Sometimes Australia is called “the upside down world”. Can guess why? Because
Australia lies in the Southern Hemisphere, where winter comes in July and summer
begins in December. During the Christmas holidays sunbathe on the beach or swim
and surf in the ocean.
Australia is the hottest place in the Southern Hemisphere. In July usual
temperatures are from 20 to 30 degrees C above zero or higher.
Most parts of Australia do not receive enough rain. Only one sixth of the
continent – a belt of land along the north, east, and south coasts – is
comfortably humid. This narrow belt of land is the place where summers are warm
and sunny and winters are mild.
Most of the dry land is uninhabited, which explains Australia’s small
population – about 18 mln people.
It is interesting to notice that though most of the territory is too dry or
too hot Australia has an extraordinary collection of birds and animals. Many of
them are found only there. Early explores were so surprised by the emu and the
kangaroo that they described the continent as the land where birds “ran instead
of flying and animals hopped instead o running”.
Australia is the home of 2 of the world’s most primitive mammals – the
duckbill and the anteater. They are the only mammals that lay eggs. The kangaroo
is perhaps the best known of Australian animals. There are more then 40
different kinds of kangaroos in Australia, in many colours and sizes. The big
red kangaroo and the grey kangaroo may be as tall as grown-up man. Some
kangaroos are about the size of a large dog. The smallest kangaroo is the rat
kangaroo. Another well known Australian animal is the koala that resembles as a
teddy-bear. It spends most time on its life in eucalyptus trees and eats the
leaves of these trees.
Among the other animals found in Australia is the dingo, a wild dog which is
yellowish brown and has a bushy tail. The emu, Australia’s largest bird is also
one of the largest in the world. It cannot fly but it is good runner. Another
curios bird is kookaburra that is often called the “laughing jackass”. The bushy
country rings with its laugher. Australians like this bird so much that they
made up a song about kookaburra.
Other Australian birds are graceful lyrebirds, brilliantly coloured parrots
and the great white cockatoo.
2 animals were brought to the country by the Europeans and have become wild in
Australia. These are the buffalo, brought from India, and the European rabbit.
Buffaloes were brought to the north coast as work animals early in the 19th
sentry. They escaped and multiplied and now inhabit the swampy river valleys
around Darwin. Each year hunters shoot 1000s of them.
Rabbits were brought more then 100 years ago. There are so many of them in
Australia that sheep farmers have constant wars against rabbits because they
destroy much grass.
No matter how far from Europe Australia can be, many people who are fond of
traveling would like to visit this land because it is such an extraordinary
place to explore!