Rinyirru (Lakefield) National Park
| Lakefield National Park Error: |state= not defined (help) | |
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  Lakefield National Park | |
| Coordinates | 14°32′42″S 144°06′59″E / 14.54500°S 144.11639°E |
| Established | 1979 |
| Area | 5370 km² |
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Lakefield is a national park in Queensland, Australia, 1,707 km northwest of Brisbane and 340km north-west of Cairns by road, on Cape York Peninsula. At 5,370 sq. km (2,073 sq. miles) making it bigger than Trinidad and Tobago and almost as big as Brunei) Lakefield is the second largest park in Queensland[1] and a favourite place for fishing and camping.
The park stretches from Princess Charlotte Bay in the north to the town of Laura. It covers 537,000 ha of land, and includes sections of the Normanby River, Morehead River and North Kennedy Rivers.[1]
Lakefield was gazetted in 1979.[1] There is a ranger station within the park which can assist with information or give help in emergencies. There is one main, unsealed road through the Park but it is impassable through much of the wet season (roughly from early December to April/May).
Fauna and flora
The park is known for its populations of waterbirds such as the brolga, sarus crane, black-necked stork, comb-crested Jacana and magpie geese.[1] In the woodland and grassland area the Agile Wallaby, Northern Nailtail Wallaby and Australian Bustard may be found.
Threatened species which are found in the park include the Golden-shouldered Parrot, Star Finch, Red Goshawk, Lakeland Downs Mouse and the Spectacled Hare-wallaby.[1]
Tourists should keep well aware that there are numerous crocodiles in the various waterways of the Park. There are two species of crocodile in the park: freshwater and saltwater. The freshwater variety are not as big and seek smaller prey and are not so dangerous to humans. The saltwater species can can be very large and are potentially dangerous to humans. There have been several crocodile attacks in the park in recent times and some have been fatal. Saltwater crocodiles are a protected species in Australia, and they appear to be breeding successfully, although the habitat is not as suitable as in the Northern Territory where breeding appears to be prolific.
The dominant vegetation in the park is eucalypt woodland and gallery forest associated with waterways. There are a variety of eucalypt species, including bloodwoods, and Moreton Bay Ash (Corymbia tessellaris). Wattles are also relatively common, and include northern black wattle (Acacia auriculiformis) lancewood (northern golden wattle). Paperbarks are also present especially near water, such as the weeping paperbark (Melaleuca leucadendra).Melaleuca cajuputi is also present and has white bottlebrush-type flowers.
One of the attractive species in the park is the beautiful palm, Corypha utan. They tend to grow close to waterways and cope well with flooding that occurs during the wet season (monsoon). At the end of the life of the palm, which may be 75 to 100 years, it produces a large terminal inflorescence about a metre high with a prodigious number of flowers. One estimate is that they produce one million flowers. When flowering and seeding is complete the palm dies. Regeneration of Corpyha is quite healthy at Lakefield. The common name for the palm locally is "Kennedy Palm" or "Gebang Palm". Corypha utan is confined to Northern Australia but is not endemic, being also found in the Phillipines through to India.
Nearer the coast there are also healthy mangrove ecosystems.
Fishing
The national park is one of only a few in Queensland that permit fishing.[1] Species which may be caught in freshwater include barramundi, tarpon, catfish and tarpin.[1] Saltwaters species found in the park include mangrove jack, fingermark, cod, trevally, queenfish and salmon.[1]
Access
It can be accessed by road either through Cooktown or Laura. It is remote and visitors should stock up on food, petrol and other supplies before leaving Cooktown or Laura.
Camping
There are many bush campgrounds throughout the park, and two camps with toilets and showers (Kalpowar Crossing Campground and Hanns Crossing Campground). There are other campsites without facilities across the park. Permits are all obtained via self-registration at the boards located throughout the park.
See also
References
Further reading
- Ryan, Michelle and Burwell, Colin, eds. 2000. Wildlife of Tropical North Queensland: Cooktown to Mackay. Queensland Museum, Brisbane. ISBN 0-7242-9349-3.
- Scarth-Johnson, Vera. 2000. National Treasures: Flowering plants of Cooktown and Northern Australia. Vera Scarth-Johnson Gallery Association, Cooktown. ISBN 0-646-39726-5 (pbk); ISBN 0-646-39725-7 Limited Edition - Leather Bound.