Endeavour River National Park (1561 kilometres northwest of Brisbane) is a Queensland National Park gazetted to protect and preserve some of the natural and cultural resources in and around the mouth of the Endeavour River, immediately north of the small town of Cooktown.
| Endeavour River National Park | |
 Replica of HM Bark Endeavour in the Endeavour River, Endeavour River National Park in the background | |
| IUCN category = II | |
| Nearest town or city = Cooktown | |
| Coordinates = Vorlage:Coor dms | |
| Area = 21.7 km² | |
| Established = 1975 | |
| Managing Authorities = Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service | |
| Official Site = Endeavour River National Park | |
It is within the area of this National Park that back in 1770 naturalists Joseph Banks and Daniel Solander first collected early European specimens of local 'Australian' flora[1], and Sydney Parkinson first illustrated local Australian Aborigiinal peoples encountered, plus flora and fauna seen; and kangaroos were first given their modern English name (borrowing from the local Guugu Yimithirr language).
The HM Bark Endeavour, under the command of Lt James Cook had struck reefs and been pulled ashore for repairs along the Endeavour River, possibly near the present site of Cooktown, when the river (known locally within Guugu Yimithirr as Wabalumbaal) was named after the HM Bark Endeavour. The National Park appears to have been named after the river, though this name may not be a registered place name in Queensland[2].
The present National Park contains coastal dunes, freshwater wetlands, mangrove forests, heathlands, tropical woodlands and the estuary plus parts of the Endeavour River catchment. It is mostly accessible by boat only, and still contains flora and fauna species of the kind collected and illustrated back in 1770[1].
See also
- Captain Cook mythology: Australia
- Cooktown, Queensland
- Endeavour River
- Guugu Yimithirr
- HM Bark Endeavour
- Kangaroo
- Protected areas of Queensland (Australia)
External links
References
Vorlage:Queensland-protected-area-stub
Vorlage:FarNorthQueensland-geo-stub
- ↑ a b Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service webpage Accessed 8 January 2008
- ↑ Queensland Placenames Database Accessed 8 January 2008