Editing Kakadu National Park (section)

==Human impacts==
[[File:Kakadu 1329.jpg|thumb|right|Fishing in Yellow Water Billabong]]
Human impacts during the 19th and 20th century have been significant. Introduction of [[domestic Asian water buffalo]] from Southeast [[Asia]] has resulted in damage to the fragile floodplains and wetlands. Since then, buffalo have largely been eradicated from the area so the land is now rehabilitating itself. Crocodile hunting which has been banned since 1972 made a huge impact on crocodile populations. In the 40 or so years that they have been protected, however the crocodile population has recovered so successfully that some consider there to be an over population.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-07-11 |title=Should crocodiles be culled again in the NT? Here's what happened last time |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-07-12/should-crocodile-culling-be-reintroduced-in-the-nt/102588160 |access-date=2025-04-12 |work=ABC News |language=en-AU}}</ref>

Mining has an obvious impact on the landscape, but only one operational uranium mine ([[Ranger Uranium Mine|Ranger]]) remains. Mine operators are required to completely rehabilitate the area once the operation is wound down. Some small scale logging occurred in the early part of the 20th century, but little evidence of this remains. Tourism represents a significant human impact to Kakadu National Park with hundreds of thousands of visitors arriving annually. Infrastructure such as roads, tracks, interpretive signage and shelter, accommodation, telecommunications and other services must be provided to support this activity.

[[File:Termite cathedral mounds in a bushfire blackened tropical savanna.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Termite]] cathedral mounds in an area blackened by the park's annual winter [[Bushfires in Australia|bushfires]]]]

===Fire management===
Fire is part of the landscape of Kakadu National Park, as the park contains large areas of woodland and grassy plains that are subject to long periods of dry hot weather. The flora of the region has adapted to frequent fires. Fires in northern Australia are less threatening than in southern Australia as many of the trees are largely fire resistant while other plants simply regenerate very quickly.

[[Controlled burn|Controlled burning]] is practised by the national park in consultation with traditional owners who have used fire as a land management tool for thousands of years. Fire is an important hunting tool for Aboriginal people using it to flush out prey. The other benefit is that once the fire has gone through an area the tender shoots of the fast regenerating grasses attract wallabies into a clearly defined area. Birds of prey such as whistling kites also rely on fire to flush out small animals and are usually found in large numbers circling a fire front. Other species such as white-throated grasswrens have declined because of too many fires. Aboriginal people understand that fire is necessary to "clean up" the landscape and believe that many small fires are preferable to one large fire.

===Tourism===
[[File:Kakadu 2427.jpg|thumb|right|upright|The [[Gagudju Crocodile Hotel]] at [[Jabiru, Northern Territory|Jabiru]]]]
Kakadu National Park is a major tourist attraction in Australia's north. Visitation numbers in 2005 were 202,000, and in 2022 there were 208,056 visitors to the park.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kakadu Visitor Boom {{!}} Kakadu National Park {{!}} Parks Australia |url=https://kakadu.gov.au/news/kakadu-visitor-boom/ |access-date=2025-04-12 |website=kakadu.gov.au |language=en}}</ref> Kakadu's dramatic landscape, Aboriginal cultural significance and diverse and abundant wildlife are what visitors are drawn to. There are many beautiful [[waterfall]]s and gorges within the park that are popular with visitors, such as [[Maguk]], [[Gunlom Falls]], [[Twin Falls, Australia|Twin Falls]] and [[Jim Jim Falls]].

Kakadu National Park has some of the best examples of Aboriginal rock art in Australia. The sites of Nourlangie and Ubirr are among the most visited locations in the park. It is possible to view some of Kakadu's diverse wildlife at places like Yellow Water Billabong, Cooinda on board a wildlife cruise or at Mamukala Wetlands or Anbangbang Billabong. The Kakadu region is one of the world's best for bird watching as approximately 30 percent of Australia's bird species can be seen here.

[[File:Kakadu 2430.jpg|thumb|upright|'No swimming' sign]]

Large [[saltwater crocodile]]s are also commonplace and visitors are likely to see them at Yellow Water and East Alligator River, so it was no coincidence that the ''[["Crocodile" Dundee]]'' films were shot here. The significance of these creatures to the local aboriginal people, as well as the success of the film, inspired the design of the [[Gagudju Crocodile Hotel]] in Jabiru.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://kakadutourism.com/blog/kakadu-s-world-famous-crocodile-hotel-celebrates-30th-anniversary|title=Kakadu's World Famous Crocodile Hotel Celebrates 30th Anniversary|website=Visit Kakadu|publisher=Kakadu Tourism|date=13 September 2018|accessdate=20 January 2022}}</ref> Visitors are urged to exercise caution around crocodiles as they have been responsible for a number of fatal attacks. Recreational fishing is a popular activity inside Kakadu National Park. The main target species is [[barramundi]], and the most popular locations are Yellow Water, the South Alligator and the East Alligator River. Hunting is not allowed in Kakadu National Park.

There are several accommodation options in the park, mostly found in the town of Jabiru, as well as a range of services to cater to visitors' needs. Visitors can travel through Kakadu National Park with a recognised tour operator, or they can drive themselves. Many of the park's sites are accessible by standard two-wheel-drive vehicles, but areas like Twin and Jim Jim Falls and Gunlom require four-wheel-drive vehicles. Visitors can experience Kakadu National Park via the Nature's Way tourism drive, which is a loop from Darwin to Jabiru then onto [[Katherine, Northern Territory|Katherine]] and back to Darwin covering approximately 900&nbsp;km.

[[File:Kakadu 2403.jpg|thumb|right|River crossing on the [[Alligator Rivers|East Alligator River]]]]