THE COUNTRY OF AN ORIGINAL BEAUTY
Tasmania is the country of an original beauty. It was unstuck form the Australian continent, named till in the year 1856 after the Netherlandish seafarer Abel Tasman, who discovered it in the year 1642 without he knew that. He thought, that landed in the south of Australia.
It's a rough piece of the country. It's sufficient to have a look at more detailed map: The Hellish Gate, The Devil's Kitchen, The Hill of Despair, The Cape of Hopeless... One of the river name is Styx, like that, which in Greek mythology separated the countries of the quick and dead.
The first fifty years, when the English inhabited the island, its name was The Van -Diemens's Land and it was a convict colony. In the period of the years 1804 till 1853 they deported from the all British empire about 75 thousands men, their wives and children.
Then set the turn in: in the second half of 19th century Tasmania became a synonym of abundance. The English attracted its natural beauty, productive land and favourable climate. They had enough their raw mists - all the same, they wanted to feel like in the mother country. By the year 1876 was nearly no original inhabitant there. Tasmania seemed to many people more English like England. But its original face had still disclosed overnights: wild beasts had run about and poisonous snakes had groveled at the empty roads.
The west part of Island is wilderness of virgin forest an rapacious rivers till now.
Most of inhabitants live in the south, in the capital Hobart and in Launcestone in the north. Between these two town are central highlands with houses and churches in georgian style, fields and fruit plantations. White strands and small seabays commemorate the Caribbean.
About half of global quantity the poppy for necesssities the pharmacological industry cultivate in Tasmania. The population grow maybe due to they don't know infections like SARS, not even the attacks of terrorists there. Certainly the geographical isolation contribute to that, too - 220 kms southern from the Australian continent and well two thousands kms northern from the Antartic. West coast of the island incessant whip stormy winds up to Patagonia. Tasmania was part of an Australian continent, then the water of dissembling icebergs separated it and became an ark of the vegetation and animals so. They could develop there, without disturbing interference the civilization. Scientists give much more attention to Tasmania, because just unique Tasmanian nature is endangered now.
Zoological rarity is Tasmanian devil, Sacrophylus harrisii, marsupial, which is with its size similar like small bulldog. When it get excited - what happens quiet often - its ears turn red like a fire. On Australian continent was extinct long ago, now is endangered in Tasmania, its last native country. Lately, about half of 150 thousands those animals succumbed by mysterious infection. The head of victims covered tumours - some scientists suppose, that it was a retrovirus similar to HIV, other that it was effect of poison decoys for kangaroos, grazing on plantations. Devils poisoned themselves, when feasted at dead kengaroos.
Today already dashed marsupial received its name not for red ears but for horrible sounds, which utter at night. First settlers were in the conviction that it scream satan itself out of the forests. It's strange, that the animal scream so, when it gorge. This creature weigh about 10 kilogrammes and its jaw-bones are so strong like by four times bigger dog. In one stroke it know gorge a helping equal till 40 per cents its weight. And gorge all, bones, fur of victims and in its excrements finded thorns of sea urchin, plastics, stumps and cups of bottles. Thousand years was competitor of Tasmanian devil its relative, Tasmanian tiger Thylacinus cynocephalus. It was rapacious marsupial similar to wolf-dog with tail like kangaroo and strong jaw-bones. It's allowed to be like extinct since 1936. Scientists of the Australian museum in Sydney tried to clone it from genetic material its cub, preserved in spirit but they quitted it in the end. Last female of Tasmanian tiger died in the year 1936 in the Zoo in Hobart. Once lived on island about fourthousands of them, but epidemic of distemper and a reward for a fur of each adult animal were fatal for them.
Now isn't the biggest enemy for unique Tasmanian fauna a man, but a small group of foxes. Evidently they were dragged from Australian continent and could become ruin for tens original species, when they will increase. Tasmanian offices created a group to avert dangerous. They laid 25 thousands decoys on the island out and installed nonstop phone line to announce a occurrence of foxes. The hunters aren't much successful, foxes are sly.
Fifth of Tasmanian territory is protected natural area. But civilization shows fully here, too. Wholesale give licenses for production, for really rare trees, too. And for trees in valley of the river Styx, where grow 95 ms high royal eucalyptuses likewise. They are the biggest trees with hard wood, which changes to expensive furniture not in the least, but till 90 per cents are chips for japanese firms an companies from South Korea making news-paper.
But before Tasmania is a vision of other profit now: the island become destination of tourists from whole world, who find remains of intact nature out.