88-651: The Broome Bird Observatory is an educational, scientific and recreational facility located 24 km from Broome in the Kimberley region of Western Australia . It began operating in 1988 under the auspices of the non-profit organisation Birds Australia to provide a base for the study and enjoyment of the birds of Roebuck Bay and adjoining areas. The bay boasts the highest diversity of migratory waders in Australia. In March and April, immense flocks of waders can be watched as they depart to their breeding grounds in
176-520: A tropical savanna climate ( Aw ); like most parts of the Australian tropics, it has two seasons: a dry season and a wet season . The dry season is from April to November with nearly every day clear and maximum temperatures around 30 °C (86 °F). The wet season extends from December to March, with maximum temperatures of around 35 °C (95 °F), with rather erratic tropical downpours and high humidity. Broome's annual rainfall average
264-514: A Catholic K–12 school. Broome hosts a lawn bowling club and a golf club. Broome is considered to be among the best places in the world to catch sailfish . Four football clubs compete in the local Broome Football Association 's BLiga competition each dry season. FC Meatworks, Pearlers, Racing G and Broome Town field sides across men's and women's divisions. The town has four Australian rules clubs; Broome Bulls (established 1949), Broome Saints, Broome Towns and Cable Beach all competing in
352-563: A campaign to protest a proposal to industrialise the James Price Point area of Broome. Woodside Energy , with the additional involvement of BHP and the Government of Australia , has sought to build a gas industrial complex, and those in opposition believe that such a development threatens the region. The campaign has received support from public figures such as John Butler , Clare Bowditch, Missy Higgins and former leader of
440-659: A daily basis. In addition to Australian English , post-contact languages spoken in the Kimberley include Aboriginal English , Kriol , Pidgin English and the Malay-based Broome Pearling Lugger Pidgin (not spoken on a daily basis any more). At the federal level, the Kimberley is represented by the member for Durack . At state level, the Kimberley electorate takes in all of the region and its towns. The Kimberley region consists of
528-498: A diverse regional economy. Mining, construction, tourism, retail, agriculture, and pearling are major contributors to the region's economic output. The town of Broome has a flourishing pearling industry, which operates around the Kimberley coast. Some of the major farmers are Paspaley Pearls, Clipper Pearls, Broome Pearls and the Willie Creek Pearl Farm. One third of the world's annual production of diamonds
616-589: A divisive topic amongst locals, with many blaming the 'no' decision for the slow economic growth that characterises the region. Fossilised Megalosauropus broomensis dinosaur footprints dated as early Cretaceous in age are 30 m (98 ft) out to sea at Gantheaume Point . The fossil trackway can be viewed during very low tide. Plant fossils are preserved extensively in the Broome Sandstone at Gantheaume Point and in coastal exposures further north. The fossil trackways at Broome include possibly
704-439: A half-hour news program for regional WA, GWN7 News , at 5:30pm weeknights; GWN7 has a district newsroom covering Broome and surrounding areas based in the town. The Malcolm Douglas Crocodile Park is located about 16 kilometres (10 mi) from Broome. It was established in 1983 by the wildlife documentary maker Malcolm Douglas , and holds 30 adult crocodiles that have been captured in the wild after threatening humans. The park
792-624: A local community newspaper, the Broome Advertiser , published each Thursday, part of the Seven West Media group. Previously Broome had a Saturday weekly newspaper, published from 1912 to 1930, The Nor-West Echo , the successor to the Broome Chronicle and Nor'West Advertiser (1908–1912). Locally, television stations available include GWN7 , WIN9 , WDT10 , ABC , SBS and Goolarri Media . GWN7 broadcasts
880-440: A much deeper significance. There is a complex performative aspect that goes hand-in-hand with the art that remains today. The re-touching/re-marking actions are considered a performance and act as a retelling of the story behind the art. The performance is a way for people to reconnect with the cultural significance behind the work itself and maintain the connection of person to place. This process highlights indigenous beliefs about
968-457: A north–south peninsula, Broome has water on both sides of the town. On the eastern shore are the waters of Roebuck Bay extending from the main jetty at Port Drive to Sandy Point, west of Thangoo station. Town Beach is part of the shoreline and is popular with visitors on the eastern end of the town. It is the site of the 'Staircase to the Moon', where a receding tide and a rising moon combine to create
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#17327809401881056-769: A party of seven from the west coast at Beagle Bay to Katherine, Northern Territory . Forrest explored and named the Kimberley district, the Margaret and Ord rivers and the King Leopold Ranges (now the Wunaamin-Miliwundi Ranges ), and located well watered pastoral lands along the Fitzroy and Ord rivers. He subsequently set himself up as a land agent specialising in the Kimberley during a period to 1883 when over 21,000,000 hectares (51,000,000 acres) of land were taken up as pastoral leaseholds in
1144-585: A reflection of the poor conditions endured by Aboriginal people forced to work on the pearling boats. As of May 2019 , the remains are being stored in Perth until facilities have been built to accommodate them in Broome. According to the 2021 census , there were 14,660 people in Broome. Under the Köppen climate classification , Broome has a hot semi-arid climate ( BSh ), being a little too dry to be classified as
1232-689: A small reconnaissance party in The Kimberley on 19 January 1944; they were investigating reports that the Allies were building large bases in the region. Four Japanese officers were on board a small fishing boat. They investigated the York Sound region for a day and a night before returning to Kupang in Timor on 20 January. After returning to Japan in February, the junior officer, who had commanded
1320-473: A stunning natural phenomenon. On "Staircase to the Moon" nights, a food and craft market operates on Town Beach. Roebuck Bay is of international importance for the millions of migrating waders or shorebirds that use it seasonally on migration through the East Asian – Australasian Flyway from their breeding grounds in northern Asia. They feed on the extensive intertidal mudflats and roost at high tide on
1408-401: Is 615.1 mm (24.22 in), 75% of which falls from January to March. Broome observes an average of 48.4 days a year that record measurable precipitation. According to the indigenous Yawuru calendar, there are six seasons. Broome is susceptible to tropical cyclones and these, along with the equally unpredictable nature of summer thunderstorms, play a large part in the erratic nature of
1496-614: Is chiefly covered in open savanna woodland dominated by low bloodwood and boab trees ( Adansonia gregorii ) with Darwin stringybark and Darwin woollybutt eucalyptus in the wetter areas. The red sandy soil of the Dampier Peninsula in the south is known for its characteristic pindan wooded grassland, while in the more fertile areas like the Ord Valley , the trees are found in grasslands of Chrysopogon , Aristida , Dichanthium and Xerochloa (rice grass) in
1584-462: Is fairly evenly distributed, with only three towns having populations in excess of 2,000: Broome (12,766), Derby (3,261), and Kununurra (4,573). Approximately 40% of the region's population is of Aboriginal descent. The Kimberley has been noted as a region of great linguistic diversity, rivalled in Australia only by the Top End . Depending on the geographical boundaries of The Kimberley, and
1672-580: Is home to Fatso, a saltwater crocodile who on 12 July 2010 bit a Melbourne man, Michael Newman, who climbed into his enclosure. Kimberley (Western Australia) The Kimberley is the northernmost of the nine regions of Western Australia . It is bordered on the west by the Indian Ocean , on the north by the Timor Sea , on the south by the Great Sandy and Tanami deserts in the region of
1760-605: Is home to a distinctive mixture of wildlife, which has been thoroughly mapped and described by the Western Australian Department of Conservation and Land Management . There are habitats similar to the Kimberley across the border in the Northern Territory , including the valleys of the Victoria and Daly Rivers but these have been less carefully studied. Much of the Kimberley
1848-620: Is mined at the Argyle and the Ellendale diamond mines. Oil is extracted from the Blina oil field and natural gas is expected to be taken from offshore sources soon . Zinc and lead were mined at the Pillara and Cadjebut mines near Fitzroy Crossing, with nickel still being mined at Sallay Mallay near Halls Creek. Derby is the nearest export base for shipping these metals. Traditionally,
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#17327809401881936-481: Is named after the Kimberley region. The gorges of central Kimberley are known for their fossils and for their large colonies of bats, including Windjana , Tunnel Creek , and Geikie Gorges . Lake Argyle and other wetlands of the Ord and the Kimberley are important habitats while there are important populations of shorebirds in the Ord estuary, Eighty-mile Beach and Roebuck Bay , which has been described as "one of
2024-590: Is often seen on this tour. The Bush and Plains Tour takes participants to the Roebuck Plains Station , which lies to the north and east of the observatory. Yellow Chat is often seen on this tour. The Lakes Tour is a full day tour, visiting wetland locations around Roebuck Plains Station. This tour is focused on observing the Yellow Chat , a rare bird species most easily seen around the observatory. The Broome Bird Observatory hosts members of
2112-518: Is situated 7 km (4.3 mi) from town along a bitumen road. The beach itself is 22.5 km (14.0 mi) long with white sand, washed by tides that can reach over 9 m (30 ft). Located directly east of Cable Beach over the dunes is Minyirr Park, a coastal reserve administered by a collaboration of the Shire of Broome and the Yawuru people. Broome is situated on the traditional lands of
2200-459: Is so much steep land as to make much of the region difficult to traverse, especially during the wet season, when even sealed roads are often flooded. The coast is typically steep cliffs in the north but flatter in the south, all subject to high tides. The Kimberley has a tropical monsoon climate . The region receives about 90% of its rainfall during the short wet season, from November to April, when cyclones are common (especially around Broome) and
2288-767: Is still visible today in the form of the Napier Range and the Ningbing Range . Some of the features are Tunnel Creek , Windjana Gorge and Geikie Gorge . This area is also known as the Kimberley Block physiographic province, of which it is part of the larger West Australian Shield division. This province contains the Wunaamin-Miliwundi Range , Durack Range , Leveque Rise , Browse Depression , and Londonderry Rise physiographic sections. In Bureau of Meteorology weather reports
2376-760: The Australasian Wader Studies Group (AWSG) over summer, when bird banding and other research activities take place. The road to the Broome Bird Observatory is unsealed, and 4WD vehicles are recommended for accessing the observatory. The Broome Bird Observatory website recommends that one not follow the directions of Google Maps, and instead, when travelling from Broome, turn right onto Crab Creek Road. 17°58′30″S 122°20′40″E / 17.9750°S 122.3444°E / -17.9750; 122.3444 Broome, Western Australia Broome , also known as Rubibi by
2464-675: The Australian Greens , Bob Brown . On 5 October 2012, a concert was held at Federation Square in Melbourne , Australia, to raise awareness of the campaign; the protest event attracted approximately 6,000 people. On 24 February 2013, an estimated 20,000 people gathered for a charity concert in Fremantle , Western Australia to raise awareness and funds to help protect the Kimberley, with performances from Ball Park Music , Missy Higgins, and John Butler. The Kimberley region has
2552-582: The Governor of Western Australia from 1883 to 1889. The 1880s saw the commencement of Broome's pearling industry, which initially involved slavery and indentured labour , pearl diving being an occupation reserved for specific ethnic groups, most prominently from Japan and followed by other Asian countries. This led to numerous racially motivated conflicts, most notably the 1920 race riots between Japanese and Malay residents, resulting in 8 deaths and at least 60 injuries. The Broome community came to "reflect
2640-889: The Marrngu languages (such as Karajarri and Nyangumarta , the Ngumpin languages (such as Walmajarri and Jaru ), the Yapa languages (such as Warlpiri ) and the Western Desert languages (including Wangkajunga and Kukatja ). Non-Pama-Nyungan languages spoken around the Kimberleys (but speakers of which today live within the Kimberley) include the Daly language Murrinh-Patha and Western Mirndi language Jaminjung . Presently, many indigenous languages are no longer spoken on
2728-589: The Pilbara , and on the east by the Northern Territory . The region was named in 1879 by government surveyor Alexander Forrest after Secretary of State for the Colonies John Wodehouse, 1st Earl of Kimberley . The Kimberley was one of the earliest settled parts of Australia, with the first humans landing about 65,000 years ago. They created a complex culture that developed over thousands of years. Yam ( Dioscorea hastifolia ) agriculture
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2816-875: The Prince Regent National Park and the Drysdale River National Park along with Gregory National Park and Keep River National Park across in the Northern Territory, which preserves similar habitats. (Keep River's nearest town is Kununurra in the Kimberley.) The Kimberley is a popular tourist destination, with areas such as the Bungle Bungle Range , the Gibb River Road , Lake Argyle , El Questro Station , Mornington Sanctuary , Horizontal Falls and Cape Leveque . The Gibb River Road and
2904-716: The VOC governor-general Anthony van Diemen . This should not be confused with the more general and prolonged use of the same name for Tasmania . In 1837, with expedition support from the Royal Geographical Society of Great Britain , Lieutenants George Grey and Franklin Lushington and 12 men sailed on the schooner Lynher from Cape Town , South Africa. They reached Hanover Bay on 2 December 1837. The exploring party started inland on 19 January 1838. Leaders and men were totally inexperienced, their progress
2992-458: The Wandjinas and the meaning behind them. They are seen throughout the region at many different sites and are the most repainted rock art in Kimberley. This is due to the fact that indigenous groups believe in the power that Wandjina holds. Creation stories, migrational patterns, and clothing style of the figures emphasise their importance and integration into the sociocultural groups inhabiting
3080-653: The West Kimberley District League with games played at Haynes Oval. Broome is home to the Sun Picture Garden , the oldest operating open-air cinema in the world. Marrugeku is a dance company led by co-artistic directors choreographer /dancer Dalisa Pigram and director/ dramaturg Rachael Swain, who have worked together for 23 years. The company has Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians working together to create new dance performances, and works from two bases, one in Broome and
3168-406: The Yawuru people , is a coastal pearling and tourist town in the Kimberley region of Western Australia , 2,046 km (1,271 mi) north of Perth . The town recorded a population of 14,660 in the 2021 census . It is the largest town in the Kimberley region. Broome is located on Western Australia's tropical Kimberley coast on the eastern edge of the Indian Ocean . Being situated on
3256-426: The Yawuru people . It is often mistakenly thought that the first European to visit Broome was William Dampier in 1688, but he only visited the north of what was later named the Dampier Peninsula . In 1699 he explored the coast from Shark Bay to La Grange Bay, from where he headed north leaving the Australian coast. Many of the coastal features of the area were later named for him. In 1879, Charles Harper proposed
3344-419: The bowerbird . The sandstone gorges of north Kimberley are an important refuge for a particularly rich collection of endemic species including some that have disappeared from the flatter areas, including the purple-crowned fairywren, the endangered Gouldian finch and a large number of amphibians : flat-headed frog , cave-dwelling frog , magnificent tree frog , Derby toadlet , small toadlet , fat toadlet ,
3432-461: The local government areas of Broome , Derby-West Kimberley , Halls Creek and Wyndham-East Kimberley . The Kimberley region is extremely rich in art, mainly that of Indigenous rock art . Considering the area's size, it is no surprise that there are tens of thousands of rock art examples coming from a variety of different cultural groups within the region. The diversity of peoples has allowed for many different art styles to develop with some of
3520-488: The "North Kimberley Coast" is the WA border to Kuri Bay section of the coast, while the "West Kimberley Coast" is from Kuri Bay to Wallal Downs. Significant sections of the coastline between Broome and Wyndham have no means of road access, and boat or helicopter are the only means. Due to the isolation, a number of tourist operations on the coastline have been called "wilderness" locations. The rugged and varied sandstone landscape
3608-409: The 1880s to the large present-day cultured pearl farming enterprises. At first, Indigenous people , especially women and girls, were forced to dive for pearls by European pearlers, and many died working in the industry. Report of abuses in the early days of pearling led to legislation in 1871 and 1875 regulating native labour and prohibiting the use of women as divers. By 1910, Broome was one of
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3696-482: The 1960s. The tracks can be seen only during very low tide. In 1996, some of the prints were cut from the ground and stolen, but have since been recovered. Broome entered into a sister city agreement with Taiji , Japan in 1981 as historic ties between the two towns date back to the early 1900s, when Japan became instrumental in laying the groundwork of Broome's pearling industry . The annual dolphin hunt in Taiji
3784-540: The Australian Greens, Dr Bob Brown . A concert for the campaign was held on 5 October 2012 at Federation Square in Melbourne and was attended by approximately 6,000 people. A long term protest camp operated at James Price Point. One of the campaign points was to protect the significant 'dinosaur highway' of dinosaur tracks that are found in the intertidal zone outside Broome. The campaign has since remained
3872-568: The Kimberley and exported live. Wyndham features the last remaining meatworks in the Kimberley - there were formerly works at Broome and Derby but financial constraints have caused these to be closed. Barramundi are bred in Lake Argyle , and Broome features a fully equipped Aquaculture Park near the port; tenants include Paspaley Pearls and Broome TAFE . The Kimberley also has a thriving fishing industry. Some of Australia's most prominent indigenous artists and art centres are in or adjacent to
3960-466: The Kimberley region. Artists such as Paddy Bedford and Freddie Timms have an international profile, and there are a number of Aboriginal-owned and controlled art centres and companies that assist artists, arrange exhibitions and sell works. The art centres in the region are also organized through the Association of Northern, Kimberley and Arnhem Aboriginal Artists. Issues have been raised regarding
4048-586: The Western Australian government announced the creation of the 7,062 square kilometre Camden Sound Marine Park with a further three to come. Visitors to the area should be aware that the area can be subject to controlled burns at any time of year. In September 2011, a fire burned five people, two severely, who had been competing in the Kimberley Ultramarathon, an endurance cross country footrace . The Wilderness Society has led
4136-418: The area, was opened on 20 August 2021. A number of facilities at the observatory are available for use, including a number of accommodation options. Many birdwatchers and researchers make use of these facilities when visiting the observatory. There is one chalet and a number of rooms at the observatory. Those rooms include double/family rooms, bunk rooms, and single rooms. Camp sites are also available. At
4224-441: The area. The Kimberley is an area of 423,517 square kilometres (163,521 sq mi), which is about three times the size of England , twice the size of Victoria , or just slightly smaller than California . The Kimberley consists of the ancient, steep-sided mountain ranges of northwestern Australia cut through with sandstone and limestone gorges and steep ridges, from which the extreme monsoonal climate has removed much of
4312-621: The best locations for preservation. The oldest category known as the Irregular Infill Animal or the Naturalistic period is responsible for the region's life-size animal depictions. A rock shelter in Kimberley's northeastern territory is home to a perfect example of this, a two-meter-long kangaroo painting on the ceiling. This case was extremely rare as archaeologist found remains of mud wasp nests that could be used for dating. These nests were located both below and on top of
4400-550: The central Kimberly plateau can drop below 0 °C (32 °F) during the dry season. The Aboriginal people of the Kimberley recognise six traditional seasons based on meteorological events, as well as on observations of flora and fauna. During the Devonian period, a barrier reef system formed before a subsequent drop in sea levels over the Kimberley. This reef system was similar to the Great Barrier Reef and
4488-412: The changes and persistence within the cultural and natural environment. The changing and expanding complexity of styles and techniques has caught the attention of many, paving the way for mass amounts of archaeological and anthropological research. Much of the artwork in the area has been gone over with similar or alternative methods to preserve the art, add to it, or enhance it. Rock shelters are some of
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#17327809401884576-399: The definition of what constitutes a " language " (as opposed to a " dialect "), about 50-60 Aboriginal languages were once spoken in this region. The vast majority of these do not belong to the family of Pama-Nyungan languages . Four endemic, primary language families are recognised within the core Kimberley region: Pama-Nyungan languages spoken in and around the Kimberley region include
4664-521: The eastern states in search of good pasture lands. After gold was discovered around Halls Creek , many other erstwhile European miners arrived rapidly. In the 1890s, the area was the site of an armed insurrection of indigenous people led by Jandamarra , a Bunuba warrior. During World War II , when Australia was among the nations at war with the Axis powers, the Japanese invaded the nation with only
4752-611: The economy depended on pastoral leases , with most of the region covered by the leases. More recently agriculture has been focused on the Ord River Irrigation Area near Kununurra . Irrigation was also trialled in the West Kimberley by way of the now defunct Camballin Irrigation Scheme . There are also fruit growers in Broome and in other areas in the West Kimberley. Beef cattle are grown in
4840-559: The formation of a Government Station at the Roebuck Bay Pastoral and Agricultural Association's site at Cape Villaret, at the south end of Roebuck Bay , to provide facilities for the extension of the Pearl Shell Fishery, and to form a port and base of operations for intending pastoral and agricultural settlers. In 1883, John Forrest chose the site for the town, and it was named after Sir Frederick Broome ,
4928-402: The hierarchy of the pearling industry, which was based on occupation and ethnicity". White collar occupations and positions of power were exclusively held by Europeans. As a consequence, racial segregation was common in Broome until the 1970s. In 1889, a telegraph undersea cable was laid from Broome to Banjuwangi , East Java , connecting to England . Hence the name Cable Beach given to
5016-421: The land and the position that native people have within that space. Identity plays a major role in understanding the rock art in the region. There are many different sectors within the Kimberley region that allow for a dispersal of cultural thought and expression unique to the group in their respected areas. This differentiation of style may have been socially necessary, but there was a unifying aspect in regard to
5104-578: The landfall site. Broome was attacked at least four times during World War II as part of the Japanese air raids on Australia . The worst attack in terms of loss of life was an air raid on 3 March 1942 in which at least 86 people (mostly civilian refugees from the Dutch East Indies ) were killed, making it the second deadliest Japanese attack on Australia after the bombing of Darwin . Twenty-two aircraft were destroyed, most of them flying boats,
5192-401: The largest known dinosaur footprints , sauropod tracks upwards of 1.7 m (5 ft 7 in) long. It is suspected that the sauropod that made these tracks might have been 7–8 m (23–26 ft) tall at the hip. The town has a history based around the exploits of the men and women who developed the pearling industry, starting with the harvesting of oysters for mother of pearl in
5280-425: The leading producers of pearls globally. At that time, roughly 3,500 of the town's then population of approximately 5,000 worked in the industry. At the beginning of World War I , many of the town's pearlers were requisitioned for the war effort. Asia-Pacific men, especially Japanese, excelled at pearl diving, with many of them becoming valued citizens in the town. Many Chinese and Japanese traders set up ventures in
5368-601: The most floristically rich parts of Australia outside the Wet Tropics and southwestern WA. There are also areas of mangrove in river estuaries where the coast is flatter . In 1979, Beard identified four phytogeographic districts within the Northern Botanical Province: Animals found here include the huge saltwater crocodile and a rich variety of birds such as the channel-billed cuckoo , Pacific koel , purple-crowned fairywren and
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#17327809401885456-593: The most important stop-over areas for shorebirds in Australia and globally". Finally there are a number of rocky islands off the north coast that are home to seabirds and turtles . Little of the Kimberley has been subject to wholesale clearance other than particularly fertile parts of the Ord Valley (and areas of Kimberley-type habitat across in the Daly River basin in the Northern Territory) but
5544-581: The most number of species are present in the region at any one time. This time of year is also when shorebirds return to the shores of Roebuck Bay, and are at their most numerous at the observatory. The Broome Bird Observatory offers a number of tours, primarily focused on birdwatching . The Shorebirds Tour provides an introduction to shorebirds of the region, whereupon the tour takes participants to various areas of Roebuck Bay to observe shorebird species. The Mangrove Tour takes participants to Crab Creek and other mangrove areas of Roebuck Bay. Common Redshank
5632-449: The most widely known examples being Wandjina and Gwion Gwion . In addition to the variation in styles, there are almost equally diverse fabrication techniques. The earliest form of Kimberley rock art was hand stencils , but techniques such as engraving, painting, scratchwork, pecking, drawing, and later beeswax applique have also been used. In addition to the varying styles and techniques, there are united visual depictions that reflect
5720-459: The northern hemisphere. Broome Bird Observatory is set in pindan woodland on the northern shore of Roebuck Bay. It was formally opened in 1990 and continues to provide accommodation and birdwatching opportunities for visitors, tours, courses, as well as research facilities for scientists and ornithological expeditions. The Clive Minton Discovery Centre at the Observatory, named after Clive Minton who undertook significant wader research in
5808-441: The observatory are located toilets, showers, a barbeque, and a camp kitchen, dubbed the 'Shadehouse'. A large number of activities occur year-round at the Broome Bird Observatory, especially those concerning birdwatching. The Wave the Waders Goodbye 5 day course occurs over peak wader migration to the northern hemisphere, most often in March or April. The Birds of the Broome Region 5 day course occurs in September or October, when
5896-410: The other at Carriageworks in Sydney . Broome International Airport is the regional air hub of northwestern Western Australia and is considered the tourism gateway to the Horizontal Falls and the whole Kimberley region. The Broome Tramway was an industrial tramway used to convey goods between Mangrove Point and the town centre from 1898 until the 1960s. Since 1992 Broome has been home to
5984-400: The painting making them prime for determining an accurate age of the kangaroo art itself. They analysed samples from 6 of the nests and settled on a date between 17,500 years old and 17,100 years old, making the kangaroo rock art the oldest in Australia. Based on oral accounts from Aboriginal people in the region it has been confirmed that many of the works that have been re-touched maintain
6072-399: The party, suggested using 200 Japanese prison inmates to launch a guerrilla campaign in Australia. No superior adopted his suggestion, and the officer was posted to other duties. The 2011 estimated permanent population of The Kimberley was 34,794 but it rises dramatically during winter when it attracts a seasonal population. On Census night in 2011 (9 August), it was 50,113. The population
6160-498: The pastureland in the southern areas has been affected by 100 years of livestock grazing and other threats including introduced weeds (such as cocklebur , parkinsonia , bellyache bush and castor oil plant ), feral cats and changes to traditional Aboriginal fire regimes (the way grassland is burnt and allowed to renew). However, the remote sandstone areas to the north have valuable original habitats in good condition providing shelter for much wildlife. The largest protected areas are
6248-422: The pearl"). In 2010, the Shire of Broome and Kimberley commissioned a Memorial to the Indigenous Female Pearl Divers. In April 2019, the skeletons of 14 Yawuru and Karajarri people which had been sold by a wealthy Broome pearler to a museum in Dresden in 1894 were brought home. The remains, which had been stored in the Grassi Museum of Ethnology in Leipzig , showed signs of head wounds and malnutrition ,
6336-511: The public about them. A mixed black flying fox and little red flying fox colony of around 50,000 megabats lives all year in mangroves next to Broome township's small Streeter's Jetty. They chatter and socialise loudly before flying out at dusk each evening. The bats are key pollinators and seed dispersers for native trees and plants. Named for the Java-to-Australia undersea telegraph cable that reaches shore there, Cable Beach
6424-543: The rainfall. For instance, in January 1922, Broome Post Office recorded just 2.8 mm (0.11 in) of rainfall while in the same month of 2018, the airport received 945.4 mm (37.22 in). Dewpoint averages at 24 °C or 75.2 °F in the wet season, but is as low as 8.4 °C or 47.1 °F in the dry season. Frost is unknown; however, temperatures during the cooler months have dropped to as low as 3.3 °C (37.9 °F). The average temperature of
6512-443: The red sand beaches of the bay. They can be seen in the largest numbers in summer, but many of the younger birds remain throughout the first and second years of their lives. The Broome Bird Observatory , sited in pindan woodland close to the northern shore of Roebuck Bay, was established by Birds Australia in 1988, and formally opened in 1990. The purpose of the observatory is to study the birds, learn how to protect them and educate
6600-584: The region. In 1881, Philip Saunders and Adam Johns, in the face of great difficulties and dangers, found gold in various parts of the Kimberley. Early in 1881, the first five graziers, who called themselves the Murray Squatting Company, took up 49,000 hectares (120,000 acres) behind Beagle Bay and named it Yeeda Station . In 1883 they were the first men to shear sheep in the southern Kimberley. Additional Anglo-European settlement occurred in 1885, when ranchers drove cattle across Australia from
6688-399: The remains of which can still be seen in the harbour at low tide. In 1950, Broome was the setting for Arthur Upfield 's novel The Widows of Broome , his 12th novel featuring Detective Inspector Napoleon Bonaparte ("Bony"). Dinosaur footprints dated as Early Cretaceous in age (approximately 130 million years ago) were discovered 30 m (98 ft) out to sea at Gantheaume Point in
6776-532: The rivers flood. The annual rainfall is highest in the northwest, where Kalumburu and the Mitchell Plateau average 1,270 millimetres (50 in) per year, and lowest in the southeast where it is around 520 millimetres (20 in). In the dry season, from May to October, south easterly breezes bring sunny days and cool nights. Climate change since 1967 has led to large increases of as much as 250 millimetres (10 in) per year in annual rainfall over
6864-527: The road into the Bungle Bungles can at times be accessed in a two-wheel drive car, although one can access many additional areas in a four-wheel drive vehicle. Other parks in the region include Geikie Gorge National Park , Mirima National Park , Mitchell River National Park , Point Coulomb National Park , Purnululu National Park , Tunnel Creek National Park , Windjana Gorge National Park and Wolfe Creek Meteorite Crater National Park . In 2012
6952-568: The sea ranges from 24.7 °C (76.5 °F) in July and August to 30.2 °C (86.4 °F) in March. Broome contains six schools: five government, Broome Primary School, Broome North Primary School in the northern suburb of Bilingurr , Cable Beach Primary School in Cable Beach , Roebuck Primary School in the northern suburb of Djugun , and Broome Senior High School ; and St Mary's College,
7040-467: The soil. The southern end of the Kimberley beyond the Dampier Peninsula is flatter with dry tropical grassland and is used for cattle ranching. In parts of the Kimberley, such as the valleys of the Ord and Fitzroy Rivers in the south, the soils are relatively usable cracking clays , whilst elsewhere they are lateritic Orthents . Although none of the mountains reach even 1,000 metres (3,281 ft), there
7128-442: The town. Indeed, many people with Japanese names thrive in the community. Pearling was a dangerous and sometimes deadly occupation and the town's Japanese cemetery is the resting place of 919 Japanese divers who lost their lives working in the industry. Each year Broome celebrates the fusion of different cultures brought about by the pearling industry in an annual cultural festival called Shinju Matsuri (Japanese for "festival of
7216-507: The unconfirmed marbled toadlet , Mjoberg's toadlet , mole toadlet and stonemason's toadlet . Mammals that have declined especially in the flatlands include the bilby , northern quoll , pale field rat , golden-backed tree-rat , and golden bandicoot . Megabats such as the black flying foxes and little red flying foxes are common and perform important pollination and seed dispersal work for many species of native trees and shrubs. A species of endemic gecko , Gehyra kimberleyi ,
7304-417: The wetter valleys. The banks of the Ord , Fitzroy River and other rivers are home to a greater variety of vegetation, while in sheltered gorges of the high rainfall north there are patches of tropical dry broadleaf forest , called monsoon forests , deciduous vine forest or vine thicket in Australia, (often mistakenly which is called "dry rainforest"), which were unknown to science until 1965, and are one of
7392-541: The whole region. A 2007 study suggests Asian pollution may be a key contributory factor to this increased rainfall. In 1997 and 2000, the region received especially heavy rains, leading to record flooding of the Fitzroy and other rivers. The Kimberley is one of the hottest parts of Australia, with the average annual mean temperature around 27 °C (81 °F), and with mean maximum temperatures almost always above 30 °C (86 °F), even in July. The hottest part of
7480-611: The year is November before the rains break, when temperatures frequently reach above 37 °C (99 °F) on the coast and well over 40 °C (104 °F) inland. Mean minimum temperatures in July range from around 12 °C (54 °F) in the south to 16 °C (61 °F) along the coast, whilst in November and December they are generally around 26 °C (79 °F). Record high temperatures range from around 47 to 48 °C (117 to 118 °F), while record lows are around 2 to 3 °C (36 to 37 °F), although some parts of
7568-861: Was delayed by flooded country, and they abandoned many stores along the way. The party was constantly split up although they had to contend with large numbers of hostile Aboriginals. On 11 February, Grey was speared and became critically ill but, after two weeks, continued the exploration. The party found and named the Gairdner River , the Glenelg River , the Stephen and Whately ranges and Mount Lyell before returning to Hanover Bay in April. There they were picked up by HMS Beagle and Lynher and taken to Mauritius to recuperate. In 1879, Western Australian government surveyor Alexander Forrest led
7656-429: Was developed, and rock art suggests that this was where some of the earliest boomerangs were invented. The worship of Wandjina deities was most common in this region, and a complex theology dealing with the transmigration of souls was part of the local people's religious philosophy. During the 18th century, Dutch explorers named the region of Kimberley and nearby Darwin variations of Van Diemen's Land after
7744-570: Was the subject of the 2009 documentary The Cove , and sparked a unanimous decision by Broome's council, headed by Graeme Campbell, to end the relationship with Taiji if the dolphin hunt were to continue. The decision was reversed in October 2009. The Broome community led a campaign to protest against a proposal to industrialise the James Price Point outside Broome. The campaign has received ardent support from public figures such as John Butler , Missy Higgins , Clare Bowditch and former leader of
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