Edmund Kennedy National Park
Encyclopedia
Edmund Kennedy is a national park in Queensland
, Australia
, 1269 km northwest of Brisbane
. The national park is part of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area
. It was named after Edmund Kennedy
, a mid-nineteenth century explorer.
The park protects part of the coastline between the mouths of the Tully River
and Meunga Creek at Rockingham Bay. Waters adjacent to the park belong to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park
.
grows here, one of only a few Australian mainland locations where this occurs. The Red Beech, pandanus
and melaleuca
s are typically found in the park.
and Mahogany Glider
are found in the park. Estuarine crocodiles are found in the creeks. Common birds include the Black Butcherbird
and honeyeater
s. The Orange-footed Scrubfowl
nests in the park. Their mounds, which can be up to three m high, are the largest of all mound-building birds in Australia. Lace monitor
lizards can also be seen in Edmund Kennedy National Park.
Feral pigs and cattle have to be culled from the area.
and his party landed 35 km north of the park. He travelled south through the area now known as Edmund Kennedy National Park in a failed attempt to find passage over the ranges behind the coast.
It was expanded in 1980 by land donated by conservation activists Margaret and Arthur Thorsborne
. In 2011, Cyclone Yasi
caused a lot of damage to the area.
on the Bruce Highway
.
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, 1269 km northwest of Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
. The national park is part of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area
Wet Tropics of Queensland
The Wet Tropics of Queensland World Heritage Site consists of approximately 8,940 km² of Australian wet tropical forests growing along the north-east Queensland portion of the Great Dividing Range, stretching from Townsville to Cooktown, running in close parallel to the Great Barrier Reef...
. It was named after Edmund Kennedy
Edmund Kennedy
Edmund Besley Court Kennedy was an explorer in Australia in the mid nineteenth century. He was the Assistant-Surveyor of New South Wales, working with Sir Thomas Mitchell...
, a mid-nineteenth century explorer.
The park protects part of the coastline between the mouths of the Tully River
Tully River
The Tully River is a river situated within the Cassowary Coast Region of North Queensland, named after William Alcock Tully, Queensland Surveyor-General from 1875-89.The Bruce Highway crosses the river south of Tully...
and Meunga Creek at Rockingham Bay. Waters adjacent to the park belong to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park
Great Barrier Reef Marine Park
The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park protects a large part of Australia's Great Barrier Reef from damaging activities. Fishing and the removal of artefacts or...
.
Flora
The coastal plain contains mangrove and freshwater swamps associated with the waterways of Murray River, Dallachy Creek and Wreck Creek. Other vegetation types include low coastal rainforest, eucalyptus forest, melaleuca woodland and sedge swamp. The Arenga palmArenga pinnata
Arenga pinnata is an economically important feather palm native to tropical Asia, from eastern India east to Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines in the east...
grows here, one of only a few Australian mainland locations where this occurs. The Red Beech, pandanus
Pandanus
Pandanus is a genus of monocots with about 600 known species. They are numerous palmlike dioecious trees and shrubs native of the Old World tropics and subtropics. They are classified in the order Pandanales, family Pandanaceae.-Overview:...
and melaleuca
Melaleuca
Melaleuca is a genus of plants in the myrtle family Myrtaceae known for its natural soothing and cleansing properties. There are well over 200 recognised species, most of which are endemic to Australia...
s are typically found in the park.
Fauna
The endangered Southern CassowarySouthern Cassowary
The Southern Cassowary, Casuarius casuarius, also known as Double-wattled Cassowary, Australian Cassowary or Two-wattled Cassowary, is a large flightless black bird...
and Mahogany Glider
Mahogany Glider
The mahogany glider is an endangered gliding possum native to a small region of coastal Queensland.-Appearance:A nocturnal arboreal marsupial, the mahogany glider closely resembles the sugar glider, the squirrel glider and the yellow-bellied glider., but is noticeably larger than any of its...
are found in the park. Estuarine crocodiles are found in the creeks. Common birds include the Black Butcherbird
Black Butcherbird
The Black Butcherbird is a species of bird in the Cracticidae family.It is found in Australia, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea....
and honeyeater
Honeyeater
The honeyeaters are a large and diverse family of small to medium sized birds most common in Australia and New Guinea, but also found in New Zealand, the Pacific islands as far east as Samoa and Tonga, and the islands to the north and west of New Guinea known as Wallacea...
s. The Orange-footed Scrubfowl
Orange-footed Scrubfowl
The Orange-footed Scrubfowl, Megapodius reinwardt, is a small megapode of the family Megapodiidae.This species comprises five subspecies found on many islands in Wallacea as well as southern New Guinea and northern Australia. It is a terrestrial bird the size of a domestic chicken and dark-coloured...
nests in the park. Their mounds, which can be up to three m high, are the largest of all mound-building birds in Australia. Lace monitor
Lace monitor
The Lace Monitor, or Lace Goanna, Varanus varius, is a member of the monitor lizard family, Australian members of which are commonly known as goannas. It belongs to the subgenus Varanus....
lizards can also be seen in Edmund Kennedy National Park.
Feral pigs and cattle have to be culled from the area.
History
The land was once home to the Girramay people. In 1848, explorer Edmund KennedyEdmund Kennedy
Edmund Besley Court Kennedy was an explorer in Australia in the mid nineteenth century. He was the Assistant-Surveyor of New South Wales, working with Sir Thomas Mitchell...
and his party landed 35 km north of the park. He travelled south through the area now known as Edmund Kennedy National Park in a failed attempt to find passage over the ranges behind the coast.
It was expanded in 1980 by land donated by conservation activists Margaret and Arthur Thorsborne
Margaret Thorsborne
Margaret Grace Thorsborne AO is an Australian naturalist, conservationist and environmental activist. She is notable for her efforts, with her husband Arthur Thorsborne, in initiating the long-term monitoring and protection of the Torresian Imperial-pigeon on the Brook Islands, north east of...
. In 2011, Cyclone Yasi
Cyclone Yasi
Severe Tropical Cyclone Yasi was a tropical cyclone that made landfall in northern Queensland, Australia in the early hours of Thursday, 3 February 2011. Yasi originated from a tropical low near Fiji. The system intensified to a Category 3 cyclone at about 5pm AEST on 31 January 2011...
caused a lot of damage to the area.
Facilities
Camping is not permitted in the park. Picnic facilities including tables and toilets are available. A boardwalk through mangroves and another along Wreck Creek are graded as easy.Access
The park can be reached by an entrance road four km north of CardwellCardwell, Queensland
Cardwell is a tropical coastal town in northeastern Queensland. It is located at the southern extremity of the Cassowary Coast. At the 2006 census, Cardwell had a population of 1,250. The Bruce Highway National Highway 1 and the North Coast railway line are the dominant transport routes;...
on the Bruce Highway
Bruce Highway
The Bruce Highway is a major highway in Queensland, Australia. Commencing in the state capital, Brisbane, it passes through areas close to the eastern coast to Cairns in Far North Queensland. The route is a part of the Australian National Highway and also part of Highway 1...
.
External links
- Edmund Kennedy National Park - Department of Environment and Resource Management