Iron Range National Park — Nature, culture and history
Natural environment
Geology
Eclectus parrot, Iron Range
National Park. Photo: EPA.
About 300 million years ago Iron Range National Park and surrounds was the scene of violent volcanic activity. Explosions of red-hot pumice, dust and gases filled the skies while lava spewed out across the landscape. As layers of ash and pumice covered the land, they welded together to form welded tuffs — a very hard volcanic rock.
Many years later, a large body of molten magma rose from great depths, penetrating through the existing volcanic rocks. The magma slowly solidified beneath the surface to form granite.
Today, the volcanoes have gone and millions of years of weathering have carved the landscape to its present form. An obvious remaining landmark is Mt Tozer, standing 543m above sea level and made of remnant volcanic rocks and granite. Bands of penetrating granite amongst older welded tuffs can still be seen on this mountain.
Granite and welded tuffs erode to very poor soils, which support only the stunted heath country dominating this area. Lush rainforests, found on the low country to the east below the escarpment, are the result of richer soils produced by older, more easily eroded metamorphic rocks.
White quartz sand is found at Chili Beach, which stretches between Cape Griffith and Cape Weymouth. This sand is derived from the coarse-grained granite of the ancient coastal hills, approximately 285 million years old.
Forests
The rainforest habitats of Iron Range National Park and of the McIlwraith Range to the south contain many unique and endemic species of flora and fauna that support the theory of Gondwana Land. Some species that provide evidence of this include the flat fork-fern (Psilotum complanatum) and the Lawyer vine (Calamus spp)which are remnants of the Gondwana landmass.
Iron Range National Park contains one of the largest remaining areas of lowland rainforest to be found in Australia. This forest type is an ideal habitat for such plants as the blue quandong (Eleaocarpus augustifolius). Along with other fruits and seeds, the blue quandong is a favourite food source of the southern cassowary (Casuarius casuarius). The lowland forest of Iron Range is an extremely important habitat for the southern cassowary and many of the plant species within the forest rely directly upon the cassowary for seed distribution.
Heathlands
Around the Tozer Range, shrublands carpet the hill slopes while heathlands are featured on the foothills and plains. Heathland plants can grow much taller in areas where the soil is deep and fertile, but around the Mt Tozer region their growth is impeded by the infertile shallow soils derived from the granite volcanics of the Tozer Range.
About 200 different types of plants grow in the heathlands at Iron Range. Some of the plants are very unusual and have a distinctive form, which makes them easy to identify. One of the most unusual is the low-lying pitcher plant (Nepenthes mirabilis) found in the wetter areas around Tozers Gap.
The most obvious heathland plants are sheoaks including Allocasuarina littoralis, with their needle-like modified stems; grevilleas such as Grevillea pteridifolia, which have long wispy leaves and orange flowers; banksias with their two-toned, coarse, papery leaves and woody seed capsules, and the purple-pink flowering shrub Jacksonia thesioides. Growing close to the ground are orchids and other plants, the most common being a sedge (Schoenus sparteus).
Coastal plants
Chili Beach has an extensive dune system, which rises up to 40 metres above sea level and is cloaked with evergreen notophyll vine forests. In places, this vine forest replaces a grassy eucalypt forest that was maintained by Aboriginal fire management until about 60 years ago.
Coconut palms fringe the foreshore at Chili Beach. They are relatively recent intruders in this landscape, and possibly resulted from the increased European activity in the area and the corresponding halt in fire management by Traditional Owners. The dunes at the southern end of Chili Beach are stabilised only by low-growing groundcover plants such as goat's foot convolvulus. They are vulnerable to damage from vehicles and people.
The coastal plants along the foreshore include the sea almond with its distinctive red seed pods containing husky almond-like seeds, beach callophyllum with its twisted, gnarled trunk and low, spreading, horizontal branches and the beautiful river lily.
Animals
A unique collection of mammals, frogs, lizards and snakes is found only at Iron Range National Park. Mammals such as the shy common spotted cuscus (Spilocuscus maculatus) and the southern common cuscus (Phalanger intercastellanus) inhabit the high branches of the rainforest, while on rainforest floor lives the rufous spiny-haired bandicoot (Echymipera rufescens). Most mammals in the park are nocturnal. The Cape York bare-backed fruit bats (Dobsonia moluccensi) and the much smaller fawn leaf-nosed bat frequent the night sky throughout the park. The Cape York bare-backed fruit bats make a distinctive flapping noise as they hover in mid-air. Instead of fur, their backs are covered by the wing membrane, which joins in the middle of the back rather than the sides of the body. Melomys, a small native mouse-like rodent, may be seen or heard rustling around campsites at night.
Green pythons (Morelia viridis) also occur in the rainforest, their colour blending into the surrounding vegetation. The amethystine python, a non-venomous snake which can reach an impressive 8.5 metres in length, inhabits the coastal vine forests of Chili Beach. Many species of frogs live in the rainforest creeks and paperbark swamps. The distinctive reedy quacking call of the common wood frog can often be heard around Chili Beach camping area. Smaller, more elusive animals such as the cinnamon antechinus (Antechinus leo) and the Cape York nursery-frog (Cophixalus peninsularis) also live in this area.
The park is also a refuge and stronghold for many endemic animals — species with a restricted distribution in Australia that are also found in Papua New Guinea. The park has 15 endemic species of birds including the eclectus parrot, red-cheeked parrot, double-eyed fig-parrot (race Marshalli) and frilled monarch. Palm cockatoos, found only on Cape York Peninsula, can be seen around the Chili Beach campground although they are more common in woodland areas. During the warmer months, large numbers of metallic starlings flock on the small island off Chili Beach at dusk.
Iron Range is also amongst the most diverse habitats in Australia for butterflies, ants, ferns orchids and palms. The degree of orchid diversity of the McIlwraith and Iron Range areas is particularly significant. The McIlwraith Range is also a major location for butterfly diversity for the Cape York Peninsula. Several species of butterflies, such as the theon jewell (Hypochrysops theon) and the Claudie pearl white (Elodina Claudia) are only found at Iron Range, and a number of other butterflies found here are relatively rare species.
Offshore, marine turtles can sometimes be seen feeding in the shallow seagrass meadows. Look for schools of small baitfish sheltering near rocks in the shallows or darting through the water, chased by large pelagic fish such as queenfish and trevally. Crocodiles may occasionally be seen in the early morning cruising along the coast.
Culture and history
The park is of major Aboriginal cultural significance, with story places and ceremonial sites located across the landscape. This country is the traditional lands of the Kuuka Ya'u people, who belong to a language group which has two sub-groups — Kungkay and Kanthanampu. Each group is responsible for different areas.
The Kuuka Ya'u culture is closely linked to the coastal environment. Their country extends beyond Iron Range National Park and includes the sea and islands out to the Great Barrier Reef. People travelled only short distances to hunt or gather food and resources — the richness of their coastal and marine environment met their needs for most of the year.
Chili Beach is the site of the turtle (paanti) story and the stingray (paalki) story from the Dreamtime. Although these stories cannot be told here, these language names describe the hunting seasons when turtle and stingray come into the Chili Beach area and can be easily hunted. This is usually during the summer months when the wind dies down and the water becomes clear.
The arrival of European explorers William Bligh and Edmund Kennedy and the establishment of the Lockhart River Mission in 1924, impacted greatly upon the lives of the Kuuku Ya'u. They were displaced and removed from their traditional lands. In 1942, when Australia was threatened by Japanese invasion during the Second World War, a large airbase was constructed at Iron Range and the road from the airstrip to Portland Roads, just north of Chili Beach, was sealed. Patches of bitumen can still be seen today. During this time local indigenous people were dispersed to bush camps for six months, many reluctant to return to mission life.
From the 1840s, collecting of beche-de-mer and pearl shell began. Many Aboriginal people were used unscrupulously as labour in these industries. In the late 1800s, a sandalwood industry was established at Orchid Point, in Lloyd Bay. Aboriginal workers cut sandalwood by hand, packed it on to horses for transport to the beach where it was loaded on to boats. The sandalwood was then exported to Asia where it was highly prized for its fragrant oil and use in making carved chests.
Aboriginal people left the mission during the war but were encouraged to return after fears of invasion faded. The mission was moved to its present location in 1969. Today, most Kuuku Ya'u people live at Lockhart community along with others from different clans. They now manage their own lives and maintain a strong cultural association with their traditional country. They continue their traditional hunting, gathering and fishing practices along the coast. As in the past, children learn from their parents and grandparents about the creation of all things, how to spear fish and stingrays, where to collect mussels and find other food, and their relationship with sea country. Cultural knowledge is also passed on to younger generations through art, songs, dances and stories.
European history
European explorers arrived in Kuuku Ya'u country as early as 1789, the first being Captain William Bligh after the mutiny on the Bounty. Bligh, along with 18 loyal crew, victims of the mutiny on the Bounty, sailed in an open boat across the Pacific Ocean. landing on the small island which he named Restoration. He also named Pudding Pan Hill and The Paps on the mainland. This ragged band of men then sailed on to Timor to alert authorities and the Pandora was sent in search of the mutineers.
This was later followed by the disastrous Cape York land expedition, led by Edmund Kennedy, in 1848. On his attempt to travel overland from Rockingham Bay to Cape York, Edmund Kennedy left a small party of men in Weymouth Bay, just south of the Pascoe River mouth. Kennedy and four others pushed north, all but a young Aboriginal man, Jacky Jacky, perishing along the way. Of the men left in Weymouth Bay, only two survived.
Exploration of both land and sea resources then commenced with the establishment of beche-de-mer, pearl and sandalwood (timber) industries and as well as tin and gold mining in the mid 1900s.
Mining ceased during World War II and the area became a staging post for at least 50,000 American and Australian troops. In 1942, a large airbase was constructed as a launching pad for American aerial bombing raids in the Pacific and the road from the Lockhart River airstrip to Portland Roads jetty (now removed) was sealed.
When the American 90th Bomb Group, known as the "Jolly Rogers", arrived at Iron Range, they found two airstrips, named Claudie and Gordon, unfinished and unsealed. They described it as the worst airfield they were ever posted at during the war.
American Coast Artillery Regiments were deployed around the airstrips. W. Rollins, of the 197th Coast Artillery (AA) Regiment, described the conditions in his diary. "The strips were a disaster. Muddy and flooded most of the time. I witnessed planes land without landing gear down, motors that didn't run, sometimes in a foot of water."
They manned anti-aircraft gun positions in the area until mid-1943. "Japanese planes have been sighted near the jetty but never an air raid. We experience at least two alerts every day — it seems the Japanese keep watch over this area." W. Rollins.
Difficult conditions were made worse during the monsoonal rains and possibly contributed to some of the several military aircraft crashes in the area. One of the worst disasters took place on 16 November 1942, when B-24 Liberators of the 90th Bomb Group took off on their first bombing raid of Rabaul. Dust blown up during take-off obscured the dim airfield lights, causing the eleventh aircraft in line to veer off the runway and crash into three stationary aircraft killing 11 men.
Today, small patches of bitumen and remains of old bridges, bunkers, gun emplacements, defensive pits, machinery parts, concrete footings and fuel drum dumps can still be seen in the area, slowly being obscured by rainforest. A memorial has been erected at the Iron Range Airport in recognition of the lives lost during the war.