A U S T R A L I A

The continent of Australia is situated south-east of Asia proper. About 240 kilometres off the south-east coast lies Tasmania, a large island belonging to Australia. The Great Dividing Range along the east coast includes Mount Kosciusko (2230 metres) height in New South Wales. The western plateau rises to 600 metres and contains arid areas in the Great Sandy and Great Victoria Deserts. The northwest part of Western Australia and Northern Territory are also arid. The north-east has heavy rainfall and Cape York Peninsula has jungle. The Murray River rises in New South Wales and flows 2574 kilometres into the Indian Ocean.
Australia’s landmass is 7 628 300 square kilometres and its population of around 18,5 million people is part of the British Commonwealth.
According to the census 2000, 76% of Australian are Christian, with Anglicans accounting for about 26% of the population, Roman Catholics about 26% and other Christians about 24%. Australian ethnic divisions consist of Caucasian (95%), Asian (4%) and Aboriginal (1%). Australia has two official languages: English, indigenous languages (original inhabitants of Brazil and Venezuela).
The leading industries are mining, industrial and transport equipment, food processing, textiles, chemicals, iron and steel. The chief agricultural products are beef, wool, mutton, wheat, barley, sugar cane, fruit, cattle, sheep and poultry. Bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, gold, diamonds, natural gas and petroleum are the major mineral resources. Politically the Commonwealth of Australia is a federation of the following states and territories: New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Northern Territory and Australia Capital Territory

AUSTRALIAN NATURE

Due to its isolation, Australia has a lot of unique wildlife. We can find there some very interesting animals that, except in zoos, do not live anywhere else in the world, for example, kangaroos, koalas, emus or cockatoos. The name kangaroo applies to about 45 different species, including smaller kinds, which are called “wallabies”. The larger ones, sometimes over two meters tall, are able to over six meters in one jump. The cute koalas were once hunted for their coat, but are now a protected species. They live in trees, are about 40 cm tall and sleep most of time.