Atherton Tablelands
| Atherton Tablelands | ||
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 McHugh Lookout, looking out over the Atherton Tablelands |
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| Highest peak | Mount Bartle Frere ( 1622 m ) | |
| location | Queensland | |
| part of | Great dividing range | |
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| Coordinates | 17 ° 10 ′ S , 145 ° 32 ′ E | |
| Type | Volcanic field | |
The Atherton Tablelands are a highlands southwest of Cairns and northwest of Innisfail in the Australian state of Queensland . It is part of the Great Dividing Range , which stretches along the east coast of Australia. The main cities are Atherton , Kuranda , Yungaburra , Mareeba , Malanda and Millaa Millaa .
geology
The oldest rocks in this landscape were granites , which were covered and changed by other rocks. Volcanoes erupted basalt on this original base . The old granites that were pressed into the deeper layers of the earth were heated and moved rhyolitic lava , which came to the surface and quickly cooled. The mineralization that took place in this process produced ores such as gold, copper and zinc in the Hodgkinson Mountains and tin and tungsten in the granites.
Volcanoes formed in the Tablelands 3.9 to 1.6 million years ago, but there are a number of volcanic cones that formed less than 200,000 years ago, such as Mount Quincan and The Pinnacles .
As the lava emerged, it flowed along the river valleys and, as it cooled, solidified into basalt up to a thickness of several meters. It emerged shield volcanoes with flattened crater slopes, 5 to 10 km extend well into the Atherton Tableland. The originally dark basalt weathered partially red or clay over time . The erosion created cuts in the flanks of the volcanoes, such as at Bones Knob Volcano , Malanda Volcano near Meeragallen and at Glendinning on Windy Hill . Ash and cinder cones and maars were created. Small volcanic hills rose 40 to 80 meters above the site and emitted little lava. However, Mount Quincan is 170 meters high and covers an area within 0.5 to 1.5 km, which contains volcanic ash and slag, as can be seen in a quarry located there. The maars, like the Bromfield Swamp , were formed when red-hot lava came into contact with groundwater. The resulting explosions created craters that were filled with water over a large area at a relatively shallow depth.
There are four geological forms of volcanoes in the Atherton Tablelands: conical hills like The Pinnacles , ash and cinder cones like Mount Quincan , maars like Lake Barrine and Lake Eacham, or swamps like the Bromfield Swamp and Lynch's Crater . The ash and cinder mounds are younger than the shield volcanoes. The crater of Mount Hypipamee is an exception, because it was created by a large gas explosion in which granite masses were blasted off and only small amounts of lava were ejected.
history
The first settlers were attracted to the Atherton Tablelands by gold in the 1870s ; later many came here for tin . The logging of wood and its further processing, like agriculture, soon replaced the search for mineral resources.
The name of the landscape goes back to John Atherton (1837–1913), who drove herds of cattle into the area in the early years of European settlement.
character
Surveys
The height is between 600 and 1000 m . To the south of the Atherton Tablelands are the two highest mountains in Queensland; Mount Bartle Frere ( 1657 m ) and Mount Bellenden Ker ( 1591 m ), which are made of granite.
flora
Huge areas of tropical rainforest once covered the Atherton Tablelands, but the first settlers managed to clear this except for a few smaller areas and process it into timber. Because of this, large areas of the Atherton Tableland can now be used for agriculture. The remaining rainforest is often on the very steep slopes towards the coast. Despite everything, the remaining rainforest is very impressive and an ideal habitat for countless animal species.
fauna
There are innumerable animal species in the rainforest areas. Of particular note are the rare Lumholtz tree kangaroo , the lemur pseudocheiridae , the platypus and there endemic occurring Herbert River pseudocheiridae and Queensland Kusus . A subspecies of the silkworm bird , which lives mainly in tropical mountain rainforests, reaches its lowest altitude here. The Atherton Tablelands are also the distribution area of the Victoria Bird of Paradise .
climate
The Atherton Tablelands are in the tropics and therefore only experience two seasons. The summer is a rainy season ( wet season ) and winter dry season ( dry season called). The low humidity in summer is called "natural air conditioning". In winter there is a cool but mild climate. The good soil and heavy rainfall make the Atherton Tablelands a favorable area in Queensland .
- Average temperatures
- Summer 17–35 ° C
- Winter 5–22 ° C
Transport links
There are a number of ways to reach and explore the Atherton Tablelands. The connection by train / gondola from Cairns to Kuranda is particularly suitable for day tourists. There are also bus connections from Cairns to the main towns of the Atherton Tableland. The best means of transport is still the car to reach the many attractions, large and small.
To get to the Atherton Tablelands from the coast, you can use the following roads:
- Palmerston Highway from Innisfail to Millaa Millaa
- Gillies Highway from Gordonvale to Yungaburra and Atherton
- Kennedy Highway from Cairns to Kuranda and Mareeba
- Peninsula Developmental Road from Cooktown and Mossman to Mareeba
economy
The nutrient-rich volcanic soil turns the rolling hills into very productive arable land and meadows.
Attractions
The Atherton Tablelands are very varied in flora, fauna, landscape and culture. This results in a lot of leisure activities, such as For example: cave tours, historical train rides, boat trips, water sports, gondola rides over the rainforest, hiking tours (bushwalking), bird watching, horse riding trips and much more. In the Atherton Tablelands is the Crater Lakes National Park with the two crater lakes Lake Eacham and Lake Barrine , as well as the Lake Tinaroo with the adjoining Danbulla National Park .
From Cairns to Kuranda you can either take a historic train or a gondola ride above the rainforest . The other means of transport can be used to return to the coast.
In Yungaburra there is the Curtain Fig Tree , a plant that was created when a tree overgrown by a strangler fig died and toppled onto another tree. The fig's drooping roots look like a curtain.
East of Millaa Millaa there is the Waterfall Circuit , which branches off the highway for 15 km and passes three waterfalls, including the Millaa Millaa Falls, which are well worth seeing .
Millaa Millaa Falls
Curtain Fig Tree
Creation of the Curtain Fig Tree
Web links
- Tablelands Regional Council (English)
- Photos from the Atherton Tableland (German)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Geology of the Atherton Tablelands (English) accessed January 27, 2012
- ↑ David Johnson: The Geology of Australia , p. 163, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2004, ISBN 0 521 84121 6 Online on Googlebooks
- ↑ Clifford B. Frith, Dawn. W. Frith: The Bowerbirds - Ptilonorhynchidae . Oxford University Press, Oxford 2004, ISBN 0-19-854844-3 . P. 364.
- ↑ PJ Higgins, JM Peter and SJ Cowling: Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds: Volume 7 Boatbill to Starlings, Part A: Boatbill to Larks . Oxford University Press, Melbourne 2006, ISBN 978-0-195-55884-5 . P. 644