107-606: The Leichhardt River is a river in north-west Queensland , Australia. The source of the river is in the Selwyn Range under Rifle Creek Hill and fed by Rifle Creek approximately 25 kilometres (16 mi) south of the mining town Mount Isa . It runs in a generally northerly direction almost parallel with the Diamantina Developmental Road until it reaches Mount Isa and crosses the Barkly Highway . It continues in
214-670: A potential evapotranspiration ratio (PET) value of <0.25. However, most lowland tropical forests can be classified as tropical moist or wet forests, which differ in regards to rainfall. Tropical forest ecology- dynamics, composition, and function- are sensitive to changes in climate especially changes in rainfall. Soil types are highly variable in the tropics and are the result of a combination of several variables such as climate, vegetation, topographic position, parent material, and soil age. Most tropical soils are characterized by significant leaching and poor nutrients, however there are some areas that contain fertile soils. Soils throughout
321-406: A self-governing Crown colony with responsible government . Brisbane was selected as the capital city. On 10 December 1859, a proclamation was read by George Bowen , the first Governor of Queensland , formally establishing Queensland as a separate colony from New South Wales. On 22 May 1860 the first Queensland election was held and Robert Herbert , Bowen's private secretary, was appointed as
428-584: A force of settlers and native police at Battle Mountain near modern Cloncurry . The subsequent battle of Battle Mountain ended in disaster for the Kalkadoon, who suffered heavy losses. Fighting continued in North Queensland , however, with First Nations raiders attacking sheep and cattle while Native Police mounted heavy retaliatory massacres. Tens of thousands of South Sea Islanders were kidnapped from islands nearby to Australia and sold as slaves to work on
535-557: A great rush to take up the surrounding land in the Darling Downs , Logan and Brisbane Valley and South Burnett onwards from 1840, in many cases leading to widespread fighting and heavy loss of life. The conflict later spread north to the Wide Bay and Burnett River and Hervey Bay region, and at one stage the settlement of Maryborough was virtually under siege. The largest reasonably well-documented massacres in southeast Queensland were
642-633: A half meters, or 59 inches, on average). Amongst this group are the Efe, Aka, Twa , Baka , and Mbuti people of Central Africa. However, the term pygmy is considered pejorative so many tribes prefer not to be labeled as such. Some notable indigenous peoples of the Americas , or Amerindians, include the Huaorani , Ya̧nomamö , and Kayapo people of the Amazon . The traditional agricultural system practiced by tribes in
749-401: A new niche. Direct competition will often lead to one species dominating another by some advantage, ultimately driving it to extinction. Niche partitioning is the other option for a species. This is the separation and rationing of necessary resources by utilizing different habitats, food sources, cover or general behavioral differences. A species with similar food items but different feeding times
856-590: A north easterly direction across the Gulf Country passing through Lake Moondarra past Glenroy Station then through Lake Julius . It then bears east then north again almost parallel with the Burke Developmental Road until crossing it near Nardoo. Continuing north past Augustus Downs Station to its mouth at the Gulf of Carpentaria . The river was named by explorer and surveyor Augustus Charles Gregory after
963-630: A population of half a million people. Since then, Queensland has remained a federated state within Australia, and its population has significantly grown. In 1905 women voted in state elections for the first time. The state's first university, the University of Queensland , was established in Brisbane in 1909. In 1911, the first alternative treatments for polio were pioneered in Queensland and remain in use across
1070-472: A process known as blackbirding or press-ganging, and their employment conditions constituted an allegedly exploitative form of indentured labour. Italian immigrants entered the sugar cane industry from the 1890s. During the 1890s, the six Australian colonies, including Queensland, held a series of referendums which culminated in the Federation of Australia on 1 January 1901. During this time, Queensland had
1177-413: A quarter of natural medicines have been discovered in them. However, tropical rainforests are threatened by human activities, such as logging and agricultural expansion, leading to habitat fragmentation and loss . The structure of a tropical rainforest is stratified into layers, each hosting unique ecosystems . These include the emergent layer with towering trees, the densely populated canopy layer,
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#17328523909841284-465: A roof over the two remaining layers. It contains the majority of the largest trees, typically 30–45 m in height. Tall, broad-leaved evergreen trees are the dominant plants. The densest areas of biodiversity are found in the forest canopy, as it often supports a rich flora of epiphytes , including orchids, bromeliads, mosses and lichens. These epiphytic plants attach to trunks and branches and obtain water and minerals from rain and debris that collects on
1391-614: A seasonal basis but dwelt primarily in adjacent savanna and open forest environments where food is much more abundant. Other people described as rainforest dwellers are hunter-gatherers who subsist in large part by trading high value forest products such as hides, feathers, and honey with agricultural people living outside the forest. Many indigenous peoples around the world live within rainforests as hunter-gatherers, or subsist as part-time small scale farmers supplemented in large part by trading high-value forest products such as hides, feathers, and honey with agricultural people living outside
1498-579: A study published in 2020 in the journal Nature. In 2019 they took up a third less carbon than they did in the 1990s, due to higher temperatures, droughts and deforestation. The typical tropical forest may become a carbon source by the 2060s. Despite the negative effects of tourism in the tropical rainforests, there are also several important positive effects. Deposits of precious metals ( gold , silver , coltan ) and fossil fuels ( oil and natural gas ) occur underneath rainforests globally. These resources are important to developing nations and their extraction
1605-725: A trend towards declining populations in rainforests, for example, reptiles that feed on amphibians and reptiles. This trend requires close monitoring. The seasonality of rainforests affects the reproductive patterns of amphibians, and this in turn can directly affect the species of reptiles that feed on these groups, particularly species with specialized feeding, since these are less likely to use alternative resources. Efforts to protect and conserve tropical rainforest habitats are diverse and widespread. Tropical rainforest conservation ranges from strict preservation of habitat to finding sustainable management techniques for people living in tropical rainforests. International policy has also introduced
1712-660: A type of tropical moist broadleaf forest , that includes the more extensive seasonal tropical forests . True rainforests usually occur in tropical rainforest climates where no dry season occurs; all months have an average precipitation of at least 60 mm (2.4 in). Seasonal tropical forests with tropical monsoon or savanna climates are sometimes included in the broader definition. Tropical rainforests ecosystems are distinguished by their consistent, high temperatures, exceeding 18 °C (64 °F) monthly, and substantial annual rainfall. The abundant rainfall results in nutrient-poor, leached soils, which profoundly affect
1819-440: A vast diversity in plant and animal species. The root for this remarkable speciation has been a query of scientists and ecologists for years. A number of theories have been developed for why and how the tropics can be so diverse. Interspecific competition results from a high density of species with similar niches in the tropics and limited resources available. Species which "lose" the competition may either become extinct or find
1926-415: A widespread root network at the surface for more efficient uptake of nutrients in a very nutrient poor and competitive environment. Most of the nutrients within the soil of a tropical rainforest occur near the surface because of the rapid turnover time and decomposition of organisms and leaves. Because of this, the buttress roots occur at the surface so the trees can maximize uptake and actively compete with
2033-458: Is an example of niche partitioning. The theory of Pleistocene refugia was developed by Jürgen Haffer in 1969 with his article Speciation of Amazonian Forest Birds . Haffer proposed the explanation for speciation was the product of rainforest patches being separated by stretches of non-forest vegetation during the last glacial period. He called these patches of rainforest areas refuges and within these patches allopatric speciation occurred. With
2140-595: Is generally between 1500 and 2500 m while the upper limit is usually from 2400 to 3300 m. Tropical freshwater swamp forests , or "flooded forests", are found in Amazon basin (the Várzea ) and elsewhere. Rainforests are divided into different strata, or layers, with vegetation organized into a vertical pattern from the top of the soil to the canopy. Each layer is a unique biotic community containing different plants and animals adapted for life in that particular strata. Only
2247-477: Is home to the Torres Strait Islander peoples . Torres Strait Islanders are ethnically and culturally distinct from mainland Aboriginal peoples. They have a long history of interaction with both Aboriginal peoples of what is now Australia and the peoples of New Guinea . In February 1606, Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon landed near the site of what is now Weipa , on the western shore of Cape York . This
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#17328523909842354-446: Is larger than all but 16 countries . Due to its size, Queensland's geographical features and climates are diverse, and include tropical rainforests , rivers , coral reefs , mountain ranges and white sandy beaches in its tropical and sub-tropical coastal regions, as well as deserts and savanna in the semi-arid and desert climatic regions of its interior . Queensland has a population of over 5.5 million, concentrated along
2461-521: Is often given priority to encourage economic growth. Mining and drilling can require large amounts of land development , directly causing deforestation . In Ghana , a West African nation, deforestation from decades of mining activity left about 12% of the country's original rainforest intact. With the invention of agriculture , humans were able to clear sections of rainforest to produce crops, converting it to open farmland . Such people, however, obtain their food primarily from farm plots cleared from
2568-450: Is the result of heavy heat and moisture forming oxides of iron and aluminium, which are insoluble in water and not taken up readily by plants. Soil chemical and physical characteristics are strongly related to above ground productivity and forest structure and dynamics. The physical properties of soil control the tree turnover rates whereas chemical properties such as available nitrogen and phosphorus control forest growth rates. The soils of
2675-534: Is the result of phosphorus levels in the soils, precipitation, high temperatures and the extensive microorganism communities. In addition to the bacteria and other microorganisms, there are an abundance of other decomposers such as fungi and termites that aid in the process as well. Nutrient recycling is important because below ground resource availability controls the above ground biomass and community structure of tropical rainforests. These soils are typically phosphorus limited, which inhibits net primary productivity or
2782-570: The 138th meridian east , and to the southwest by northeastern South Australia . The state's southern border with New South Wales is constituted in the east by the watershed from Point Danger to the Dumaresq River , and the Dumaresq, Macintyre and Barwon rivers. The west of the southern border is defined by the 29th parallel south (including some minor historical encroachments ) until it reaches South Australia. Like much of eastern Australia,
2889-541: The Amazon rainforest ) are called carbon sinks . As major carbon reducers and carbon and soil methane storages, their destruction contributes to increasing global energy trapping , atmospheric gases. Climate change has been significantly contributed to by the destruction of the rainforests. A simulation was performed in which all rainforest in Africa were removed. The simulation showed an increase in atmospheric temperature by 2.5 to 5 degrees Celsius. Some species of fauna show
2996-464: The Bjelke-Petersen era of the late 20th century, Queensland has received a high level of internal migration from the other states and territories of Australia and remains a popular destination for interstate migration. Queensland has the third-largest economy among Australian states, with strengths in mining, agriculture, transportation, international education , insurance, and banking. Nicknamed
3103-512: The Brisbane River . He returned in 1824 and established a penal settlement at what is now Redcliffe . The settlement, initially known as Edenglassie , was then transferred to the current location of the Brisbane city centre . Edmund Lockyer discovered outcrops of coal along the banks of the upper Brisbane River in 1825. In 1839 transportation of convicts was ceased, culminating in the closure of
3210-609: The Gayiri Aboriginal people in response. Frontier violence peaked on the northern mining frontier during the 1870s, most notably in Cook district and on the Palmer and Hodgkinson River goldfields, with heavy loss of Aboriginal lives and several well-known massacres. Raids conducted by the Kalkadoon held settlers out of Western Queensland for ten years until September 1884 when they attacked
3317-656: The Great Dividing Range runs roughly parallel with, and inland from, the coast, and areas west of the range are more arid than the humid coastal regions. The Great Barrier Reef , which is the world's largest coral reef system, runs parallel to the state's Coral Sea coast between the Torres Strait and K'gari (Fraser Island) . Queensland's coastline includes the world's three largest sand islands: K'gari (Fraser Island) , Moreton , and North Stradbroke . The state contains six World Heritage -listed preservation areas:
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3424-802: The Indigenous peoples of the Americas , the Congo Pygmies in Central Africa, and several tribes in Southeast Asia, like the Dayak people and the Penan people in Borneo . Food resources within the forest are extremely dispersed due to the high biological diversity and what food does exist is largely restricted to the canopy and requires considerable energy to obtain. Some groups of hunter-gatherers have exploited rainforest on
3531-619: The Kilcoy and Whiteside poisonings, each of which was said to have taken up to 70 Aboriginal lives by use of a gift of flour laced with strychnine . At the Battle of One Tree Hill in September 1843, Multuggerah and his group of warriors ambushed one group of settlers, routing them and subsequently others in the skirmishes which followed, starting in retaliation for the Kilcoy poisoning. Central Queensland
3638-642: The Kingdom of Great Britain on 22 August 1770 at Possession Island , naming eastern Australia, including Queensland, New South Wales . The Aboriginal population declined significantly after a smallpox epidemic during the late 18th century and massacres by the European settlers. In 1823, John Oxley , a British explorer, sailed north from what is now Sydney to scout possible penal colony sites in Gladstone (then Port Curtis ) and Moreton Bay . At Moreton Bay, he found
3745-485: The Leichhardt Falls . As well as Mount Isa, the small community of Kajabbi is located on the river. The river has a mean annual discharge of 2,179 gigalitres (2.85 × 10 cu yd). In 2009 Xstrata spent $ 3 million for remediation work involving the removal of 40,000 tonnes of material from the riverbed. Fossil remains have been found along the river's course. In 2011 an unidentified ancient marsupial
3852-460: The Mesozoic era supercontinent of Gondwana . The separation of the landmass resulted in a great loss of amphibian diversity while at the same time the drier climate spurred the diversification of reptiles. The division left tropical rainforests located in five major regions of the world: tropical America, Africa, Southeast Asia, Madagascar, and New Guinea, with smaller outliers in Australia. However,
3959-594: The Sunshine State for its tropical and sub-tropical climates, Great Barrier Reef , and numerous beaches, tourism is also important to the state's economy. Queensland was one of the largest regions of pre-colonial Aboriginal population in Australia. The Aboriginal occupation of Queensland is thought to predate 50,000 BC, and early migrants are believed to have arrived via boat or land bridge across Torres Strait . Through time, their descendants developed into more than 90 different language and cultural groups. During
4066-474: The Torres Strait to the north, with Boigu Island off the coast of New Guinea representing the northern extreme of its territory. The triangular Cape York Peninsula , which points toward New Guinea, is the northernmost part of the state's mainland. West of the peninsula's tip, northern Queensland is bordered by the Gulf of Carpentaria . To the west, Queensland is bordered by the Northern Territory , at
4173-616: The White Australia policy came into effect, which saw most foreign workers in Australia deported under the Pacific Island Labourers Act 1901 , which saw the Pacific Islander population of the state decrease rapidly. A public meeting was held in 1851 to consider the proposed separation of Queensland from New South Wales. On 6 June 1859, Queen Victoria signed letters patent to form the separate colony of Queensland as
4280-474: The White Australia policy in 1973 saw the beginning of a wave of immigration from around the world, and most prominently from Asia, which continues to the present. In 1981 the Great Barrier Reef off Queensland's northeast coast, one of the world's largest coral reef systems, was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site . In 2003 Queensland adopted maroon as the state's official colour. The announcement
4387-743: The genetic variation used in evading the damage caused by new pests is still derived from resistant wild stock. Tropical forests have supplied 250 cultivated kinds of fruit , compared to only 20 for temperate forests . Forests in New Guinea alone contain 251 tree species with edible fruits, of which only 43 had been established as cultivated crops by 1985. In addition to extractive human uses, rain forests also have non-extractive uses that are frequently summarized as ecosystem services . Rain forests play an important role in maintaining biological diversity , sequestering and storing carbon , global climate regulation, disease control, and pollination . Half of
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4494-671: The spider monkey ( Ateles sp.), African giant swallowtail ( Papilio antimachus ), three-toed sloth ( Bradypus tridactylus ), kinkajou ( Potos flavus ), and tamandua ( Tamandua tetradactyla ). The emergent layer contains a small number of very large trees , called emergents , which grow above the general canopy , reaching heights of 45–55 m, although on occasion a few species will grow to 70–80 m tall. Some examples of emergents include: Hydrochorea elegans , Dipteryx panamensis , Hieronyma alchorneoides , Hymenolobium mesoamericanum , Lecythis ampla and Terminalia oblonga . These trees need to be able to withstand
4601-429: The understory layer rich in wildlife, and the forest floor , which is sparse due to low light penetration. The soil is characteristically nutrient-poor and acidic. Tropical rainforests have a long history of ecological succession , influenced by natural events and human activities. They are crucial for global ecological functions, including carbon sequestration and climate regulation. Many indigenous peoples around
4708-498: The " world's largest pharmacy ", because over one quarter of natural medicines have been discovered within them. It is likely that there may be many millions of species of plants, insects and microorganisms still undiscovered in tropical rainforests. Tropical rainforests are among the most threatened ecosystems globally due to large-scale fragmentation as a result of human activity. Habitat fragmentation caused by geological processes such as volcanism and climate change occurred in
4815-405: The Amazon is based on swidden cultivation (also known as slash-and-burn or shifting cultivation) and is considered a relatively benign disturbance. In fact, when looking at the level of individual swidden plots a number of traditional farming practices are considered beneficial. For example, the use of shade trees and fallowing all help preserve soil organic matter , which is a critical factor in
4922-608: The Andean foothills, and volcanic areas of Southeast Asia, Africa, and Central America. Oxisols, infertile, deeply weathered and severely leached, have developed on the ancient Gondwanan shields . Rapid bacterial decay prevents the accumulation of humus. The concentration of iron and aluminium oxides by the laterization process gives the oxisols a bright red color and sometimes produces minable deposits (e.g., bauxite ). On younger substrates, especially of volcanic origin, tropical soils may be quite fertile. This high rate of decomposition
5029-634: The Brisbane penal settlement. In 1842 free settlement, which had already commenced, was officially permitted. In 1847, the Port of Maryborough was opened as a wool port. While most early immigrants came from New South Wales, the first free immigrant ship to arrive in Moreton Bay from Europe was the Artemisia , in 1848. Earlier than this immigrant ship was the arrival of the Irish famine orphan girls to Queensland. Devised by
5136-592: The Feisty Colleens, never set foot on Sydney soil, and instead sailed up to Brisbane (then Moreton Bay) on 21 October 1848 on board the Ann Mary . This scheme continued until 1852. In 1857, Queensland's first lighthouse was built at Cape Moreton . The frontier wars fought between European settlers and Aboriginal tribes in Queensland were the bloodiest and most brutal in colonial Australia. Many of these conflicts are now seen as acts of genocide. The wars featured
5243-1076: The Great Barrier Reef along the Coral Sea coast, K'gari (Fraser Island) on the Wide Bay–Burnett region's coastline, the wet tropics in Far North Queensland including the Daintree Rainforest , Lamington National Park in South East Queensland , the Riversleigh fossil sites in North West Queensland , and the Gondwana Rainforests in South East Queensland. The state is divided into several unofficial regions which are commonly used to refer to large areas of
5350-659: The Iban "kenyalang" and the Kenyah "mamat". Pygmies who live in Southeast Asia are, amongst others, referred to as " Negrito ". Yam , coffee , chocolate , banana , mango , papaya , macadamia , avocado , and sugarcane all originally came from tropical rainforest and are still mostly grown on plantations in regions that were formerly primary forest. In the mid-1980s and 1990s, 40 million tons of bananas were consumed worldwide each year, along with 13 million tons of mango. Central American coffee exports were worth US$ 3 billion in 1970. Much of
5457-643: The Native Police between 1859 and 1897. The military force of the Queensland Government in this war was the Native Police , who operated from 1849 to the 1920s. The Native Police was a body of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander troopers that operated under the command of white officers. The Native Police were often recruited forcefully from far-away communities. Conflict spread quickly with free settlement in 1838, with settlement rapidly expanding in
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#17328523909845564-476: The abundance of rainfall changes throughout the year creating distinct moist and dry seasons. Tropical forests are classified by the amount of rainfall received each year, which has allowed ecologists to define differences in these forests that look so similar in structure. According to Holdridge's classification of tropical ecosystems, true tropical rainforests have an annual rainfall greater than 2 m and annual temperature greater than 24 degrees Celsius, with
5671-408: The age of sixteen. In total, approximately 15,000 South Sea Islander slaves died while working in Queensland, a figure which does not include those who died in transit or who were killed in the recruitment process. This represents a mortality rate of at least 30%, which is high considering most were only on three year contracts. It is also similar to the estimated 33% death rate of enslaved Africans in
5778-523: The animal and plant waste. The understory layer lies between the canopy and the forest floor. The understory is home to a number of birds, small mammals, insects, reptiles, and predators. Examples include leopard ( Panthera pardus ), poison dart frogs ( Dendrobates sp.), ring-tailed coati ( Nasua nasua ), boa constrictor ( Boa constrictor ), and many species of Coleoptera . The vegetation at this layer generally consists of shade-tolerant shrubs, herbs, small trees, and large woody vines which climb into
5885-507: The closure of the state borders. With a total area of 1,729,742 square kilometres (715,309 square miles), Queensland is an expansive state with a highly diverse range of climates and geographical features. If Queensland were an independent nation, it would be the world's 16th largest. Queensland's eastern coastline borders the Coral Sea , an arm of the Pacific Ocean. The state is bordered by
5992-601: The colony of New South Wales, which included all of what is now Queensland. Queensland was explored in subsequent decades, and the Moreton Bay Penal Settlement was established at Brisbane in 1824 by John Oxley . During the Australian frontier wars of the 19th century, colonists killed tens of thousands of Aboriginal people in Queensland while consolidating their control over the territory. On 6 June 1859 (now commemorated as Queensland Day ), Queen Victoria signed
6099-642: The colony's agricultural plantations through a process known as blackbirding . This trade in what were then known as Kanakas was in operation from 1863 to 1908, a period of 45 years. Some 55,000 to 62,500 were brought to Australia, most being recruited or blackbirded from islands in Melanesia , such as the New Hebrides (now Vanuatu ), the Solomon Islands and the islands around New Guinea . The majority of those taken were male and around one quarter were under
6206-764: The community. The initial disturbance is often a natural phenomenon or human caused event. Natural disturbances include hurricanes, volcanic eruptions, river movements or an event as small as a fallen tree that creates gaps in the forest. In tropical rainforests, these same natural disturbances have been well documented in the fossil record, and are credited with encouraging speciation and endemism. Human land use practices have led to large-scale deforestation. In many tropical countries such as Costa Rica these deforested lands have been abandoned and forests have been allowed to regenerate through ecological succession. These regenerating young successional forests are called secondary forests or second-growth forests. Tropical rainforests exhibit
6313-442: The driving force moving the decomposable carbon from the litter to the soil. Respiration rates are highest early in the wet season because the recent dry season results in a large percentage of leaf litter and thus a higher percentage of organic matter being leached into the soil. A common feature of many tropical rainforests is the distinct buttress roots of trees. Instead of penetrating to deeper soil layers, buttress roots create
6420-530: The early explorer of Australia, Ludwig Leichhardt . Gregory chose the name because: "Two days' journey S.E. brought us to a river 100 yards wide, in detached pools. (Latitude 18 degrees 12 minutes, longitude 189 degrees 65 minutes.) This river was mistaken for the Albert by Dr. Leichhardt, and I therefore named it after that enterprising explorer." Leichhardt River has a catchment area of 32,878 square kilometres (12,694 sq mi). Primary activities undertaken in
6527-519: The east coast, particularly in South East Queensland . The capital and largest city in the state is Brisbane , Australia's third-largest city . Ten of Australia's thirty largest cities are located in Queensland, the largest outside Brisbane being the Gold Coast , the Sunshine Coast , Townsville , Cairns , Ipswich , and Toowoomba . 24.2% of the state's population were born overseas . The state has
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#17328523909846634-744: The eastern and central Amazon as well as the Southeast Asian Rainforest are old and mineral poor whereas the soils of the western Amazon (Ecuador and Peru) and volcanic areas of Costa Rica are young and mineral rich. Primary productivity or wood production is highest in western Amazon and lowest in eastern Amazon which contains heavily weathered soils classified as oxisols. Additionally, Amazonian soils are greatly weathered, making them devoid of minerals like phosphorus, potassium, calcium, and magnesium, which come from rock sources. However, not all tropical rainforests occur on nutrient poor soils, but on nutrient rich floodplains and volcanic soils located in
6741-492: The easy movement of larger animals such as: ungulates like the okapi ( Okapia johnstoni ), tapir ( Tapirus sp.), Sumatran rhinoceros ( Dicerorhinus sumatrensis ), and apes like the western lowland gorilla ( Gorilla gorilla ), as well as many species of reptiles, amphibians, and insects. The forest floor also contains decaying plant and animal matter, which disappears quickly, because the warm, humid conditions promote rapid decay. Many forms of fungi growing here help decay
6848-454: The emergent layer is unique to tropical rainforests, while the others are also found in temperate rainforests . The forest floor , the bottom-most layer, receives only 2% of the sunlight. Only plants adapted to low light can grow in this region. Away from riverbanks, swamps and clearings, where dense undergrowth is found, the forest floor is relatively clear of vegetation because of the low sunlight penetration. This more open quality permits
6955-605: The end of the glacial period and increase in atmospheric humidity, rainforest began to expand and the refuges reconnected. This theory has been the subject of debate. Scientists are still skeptical of whether or not this theory is legitimate. Genetic evidence suggests speciation had occurred in certain taxa 1–2 million years ago, preceding the Pleistocene . Tropical rainforests have harboured human life for many millennia, with many Indigenous people in South and Central America, who belong to
7062-507: The first Premier of Queensland . In 1865, the first rail line in the state opened between Ipswich and Grandchester . Queensland's economy expanded rapidly in 1867 after James Nash discovered gold on the Mary River near the town of Gympie , sparking a gold rush and saving the State of Freddy-Mercury-land from near economic collapse. While still significant, they were on a much smaller scale than
7169-683: The first commercial production of oil in Queensland and Australia began at Moonie . During World War II Brisbane became central to the Allied campaign when the AMP Building (now called MacArthur Central ) was used as the South West Pacific headquarters for General Douglas MacArthur , chief of the Allied Pacific forces, until his headquarters were moved to Hollandia in August 1944. In 1942, during
7276-458: The first three years of being taken to America. The trade was legally sanctioned and regulated under Queensland law, and prominent men such as Robert Towns made massive fortunes off of exploitation of slave labour, helping to establish some of the major cities in Queensland today. Towns' agent claimed that blackbirded labourers were "savages who did not know the use of money" and therefore did not deserve cash wages. Following Federation in 1901,
7383-403: The flora and fauna adapted to these conditions. These rainforests are renowned for their significant biodiversity . They are home to 40–75% of all species globally, including half of the world's animal and plant species, and two-thirds of all flowering plant species. Their dense insect population and variety of trees and higher plants are notable. Described as the "world's largest pharmacy", over
7490-437: The forest and hunt and forage within the forest to supplement this. The issue arising is between the independent farmer providing for his family and the needs and wants of the globe as a whole. This issue has seen little improvement because no plan has been established for all parties to be aided. Agriculture on formerly forested land is not without difficulties. Rainforest soils are often thin and leached of many minerals, and
7597-745: The forest canopy are widely recognized as important for the establishment and growth of rainforest trees. It is estimated that perhaps 75% of the tree species at La Selva Biological Station, Costa Rica are dependent on canopy opening for seed germination or for growth beyond sapling size, for example. Tropical rainforests are located around and near the equator, therefore having what is called an equatorial climate characterized by three major climatic parameters: temperature, rainfall, and dry season intensity. Other parameters that affect tropical rainforests are carbon dioxide concentrations, solar radiation, and nitrogen availability. In general, climatic patterns consist of warm temperatures and high annual rainfall. However,
7704-551: The forests. Peoples have inhabited the rainforests for tens of thousands of years and have remained so elusive that only recently have some tribes been discovered. These indigenous peoples are greatly threatened by loggers in search for old-growth tropical hardwoods like Ipe, Cumaru and Wenge, and by farmers who are looking to expand their land, for cattle(meat), and soybeans, which are used to feed cattle in Europe and China. On 18 January 2007, FUNAI reported also that it had confirmed
7811-422: The gold rushes of Victoria and New South Wales. Immigration to Australia and Queensland, in particular, began in the 1850s to support the state economy. During the period from the 1860s until the early 20th century, many labourers, known at the time as Kanakas , were brought to Queensland from neighbouring Pacific Island nations to work in the state's sugar cane fields. Some of these people had been kidnapped under
7918-489: The ground. Tropical rainforests exhibit high levels of biodiversity. Around 40% to 75% of all biotic species are indigenous to the rainforests. Rainforests are home to half of all the living animal and plant species on the planet. Two-thirds of all flowering plants can be found in rainforests. A single hectare of rainforest may contain 42,000 different species of insect, up to 807 trees of 313 species and 1,500 species of higher plants. Tropical rainforests have been called
8025-467: The heavy rainfall can quickly leach nutrients from area cleared for cultivation. People such as the Yanomamo of the Amazon , utilize slash-and-burn agriculture to overcome these limitations and enable them to push deep into what were previously rainforest environments. However, these are not rainforest dwellers, rather they are dwellers in cleared farmland that make forays into the rainforest. Up to 90% of
8132-580: The highest inter-state net migration in Australia. Queensland was first inhabited by Aboriginal Australians , with the Torres Strait Islands inhabited by Torres Strait Islanders . Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon , the first European to land in Australia, explored the west coast of the Cape York Peninsula in 1606. In 1770, James Cook claimed the east coast of Australia for the Kingdom of Great Britain . In 1788, Arthur Phillip founded
8239-487: The hot temperatures and strong winds that occur above the canopy in some areas. Several unique faunal species inhabit this layer such as the crowned eagle ( Stephanoaetus coronatus ), the king colobus ( Colobus polykomos ), and the large flying fox ( Pteropus vampyrus ). However, stratification is not always clear. Rainforests are dynamic and many changes affect the structure of the forest. Emergent or canopy trees collapse, for example, causing gaps to form. Openings in
8346-445: The large surface areas these roots create provide support and stability to rainforests trees, which commonly grow to significant heights. This added stability allows these trees to withstand the impacts of severe storms, thus reducing the occurrence of fallen trees. Succession is an ecological process that changes the biotic community structure over time towards a more stable, diverse community structure after an initial disturbance to
8453-424: The last ice age , Queensland's landscape became more arid and largely desolate, making food and other supplies scarce. The people developed the world's first seed-grinding technology. The end of the glacial period brought about a warming climate, making the land more hospitable. It brought high rainfall along the eastern coast, stimulating the growth of the state's tropical rainforests. The Torres Strait Islands
8560-490: The later decades of the 20th century, the humid subtropical climate —regulated by the availability of air conditioning—saw Queensland become a popular destination for migrants from interstate. Since that time, Queensland has continuously seen high levels of migration from the other states and territories of Australia. In 1966, Lyndon B. Johnson became the first U.S. president to visit Queensland. During his visit, he met with Australia prime minister Harold Holt . The end of
8667-426: The letters patent to establish the colony of Queensland, separating it from New South Wales and thereby establishing Queensland as a self-governing Crown colony with responsible government . A large part of colonial Queensland's economy relied on blackbirded South Sea Islander slavery. Queensland was among the six colonies which became the founding states of Australia with Federation on 1 January 1901. Since
8774-568: The maintenance of soil fertility in the deeply weathered and leached soils common in the Amazon. There is a diversity of forest people in Asia, including the Lumad peoples of the Philippines and the Penan and Dayak people of Borneo. The Dayaks are a particularly interesting group as they are noted for their traditional headhunting culture. Fresh human heads were required to perform certain rituals such as
8881-452: The most frequent massacres of First Nations people, the three deadliest massacres on white settlers, the most disreputable frontier police force, and the highest number of white victims to frontier violence on record in any Australian colony. Across at least 644 collisions at least 66,680 were killed — with Aboriginal fatalities alone comprising no less than 65,180. Of these deaths, around 24,000 Aboriginal men, women and children were killed by
8988-515: The ongoing challenge of balancing conservation with human development needs. Tropical rainforests are hot and wet. Mean monthly temperatures exceed 18 °C (64 °F) during all months of the year. Average annual rainfall is no less than 1,680 mm (66 in) and can exceed 10 m (390 in) although it typically lies between 1,750 mm (69 in) and 3,000 mm (120 in). This high level of precipitation often results in poor soils due to leaching of soluble nutrients in
9095-399: The only Australian state with a unicameral parliament . In 1935 cane toads were deliberately introduced to Queensland from Hawaii in an unsuccessful attempt to reduce the number of French's cane and greyback cane beetles that were destroying the roots of sugar cane plants, which are integral to Queensland's economy. The toads have remained an environmental pest since that time. In 1962,
9202-514: The past, and have been identified as important drivers of speciation. However, fast human driven habitat destruction is suspected to be one of the major causes of species extinction. Tropical rain forests have been subjected to heavy logging and agricultural clearance throughout the 20th century, and the area covered by rainforests around the world is rapidly shrinking. Tropical rainforests have existed on earth for hundreds of millions of years. Most tropical rainforests today are on fragments of
9309-525: The presence of 67 different uncontacted tribes in Brazil, up from 40 in 2005. With this addition, Brazil has now overtaken the island of New Guinea as the country having the largest number of uncontacted tribes. The province of Irian Jaya or West Papua in the island of New Guinea is home to an estimated 44 uncontacted tribal groups. The pygmy peoples are hunter-gatherer groups living in equatorial rainforests characterized by their short height (below one and
9416-514: The rainfall in the Amazon area is produced by the forests. The moisture from the forests is important to the rainfall in Brazil , Paraguay , Argentina Deforestation in the Amazon rainforest region was one of the main reason that cause the severe Drought of 2014–2015 in Brazil For the last three decades, the amount of carbon absorbed by the world's intact tropical forests has fallen, according to
9523-403: The rapid uptake of other trees. These roots also aid in water uptake and storage, increase surface area for gas exchange, and collect leaf litter for added nutrition. Additionally, these roots reduce soil erosion and maximize nutrient acquisition during heavy rains by diverting nutrient rich water flowing down the trunk into several smaller flows while also acting as a barrier to ground flow. Also,
9630-466: The specifics of the origin of rainforests remain uncertain due to an incomplete fossil record. Several biomes may appear similar-to, or merge via ecotones with, tropical rainforest: Moist seasonal tropical forests receive high overall rainfall with a warm summer wet season and a cooler winter dry season. These forests usually fall under tropical monsoon or tropical savanna climates. Some trees in these forests drop some or all of their leaves during
9737-509: The state's vast geography. These include: Tropical rainforest Tropical rainforests are dense and warm rainforests with high rainfall typically found between 10° north and south of the Equator . They are a subset of the tropical forest biome that occurs roughly within the 28° latitudes (in the torrid zone between the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn ). Tropical rainforests are
9844-534: The supporting plants. The fauna is similar to that found in the emergent layer, but more diverse. It is suggested that the total arthropod species richness of the tropical canopy might be as high as 20 million. Other species inhabiting this layer include many avian species such as the yellow-casqued wattled hornbill ( Ceratogymna elata ), collared sunbird ( Anthreptes collaris ), grey parrot ( Psitacus erithacus ), keel-billed toucan ( Ramphastos sulfuratus ), scarlet macaw ( Ara macao ) as well as other animals like
9951-545: The then British Secretary of State for the Colonies, The Earl Grey Scheme established a special emigration scheme which was designed to resettle destitute girls from the workhouses of Ireland during the Great Famine. The first ship, the "Earl Grey", departed Ireland for a 124-day sail to Sydney. After controversy developed upon their arrival in Australia, a small group of 37 young orphans, sometimes referred to as The Belfast Girls or
10058-404: The trees to capture sunlight. Only about 5% of sunlight breaches the canopy to arrive at the understory causing true understory plants to seldom grow to 3 m (10 feet). As an adaptation to these low light levels, understory plants have often evolved much larger leaves. Many seedlings that will grow to the canopy level are in the understory. The canopy is the primary layer of the forest, forming
10165-482: The tropical rainforests fall into two classifications which include the ultisols and oxisols . Ultisols are known as well weathered, acidic red clay soils, deficient in major nutrients such as calcium and potassium. Similarly, oxisols are acidic, old, typically reddish, highly weathered and leached, however are well drained compared to ultisols. The clay content of ultisols is high, making it difficult for water to penetrate and flow through. The reddish color of both soils
10272-426: The typical Yanamomo diet comes from farmed plants. Some action has been taken by suggesting fallow periods of the land allowing secondary forest to grow and replenish the soil. Beneficial practices like soil restoration and conservation can benefit the small farmer and allow better production on smaller parcels of land. The tropics take a major role in reducing atmospheric carbon dioxide . The tropics (most notably
10379-728: The uptake of carbon. The soil contains microbial organisms such as bacteria, which break down leaf litter and other organic matter into inorganic forms of carbon usable by plants through a process called decomposition. During the decomposition process the microbial community is respiring, taking up oxygen and releasing carbon dioxide. The decomposition rate can be evaluated by measuring the uptake of oxygen. High temperatures and precipitation increase decomposition rate, which allows plant litter to rapidly decay in tropical regions, releasing nutrients that are immediately taken up by plants through surface or ground waters. The seasonal patterns in respiration are controlled by leaf litter fall and precipitation,
10486-428: The war, Brisbane was the site of a violent clash between visiting US military personnel and Australian servicemen and civilians, which resulted in one death and hundreds of injuries. This incident became known colloquially as the Battle of Brisbane . The end of World War II saw a wave of immigration from across Europe, with many more immigrants coming from southern and eastern Europe than in previous decades. In
10593-455: The watershed include mining and grazing. The river is ephemeral and in the dry season the upstream reaches retract to a series of waterholes. The drainage basin and river estuary are in a near pristine condition. The river is dammed near Mount Isa to form Lake Moondarra. Other storage facilities in the catchment include Julius Dam , East Leichhardt Dam and Rifle Creek Dam . Around 50 kilometres (31 mi) upstream from its mouth are
10700-523: The west, south-west and south, respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and the Pacific Ocean ; to the state's north is the Torres Strait , separating the Australian mainland from Papua New Guinea , and the Gulf of Carpentaria to the north-west. With an area of 1,723,030 square kilometres (665,270 sq mi), Queensland is the world's sixth-largest subnational entity ; it
10807-611: The winter dry season, thus they are sometimes called "tropical mixed forest". They are found in parts of South America, in Central America and around the Caribbean , in coastal West Africa , parts of the Indian subcontinent , and across much of Indochina . These are found in cooler-climate mountainous areas, becoming known as cloud forests at higher elevations. Depending on latitude, the lower limit of montane rainforests on large mountains
10914-618: The world have inhabited rainforests for millennia, relying on them for sustenance and shelter, but face challenges from modern economic activities. Conservation efforts are diverse, focusing on both preservation and sustainable management. International policies, such as the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation ( REDD and REDD+ ) programs, aim to curb deforestation and forest degradation. Despite these efforts, tropical rainforests continue to face significant threats from deforestation and climate change , highlighting
11021-582: The world today. World War I had a major impact on Queensland . Over 58,000 Queenslanders fought in World War I and over 10,000 of them died. Australia's first major airline, Qantas (originally standing for "Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services"), was founded in Winton in 1920 to serve outback Queensland. In 1922 Queensland abolished the Queensland Legislative Council , becoming
11128-456: Was discovered by paleontologists . [REDACTED] Media related to Leichhardt River at Wikimedia Commons Queensland Queensland ( locally / ˈ k w iː n z l æ n d / KWEENZ -land , commonly abbreviated as Qld ) is a state in northeastern Australia , and is the second-largest and third-most populous of the Australian states. It is bordered by the Northern Territory , South Australia and New South Wales to
11235-570: Was made as a result of an informal tradition to use maroon to represent the state in association with sporting events. After three decades of record population growth, Queensland was impacted by major floods between late 2010 and early 2011 , causing extensive damage and disruption across the state. In 2020 Queensland was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic . Despite a low number and abrupt decline in cases from April 2020 onward, social distancing requirements were implemented from March 2020 including
11342-552: Was particularly hard hit during the 1860s and 1870s, several contemporary writers mention the Skull Hole, Bladensburg, or Mistake Creek massacre on Bladensburg Station near Winton , which in 1901 was said to have taken up to 200 Aboriginal lives. First Nations warriors killed 19 settlers during the Cullin-La-Ringo massacre on 17 October 1861. In the weeks afterwards, police, native police and civilians killed up to 370 members of
11449-545: Was the first recorded landing of a European in Australia , and it also marked the first reported contact between Europeans and the Aboriginal people of Australia . The region was also explored by French and Spanish explorers (commanded by Louis Antoine de Bougainville and Luís Vaez de Torres , respectively) before the arrival of Lieutenant James Cook in 1770. Cook claimed the east coast under instruction from King George III of
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