Normanby River
Encyclopedia
The Normanby River is a major river in northern Queensland
, located on the edge of the Wet Tropics and flowing in a generally north-northwestward direction through seasonally flood
ed savanna
grassland
to Princess Charlotte Bay about 150 kilometres from Cooktown.
It is probably the largest river flowing into the east coast
of Australia
, and the third largest river in all of Australia, though with less than half the flow of the Murray
and Mitchell Rivers - though data regardings its flow are sparse with less than a third of the catchment ever gauged. It is the largest river flowing into the Great Barrier Reef
and consequently almost all scientific research into the flow and hydrology of the Normanby basin has been done with the health of the reef rather than the river per se in mind. The fact that the Normanby is completely free of dam
s means that Australian government studies have used it as a model for the behaviour of rivers further south when they were in something closer to a virgin state.
The Normanby basin is almost entirely used for the grazing of beef cattle
on large stations - mostly worked by Aborigines. The density of cattle is very low, as are rent
s. The soil
s, being mostly ancient lateritic
Orthent
s, are totally unsuitable for the growing sugar cane, which is the principal crop in tropical Australia.
The most notable attraction within the basin of the Normanby is Lakefield National Park
, which covers as much as a fifth of the river's basin and is completely impassable during the wet season between November and May. Lakefield consists of large wetland
s which possess a high diversity of fish
species. Near its mouth, the Normanby flows very slowly and forms a large delta
, which is almost inaccessible even during the dry season as there are no roads - even unsealed ones. This land, though, is still dry enough during the dry season that tropical rainforests cannot grow.
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...
, located on the edge of the Wet Tropics and flowing in a generally north-northwestward direction through seasonally flood
Flood
A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land. The EU Floods directive defines a flood as a temporary covering by water of land not normally covered by water...
ed savanna
Savanna
A savanna, or savannah, is a grassland ecosystem characterized by the trees being sufficiently small or widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to support an unbroken herbaceous layer consisting primarily of C4 grasses.Some...
grassland
Grassland
Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...
to Princess Charlotte Bay about 150 kilometres from Cooktown.
It is probably the largest river flowing into the east coast
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
of 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...
, and the third largest river in all of Australia, though with less than half the flow of the Murray
Murray River
The Murray River is Australia's longest river. At in length, the Murray rises in the Australian Alps, draining the western side of Australia's highest mountains and, for most of its length, meanders across Australia's inland plains, forming the border between New South Wales and Victoria as it...
and Mitchell Rivers - though data regardings its flow are sparse with less than a third of the catchment ever gauged. It is the largest river flowing into the Great Barrier Reef
Great Barrier Reef
The Great Barrier Reef is the world'slargest reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,600 kilometres over an area of approximately...
and consequently almost all scientific research into the flow and hydrology of the Normanby basin has been done with the health of the reef rather than the river per se in mind. The fact that the Normanby is completely free of dam
Dam
A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...
s means that Australian government studies have used it as a model for the behaviour of rivers further south when they were in something closer to a virgin state.
The Normanby basin is almost entirely used for the grazing of beef cattle
Beef cattle
Beef cattle are cattle raised for meat production . The meat of cattle is known as beef. When raised in a feedlot cattle are known as feeder cattle. Many such feeder cattle are born in cow-calf operations specifically designed to produce beef calves...
on large stations - mostly worked by Aborigines. The density of cattle is very low, as are rent
Renting
Renting is an agreement where a payment is made for the temporary use of a good, service or property owned by another. A gross lease is when the tenant pays a flat rental amount and the landlord pays for all property charges regularly incurred by the ownership from landowners...
s. The soil
Soil
Soil is a natural body consisting of layers of mineral constituents of variable thicknesses, which differ from the parent materials in their morphological, physical, chemical, and mineralogical characteristics...
s, being mostly ancient lateritic
Laterite
Laterites are soil types rich in iron and aluminium, formed in hot and wet tropical areas. Nearly all laterites are rusty-red because of iron oxides. They develop by intensive and long-lasting weathering of the underlying parent rock...
Orthent
Orthent
In USDA soil taxonomy, Orthents are defined as Entisols that lack horizon development due to either steep slopes or parent materials that contain no permanent weatherable minerals . Typically, Orthents are exceedingly shallow soils. They are often referred to as "skeletal soils" or, in the FAO soil...
s, are totally unsuitable for the growing sugar cane, which is the principal crop in tropical Australia.
The most notable attraction within the basin of the Normanby is Lakefield National Park
Lakefield National Park
Lakefield is a national park in Queensland, Australia, 1,707 km northwest of Brisbane and 340 km north-west of Cairns by road, on Cape York Peninsula. At 5,370 km2 Lakefield is a national park in Queensland, Australia, 1,707 km northwest of Brisbane and 340 km north-west of...
, which covers as much as a fifth of the river's basin and is completely impassable during the wet season between November and May. Lakefield consists of large wetland
Wetland
A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....
s which possess a high diversity of fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
species. Near its mouth, the Normanby flows very slowly and forms a large delta
River delta
A delta is a landform that is formed at the mouth of a river where that river flows into an ocean, sea, estuary, lake, reservoir, flat arid area, or another river. Deltas are formed from the deposition of the sediment carried by the river as the flow leaves the mouth of the river...
, which is almost inaccessible even during the dry season as there are no roads - even unsealed ones. This land, though, is still dry enough during the dry season that tropical rainforests cannot grow.