, the flora and fauna of Australia, what are its features, and much more.

Geographical position

By itself continent Australia is the smallest in the world. It is located in the Southern Hemisphere, in the Eastern part of the World, washed by the waters of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. The coastline of the continent is heavily indented by bays, in which numerous seas are formed. In the Pacific Ocean is the Tasmanovo, Coral and Arafura Seas. In the waters of the Indian Ocean the most famous sea is Timor. Australia is surrounded by various islands, among which there are two very large - Tasmania and New Guinea. Also, next to the smallest continent is the world's largest coral reef, called the Great Barrier Reef.

Weather

A great influence on the formation of flora and fauna has for centuries the climatic zones of Australia. Despite its small size, the mainland is located immediately in three main zones. Here you can find areas of the equatorial climate, tropical and temperate. They are divided by the transition zones: subtropics, deserts and semi-deserts. The temperature of the air here is strongly influenced by ocean currents - the dipole of the Indian Ocean and El Niño. Thanks to them, cyclones are formed with dry and gusty winds that dominate most of the territory. Since the climate zones of Australia are so diverse, the weather in different parts of the continent is unique. In the northern and northeastern part, the tropical zone prevails. In the summer there are moderate precipitation, and in winter drought prevails. From the center of the mainland and closer to the west stretched deserts and semi-deserts - the region of the equatorial climate. The southwestern coasts are continuous subtropics, and the southeastern part, including the island of Tasmania, is already temperate zones.

The main attraction of local landscapes is the desert

The deserts of Australia occupy about 45 percent of the mainland area. They are in the North-West, in the tropical and subtropical zone. A feature of the Australian deserts is that there are brown and reddish soils here. Due to this, all the sands have a coral shade, which is nowhere else in the world.

So, the main deserts of Australia are:

• The Great Sandy Desert. Covered with the same red sands, in which occasionally occur acacia and eucalyptus.
• The Victoria Desert. The most extensive sand zone of the continent. Here the most arid climate is observed, because the plants are not found at all.
• The Gibson Desert is a place covered with gravel and rubble. It differs from others in its high hills.
• Simpson's Desert. A vast territory covered with red sands. Only low plants such as shrubs are found here.
• Te-Pinnucks. An extraordinary desert, which is covered with yellow sand. On such a flat terrain literally grow spiky stones about 2 meters high.

Relief and its features

Australia is the most flat continent in the world. Throughout the centuries, the winds literally inflated all its rocks, because the terrain consists mainly of plateaus and lowlands. Nevertheless, the mountains of Australia are now represented in the form of a single ridge, which is called the Great Watershed. They are located in the east of the continent, and due to the fact that they are not very high, they are covered with trees, bushes and other plants. The highest point is Mount Kosciusko, whose height is 2228 meters. Note, however, that these are not the only mountains in Australia. Elevations on the continent are found in all coastal areas. But they are so insignificant that geographers do not ascribe to them the status of full-fledged ridges, but refer them to the category of hills.

Vegetable symbol of the country

Now, finally, let us consider what kind of living nature is characterized by Australia. The vegetable world of these lands has its own symbol - eucalyptus. This tree is adapted to the harshest weather conditions, can live for a long time without water and carries gusty monsoons and trade winds. The fact is that eucalyptus has a very large root system, which is often larger than the ground part of the tree. Thus, the plant reaches out to underground marshes, rivers and other sources, from which it draws moisture. Eucalypts grow in all parts of Australia, regardless of terrain and weather conditions.

South and East Australia: Flora

In these areas we find the zone of the climate most moist for a given continent. Rains here drop out throughout the year, because the soil is quite fertile and soft. In the east of Australia, bamboo thickets often occur. They form a whole jungle that stretches from the sea coasts and ends at the foot of the Watersheds. Closer to the south, bamboo gives way to a so-called bottle-tree. For local residents this plant is a real find. Its fruit has the shape of a bottle, which always contains clean water, suitable for drinking and cooking.

Northern flora

This area of the continent is located, as was said above, in the zone of the tropics. Here is the most lush vegetation, which occupies a vast territory, and forms an impenetrable jungle. Among the trees of the North of Australia, there are pandanus, acacia, mangrove and palm thickets. The lower plants are ferns of various species and horsetail. The closer to the south, the more desolate the territory becomes. Landscapes of the northwest are covered with herbs and medicinal flowers only in the spring, and in the summer the earth dries up, there are only hills and sand dunes.

We meet kangaroos - a symbol of the fauna of Australia

The plant and animal life of Australia are closely related. There are endemic trees and shrubs, and along with them there are animals that you will not find anywhere else. The most striking representative of the Australian fauna is the marsupial kangaroo. This animal is divided into 17 genera, among which there are more than 50 species. There are kangaroos with a height of not more than 25 cm - these are the tiniest. The highest reach a height of 170 cm and are considered the rarest. There are also kangaroo rats, kangaroo-derby and many other species of these animals.

The whole fauna lives above the earth

Studying the animal kingdom of Australia, you can see that almost all mammals live here either in the air or on the branches of tropical trees. On eucalyptus trunks koalas, opossums, wombats constantly climb. Unique is the Australian squirrel - it is flying, and like a bird, flirts from one branch to another. There are wings even foxes, which look very bloodthirsty, but in fact are harmless, because they feed on the nectar of flowers. Where more dangerous are bats that have a wingspan of one and a half meters and can inflict huge damage to the health of their victim.

Ground inhabitants

Plain expanses, which are characterized by wild Australia, plow funny platypuses. This is the indigenous animal of this continent, which lives near water bodies. Along with it, there are crawling lizards, which are harmless, and crocodiles, of which you can not say anything like that. It is noteworthy that there are practically no predators on the continent. Almost the only predatory species of mammals that can be found here is the wild dog Dingo.

Conclusion

Well, briefly we examined what it is - wild Australia. The plant world, animals and reptiles, landscapes and climate of this continent are all unique. Only in Australia you can find red deserts, which abound with eucalyptus. Only here there are marsupial kangaroos, giant and tiny. Here are found foxes and squirrels with wings, crawling with extraordinary lizards and opossums. And most importantly - this world is not at all dangerous to humans.