Windows on the Wetlands

Window on the Wetlands Visitor Centre is perched on Beatrice Hill, one of the highest points on the Adelaide River floodplain. Beatrice Hill was named on 6 June 1864, by Naval officers Hutchinson and Howard while surveying the Adelaide River on board the HMS Beatrice.

The Adelaide River is one of eight rivers in the Top End which have large floodplains in their catchment. Together their floodplains create a great expanse of coastal wetlands, one of the rarest and most threatened land systems in the world.

The catchments of these rivers are not separate from one another, especially those east of Darwin. Their lower reaches almost join up in the wet season. Large native animals like wallabies move between catchments. Unfortunately so do weeds and feral animals, like pigs and buffalo.