Chapter-1 Introduction

The Daintree Rainforest, also known as Daintree, is a region on the northeastern coast of Queensland, Australia, about 105 km (65 mi), by road, north of the city of Cairns. Rainforest got it’s name from Daintree River , which in turn was named in honour of Richard Daintree, an Australian geologist and photographer (1832–1878). It is generally accepted and understood that they refer to the area from the Daintree River north to Cooktown, and from the coastline west to the Great Dividing Range. The popular tourist destination of Mossman Gorge, some 30 km (19 mi) south of the Daintree River, is often (and again, unofficially) included in the definition.

Chapter-2 Geography & History

At around 1,200 square kilometres (460 sq mi), the Daintree is a part of the largest contiguous area of tropical rainforest in Australia, known as the Wet Tropics of Queensland. The region, along with a select number of other rainforest areas on the Australian east coast, collectively form some of the oldest extant rainforest communities in the world. At around 180 million years old, these ancient, self-sustaining forests are nearly 10 million years older than the Amazon of South America (the world’s largest rainforest and top region for biodiversity), and have witnessed dinosaurs, ice ages, and early humans all come and go.

In 2009 as part of the Q150 celebrations, the Daintree Rainforest was announced as one of the Q150 Icons of Queensland for its role as a "natural attraction".

 The Daintree Rainforest is a remnant of what was once a vast forest that covered the entire Australian continent. It is a rare survivor of 120 million years of altered climatic conditions resulting from continental drift, which has reduced the extent of the original forest to a few restricted areas on the east coast. 

Chapter-3 Wildlife

    The Daintree region combines tropical rainforest, white sandy beaches, and fringing reefs just offshore, which is a rare combination. Due to the distance between attractions, driving is often the simplest way to navigate between them. The Daintree National Park boasts many walking tracks and there are a number of accommodation options within the Daintree Rainforest itself.

The Daintree rainforest contains important and significant habitats for conservation of biological diversity. Approximately 430 species of birds live among the trees. The primitive flowering plants Austrobaileya scandens and Idiospermum australiense are also endemic to the Daintree. However, The Daintree Region is home to a number of rare and endangered

species, including the southern cassowary (Casuarius Casuarius) and Bennett's tree-kangaroo (Dendrolagus bennettianus).