Breathtaking Natural Marvel - The Daintree Forest

The Daintree Rainforest is a region on the northeast coast of Queensland, Australia, north of Mossman and Cairns. At around 1,200 square kilometres (460 sq mi) the Daintree is a part of the largest continuous area of tropical rainforest on the Australian continent. The Daintree Rainforest is a part of the Wet Tropics of Queensland Rainforest, that spans across the Cairns Region. The Wet Tropics Rainforest (that the Daintree is a part of) is the oldest continually surviving tropical rainforest in the world. Along the coastline north of the Daintree River, the tropical forest grows right down to the edge of the sea. The Daintree Rainforest is estimated to be 180 million years old which is tens of millions of years older than the Amazon Rainforest.

This tropical rainforest ecosystem is one of the most complexes on earth. Its plant diversity and structural complexity is unrivalled on the Australian continent and represents the origins of our more familiar ‘Australian’ flora.

There are many natural and often unique features to be explored. The landscape is one of striking diversity including magnificent scenery, mountain ranges, fast-flowing streams and waterfalls, deep gorges and dense rainforest. There is outstanding coastal scenery that combines tropical rainforest, white sandy beaches and fringing reefs just offshore… an extremely rare combination. To the west of Cape Tribulation stands Mt Pieter Botte with its massive granite outcrops. The summit providing expansive vistas of undisturbed forest and to the south, the skyline is dominated by the giant granite boulders of Thornton Peak – one of Queensland’s highest mountains.

From a total of 19 primitive flowering plant families on Earth, 12 families are represented in the Daintree region making the highest concentration of these plants worldwide. These ancient plant families may well hold the secret to several unanswered questions regarding the origins of the flowering plants – plants on which the human race depends for food and medicines.

The Daintree is one of the best biologically diverse rainforests in the world. Home to a huge percentage of the entire country's animal population. This includes 30% of Australia's frog population, 65% of butterfly and bats and around 12,000 different insect species. As well as being diverse, the animals are unique.

Daintree Rainforest is unspoiled by artificial structures and strategies that are typical of public tourism experiences.  This triumph of natural wonder and awe-inspiring beauty reveals hidden riches and inspirational insights.  High quality guided interpreted walking tours, showcase unique biological diversity and exceptional rainforest integrity.  There is no better way to successfully engage with such elusive complexity and intricacy than through the guiding expertise of long-term human inhabitants.  This vitally important step, which all but around half-a-per cent of visitors fail to take, draws from the rainforest its human voice and the intellectual property of generations of attentive inhabitants. The Daintree Rainforest is a landscape with striking diversity. From the dense rainforest and mountain ranges to fast-flowing streams, waterfalls and gorges. With such a rich array of flora and fauna set amongst stunning scenery, there is a rich and colourful world here waiting to be discovered.

The History of the Daintree Rainforest

The Daintree Rainforest is part of the Kuku Yalanji country. The Kuku Yalanji people have lived in this area for thousands of years and their songs and legends continue to give special meaning to this landscape today. This is a spiritual and culturally significant place to the Kuku Yalanji people. This is one of 18 rainforest Aboriginal tribal groups located in the Wet Tropics World Heritage area. The Kuku Yalanju people relied on the rich array of plants and animals for food that the rainforest had to offer and travelled through the area seasonally. There was a massive change for the local Kulu Yalanji people when European settlers arrived in the 1800s. An early colonist named George Elphinstone Dalrymple explored the area in 1873 where he came across a magnificent river. He named the river after his friend and early government geologist, Richard Daintree. Now not only the river but the whole region has laid claim the Daintree name.

Daintree Development

Throughout the modern era, development has expanded into the Daintree region fuelled by tourism and scientific exploration purposes. The Daintree River ferry began in the 1950s and by 1961 the first road reached Cape Tribulation. It was then in 1970 when arguably Australia’s most significant botanical find was made – Idiospermum Australiense – the idiot fruit. This discovery generated awareness and scientific interest in this rainforest.

Idiot Fruit

As arguably Australia’s most significant botanical find, the idiot fruit has to be one of the most fascinating natural wonders to be found in the Daintree Rainforest.

Idiospermum Australiense, commonly known as the Idiot Fruit, is one of the rarest and most primitive of the flowering plants. Its discovery in 1970 was arguably Australia’s most significant botanical find, greatly increasing scientist’s awareness of just how ancient these forests are.

Emergent Trees

Within the forest of trees, some trees tower above the ‘standard’ height of the canopy. These towering trees are referred to as ‘Emergents’. The major benefit of rising above the surrounding canopy is the ability to gain maximum exposure to the sun. The trees are also easily spotted by any creatures that pollinate.

Plants to Avoid

While there are many plants to look at and enjoy, the rainforest is a wild place so there is also plant life that is best to avoid. Two primary plants are best to avoid in the rainforest. The Wait-A-While vine is a spiky plant that is so sharp it can cut you through clothing. There is also the stinging tree filled with tiny, unseen pricks that can cause an itch.

Rainfall

A significant amount of rain falls in the Daintree Rainforest to sustain the natural habitat. The average annual rainfall in the Daintree rainforest is approximately 2000mm (79in) per year. Some areas have even recorded up to 9000mm (345in) in a single year. The wet seasons are between December and March. Over 60% of the rain falls during this wet season.

 

Mangrove Nurseries

The mangrove system of forests that ring the mouths of creeks and rivers in the Daintree is a wonderful fish nursery that plays a particular importance in the ecology of the area. Mangroves are vital for many young fish species that migrate to the Great Barrier Reef later in life. They also hold the highest species diversity for this type of habitat anywhere in Australia.

 

The Wildlife

Anyone who visits the Daintree Rainforest is bound to stumble across some form of unique Australian wildlife whether it is our world-famous cassowary, mammals, colourful birds, scaly reptiles and snakes, frogs or invertebrates.

Cassowary – cassowaries are a highlight to see when visiting the Daintree Rainforest. The latest study (CSIRO 2014) lists the number of cassowaries in Australia’s Wet Tropics to be around 4,000. These magnificent creatures are large flightless birds. Fully grown female cassowaries can stand at 1.8m and weigh over 60kgs. Mature males are much smaller at 1.5m and about 35kg. 

Birds – The greatest concentration o of Birds in Australia can be found in the Daintree. This natural hub boasts nine out of Australia’s ten kingfishers, seven of the nine Australian owls and over half of Australia’s pigeons, just to name a few. Over 430 species of birds have been recorded in the area encompassing the Wet Tropics and the Great Barrier Reef regions of Australia. This is more than half the bird species for the entire continent. Many of these birds are easily seen in the Daintree area throughout the year.

Invertebrates – A huge range of rare and common insect life can be found amongst the foliage in the Daintree Rainforest. Butterflies can also be spotted in the forest with 60% of Australia’s 400 species of butterflies found in tropical Queensland. 

The Daintree lowland rainforest, along with parts of the nearby mountains, has a variety of types of flatworms (Platyhelminthes), earthworms (Annelida), and leeches (which are a type of parasitic earthworm which subsists entirely on blood).

Reptiles – The range of reptiles in the Daintree is extensive and varied. With slender goannas, lizards without legs, tiny skinks and two types of crocodiles just to name a few, you never know what kind of weird and wonderful reptile you could find with 131 reptile species found in this habitat.

Snakes – Both venomous and non-venomous varieties of snakes can be found in the Daintree. Most commonly found snakes in the Daintree include the Taipan, the Eastern Brown, the Death Adder and the Red-bellied Black. All of these snakes are dangerous to man and should be avoided at all times. Any visitors should always be careful when viewing snakes out in the wild. Amethystine Python, Green Tree Python, Jungle Carpet Python are some of the better-known pythons that reside in the Daintree Rainforest.

Frogs – All five Australian frog species can be found in the Tropical North East Queensland region. The largest tree frog in the world – the giant White-lipped Tree Frog, is a common find in the Daintree rainforest. Tree frogs, mist frogs, burrowing frogs, water-holding frogs and even frogs which do not have any aquatic tadpoles! are found in the Daintree Rainforest.

 

Bush Tucker in the Daintree Rainforest

The Kuku Yalanji people thrived for thousands of years in the Daintree Rainforest by hunting and gathering food. The Kuku Yalanji people also took advantage of the range of insects found in the rainforest for medicinal purposes. Some of these insects are also edible and were even considered gastronomic delicacies. A universal favourite was the witchetty grub. Witchetty grubs are highly nutritious and the raw innards were useful when treating sores and also assisted with relieving pain.

Another great source of food was the native bees. The larvae, honeycomb and honey were highly prized and the honey was also used as a healing agent. This is just a small sample of the range of bush tuckers and medicinal properties available in the Daintree Rainforest.

 

Save the Daintree Rainforest for Future Generations

It is so important for us to preserve this one of a kind natural wonder. You are welcome to visit this stunningly diverse natural habitat, but please ensure that you leave this pristine environment as it was when you arrived. Take any rubbish with you when leaving the forest, don’t pollute the water and don’t feed the wildlife. Protecting this natural environment starts with you. As they say, ‘Leave nothing but footsteps and take nothing but photographs’.

It is also vital to do what we can to protect the cassowary and boost their numbers in the Daintree. The best way to achieve this is with rainforest re-vegetation. Rainforest Rescue is a fantastic organisation who undertakes in the necessary re-vegetation that is needed to support the cassowary population. Every donation helps to save this magnificent creature and help sustain the wonderful natural diversity of the Daintree Rainforest.

see daintree forest on map