Greater Blue Mountains Area
| Greater Blue Mountains Area* | |
|---|---|
| UNESCO World Heritage Site | |
| |
| State Party |  Australia
|
| Type | Natural |
| Criteria | ix, x |
| Reference | 917 |
| Region** | Asia-Pacific |
| Inscription history | |
| Inscription | 2000 (24th Session) |
| * Name as inscribed on World Heritage List. ** Region as classified by UNESCO. | |
The Greater Blue Mountains Area is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia. Forming a central part of the Great Dividing Range, it consists of eight individual protected areas covering more than one million hectares of rainforest, canyons, eucalypt forest and heath lands.
The Greater Blue Mountains Area is an area of rugged tablelands, sheer cliffs, deep, inaccessible valleys and rivers and lakes teeming with life. The unique plants and animals that live in this pristine highland relate an extraordinary story of Australia's antiquity, its diversity of life. This is the story of the evolution of Australia's unique eucalypt vegetation and its associated communities, plants and animals.
Description
The Greater Blue Mountains Area consists of 10,326 square kilometers (3987 sq mi) of mostly forested landscape on a sandstone plateau 60 to 180 kilometers (35 to 50 mi) inland from central Sydney. The area includes vast expanses of wilderness and is equivalent in area to almost one third of Belgium, or twice the size of Brunei.
The traditional owners of the Area — the Aboriginal peoples residing in the area before European influx — are the Darug, Gundungurra, Wanaruah, Wiradjuri, Darkinjung and Tharawal Nations.
The area takes its name from the predominant feature, the Blue Mountains. Originally named the "Carmarthen Hills" and "Landsdowne Hills" in 1788, the distinctive blue haze surrounding the hills prompted a name change. The bluish color is believed to be caused by fine droplets of oil dispersed into the air by the many types of indigenous eucalyptus trees. In combination with dust particles and water vapor, visible blue spectrum sunlight is more predominantly reflected from the landscape.
Though named "mountains", the area does not contain mountains in the conventional sense but is more correctly described as a deeply incised sandstone plateau rising from less than 100 meters above sea level to 1,300 meters (328 to 4265 feet) at the highest point. There are basalt outcrops on the higher ridges. This plateau is thought to have enabled the survival of a rich diversity of plant and animal life by providing a refuge from climatic changes during recent geological history. It is particularly noted for its wide and balanced representation of eucalypt habitats from wet and dry sclerophyll, mallee heathlands, as well as localized swamps, wetlands, and grassland. Ninety-one species of eucalyptus (thirteen percent of the global total) occur in the Greater Blue Mountains Area. Twelve of these are believed to occur only in the Sydney sandstone region.
The area has been described as a natural laboratory for studying the evolution of the eucalyptus. The largest area of high diversity of this plant on the continent is located in the southeast, with the Greater Blue Mountains Area containing much of this diversity.
As well as supporting such a significant proportion of the world's eucalyptus species, the area provides examples of the range of structural adaptations of the eucalyptus to Australian environments. These vary from tall forests at the margins of rainforest in the deep valleys, through open forests and woodlands, to shrublands of stunted mallees on the exposed tablelands.
In addition to its outstanding eucalyptus, the Greater Blue Mountains Area also contains ancient, relict species of global significance. The most famous of these is the recently-discovered Wollemi pine, a "living fossil" dating to the age of the dinosaurs. Thought to have been extinct for millions of years, the few surviving trees of this ancient species are known only from three small populations located in remote, inaccessible gorges within the area. The Wollemi pine is one of the world's rarest species.
More than 400 different kinds of animals live within the rugged gorges and tablelands of the Area. These include threatened or rare species of conservation significance, such as the Tiger Quoll, the koala, the Yellow-bellied Glider and the Long-nosed Potoroo as well as rare reptiles including the Green and Golden Bell Frog and the Blue Mountains water skink.
Protected areas
The Greater Blue Mountains Area consists of 1,032,649 hectares (2,551,731.25 acres) which includes eight protected areas in two blocks separated by a transportation and urban development corridor, is made up of seven outstanding national parks as well as the famous Jenolan Caves Karst Conservation Reserve (2,422 ha). National parks include the Blue Mountains National Park (247,840 ha [), Wollemi National Park (499,879 ha), Yengo National Park (153,483 ha), Nattai National Park (47,855 ha), Kanangra-Boyd National Park (65,379 ha), Gardens of Stone National Park (15,150 ha) and Thirlmere Lakes National Park (641 ha).
- Jenolan Caves
The Jenolan Caves are an example of remarkable caverns in the Blue Mountains. These caves attracts over 250,000 visitors a year, making it the most popular tourist location in rural New South Wales. They are the most celebrated of several similar groups in the limestone of the country and are believed to be the oldest discovered open caves in the world, estimated at approximately 340 million years old. They have not yielded fossils of great interest but the stalactitic formations, sometimes pure white, are of extraordinary beauty. Major portions of the caves have been rendered easily accessible to visitors and are well lit.
Large portions of this extensive cave system are accessible only to cavers, especially those areas along the underground river system; but, there are ten caves at Jenolan that have been developed for regular tourism.
- Lucas Cave: Discovered in 1861 and the most popular among visitors. The Lucas Cave (named after local politician John Lucas who pushed to have the caves preserved in the 1860s) features a number of large chambers including the Cathedral, over 50 metres high, and the vast Exhibition Chamber which contains the Broken Column formation. The Cathedral is actually used for wedding ceremonies and recitals. The Cathedral Chamber, the highest Chamber within the Lucas Cave, is the venue for monthly cello and Gypsy music concerts.
- River Cave: Discovered in 1903, the River Cave is the most extensive show cave at Jenolan and includes some of its most famous features, including the Minaret, the Grand Column and the Queen's Canopy, as well as part of the River Styx. Until 1923 when a concrete bridge was built, the river in this cave was crossed by a small boat.
- Chifley Cave: Discovered in 1880 and with electric lighting installed almost immediately, the Chifley Cave was known as the Left Imperial Cave until 1952. Two of the cave's chambers are decorated with coloured lights. The Chifley Cave is claimed to have been the first cave lit by electric light, having been illuminated this way in 1881.
- Imperial Cave: Discovered in 1879, this is the easiest cave to visit for tourists. The Imperial is one of the few caves in the complex to show evidence of fossils and also contains Tasmanian Devil bones. Note that whilst fossils may not be clearly evident to the casual visitor, in fact the bedrock in which the caves are formed is richly endowed with marine fossils.
- Orient Cave: Discovered in 1903, the Orient Cave was not opened to public inspection until 1917. This cave contains some of the grandest formations in the complex and was steam cleaned to preserve them in 1968. Until 1954, this cave, along with the Temple of Baal and Ribbon Caves, were only accessible through the River Cave. That year, the Binoomea Cut was constructed near Caves House to facilitate easier access to these caves.
- Ribbon Cave: Discovered at the same time as the Orient Cave, it was originally part of that tour but is now visited separately. The Ribbon Cave is only 60 metres long but is very richly decorated.
- Pool of Cerberus Cave: Discovered in 1903 and known originally as the Skeleton Cave because of the presence of a skeleton near the entrance, this cave is a lower arm of the River Cave. The major formations here are the Bath of Venus and part of the underground river system that forms the Pool of Cerberus itself. The skeleton in this cave was long believed to be that of a wallaby but is now thought to be that of an Aboriginal female. This is no longer part of the tour due to cultural customs around human death.
- Jubilee Cave: Discovered in 1893, the Jubilee Cave is the longest show cave at Jenolan. It takes the longest to see because it is fairly remote from the other caves but offers formations of stunning beauty at close quarters. Of the caves shown at Jenolan to the public it is the least visited due to the length of the tour and the small tour groups that can be taken there.
- Temple of Baal Cave: Discovered in 1904, the Temple of Baal Cave consists of only two chambers, one of which is dominated by the huge 9-metre shawl formation called the Angel's Wing. The cave is also famous for a high incidence of the peculiar formations known as Helictites. It got its name when an explorer discovered the inside of the cave and saw 2 "shrines" standing beside one another. Recent development work has upgraded the lighting and added an audio accompaniment to the cave experience.
- Nettle Cave: The Nettle Cave lies between the Grand Arch and the Devils Coach House. The cave takes its name from the nettles which grow; an upper part of this cave can be seen from inside the Devil's Coach House. In December 2006, this cave was re-opened to the public as a self-guided audio tour, combined with the adjoining Devil's Coach House.
The road from Sydney passes through the Arch and six of the cave tours leave from assembly points within it. Adjacent to the Grand Arch is the Devil's Coach House, a vast open-ended chamber that forms part of the many nature walks in the area. High above both of these is Carlotta Arch, a free-standing arch that is all that remains of a higher cavern system long since eroded and collapsed. Along with these areas, there are several other caves in the area, some of which are available for special tours.
- Elder Cave: Named from the Elder tree, visitors would climb down to enter the doline (sinkhole). Discovered in 1848, the Elder Cave was the first of the caves at Jenolan to be found and opened to tourists. It was later considered too difficult to develop adequately and tours eventually ceased; however in the late 1990s the Elder Cave was re-opened for adventure caving. It is not as well decorated as the regular show caves, but does feature signatures left by early visitors and includes a short section of the Imperial Cave.
- Aladdin Cave: The Aladdin Cave was first explored in the hope of developing a shorter path to the Jubilee Cave. It boasts an abundance of decorations not dissimilar to the Jubilee.
- Jersey Cave: An extension of the Elder Cave. One of the features is a fossilised thylacine skeleton.
- Arch Cave: This cave lies above Nettle Cave and part of it can be seen from the Devils Coach House. The entrance to this cave is at the base of Carlotta Arch (hence the name) and the stairs and locked gate can still be reached although the Arch Cave.
[3].
ReferencesISBN links support NWE through referral fees
- Australia. 1999. Australia's world heritage. Canberra, ACT: Dept. of the Environment and Heritage. ISBN 9780642214317
- Australia. 1998. The greater Blue Mountains area: world heritage nomination. Canberra: NSW Parks and Wildlife Service in association with Environment Australia].
- UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Greater Blue Mountains Area Retrieved August 30, 2008.
- United Nations Environment Programme. The Greater Blue Mountains Area, New South Wales, Australia Retrieved August 30, 2008.
External links
- Blue Mountains World Heritage Institute. Blue Mountains World Heritage Institute Retrieved August 30, 2008.
- Stralia Web. Blue Mountains Retrieved August 30, 2008.
Credits
New World Encyclopedia writers and editors rewrote and completed the Wikipedia article in accordance with New World Encyclopedia standards. This article abides by terms of the Creative Commons CC-by-sa 3.0 License (CC-by-sa), which may be used and disseminated with proper attribution. Credit is due under the terms of this license that can reference both the New World Encyclopedia contributors and the selfless volunteer contributors of the Wikimedia Foundation. To cite this article click here for a list of acceptable citing formats.The history of earlier contributions by wikipedians is accessible to researchers here:
The history of this article since it was imported to New World Encyclopedia:
Note: Some restrictions may apply to use of individual images which are separately licensed.
- ↑ Staff writer. "Tests show Jenolan Caves among world's oldest", ABC News Online, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 2006-07-25. Retrieved 2006-07-25.
- ↑ Colchester, D.M., Osborne, R.A.L., Pogson, R.E., Zwingmann, H., 2006, Carboniferous clay deposits from Jenolan Caves, New South Wales: implications for timing of speleogenesis and regional geology, Australian Journal of Earth Sciences, 53(3), p377-405
- ↑ "Jenolan Caves 340 million years old: study", CSIRO, 2006-07-25.
