Editing Kakadu National Park

{{Short description|Protected area in the Northern Territory of Australia}}
{{Use Australian English|date=August 2012}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2016}}
{{Infobox Australian place
| type                   = protected
| name                   = Kakadu National Park
| iucn_ref               = <ref name="CAPADnt2016terrestrial">{{cite web|title=Terrestrial Protected Areas by Reserve Type in Northern Territory (2016)|url=http://www.environment.gov.au/system/files/pages/761994ab-42cc-4f24-952c-c21221861884/files/capad2016nt.xlsx|website=CAPAD 2016|publisher=Australian government|access-date=15 January 2018|date=2016}}</ref>
| state                  = nt
| iucn_category          = II
| image                  = File:Kakadu 2431.jpg
| caption                = Kakadu Escarpment
| image_alt              = 
| coordinates            = {{coord|13|05|S|132|36|E|type:landmark_region:AU-NT_dim:200000|display=inline,title}}
| relief                 = yes
| pushpin_label_position = bottom
| map_alt                = 
| nearest_town_or_city   = [[Jabiru, Northern Territory|Jabiru]]
| area                   = 19804
| area_footnotes         = <ref name=KakDSEWPCFAQ />
| established            = {{start date|1979|4|5|df=y}}
| established_footnotes  = <ref name=KakDSEWPCFAQ>{{cite web|title=Frequently asked questions|url=http://www.environment.gov.au/parks/kakadu/visitor-information/faq.html|work=Kakadu National Park website|publisher=[[Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities]]|access-date=28 March 2011|date=23 March 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110313090033/http://www.environment.gov.au/parks/kakadu/visitor-information/faq.html|archive-date=13 March 2011|df=dmy-all}}</ref>
| visitation_num         = 250,000
| visitation_year        = 2002
| visitation_footnotes   = <ref name=UNEPWCMC />
| managing_authorities   = {{plainlist|
* [[Director of National Parks]]
* Aboriginal [[traditional owners]] (the [[Kundjeyhmi]], [[Kunwinjku]] and [[Jawoyn]] peoples)
}}
| url                    = https://parksaustralia.gov.au/kakadu/index.html
| footnotes = 
  {{Infobox UNESCO World Heritage Site
  |child = yes 
  |ID = 147
  |Year = 1981
  |Extension = 1987, 1992
  |Criteria = Cultural: i, vi; Natural: vii, ix, x
  }}
{{Designation list
| embed = yes
| designation1 = Ramsar
| designation1_date = 6 December 1980
| designation1_number = 204<ref>{{cite web|title=Kakadu National Park|website=[[Ramsar Convention|Ramsar]] Sites Information Service|url=https://rsis.ramsar.org/ris/204|access-date=25 April 2018}}</ref>}}
}}

'''Kakadu National Park''' is a [[protected area]] in the [[Northern Territory of Australia]], {{cvt|171|km}} southeast of [[Darwin, Northern Territory|Darwin]]. It is a [[World Heritage Site]]. '''Kakadu''' is also gazetted as a [[Suburbs and localities (Australia)|locality]], covering the same area as the national park, with 313 people recorded living there in the [[2016 Australian census]].

Kakadu National Park is located within the [[Alligator Rivers]] Region of the Northern Territory, covering an area of {{convert|19804|km2|abbr=on}}, extending nearly {{convert|200.|km}} from north to south and over {{convert|100.|km}} from east to west. It is roughly the size of [[Wales]] or one-third the size of [[Tasmania]], and is the second-largest national park in Australia, after the [[Munga-Thirri–Simpson Desert National Park]]. Most of the region is owned by the [[Aboriginal Australian|Aboriginal]] [[traditional owners]], who have occupied the land for around 60,000 years and, today, manage the park jointly with [[Parks Australia]]. It is highly [[ecologically]] and [[biologically diverse]], hosting a wide range of habitats and [[flora and fauna]]. It also includes a rich heritage of [[Aboriginal rock art]], including highly significant sites, such as [[Ubirr]]. Kakadu is fully protected by the [[EPBC Act]].

The [[Ranger Uranium Mine]] site, one of the most productive [[List of uranium mines|uranium mines]] in the world until it ceased operations in January 2021, is surrounded by the park.

[[Domestic Asian water buffalo]], which are now an established [[feral]] population and invasive environmental pests, were released into the area in the late 19th century. [[Feral pigs]], [[Cats in Australia|cats]], [[Red foxes in Australia|red foxes]] and [[rabbits in Australia|rabbits]] are further examples of [[invasive species]], all of which compete with and wreak havoc upon the sensitive, unique ecosystems of the Northern Territory, and of the whole of Australia. These species were intentionally brought to the continent by the early settlers, [[Pastoralism|pastoralists]], and [[missionaries]]. The European presence, albeit less than in more populated regions (on the east and west coasts), was still felt. In Kakadu, missionaries established a mission at Oenpelli (present-day [[Gunbalanya, Northern Territory|Gunbalanya]]) in 1925. A few pastoralists, crocodile-hunters and [[Woodcut|wood cutter]]s also made a living in the area at various times up until the early 20th century. The area was progressively given protected status from the 1970s onward.

{{TOC limit|3}}

==History==

===Aboriginal history===
The name ''Kakadu'' probably originates from the mispronunciation of [[Gaagudju language|Gaagudju]], which is the name of an [[Australian Aboriginal languages|Aboriginal language]] spoken in the north-western part of the park. Explorer [[Walter Baldwin Spencer|Baldwin Spencer]] had incorrectly ascribed the name "Kakadu tribe" to the people living in the [[Alligator Rivers]] area<ref name=aussietowns>{{cite web |title=Kakadu National Park, NT |url=https://www.aussietowns.com.au/town/kakadu-national-park-nt |website=Aussie Towns |date=13 May 2015 |access-date=14 March 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Spencer |first=Baldwin |author-link=Walter Baldwin Spencer |title=Native Tribes of the Northern Territory of Australia |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hrNDYY9iKz4C |publisher=Library of Alexandria |year=2020 |access-date=14 March 2021 |isbn=978-1-4655-7998-0 |via=Google Books}}</ref>

[[Aboriginal Australian|Aboriginal peoples]] have occupied the Kakadu area continuously for around 60,000 years.<ref name=handback2022/> Kakadu National Park is renowned for the richness of its [[Aboriginal sacred site|Aboriginal cultural sites]]. There are more than 5,000 recorded art sites illustrating Aboriginal culture over thousands of years. The archaeological sites demonstrate Aboriginal occupation for at least 40,000 and possibly up to 65,000 years.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Clarkson |first1=Chris |last2=Jacobs |first2=Zenobia |last3=Marwick |first3=Ben |last4=Fullagar |first4=Richard |last5=Wallis |first5=Lynley |last6=Smith |first6=Mike |last7=Roberts |first7=Richard G. |last8=Hayes |first8=Elspeth |last9=Lowe |first9=Kelsey |last10=Carah |first10=Xavier |last11=Florin |first11=S. Anna |last12=McNeil |first12=Jessica |last13=Cox |first13=Delyth |last14=Arnold |first14=Lee J. |last15=Hua |first15=Quan |date=20 July 2017 |title=Human occupation of northern Australia by 65,000 years ago |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/nature22968 |journal=Nature |language=en |volume=547 |issue=7663 |pages=306–310 |doi=10.1038/nature22968 |pmid=28726833 |bibcode=2017Natur.547..306C |issn=1476-4687}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Arnold |first=Lee |date=20 July 2017 |title=Kakadu site shows 65,000 years of human occupation |url=https://www.adelaide.edu.au/news/news93602.html |access-date=12 April 2025 |website=University of Adelaide}}</ref>

===The arrival of non-Indigenous people===

====Explorers====
The [[China|Chinese]], [[Malaysia|Malays]] and [[Portugal|Portuguese]] all claim to have been the first non-Aboriginal explorers of Australia's north coast. The first surviving written account comes from the [[Netherlands|Dutch]]. In 1623 [[Jan Carstenszoon]] made his way west across the [[Gulf of Carpentaria]] to what is believed to be Groote Eylandt. [[Abel Tasman]] is the next documented explorer to visit this part of the coast in 1644. He was the first person to record European contact with Aboriginal people. Almost a century later [[Matthew Flinders]] surveyed the Gulf of Carpentaria in 1802 and 1803.<ref>{{Cite web |last=State Library of New South Wales |date=2018-03-15 |title=Matthew Flinders: Australia on the map |url=https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/stories/matthew-flinders-australia-map |access-date=2025-04-12 |website=www.sl.nsw.gov.au}}</ref>

[[File:Aboriginal Art Australia(6).jpg|thumb|right|The [[Ubirr]] Aboriginal rock art site]]
[[Phillip Parker King]], an English navigator entered the Gulf of Carpentaria between 1818 and 1822. During this time he named the three Alligator Rivers after the large numbers of [[Saltwater crocodile|crocodiles]], which he mistook for [[alligator]]s.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Alligator Rivers {{!}} Aboriginal, Wetlands, Mangroves {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Alligator-Rivers |access-date=2025-04-12 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref>

[[Ludwig Leichhardt]] was the first land-based European explorer to visit the Kakadu region, in 1845 on his route from [[Moreton Bay]] in [[Queensland]] to [[Port Essington]] in the Northern Territory. He followed Jim Jim Creek down from the [[Arnhem Land]] escarpment, then went down the South Alligator before crossing to the East Alligator and proceeding north.<ref>{{Cite web |last=National Museum of Australia |title=National Museum of Australia - Leichhardt expedition |url=https://www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/leichhardt-expedition |access-date=2025-04-12 |website=www.nma.gov.au |language=en}}</ref>

[[File:Aboriginal Art Australia.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Indigenous Australian art|Rock art]] painting at Ubirr]]

In 1862, [[John McDouall Stuart]] travelled along the south-western boundary of Kakadu but did not see any people.<ref>{{Cite web |last=baschiera |first=dan |title=On Leichhardt's Path Kakadu 1845 : Reflections walking a time tunnel |url=https://territorystories.nt.gov.au/10070/927468/0/147 |access-date=2025-04-12 |website=On Leichhardt's Path Kakadu 1845 : Reflections walking a time tunnel}}</ref>

The first non-Aboriginal people to visit and have sustained contact with Aboriginal people in northern Australia were the Macassans from [[Sulawesi]] and other parts of the [[Indonesia]]n archipelago. They travelled to northern Australia every wet season, probably from the last quarter of the seventeenth century, in sailing boats called ''prau''s. Their main aim was to harvest trepang ([[Sea cucumber (food)|sea cucumber]]), turtle shell, [[pearl]]s and other prized items to trade in their homeland. Aboriginal people were involved in harvesting and processing the trepang, and in collecting and exchanging the other goods.

There is no evidence that the [[Macassan contact with Australia|Macassans]] spent time on the coast of Kakadu but there is evidence of some contact between Macassan culture and Aboriginal people of the Kakadu area. Among the artefacts from archaeological digs in the park are glass and metal fragments that probably came from the Macassans, either directly or through trade with the [[Cobourg Peninsula]] people.

The [[Great Britain|British]] attempted a number of settlements on the northern Australian coast in the early part of the nineteenth century: [[Fort Dundas]] on [[Melville Island (Northern Territory)|Melville Island]] in 1824; [[Fort Wellington, Australia|Fort Wellington]] at [[Raffles Bay]] in 1829; and Victoria Settlement ([[Port Essington]]) on the Cobourg Peninsula in 1838. They were anxious to secure the north of Australia before the French or Dutch, who had colonised islands further north. The British settlements were all subsequently abandoned for a variety of reasons, such as lack of water and fresh food, sickness and isolation.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2019-12-02 |title=In 1838, the British came to colonise northern Australia. They returned forever changed |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-03/port-essington-worlds-end-failed-british-colonial-settlement/11730570 |access-date=2025-04-12 |work=ABC News |language=en-AU}}</ref>

====Buffalo hunters====
[[File:Buffalo.jpg|thumb|right|[[Domestic water buffalo|Water buffalo]] in the wetlands]]
[[Domestic Asian water buffalo|Water buffalo]] had a large influence on the Kakadu region as well. By the 1880s the number of buffaloes released from early settlements had increased to such an extent that commercial harvesting of hides and horns was economically viable. The industry began on the Adelaide River, close to Darwin, and moved east to the [[Mary River (Northern Territory)|Mary River]] and Alligator Rivers regions.

Most of the buffalo hunting and skin curing was done in the dry season, between June and September, when buffaloes congregated around the remaining [[billabong]]s. During the wet season hunting ceased because the ground was too muddy to pursue buffalo and the harvested hides would rot. The buffalo-hunting industry became an important employer of Aboriginal people during the dry-season months.

====Missionaries====
[[Missionaries]] also had a large influence on the Aboriginal people of the Alligator Rivers region, many of whom lived and were schooled at missions in their youth. Two missions were set up in the region in the early part of the century. Kapalga Native Industrial Mission was established near the South Alligator River in 1899, but lasted only four years. The [[Oenpelli]] Mission began in 1925, when the Church of England Missionary Society accepted an offer from the Northern Territory Administration to take over the area, which had been operated as a dairy farm. The Oenpelli Mission operated for 50 years.<ref>{{Cite web |last=National Archives of Australia |date=2010 |title=Aboriginal men, women and children at Oenpelli Church of England mission. |url=https://www.naa.gov.au/students-and-teachers/learning-resources/learning-resource-themes/first-australians/history/aboriginal-men-women-and-children-oenpelli-church-england-mission |access-date=12 April 2025}}</ref>

[[File:Saltwater croc kakadu.jpg|thumb|[[Saltwater crocodile|Salt water crocodile]] in Kakadu]]

====Pastoralists====
The pastoral industry made a cautious start in the [[Top End]]. Pastoral leases in the Kakadu area were progressively abandoned from 1889, because the [[Victoria River (Northern Territory)|Victoria River]] and the [[Barkly Tableland]]s proved to be better pastoral regions.

In southern Kakadu, much of Goodparla and Gimbat was claimed in the mid-1870s by three pastoralists, Roderick, Travers and Sergison. The leases were subsequently passed on to a series of owners, all of whom were unable for one reason or another to make a go of it. In 1987 both stations were acquired by the Commonwealth and incorporated in Kakadu National Park.

A sawmill at Nourlangie Camp was begun by Chinese operators, probably before [[World War I]], to mill stands of cypress pine in the area. After World War II a number of small-scale ventures, including dingo shooting and trapping, [[brumby]] shooting, crocodile shooting, tourism and forestry, began.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Australian Government Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water |title=History of the park. |url=https://www.dcceew.gov.au/parks-heritage/national-parks/kakadu-national-park/culture-and-history/history-park |access-date=12 April 2025}}</ref>

Nourlangie Camp was again the site of a sawmill in the 1950s, until the local stands of cypress pine were exhausted. In 1958 it was converted into a safari camp for tourists. Soon after, a similar camp was started at Patonga and at Muirella Park. Clients were flown in for recreational buffalo and crocodile hunting and fishing.

Crocodile hunters often made use of the bush skills of Aboriginal people. By imitating a wallaby's tail hitting the ground, Aboriginal hunters could attract crocodiles, making it easier to shoot the animals. Using paperbark rafts, they would track the movement of a wounded crocodile and retrieve the carcass for skinning. The skins were then sold to make leather goods. Aboriginal people became less involved in commercial hunting of crocodiles once the technique of spotlight shooting at night developed. [[Freshwater crocodile]]s have been protected by law since 1964 and [[saltwater crocodile]]s since 1971.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Department of the Environment |title=Crocodylus porosus - Salt-water Crocodile, Estuarine Crocodile |url=https://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicspecies.pl?taxon_id=1774 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20241226034802/http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicspecies.pl?taxon_id=1774 |archive-date=2024-12-26 |access-date=2025-04-12 |website=www.environment.gov.au |language=en}}</ref>

===Mining===
{{further|Uranium mining in Kakadu National Park}}
[[File:Ranger Uranium Mine in Kakadu National Park.jpeg|thumb|right|The [[Ranger Uranium Mine]]]]
The first mineral discoveries in the Top End were associated with the construction of the [[Overland Telegraph]] line between 1870 and 1872, in the [[Pine Creek, Northern Territory|Pine Creek]] – [[Adelaide River]] area. A series of short mining booms followed. The construction of the [[North Australia Railway]] line (1889–1976) gave more permanency to the [[mining]] camps, and places such as Burrundie and [[Pine Creek, Northern Territory|Pine Creek]] became permanent settlements. Small-scale [[gold]] mining began at Imarlkba, near [[Barramundi Creek]], and Mundogie Hill in the 1920s and at Moline (previously called Eureka and Northern Hercules mine), south of the park, in the 1930s. The mines employed a few local Aboriginal people.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Ellwood |first1=Galiina (Kal) |last2=Wegner |first2=Janice |date=October 2019 |title=Shared history forgotten: the neglected stories of Aboriginal miners, prospectors and ancillary workers in the north Queensland mining industry . |url=https://www.mininghistory.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/1.-Ellwood-Wegner-compressed-1.pdf |journal=Journal of Australasian Mining History |volume=17 |pages=1–19}}</ref>

In 1953, [[uranium]] was discovered along the headwaters of the [[South Alligator River]] valley. Thirteen small but rich uranium mines operated in the following decade, at their peak in 1957 employing over 150 workers. Early in the 1970s large uranium deposits were discovered at Ranger, [[Jabiluka]] and [[Koongarra]]. Following receipt of a formal proposal to develop the Ranger site, the [[Commonwealth Government]] initiated an inquiry into land use in the Alligator Rivers region. The Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry (known as the [[Russell Walter Fox|Fox inquiry]]) recommended, among other things, that mining begin at the [[Ranger Uranium Mine|Ranger]] site, that consideration be given to the future development of the Jabiluka and Koongarra sites, and that a service town be built.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Australian Government Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water |title=Ranger Uranium Environmental Inquiry final report 1977 |url=https://www.dcceew.gov.au/science-research/supervising-scientist/publications/ranger-uranium-environmental-inquiry-report-final |access-date=12 April 2025 |website=}}</ref>

Gold mining was proposed in the late 1980s at [[Coronation Hill]] (Guratba).<ref>{{cite web |last1=Allam |first1=Lorena |title=No ordinary piece of bush: the high price of Coronation Hill |date=4 April 2010 |url=https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/hindsight/no-ordinary-piece-of-bush-the-high-price-of/3112040  |publisher=ABC |access-date=4 Nov 2023}}</ref> This site had initially been excluded from the park but was added as part of stage 3. Its mining was blocked following environmental and social campaigns. Despite internal disagreement the then Prime Minister, [[Bob Hawke]], vetoed mining in a Cabinet Meeting<ref>{{cite news |last1=Chan |first1=Gabrielle |title=Cabinet papers 1990-91: Hawke's fight to keep mining out of Kakadu helped unseat him |newspaper=The Guardian |date=31 December 2015 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/jan/01/cabinet-papers-1990-91-hawkes-fight-to-keep-mining-out-of-kakadu-helped-unseat-him |publisher=Guardian News & Media Limited |access-date=4 Nov 2023}}</ref> in May 1991.

In the mid 1990s a similar debate over additional uranium mining at [[Jabiluka]]<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hamilton |first1=Clive |title=Mining in Kakadu: Lessons from Coronation Hill |journal=Parliamentary Library 'Vital Issues' Seminar Series Parliament House |date=19 July 1996 |volume=Discussion Paper Number 9 |issue=9 |pages=1–18 |url=https://australiainstitute.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/DP9_8.pdf |access-date=4 Nov 2023}}</ref> was prevented by a campaign and blockade initiated by the Gundjeihmi Aboriginal Corporation.<ref>{{cite web |last= |first= |date=2019-03-28 |title=Jabiluka Fight for Country |url=https://commonslibrary.org/jabiluka-fight-for-country/ |access-date=2023-07-07 |website=The Commons Social Change Library |language=en-AU}}</ref>
The Ranger uranium mine closed in 2021.<ref>{{cite web |last=Blair |first=Kirsten |date=2020-03-10 |title=The Jabiluka Blockade – 22 years on |url=https://commonslibrary.org/the-jabiluka-blockade-22-years-on/ |access-date=2023-07-07 |website=The Commons Social Change Library |language=en-AU}}</ref>

==Extent and features==
[[File:Kakadu 2411.jpg|thumb|Kakadu wetlands]]
[[File:Kakadu 2432.jpg|thumb|right|The largest waterfall in the park, [[Jim Jim Falls]] ]]
Kakadu National Park covers an area of {{convert|19804|km2|abbr=on}},<ref name=UNEPWCMC>{{cite web|title=Kakadu National Park Northern Territory, Australia|url=http://www.unep-wcmc.org/sites/wh/pdf/Kakadu.pdf|archive-url=https://www.webarchive.org.uk/wayback/archive/20090713113430/http://www.unep-wcmc.org/sites/wh/pdf/Kakadu.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=13 July 2009|work=United Nations Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre – World Heritage Sites|publisher=UNESCO|access-date=28 March 2011}}</ref> extending nearly  {{convert|200.|km}} from north to south and over {{convert|100.|km}} from east to west. It is the size of [[Wales]], about one-third the size of [[Tasmania]], and nearly half the size of [[Switzerland]], making it the second largest national park in Australia after the [[Munga-Thirri–Simpson Desert National Park]], which was proclaimed in November 2021.<ref>{{cite news |last=Kurmelovs |first=Royce |date=25 November 2021 |title=Munga-Thirri-Simpson desert declared Australia's biggest national park after 10-year campaign |url=https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/nov/25/munga-thirri-simpson-desert-declared-australias-biggest-national-park-after-10-year-campaign |work=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=28 November 2021}}</ref>

The park includes four major river systems:<ref>{{Cite book |last=BMT WBM |title=Ecological Character Description for Kakadu National Park Ramsar Site. |publisher=Australian Government Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities. |year=2010}}</ref>
* the [[East Alligator River]]
* the [[West Alligator River]]
* the [[Wildman River]]
* the entire [[South Alligator River]]

===Geology and landforms===
Most of Kakadu was under a shallow sea approximately 140 million years ago, with the escarpment wall formed from sea cliffs and Arnhem Land from a flat plateau above the sea. The escarpment rises {{cvt|330|m}} above the plateau and extends approximately {{cvt|500|km}} along the eastern edge of the park and on into Arnhem Land. The escarpment varies from near vertical cliffs in the [[Jim Jim Falls]] area to isolated outliers and stepped cliffs in the North.<ref name="deLKSC">{{cite web |title=Landforms of Kakadu Stone Country |url=http://www.environment.gov.au/parks/kakadu/nature-science/habitats-stone.html |publisher=[[Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts (Australia)|Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts]] |date=15 April 2008 |access-date=18 January 2012}}</ref>

There are six main landforms in Kakadu National Park: the Arnhem Land plateau and escarpment complex, known as the stone country; the outliers; the lowlands; the southern hills and basins; the floodplains; and the tidal flats. Each landform has its own range of habitats. Kakadu's varied landscapes and the habitats they contain are features that contributed to its listing as a World Heritage Area.
[[File:mamukala.jpg|thumb|upright|The Mamukala wetlands]]

Chasms and gorges form a network that dissects the rocky platforms on the plateau. The plateau top is a harsh, dry environment where water drains away quickly and topsoil is scarce. Sparse pockets of open forest and woodlands have developed in these areas. Creeks have carved deep gorges in the escarpment in which tall [[Rain forest|monsoon forests]] grow. These areas form [[microclimate]]s for plants and animals and often serve as a refuge during the dry season.<ref name="deLKSC" /> ''[[Allosyncarpia ternata]]'', a large shady tree found only in the Kakadu and Arnhem Land, is the dominant plant species.

The outliers are essentially pieces of the Arnhem Land plateau that have become separated from the plateau complex by erosion. They were islands in the ancient seas that once covered much of Kakadu. The gently undulating lowland plains stretch over much of the Top End. Travelling anywhere in Kakadu, you cannot help noticing the lowlands—they make up nearly 70% of the park. The soils are shallow and often overlie extensive sheets of laterite (ironstone) and a thick profile of strongly leached rocks.

[[File:Kakadu Mamukala DSC03562.JPG|thumb|right|upright|Mamukala]]
During the [[wet season]] water carried down from the Arnhem Land plateau often overflows from creeks and rivers onto nearby floodplains. Alluvial soils carried in the floodwaters add nutrients to the floodplains. Nutrient-rich soils along with an abundance of water and sunlight make the floodplains an area of prolific plant and animal life. During the dry season the water recedes into rivers, creeks, and isolated waterholes or [[billabong]]s. Kakadu's wetlands are listed under the [[Convention on Wetlands of International Importance]] (the [[Ramsar Convention]]) for their outstanding ecological, botanical, zoological, and hydrological features.

The southern hills and basins cover a large area in the south of the park, including the headwaters of the South Alligator River. Rocks here have been exposed from beneath the [[Scarp retreat|retreating]] Arnhem escarpment; they are of volcanic origin and are extremely old (2500 million years). This landform is characterised by rugged strike ridges separated by alluvial flats.
[[File:Kakadu 2488.jpg|thumb|Nourlangie Rock]]
Kakadu's coast and the creeks and river systems under tidal influence (extending about 100 kilometres inland) make up this landform. The shape of the estuaries and tidal flats varies considerably from the dry season to the wet season. During the dry season tidal action deposits silt along the river beds and banks. During the wet season the river beds are eroded by the floodwaters and large quantities of fresh and saline water flow out across the tidal flats, where silt is deposited. Large silt loads are also carried out to sea, some of the silt being deposited as a nutrient rich layer on the sea floor, contributing to the muddy waters that characterise Kakadu's coastline.
[[File:Kakadu 2455.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Twin Falls (Australia)|Twin Falls]]]]
[[File:Kakadu 1330.jpg|thumb|right|upright|The Mamukala billabong]]
The estuaries and tidal flats are home to an array of plants and animals adapted to living in the oxygen-deficient saline mud. The dominant habitats are mangrove swamps and samphire flats. Where freshwater springs occur along the coasts and river banks, isolated pockets of coastal monsoon rainforests form.

==Protection, ownership and management==
The park was declared as a [[protected area]] in several stages starting in the 1970s.<ref name=handback2022/>

The cultural and natural values of Kakadu National Park were recognised internationally when the [[Park]] was placed on the [[UNESCO]] World Heritage List.  This is an international register of properties that are recognised as having outstanding cultural or natural values of international significance.

===Fight for Kakadu===

Kakadu was proclaimed a National Park in several stages between 1979 and 1991.<ref>{{cite web |title=Amazing Facts |url=https://parksaustralia.gov.au/kakadu/discover/amazing-facts/ |website=Kakadu National Park |publisher=Parks Australia (Commonwealth of Australia) |access-date=12 Nov 2023}}</ref> These parts also were progressively added to its World Heritage Status as those additions were made. The first was Stage 1 in 1981, then in 1987 (Stages 1 and 2), in 1992 (Stages 1, 2 and 3).<ref name=dccew>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dcceew.gov.au/parks-heritage/heritage/places/world/kakadu|title=World Heritage Places - Kakadu National Park|website=Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water |date=12 Sep 2022|language=en|access-date=6 Nov 2023}}</ref>

Between 1988-1991 an exclusion zone to allow exploration and mining, particularly of gold, at [[Coronation Hill]] and [[El Sherana]] by [[BHP]] existed.<ref>{{cite web |title=BHP WANTS CORONATION TO PROCEED |date=14 August 1990 |url=https://www.afr.com/politics/bhp-wants-coronation-to-proceed-19900814-k41y8 |publisher=Financial Review |access-date=4 Nov 2023}}</ref>  Groups from environmental, social and indigenous perspectives opposed the proposal. Miners and some economists supported it.

In Victoria the '''[[Kakadu Action Group]]''' (KAG) was formed by [[Lindsay Mollison]] at the Melbourne offices of the [[Australian Conservation Foundation]]  where regular meetings were held.<ref>{{cite news |title=KAG Meetings Glenferrie |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/122222846/?match=1&clipping_id=128764289 |access-date=4 Nov 2023 |publisher=The Age |date=24 Nov 1987 |page=2}}</ref> The Group held public meetings to encourage support for opposition to the proposal.<ref>{{cite news |last1=The Age p. 40 |title=KAG: Wilderness Society Meeting, St Kilda |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/122957405/?terms=%22kakadu%20action%20group%22%20&match=1 |access-date=26 July 2023 |work=Newspapers.com |publisher=The Age |date=14 Apr 1989 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Kakadu: World Heritage Under Threat |title=Kakadu: World Heritage Under Threat |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/121055922/?terms=%22kakadu%20action%20group%22%20&match=1 |access-date=4 Nov 2023 |publisher=The Age, p. 41 |date=4 Nov 1988}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Wilderness |title=Wilderness: KAG |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/122957352/?terms=%22kakadu%20action%20group%22%20&match=1 |access-date=4 Nov 2023 |publisher=The Age, p 31 |date=14 Apr 1989}}</ref>   Mollison also participated by contributing and rebutting letters to the "[[Letters to the Editor]]" of [[The Age]] newspaper over the several years.<ref>{{cite news |date=20 Oct 1988 |title=Mining Industry not disadvantaged |work=Lindsay Mollison. KAG |publisher=The Age, p 12 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-age/128764001/ |access-date=4 Nov 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=1 Oct 1990 |title=Kakadu - public puts pressure brakes on mining development |work=Lindsay Mollison. KAG |publisher=The Age, p 12 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/120576449/?terms=%22lindsay%20mollison%22%20&match=1 |access-date=4 Nov 2023}}</ref> The organisation was being surveilled by the Australian Government with archives of its meetings still held secretly by the Government (due for release in 2026).<ref>{{cite web |last1=Kakadu Action Group (KAG), Melbourne, 1987-89 (File 8226) - Box 67 |title=KAG Files |url=https://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/1965778 |website=NLA |access-date=4 Nov 2023}}</ref>

In a hearts and mind campaign, including KAG's contributions, the excluded sections within the proposed stage 3 were progressively decreased in size and were eventually completely removed after the mining proposal was ultimately vetoed at a Cabinet meeting by the then Prime Minister, [[Bob Hawke]], in May 1991.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Chan |first1=Gabrielle |title=Cabinet papers 1990-91: Hawke's fight to keep mining out of Kakadu helped unseat him |newspaper=The Guardian |date=31 December 2015 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/jan/01/cabinet-papers-1990-91-hawkes-fight-to-keep-mining-out-of-kakadu-helped-unseat-him |publisher=Guardian News & Media Limited |access-date=4 Nov 2023}}</ref> Those actions were important in his being replaced later that year.<ref>{{cite web |title=Hawke stands by decision on Kakadu |url=https://www.9news.com.au/national/hawke-stands-by-decision-on-kakadu/b5851c56-80e7-4112-8634-05f911bc329f |website=Nine Entertainment Co. |date=6 February 2013 |publisher=AAP |access-date=4 Nov 2023}}</ref>  The area was added to Kakadu National Park as part of its stage 3 inclusions in 1992.<ref name="dccew"/> The activities of the '''[[Kakadu Action Group]]''' during these years contributed to mining being banned and the areas being added to the Park.

However, a separate exclusion zone  at [[Jabiluka]] still remained.  In this instance the proposal was to mine uranium.  This was finally ruled out and this part of Kakadu was added to the Park in 1996. The precedents set with [[Coronation Hill]] were important in that decision.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hamilton |first1=Clive |title=Mining in Kakadu: Lessons from Coronation Hill |journal=Parliamentary Library 'Vital Issues' Seminar Series Parliament House |date=19 July 1996 |volume=Discussion Paper Number 9 |issue=9 |pages=1–18 |url=https://australiainstitute.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/DP9_8.pdf |access-date=4 Nov 2023}}</ref> Local First Nations Gaagudju man [[Big Bill Neidjie]] was an important leader in the campaign against the proposed Jabiluka mine and the inclusion of the area in the park.<ref name="smh">{{cite web | title=The man who attended his own wake|first=Chips |last=Mackinolty | website=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]] | date=17 June 2002 | url=https://www.smh.com.au/national/the-man-who-attended-his-own-wake-20020617-gdfdey.html | access-date=24 October 2021}}</ref>

In 2011 the Koongarra area, where there remained a proposal for another uranium mine, was added to the World Heritage Region.<ref>{{cite web |title=World Heritage Places - Koongarra |url=https://www.dcceew.gov.au/parks-heritage/heritage/places/world/kakadu#more-information |website=Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water |access-date=12 Nov 2023}}</ref>

===Park management===
The Kakadu National Park is proclaimed under the ''[[Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999]]'' (the EPBC Act) and is managed through a joint management arrangement between the Aboriginal traditional owners and the Director of National Parks. The Director manages Commonwealth national parks through [[Parks Australia]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=About us |url=https://parksaustralia.gov.au/kakadu/about/ |access-date=2024-08-23 |website=parksaustralia.gov.au |language=en-au}}</ref> Parks Australia and the Aboriginal traditional owners of Kakadu are committed to the principle of joint management of the park and arrangements to help this happen are highlighted in Kakadu's Plan of Management.<ref name=":0" />

The EPBC Act provides for boards of management to be established for parks on Aboriginal land. The Kakadu Board of Management, which has an Aboriginal majority (ten out of fifteen members), representing the Aboriginal traditional owners of land in the park, was established in 1989. The Board determines policy for managing the park and is responsible, along with the Director, for preparing plans of management for the park. The Plan of Management is the main policy document for the park and strives to balance strategic or long-term goals and tactical or day to day goals.
Day-to-day management of Kakadu is carried out by people employed by Parks Australia, which is a branch of the Australian Government's Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities.  Approximately one-third of the staff in Kakadu are Aboriginal people.

Kakadu National Park re-introduced a park use fee from April 2010, to help manage the natural and cultural values of the park environment and improve visitor services.

===Aboriginal land ownership===
Approximately half of the land in Kakadu is Aboriginal land under the ''[[Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1976]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=corporateName=National Museum of Australia; address=Lawson Crescent |first=Acton Peninsula |title=National Museum of Australia - Aboriginal Land Rights Act |url=https://www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/aboriginal-land-rights-act |access-date=2025-04-12 |website=www.nma.gov.au |language=en}}</ref> Most of the remaining land was under [[native title in Australia|native title claim]] by Aboriginal people for several decades until March 2022, under four different claims. On 24 March 2022 a ceremony took place today to mark the formal handback by Minister for Indigenous Affairs [[Ken Wyatt]] of nearly half of the park to Aboriginal traditional owners. These  are the [[Limilngan|Limingan/ Minitja]], [[Murumburr]], Karndidjbal,<ref>{{cite web |last=Garde |first=Murray |title=Karndidjbal |url=https://www.njamed.com/#Karndidjbal |website=Bininj Kunwok Dictionary |access-date=17 October 2022}}</ref> Yulhmanj,<ref>{{cite web |last=Garde |first=Murray |title=Yulhmanj |url=https://www.njamed.com/#Yulhmanj |website=Bininj Kunwok Dictionary |access-date=17 October 2022}}</ref> Wurngomgu, Bolmo, Wurrkbarbar, Madjba,<ref>{{cite web |last=Garde |first=Murray |title=Madjba |url=https://www.njamed.com/#Madjba |website=Bininj Kunwok Dictionary |access-date=17 October 2022}}</ref> [[Uwinymil]], [[Bunidj]], [[Djindibi]], [[Bininj|Mirrar Kundjeyhmi]] and Dadjbaku peoples. The areas of the park that are owned by Aboriginal people are leased by the [[traditional owners]] to the [[Director of National Parks]] to be managed as a national park.<ref name=handback2022>{{cite web |last=Gibson |first=Jano |title=Nearly half of Kakadu National Park to be handed back to Aboriginal traditional owners |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-24/kakadu-national-park-land-handback-aboriginal-traditional-owners/100933290 |publisher=[[ABC News (Australia)|ABC News]] |date=24 March 2022 |access-date=30 March 2022}}</ref>

==Climate==
[[File:Kakadu 2534.jpg|thumb|right|Mist in Kakadu on a [[billabong]]]]
[[File:Yellow Waters Billabong July 2001.JPG|thumb|right|Yellow Water Billabong, July 2001]]
Kakadu is located in the tropics, between 12° and 14° south of the [[Equator]].  The climate is [[monsoonal]], characterised by two main seasons: the [[dry season]] and the [[wet season]].  The "build up" describes the transition between the dry and the wet. During the dry season (from April/May to September), dry southerly and easterly trade winds predominate. Humidity is relatively low and rain is unusual. At Jabiru, the average maximum temperature for June–July is 32&nbsp;°C. During the "build up" (October to December) conditions can be extremely uncomfortable with high temperatures and high humidity. However, "build up" storms are impressive and lightning strikes are frequent. In fact, the Top End of Australia records more lightning strikes per year than any other place on earth. At Jabiru the average maximum temperature for October is 37.5&nbsp;°C.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Jabiru climate: Weather Jabiru & temperature by month |url=https://en.climate-data.org/oceania/australia/northern-territory/jabiru-32210/ |access-date=2025-04-12 |website=en.climate-data.org}}</ref>

The wet season (January to March/April) is characterised by warm temperatures and rain. Most of the rain is associated with monsoonal troughs formed over [[Southeast Asia]], although occasionally tropical [[cyclone]]s produce intense heavy rain over localised areas. At Jabiru, the average maximum temperature for January is 33&nbsp;°C. Annual rainfall in Kakadu National Park ranges from 1,565&nbsp;mm in Jabiru to 1,300&nbsp;mm in the Mary River region.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Climate Kakadu National Park: Temperature, climate graph, Climate table for Kakadu National Park |url=https://en.climate-data.org/oceania/australia/kakadu-national-park-10432/ |access-date=2025-04-12 |website=en.climate-data.org}}</ref>

Most non-Aboriginal people really only refer to the rain and dry seasons, but the [[Bininj|Bininj/Mungguy]] people identify as many as six seasons<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.travelnt.com/en/experience/nature/kakadu-seasons.htm/|title=Travelnt.com|access-date=1 April 2024|archive-date=19 May 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070519154731/http://www.travelnt.com/en/experience/nature/kakadu-seasons.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> in the Kakadu region:

* Kunumeleng – mid-October to late December, pre-monsoon storm season with hot weather and building thunderstorms in the afternoons<ref>{{cite web |last1=Garde |first1=Murray |title=Kunumeleng |url=https://www.njamed.com/#Kunumeleng |website=Bininj Kunwok Online dictionary |publisher=Bininj Kunwok Regional Language Centre |access-date=22 June 2019}}</ref>
* Kudjewk – from January to March, monsoon season with thunderstorms, heavy rain, and flooding; the heat and humidity generate an explosion of plant and animal life<ref>{{cite web |last1=Garde |first1=Murray |title=Kudjewk |url=https://www.njamed.com/#kudjewk |website=Bininj Kunwok Online dictionary |publisher=Bininj Kunwok Regional Language Centre |access-date=22 June 2019}}</ref>
* Bangkerreng – April, the "knock 'em down storm" season where floodwater recedes but violent, windy storms knock down grasses<ref>{{cite web |last1=Garde |first1=Murray |title=Bangkerreng |url=https://www.njamed.com/#bangkerreng  |website=Bininj Kunwok Online dictionary |publisher=Bininj Kunwok Regional Language Centre |access-date=22 June 2019}}</ref>
* Yekke – from May to mid-June, relatively cool with low humidity, the Aboriginal people historically started burning the woodlands in patches to "clean the country" and encourage new growth for grazing animals
* Wurrkeng – from mid-June to mid-August, the cold weather season with low humidity; most creeks stop flowing and the floodplains quickly dry out<ref>{{cite web |last1=Garde |first1=Murray |title=Wurrkeng |url=https://www.njamed.com/#wurrkeng  |website=Bininj Kunwok Online dictionary |publisher=Bininj Kunwok Regional Language Centre |access-date=22 June 2019}}</ref>
* Kurrung – from mid-August to mid-October, hot dry weather with ever-shrinking [[billabong]]s.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Garde |first1=Murray |title=Kurrung |url=https://www.njamed.com/#kurrung  |website=Bininj Kunwok Online dictionary |publisher=Bininj Kunwok Regional Language Centre |access-date=22 June 2019}}</ref>

==Flora and fauna==
[[File:Kakadu 3333.jpg|thumb|upright|Waterlilies such as the [[Nelumbo nucifera|lotus flower]] abound in Kakadu National Park.]]
[[File:A157, Kakadu National Park, Australia, red and pink looped wildflower, 2007.JPG|thumb|right|[[Grevillea]]]]
Kakadu is [[ecologically]] and [[biologically diverse]].

===Flora===
{{main|Flora of Kakadu National Park}}
Kakadu's flora is among the richest in [[northern territory|northern Australia]] with more than 1700 plant species
recorded which is a result of the park's geological, landform and habitat diversity. Kakadu is also considered to be one of the most weed free national parks in the world.

The distinctly different geographical areas of Kakadu have their own specialised flora. The [[Natural environment|environment]] referred to as the "Stone Country" features "resurrection grasses" that are able to cope with extreme heat and long dry spells followed by periods of torrential rain. Monsoon forests often develop in the cool moist gorges dissecting the stone country. The southern hills and basins support several [[Endemic (ecology)|endemic]] plants that are only found in Kakadu such as ''[[Eucalyptus koolpinensis]]'' near Jarrangbarnmi (Koolpin Gorge). Lowland areas form a large proportion of Kakadu National Park and are mainly covered in eucalypt-dominated open woodland with the ground layer consisting of a large range of grasses including [[Heteropogon contortus|spear grass]], sedges and wildflowers. The Kakadu plum, ''[[Terminalia ferdinandiana]]'', is commonly found in the area.

The [[floodplain]]s, which are inundated for several months each year, feature sedges such as spike rush as well patches of freshwater [[mangrove]]s (itchy tree), [[pandanus]] and paper bark trees ([[Melaleuca]]). Varieties of [[Nymphaeaceae|water lilies]], such as the blue, yellow and white snowflake, are commonly found in these areas. Estuaries and tidal flats are populated with varieties of mangroves (39 of the 47 Northern Territory species of mangrove occur in Kakadu) that are important for stabilising the coastline. [[Mangrove]]s serve as feeding and breeding grounds for many fish species including the [[barramundi]].<ref>{{Cite news |date=2021-03-20 |title='What is extraordinary is when you see the mulga dying': These iconic ecosystems are on the brink of collapse |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2021-03-21/ecosystem-collapse-mangroves-gidgee-desert/13234044 |access-date=2025-04-12 |work=ABC News |language=en-AU}}</ref>

On the tidal flats behind the mangroves, hardy succulents ([[samphire]]), grasses and sedges grow. Isolated pockets of monsoon forest grow along the coast and river banks. These forests contain several impressive trees, among them the [[banyan]] fig, which can be recognised by its large, spreading aerial roots, and the yellow-flowered kapok bush or cotton tree, ''[[Cochlospermum fraseri]]'', whose pods split to release cotton-like material.<ref>{{cite web |title=''Cochlospermum fraseri'' Planch. BIXACEAE |url=http://eflora.nt.gov.au/factsheet?id=766 |website=NT Flora: eflora |publisher=Government of the Northern Territory |access-date=1 May 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Kapok bush |url=https://parksaustralia.gov.au/kakadu/discover/nature/plants/kapok-bush/ |website=parksaustralia.gov.au |language=en-au}}</ref>

===Fauna===
There is a remarkable variety and concentration of wildlife, including:<ref name="UNEPWCMC" />
* over 280 [[bird]] species
* roughly 60 [[mammal]] species
* over 50 [[freshwater]] species
* over 10,000 [[insect]] species
* over 1,600 [[plant]] species
* some 117 species of [[reptiles]]

The diverse environments of Kakadu National Park supports a great array of animals, a number of which have adapted to particular habitats. Some animals in the park are rare, [[endangered]], vulnerable or [[endemism|endemic]]. Responding to the extreme weather conditions experienced in the park, many animals are active only at particular times of the day or night or at particular times of the year.
<gallery mode="packed">
File:Black Wallaroo Nourlangie Rock in Kakadu NP.jpg|[[Black wallaroo]]s at Nourlangie Rock
File:Antilopine Kangaroo Kakadu.jpg|Agile wallaby in grassland at Kakadu National Park
File:Petrogale Brachyotis.jpg|[[Short-eared rock-wallaby]] in Kakadu
File:Plumed Whistling Ducks (Dendrocygna eytoni) -5 walking.jpg|Plumed whistling ducks
File:Kakadu 3541.jpg|[[Black-necked stork]]<br />Kakadu National Park
File:Kakadu Brolga and Pied Geese.jpg|Brolga and magpie geese
File:Saltwater croc kakadu.jpg|[[Saltwater crocodile]]
File:Anhinga novaehollandiae.jpg|[[Australasian darter|Australian darter]]
File:Great-billed Heron Kakadu BPS IMG 4036.jpg|[[Great-billed heron|Great-billed Heron]] in Ngurrungurrudjba, Kakadu National Park
File:Black Neck Stork Kakadu 2025 BPS.jpg|[[Black-necked stork|Black-necked Stork]] in Ngurrungurrudjba, Kakadu National Park
</gallery>

====Mammals====
About 74 [[mammal]] species—marsupials and placental mammals—have been recorded in the park. Most of them inhabit the open forest and woodlands and are [[nocturnal]], making it difficult to see them. Others, such as [[wallaby|wallabies]] and [[kangaroo]]s (macropods, 8 species), are active in the cooler parts of the day and are easier to see.

Among the larger more common species are [[dingo]]es, [[antilopine kangaroo]]s, [[black wallaroo]]s, [[agile wallabies]], and [[Petrogale brachyotis|short-eared rock wallabies]]. Smaller common mammals are [[northern quoll]]s, [[brush-tailed phascogale]]s, [[Isoodon macrourus|brown bandicoot]]s, [[Mesembriomys gouldii|black-footed tree-rat]]s, and [[Pteropus alecto|black flying fox]]es. [[Dugong]]s are found in the coastal waters.<ref>Australian Government: ''Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Parks and reserves, Kakadu National Park'' online. [http://www.environment.gov.au/parks/kakadu/nature-science/fauna-mammals.html Environment.gov.au] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090603215421/http://www.environment.gov.au/parks/kakadu/nature-science/fauna-mammals.html |date=3 June 2009}}</ref>  However, recent surveys have revealed a disturbing decline of nearly all mammal species throughout Kakadu, including once common and widespread species such as northern tart bats.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2014-11-15|title=Drop in Kakadu wildlife numbers a significant concern: IUCN|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-11-15/kakadu-national-park-wildlife-drop-significant-concern-iucn-says/5893672|access-date=2020-06-21|website=www.abc.net.au|language=en-AU}}</ref>

====Birds====
Kakadu's many habitats support more than 280 species of birds, or about one-third of Australia's bird species. Some birds range over a number of habitats, but many are found in only one environment.

Some 11,246&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup> of Kakadu's [[savanna]] habitats has been identified by [[BirdLife International]] as an [[Important Bird Area]] (IBA) because it supports populations of the [[endangered]] [[Gouldian finch]], the [[vulnerable species|vulnerable]] [[red goshawk]], the [[near threatened]] [[partridge pigeon]] and [[chestnut-backed button-quail]], and the restricted-range [[hooded parrot]] and [[rainbow pitta]].  The Kakadu Savanna IBA also supports [[varied lorikeet]]s, [[northern rosella]]s, [[silver-crowned friarbird]]s, [[white-gaped honeyeater|white-gaped]], [[yellow-tinted honeyeater|yellow-tinted]], [[white-lined honeyeater|white-lined]], [[bar-breasted honeyeater|bar-breasted]] and [[banded honeyeater]]s, [[sandstone shrike-thrush]]es, [[white-browed robin]]s, [[canary white-eye]]s, and [[Masked finch|masked]] and [[long-tailed finch]]es.<ref name="IBA: Kakadu Savanna">{{cite web|url=http://www.birdata.com.au/iba.vm |title=IBA: Kakadu Savanna |access-date=13 July 2011 |work=Birdata |publisher=Birds Australia |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706102341/http://www.birdata.com.au/iba.vm |archive-date= 6 July 2011 }}</ref>

Waterbirds include large populations of [[Magpie goose|magpie geese]], [[wandering whistling duck]]s, [[green pygmy goose|green pygmy geese]], [[comb-crested jacana]], [[black-necked stork]], [[Australian pelican]]s, [[little black cormorant]], [[Australian darter]], [[nankeen night heron]]s, [[pied heron]]s, [[black bittern]], [[sarus crane]] and [[brolga]].<ref name="IBA: Kakadu Savanna"/>

====Reptiles====
[[File:Kakadu YellowWaters Croc.jpg|thumb|Estuarine crocodile in Yellow Water Billabong]]
Some 117 species of [[reptiles]] have been recorded in Kakadu. Being cold-blooded, these animals rely on heat from an external source such as the sun to regulate their body temperature. This is not to say that reptiles are active only during the day; in fact, few snakes can withstand Kakadu's midday heat and most are active at night. Since the arrival of the [[cane toad]] in the park, many populations of reptiles have crashed. Reptiles which were once a common sight such as large [[goanna]]s, [[eastern brown snake]]s, [[Acanthophis|death adder]]s and many others were rare by 2010.<ref>[[ABC News (Australia)|ABC News]]: [http://www.abc.net.au/news/video/2010/10/15/3040035.htm ''Cane Toad impacts in the Top End'']</ref> The iconic [[frill-necked lizard]] has also significantly dropped in numbers.

Two species of [[crocodile]] occur in Kakadu: the [[freshwater crocodile]] (''Crocodylus johnstonii'') and the estuarine, or [[saltwater crocodile]] (''C. porosus''). Freshwater crocodiles are easily identified by their narrow snout and a single row of four large boney lumps called "scutes" immediately behind the head. Estuarine crocodiles do not have these scutes and their snout is broader. The maximum size for a freshwater crocodile is 3 metres, whereas a saltwater can exceed 6 metres.

On October 22, 2002, a twenty-four-year-old female [[Germans|German]] tourist was killed by a saltwater crocodile assault while swimming in Sandy billabong with other foreign backpackers including her sister.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/woman-who-escaped-bali-bomb-killed-by-crocodile-1.443360|title=Woman who escaped Bali bomb killed by crocodile|newspaper=The Irish Times}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/asiapcf/auspac/10/22/australia.crocattack/|title=CNN.com - German tourist taken by crocodile - Oct. 22, 2002|website=www.cnn.com}}</ref>

====Frogs====
Kakadu's 25 [[frog]] species are extremely well adapted to the region's climatic extremes. Many remain dormant during rainless times. With the onset of the wet season, when the [[billabong]]s and swamps start to fill with water, the night air is filled with the sounds of frogs such as the northern bullfrog and the marbled frog. As the water builds up, frogs and tadpoles have an abundance of food, such as algae, vegetation, insects, dragonfly nymphs, and other tadpoles. Not all of Kakadu's frogs are found in the wetlands: many live in the lowland forests.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Black |first=Dave |title=Frogs of Australia > Northern Territory > The frogs of Kakadu and Arnhem Land |url=https://frogs.org.au/frogs/ofNT/Kakadu_and_Arnhem_Land |access-date=2025-04-12 |website=frogs.org.au |language=en}}</ref>

====Fish====
[[File:Kakadu 1766.jpg|thumb|right|Driving near Red Lily Lagoon at [[Oenpelli, Northern Territory|Gunbalanya]]]]
Fifty-three species of [[freshwater fish]] have been recorded in Kakadu's waterways; eight of them have a restricted distribution. In the [[Magela Creek]] system alone, 32 species have been found. In comparison, the Murray–Darling river system, the most extensive in Australia, now supports only 27 native fish species. Although introduced fish have been found in most Australian waterways, none have been recorded in the park.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2015-10-07 |title=Kakadu's freshwater fish at risk of rising sea level and encroaching salinity |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-10-07/kakadu-fish-at-risk-of-rising-sea-level-kakadu-national-park/6832980 |access-date=2025-04-12 |work=ABC News |language=en-AU}}</ref>

====Insects====
Kakadu supports more than 10,000 species of insect. Among the insect groups are [[grasshopper]]s, beetles, flies, [[termite]]s, [[butterflies]] and [[moth]]s, [[bee]]s, [[wasp]]s, [[ant]]s, [[dragonflies]] and [[damselflies]], [[caddisflies]], non-biting midges and [[mayflies]]. The great variety of insects is a result of the varied habitats and relatively high temperatures throughout the year.

Perhaps the most striking insect-created features in the park are the termite mounds. The mounds in the southern part of the park are particularly large and impressive. [[Leichhardt's grasshopper]], in colours of orange-red, blue and black, is perhaps the most spectacular insect found in Kakadu. It is also found on the Arnhem Land plateau and in Gregory National Park.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Leichhardt's grasshopper {{!}} Kakadu National Park {{!}} Parks Australia |url=https://kakadu.gov.au/discover/nature/animals/leichhardts-grasshopper/ |access-date=2025-04-12 |website=kakadu.gov.au |language=en}}</ref>

[[File:Kakadu brumbies.jpg|thumb|Brumbies (feral horses) at Yellow Water Billabong (Ngurrungurrudjba)]]

==Environmental problems and threats==
Kakadu has seen several invasive species that threaten the native habitat, particularly in recent decades. Introduced fauna including the [[water buffalo]], [[Sus scrofa|wild pig]] and more recently, the [[Cane toads in Australia|cane toad]] have damaged habitat. Invasive weeds include ''[[Mimosa in Australia|Mimosa pigra]]'', which covers {{convert|800|km2}} of the Top End, including vast areas of Kakadu, invasive para grass (''[[Urochloa mutica]]'') displaces the native food of much of Kakadu's birdlife. ''[[Salvinia molesta]]'' has infested the Magela floodplain. [[Brumby|Brumbies]] also inhabit areas of the National Park, including Yellow Water (Ngurrungurrudjba). The controversial Ranger Uranium mine, one of the world's most productive uranium mines, is surrounded by the park, and presents a significant management challenge both now and into the future, with the question of how to safely contain low-level radioactive wastewater. The escape of contaminated wastewater into the Park's wetlands, which may become more likely under climate change–induced rainfall events, would have a devastating impact on the Park's biodiversity.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Federal biosecurity laws must usher in a new age of environmental protection |url=https://invasives.org.au/media-releases/federal-biosecurity-laws-must-usher-new-age-environmental-protection/ |access-date=2025-04-12 |website=Invasive Species Council |language=en-AU}}</ref>

==Aboriginal rock art sites==
[[File:Anbangbang gallery Mimi rock art cropped.jpg|thumb|right|[[Indigenous Australian art|Aboriginal rock painting]] of [[Mimi (folklore)|Mimi]] spirits in the [[Anbangbang Billabong|Anbangbang]] gallery at [[Nourlangie Rock]]]]
The art sites of [[Ubirr]], Burrunguy ([[Nourlangie Rock]]) and [[Nanguluwu]]r are internationally recognised as outstanding examples of Aboriginal rock art. Some of the paintings are up to 20,000 years old, which makes them one of the longest historical records of any group of people on earth. The local Aboriginal word for rock art is "kunbim".<ref>{{cite web |last=Garde |first=Murray |title=bim |url=https://www.njamed.com/#bim |website=Bininj Kunwok Online Dictionary |publisher=Bininj Kunwok Regional Language Centre |access-date=5 November 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://parksaustralia.gov.au/kakadu/do/rock-art/ |title=Rock art |website=Parks Australia}}</ref> These sites are found in rocky outcrops that have afforded shelter to Aboriginal inhabitants for thousands of years. The painting in these rock shelters were done for various reasons:

* Hunting – animals were often painted to increase their abundance and to ensure a successful hunt by placing people in touch with the spirit of the animal
* Religious significance – at some sites paintings depict aspects of particular ceremonies
* Stories and learning – stories associated with the Creation Ancestors, who gave shape to the world were painted
* Sorcery and magic – paintings could be used to manipulate events and influence people's lives
* Fun - for play and practice.

[[File:Ubirr rock art.JPG|thumb|Aboriginal rock painting at [[Ubirr]]]]

Ubirr is a group of rock outcrops in the northeast of the park, on the edge of the [[Nadab floodplain]]. There several large rock overhangs that would have provided excellent shelter to Aboriginal people over thousands of years. Ubirr's proximity to the East Alligator River and Nadab floodplains means that food would have been abundant and this is reflected in much of the rock art here. Animals depicted in the main gallery include [[barramundi]], [[catfish]], [[Mullet (fish)|mullet]], [[goanna]], [[Chelodina|snake-necked turtle]], [[pig-nosed turtle]], [[rock-haunting ringtail possum]], and [[wallaby]] and [[thylacine]] ([[Tasmanian tiger]]).

There are also images of the [[Rainbow Serpent]] said to have created much of the landscape as well as mischievous Mimi spirits and the story of the Namarrgarn Sisters. Many stories connected to Aboriginal rock are highly complex and linked to other stories. Often the true meanings have been lost, but they all have a purpose which is usually to serve as a lesson or a warning to the young or to those passing through the area.

Burrunguy, formally called Nourlangie Rock, is located in an outlying formation of the Arnhem Land Escarpment. There are a number of shelters in amongst this large outcrop linked by paths and stairways. The shelters contain several impressive paintings that deal with creation ancestors. Some of the stories connected to these artworks are known only to certain Aboriginal people and remain secret.

[[Anbangbang Billabong]] lies in the shadow of Nourlangie Rock and is inhabited by a wide range of wildlife which would have sustained traditional Aboriginal people well.

Nanguluwur is a small art site, near Nourlangie, which displays several rock art styles. These include [[hand stencils]], dynamic figures in large head-dresses carrying spears and boomerangs, representations of Namandi spirits and mythical figures, including Alkajko, a female spirit with four arms and horn-like protuberances. There is also an interesting example of "contact art" depicting a two-masted sailing ship with anchor chain and a dinghy trailing behind.

==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]]]]

==General facilities==
Kakadu National Park is linked to Darwin by the [[Arnhem Highway]] and to [[Pine Creek, Northern Territory|Pine Creek]] and Katherine by the [[Kakadu Highway]]. Both roads are sealed all weather roads although they may be cut off periodically during periods of heavy rain.

The town of Jabiru has several accommodation options, a service station, police, a medical clinic and a shopping centre with a range of outlets. The town was built for the uranium mine that was established prior to the founding of Kakadu National Park and provides infrastructure for the mine's workforce as well as the national park activities and tourism. Jabiru has a small airport from which scenic flights operate daily.

Other small tourism centres such as Cooinda and South Alligator provide limited facilities. Cooinda, {{convert|50|km}} south of Jabiru on the Kakadu Highway is the site of Gagudju Lodge Cooinda, Yellow Water Cruises and the Warradjan Cultural Centre. Fuel and limited provisions are available at Cooinda and there is also a small airstrip for scenic flights. South Alligator approximately {{convert|40|km}} west of Jabiru on the Arnhem Highway includes a hotel and service station. The Border Store near Ubirr Art Site and Cahills Crossing, {{convert|50|km}} north of Jabiru, is a general store.

===Camp sites===
[[File:Maguk Gorge.jpg|thumb|right|[[Maguk]], also known as Barramundi Gorge]]
There is a wide variety of designated camping sites throughout the park. Jabiru, Cooinda and South Alligator all have commercial camping areas and are in close proximity to most of the important natural attractions in these areas. Some of the park's campsites charge a nominal fee as these have shower and toilet facilities, others are free, however they have limited or no facilities.  A list of the sites can be obtained from the Kakadu National Park's [[Glenn Murcutt]]-designed Bowali Visitor Centre or from their website.

==Governance and demographics==
On 4 April 2007, the land occupied by the national park was gazetted by the [[Northern Territory Government]] as a [[Suburbs and localities (Australia)|locality]] with the name Kakadu.<ref name="NT-PNR">{{cite web |title=Place Names Register Extract - "Kakadu" |url=https://www.ntlis.nt.gov.au/placenames/view.jsp?id=22359 |website=NT Place Names Register |publisher=Northern Territory Government |access-date=2 May 2019|quote=This locality covers the whole of Kakadu National Park after which it is named. }}</ref><ref name=NT-Atlas>{{cite web |title=Kakadu |url=http://www.ntlis.nt.gov.au/imfPublic/imf.jsp?site=nt_atlas&qhlt=true&qsel=true&qbuf=0.15&qry=PLACE_ID=22359&qlyr=113|website=NT Atlas and Spatial Data Directory | date=February 2005 |publisher=Northern Territory Government |access-date=2 May 2019}}</ref>  The locality is part of the local government area of the [[West Arnhem Region]].<ref name="WestArnhem-map">{{cite web |title=Localities within West Arnhem Shire (sic) (map) |url=https://placenames.nt.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0011/404786/WestArnhem_A3map.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180324213522/https://placenames.nt.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0011/404786/WestArnhem_A3map.pdf |archive-date=2018-03-24 |url-status=live|publisher=Northern Territory Government |access-date=19 April 2019|date=2 April 2007}}</ref>

The [[2016 Australian census]] which was conducted in August 2016 reports that Kakadu had 313 people living within its boundaries.<ref name ="Census2016">{{Census 2016 AUS|id = SSC70140 |name = Kakadu (State Suburb)|quick = on | accessdate=2 May 2019}}</ref>

==See also==

* [[Protected areas of the Northern Territory]]
*[[Protected areas managed by the Australian government]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin}}
* Jones, Rhys, and J. Allen. ''Archaeological Research in Kakadu National Park''. [Canberra, A.C.T]: Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service, 1985. {{ISBN|0-642-52392-4}}
* Lawrence, David. ''Kakadu The Making of a National Park''. Carlton South, Vic: Miegunyah Press, 2000. {{ISBN|0-522-84868-0}}
* Morris, Ian. ''Kakadu National Park, Australia''. Steve Parish natural history guide. Archerfield, Qld: Steve Parish Pub, 2001. {{ISBN|1-875932-40-2}}
* Morse, John, John King, and Jennifer Bartlett. ''Kakadu, Walking to the Future ... Together A Shared Vision for Tourism in Kakadu National Park''. Canberra, ACT: Commonwealth of Australia, 2005. {{ISBN|0-642-55100-6}}
* Petty, Aaron M, Patricia A Werner, Caroline E R Lehmann, Jan E Riley, Daniel S Banfai, and Louis P Elliott. 2007. "Savanna Responses to Feral Buffalo in Kakadu National Park, Australia". ''Ecological Monographs''. 77, no. 3: 441.
* Shon S. Schooler, Buck Salau,	Mic H. Julien & Anthony R. Ives. ''Alternative stable states explain unpredictable biological control of Salvinia molesta in Kakadu''. ''Nature'' 470, 86–89 (3 February 2011). {{doi|10.1038/nature09735}}.
* Van Dam, R. A., D. Walden, and G. W. Begg. ''A Preliminary Risk Assessment of Cane Toads in Kakadu National Park''. Supervising scientist report, 164. Darwin, N.T.: Supervising Scientist, 2002. {{ISBN|0-642-24370-0}}
* Woinarski J.C.Z., Milne D.J. and Wanganeen G. (2001) Changes in mammal populations in relatively intact landscape of Kakadu National Park, Northern Territory, Australia. ''Austral Ecology'' 26: 360–370.
{{refend}}

==External links==
*{{Commons-inline}}
*{{Wikivoyage inline}}
*[https://www.awe.gov.au/parks-heritage/national-parks/kakadu-national-park Dept of Ag, Water & the Environment Kakadu National Park website]
*[https://parksaustralia.gov.au/kakadu/index.html Parks Australia Kakadu National Park website]
*[https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/147/ UNESCO information on Kakadu National Park]
*[https://norther.com.au/national-parks/kakadu-national-park/ Kakadu National Park]

{{World Heritage Sites In Australia}}
{{Protected areas managed by the Australian Government |state=collapsed}}
{{National Parks of the Northern Territory}}
{{Ramsar sites in Australia}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Kakadu National Park| ]]
[[Category:Arnhem Land]]
[[Category:Arnhem Land tropical savanna]]
[[Category:Australian National Heritage List]]
[[Category:Important Bird Areas of the Northern Territory]]
[[Category:National parks managed by the Australian government]]
[[Category:National parks of the Northern Territory]]
[[Category:Protected areas established in 1979]]
[[Category:Ramsar sites in Australia]]
[[Category:Rock art in Australia]]
[[Category:Rock formations of Australia]]
[[Category:World Heritage Sites in Australia]]
[[Category:1979 establishments in Australia]]