The Adelaide River is a
river
A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...
in the
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...
of
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
.
Course and features
The river rises in the
Litchfield National Park and flows generally northwards to
Clarence Strait, joined by eight
tributaries
A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream ('' main stem'' or ''"parent"''), river, or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries, and the main stem river into which the ...
including the west branch of the Adelaide River, Coomalie Creek, Margaret River and Marrakai Creek, before discharging into its
mouth
A mouth also referred to as the oral is the body orifice through which many animals ingest food and animal communication#Auditory, vocalize. The body cavity immediately behind the mouth opening, known as the oral cavity (or in Latin), is also t ...
in
Adam Bay in the Clarence Strait. The river descends over its
course.
[ The catchment area of the river is .]Stuart Highway
Stuart Highway is a major Australian highway. It runs from Darwin, Northern Territory, Darwin, in the Northern Territory, via Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, to Port Augusta in South Australia; it has a distance of . Its northern and souther ...
, adjacent to the township of Adelaide River, and the Arnhem Highway near Humpty Doo.
The Adelaide River is well known for its high concentration of saltwater crocodile
The saltwater crocodile (''Crocodylus porosus'') is a crocodilian native to saltwater habitats, brackish wetlands and freshwater rivers from India's east coast across Southeast Asia and the Sundaland to northern Australia and Micronesia. It ha ...
s, along with other wildlife including white-bellied sea eagles, whistling kites, freshwater crocodile
The freshwater crocodile (''Crocodylus johnstoni)'', also known Common name, commonly as the Australian freshwater crocodile, Johnstone's crocodile, and the freshie, is a species of crocodile native to the northern regions of Australia. Unlike ...
s, bull shark
The bull shark (''Carcharhinus leucas''), also known as the Zambezi shark (informally zambi) in Africa and Lake Nicaragua shark in Nicaragua, is a species of requiem shark commonly found worldwide in warm, shallow waters along coasts and in riv ...
s and black flying-fox. Its lower reaches form part of the Adelaide and Mary River Floodplains Important Bird Area. Waters of this river are also home to endangered speartooth shark and critically endangered largetooth sawfish. The river also contains a notable introduced population of Siamese fighting fish
The Siamese fighting fish (''Betta splendens''), commonly known as the betta, is a freshwater fish native to Southeast Asia, namely Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam. It is one of 76 species of the genus '' Bet ...
.
History
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...
including the Warray and Kungarakan owned the lands among the river for millennia.
Lieutenant Fitzmaurice, under the command of John Lort Stokes
Admiral John Lort Stokes (1 August 1811 – 11 June 1885) was a Royal Navy officer who served onboard for almost eighteen years.Although 1812 is frequently given as Stokes's year of birth, it has been argued by author Marsden Hordern that Stok ...
, sighted the river on a boating expedition. The expedition was part of the Admiralty surveying ship HMS ''Beagle'''s voyage in 1839, and the river was named in honour of Queen Adelaide.
Gallery
File:Springende Krokodile im Adelaide River Mike Krüger 070509 1.JPG, Jumping crocodile at Adelaide River
File:A140, Adelaide River, Northern Territory, Australia, saltwater crocodile misses bait, 2007.jpg, Croc whips tail to leap high but misses bait
File:Adelaide_River_NT_Australia.ogv, A video taken on Adelaide River
See also
* List of rivers of Northern Territory
* Naval Base Darwin
References
Rivers of the Northern Territory
Articles containing video clips
{{NorthernTerritory-river-stub