Australasia includes which countries

The Great Sandy Desert is one of the largest deserts in the country, and goes all the way to the coast where it meets the Indian Ocean.

Sydney Opera House is a famous landmark in the city of Sydney. Its roof looks like sails, because there are many sailing boats in Sydney Harbour.

Kangaroos are marsupials. These are animals with pouches. Marsupials mostly live in Australia and New Guinea. Saltwater crocodiles are reptiles that can grow up to 23ft 7m long.

Plants traveled between islands by riding wind or ocean current s. Birds carried the seeds of fruits and plants and spread them between islands with their droppings. Ferns, mosses, and some flowering plants rely on spores or seeds that can remain airborne for long distances.

Coconut palms and mangroves, common throughout Australia and Oceania, produce seeds that can float on salty water for weeks at a time.

Important flowering plants native to Australia and Oceania include the jacaranda, hibiscus, pohutukawa, and kowhai. Other indigenous trees include the breadfruit, eucalyptus, and banyan. Birds are very common in Australia and Oceania because they are one of the few animals mobile enough to move from island to island. There are more than endemic bird species in Australia and Oceania, including many seabirds.

Many flightless birds, such as emus, kiwis, cassowaries, wekas, and takahes, are native to Australia, Papua New Guinea, and New Zealand.

The Pacific Islands have more than 25 species of birds of paradise, which exhibit colorful plumage. Lizard species include the goanna, skink, and bearded dragon. Australia and Oceania has more than a hundred different species of fruit bats. The few native land animals in Australia and Oceania are unusual. Australia and Oceania is the only place in the world that is home to monotreme s—mammals that lay eggs. All monotremes are native to Australia and Papua New Guinea.

There are only five living species: the duckbill platypus and four species of echidna. Many of the most familiar animals native to Australia and Oceania are marsupial s, including the koala, kangaroo, and wallaby.

Marsupials are mammals that carry their newborn young in a pouch. Almost 70 percent of the marsupials on Earth are native to Oceania. The rest are native to the Americas. In Australia and Oceania, marsupials did not face threats or competition from large predator s such as lions, tigers, or bears. In the Americas, marsupials such as possums are much smaller.

Marine Flora and Fauna The marine environment is an important and influential physical region in Australia and Oceania. Marine realm s are large ocean regions where animal and plant life are similar because of shared environmental and evolutionary factors. The Temperate Australasia realm includes the seas surrounding the southern half of Australia and the islands of New Zealand. Its cold, nutrient -rich waters support a diversity of plants and fish that seabirds feed on.

These seabirds include different species of albatross, petrel, and shearwater, as well as the Australasian gannet and rockhopper penguin. The Great Barrier Reef is home to 30 species of whales, dolphins, and porpoises; six species of sea turtles; species of birds; and more than 1, species of fish. The New Caledonia Barrier Reef is home to species of sponges, 5, species of mollusks, 5, species of crustaceans, and at least 1, species of fish. The Eastern Indo-Pacific realm surrounds the tropical islands of the central Pacific Ocean, extending from the Marshall Islands through central and southeastern Polynesia.

Like the Central Indo-Pacific realm, this realm is also known for its tropical coral formations. A variety of whale, tortoise, and fish species also inhabit this realm.

Australia and Oceania is a continent made up of thousands of islands throughout the South Pacific Ocean. Sea level is determined by measurements taken over a year cycle.

Zealandia is almost totally underwater. The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit. The Rights Holder for media is the person or group credited. Caryl-Sue, National Geographic Society. Dunn, Margery G. For information on user permissions, please read our Terms of Service.

If you have questions about how to cite anything on our website in your project or classroom presentation, please contact your teacher. In the meantime, check out my super easy blog post on how to start a travel blog in under 30 minutes, here!

And if you just want to get cracking, use BlueHost at a discount, through me. Oh, one last thing! As an Australian, I see this article as nothing more than a recipe for utter confusion for your poor readers and for getting into trouble with New Zealanders in particular and Papua New Guineans.

Just remember to duck! I understand how it can be a little confusing in that both the continent and country have the same name. The Continent of Australia consists only of the country of Australia including its island state of Tasmania, and New Guinea. However, it is a part of Australasia. New Guinea is part of the Continent of Australia, but not a part of Australasia. It is located in Melanesia. Good article. I see the dilemma. Too old to get to them all now but will make a start in Asia as soon as the lid comes off.

Your email address will not be published. Notify me of followup comments via e-mail. As you know, blogging changed my life. I left Ireland broke, with no plan, with just a one-way ticket to Thailand and no money. And I did it all from my laptop as I travel the world and live my dream.

No spam ever too, I promise! Sharing's caring! Share this awesome article with your friends, you know u wanna