Wet Tropics of Queensland
| UNESCO World Heritage Site | |
|---|---|
Forest near Daintree. Queensland | |
| Location | Queensland, Australia |
| Includes | components:
|
| Criteria | Natural: (vii), (viii), (ix), (x) |
| Reference | 486 |
| Inscription | 1988 (12th Session) |
| Area | 893,453 ha (3,449.64 sq mi) |
| Coordinates | 15°39′S 144°58′E / 15.650°S 144.967°E |
The Wet Tropics of Queensland World Heritage Site consists of approximately 8,940 km2 of Australian wet tropical forests growing along the north-east Queensland portion of the Great Dividing Range. The Wet Tropics of Queensland meets all four of the criteria for natural heritage for selection as a World Heritage Site. World Heritage status was declared in 1988, and on 21 May 2007 the Wet Tropics were added to the Australian National Heritage List.
The tropical forests have the highest concentration of primitive flowering plant families in the world. Only Madagascar and New Caledonia, due to their historical isolation, have humid, tropical regions with a comparable level of endemism.
The Wet Tropics rainforests are a biodiversity hotspot and recognised internationally for their ancient ancestry and many unique plants and animals. The area covers 0.1% of the Australian landmass but contains 50 per cent of all the nation's species. Many plant and animal species in the Wet Tropics are found nowhere else in the world. The Wet Tropics has the oldest continuously surviving tropical rainforests on earth.