Discover the Outback: Top 11 Amazing Fun Facts About Australia's Northern Territory
1. Crocs Love Bacon
In a classic case of "You are what you eat", saltwater crocodiles in Australia's Northern Territory have developed a taste for an unexpected diet, trading in their usual surf and turf for an "all swine, all the time" approach: Due to protective laws, the crocodile population has bounced back to over 100,000 adults, now thriving on readily available feral pigs, which not only offer a delicious buffet but also contribute greatly to the crocs' impressive resurgence.
Source => smithsonianmag.com
2. Dundee's Walkabout Creek
When the wild Australian outback beckoned to the famous Crocodile Dundee, little did he know he'd be hopping his way through the Land Down Under like a sneaky kangaroo: The town of Walkabout Creek featured in the film is actually in the Northern Territory, though most of the movie was shot across Australia—including Queensland and Kakadu National Park—giving birth to legendary scenes like Dundee's water buffalo rendezvous and knife-wielding prowess.
Source => en.wikipedia.org
Did you know the Pacific Northwest is home to North America's largest slug, the banana slug? Discover its peculiar diet and bizarre mating rituals that will leave you amazed!
=> Fun Facts about The-Pacific-Northwest
3. Highway Landing Strips
Talk about multi-tasking highways: The Stuart Highway in the Northern Territory doubles as an emergency landing strip for the Royal Flying Doctor Service, with specific sections marked and prepped for aircraft landings to provide rapid medical help in remote areas.
Source => en.wikipedia.org
4. The Grogmonsta Regatta
Hold on to your brews, folks, and prepare to board the Grogmonsta: an armada of aluminum is about to set off on an epic Australian conquest! This thrilling tale of beery bravado is set in none other than the world-renowned Lions Club Beer Can Regatta at Mindil Beach, Darwin: an annual charity event that features boats made entirely of recycled cans vying for oceanic supremacy; with the Grogmonsta, a behemoth of a vessel composed of some 40,000 cans and chicken wire, reigning supreme. Last year's festivities lured around 15,000 eager onlookers and fetched a glorious $45,000 for various local causes, ensuring this boatload of watery revelry continues to make waves both in terms of spectacle and charity.
Source => huffpost.com
5. Python vs. Crocodile
If you think your neighbor's pet snake is impressive, just wait until you meet the Northern Territory's ultimate wrestling champ - with a diet that's not for the faint of heart: The Olive Python can grow up to 157 inches long, is non-venomous, and has been known to take down crocodiles, as well as feast on ducks, wallabies, and monitor lizards found near freshwater sources.
Source => birdwatchinghq.com
6. Australia's Great Wall
Before throwing their hats into the ring and becoming the Rocky Mountains' less famous cousin, the MacDonnell Ranges had their hearts set on auditioning for a nature-inspired rendition of the Great Wall of China: These magnificent ranges located in the Northern Territory were formed between 340 and 310 million years ago, due to massive earth movements that pushed up layers of quartzite, resulting in a mountain chain rivaling the Himalayas. With over 315 million years of weathering, they now stand tall with distinct vertical quartzite layers evoking a picturesque natural Great Wall.
Source => ayton.id.au
7. Red Hulk Kangaroo
If you thought Australia's Northern Territory was just a jolly walkabout through the Outback, wait till you meet the "Red Hulk" hopping around: The red kangaroo, the world's largest marsupial, towers at 1.8 meters tall, weighs up to 90 kilograms, and leaps at lightning speeds of 60 kilometers per hour, all while being resourceful enough to cherish man-made watering holes and dodging farmers' occasional grumbles of them being pests.
Source => en.wikipedia.org
8. Uluru's Secret Lair
Breaking news: Uluru has a secret underground lair! Yes, that's right, the immense Australian rock formation we know and love as Ayers Rock has more to it than meets the eye: This majestic sandstone behemoth isn't just the largest monolith on the planet, stretching 863 meters high with a 9.4-kilometer circumference, but it's also hiding over 2.5 kilometers of itself beneath the earth's surface—talk about a rock-solid conspiracy!
Source => ulurutoursaustralia.com.au
9. Thunder Timeshare in Darwin
If Thor, the Norse god of thunder and lightning, had a timeshare, it'd probably be in Darwin: but alas, Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela has stolen the thunder, boasting the highest concentration of lightning with 232 flashes per square kilometre per year on up to 300 nights, leaving McMinns Lagoon near Darwin to hold its own as one of Australia's hotspots for electrifying displays.
Source => abc.net.au
10. Kakadu: Size Matters
Whoever said size doesn't matter has clearly never been to Australia's Northern Territory: Home to Kakadu National Park, the country's largest national park spanning a whopping 20,000 square kilometers of UNESCO World Heritage-listed landscapes, diverse wildlife, and ancient rock art.
Source => en.wikipedia.org
11. Termite Skyscrapers
Call it a close-knit community or just one big happy family, but moving in with these tiny roommates might give you a few chills: The Northern Territory boasts the largest termite colony ever recorded, with over three million residents living in their magnetic mounds that stand twice to three times as high as a standard adult and are aligned to the earth's magnetic field.
Source => aquariustraveller.com
