10 Interesting Facts about Western Australia

Those who love to travel to many places should have read one these following facts about Western Australia since they can be one of the places you might want to visit. Western Australia is a state which occupies the entire western third of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east. To get to know more about it, here are some other facts about Western Australia you might want to know.

Facts about Western Australia 1: Geology

The bulk of Western Australia consists of the extremely old Yilgarn craton and Pilbara craton which merged with the Deccan Plateau of India, Madagascar and the Karoo and Zimbabwe cratons of Southern Africa, in the Archean Eon to form Ur, one of the oldest supercontinents on Earth.

Facts about Western Australia 2: Climate

The southwest coastal area has a Mediterranean climate and was originally heavily forested, including large stands of the karri, one of the tallest trees in the world. This agricultural region of Western Australia is in the top nine terrestrial habitats for terrestrial biodiversity, with a higher proportion of endemic species than most other equivalent regions.

Facts about Western Australia 3: Fauna

Western Australia is home to around 540 species of birds. Of these around 15 are endemic to the state. The best areas for birds are the southwestern corner of the state and the area around Broome and the Kimberley.

Facts about Western Australia 4: Flora

The Flora of Western Australia comprises 9437 published native vascular plant species of 1543 genera within 226 families, there are also 1171 naturalised alien or invasive plant species more commonly known as weeds. In the southwest region are some of the largest numbers of plant species for its area in the world.

Facts about Western Australia 5: History

The first inhabitants of Australia arrived from the north approximately 40,000 to 60,000 years ago. Over thousands of years they eventually spread across the whole landmass. These Indigenous Australians were well established throughout Western Australia by the time European explorers began to arrive in the early seventeenth century.

Facts about Western Australia 6: Dutch Explorer

The first European to visit Western Australia was a Dutch explorer, Dirk Hartog who on 25 October 1616 landed at what is now known as Cape Inscription, Dirk Hartog Island.

Facts about Western Australia 7: Europeans

Europeans began to settle permanently in 1826 when Albany was claimed by Britain to forestall French claims to the western third of the continent. Perth was founded as the Swan River Colony in 1829 by British and Irish settlers, though the outpost languished, eventually requesting convict labour to augment its population.

Facts about Western Australia 8: Economy

Western Australia’s economy is largely driven by extraction and processing of a diverse range of mineral and petroleum commodities. The structure of the economy is closely linked to the abundance of natural resources found in the State.

Facts about Western Australia 9: Government

Western Australia was granted self-government in 1889 with a bicameral Parliament located in Perth, consisting of the Legislative Assembly, which has 59 members; and the Legislative Council, which has 36 members. Suffrage is universal and compulsory for citizens over 18 years of age.

Facts about Western Australia 10: Education

Education in Western Australia consists of one year of pre-school at age 5, followed by six or seven years of primary school education. At age 13, students begin five years of secondary education. The final two years of secondary education are now compulsory.

Those following facts about Western Australia should have probably increased your interest to visit there. Hope those Western Australia facts would be really interesting and useful for you to read, especially those who love to travel.