The fascinating country of Papua New Guinea is made up of over
600 islands forming the middle of the long chain of islands stretching from mainland South-East Asia. The country was administered by Australia, situated 160km (100 miles) to the south, until
independence in 1975.
The
tribal diversity of a country with over
700 languages cannot easily be summarised, although in Papua New Guinea it is the tribal life that is most fascinating to the visitor. There are many unique attractions, excursions and activities on offer, from discovering wrecks of WWII
aircraft that lie in the
jungle to peeking inside the sacred wooden
haus tambarans (
spirit houses) of towns and villages in the country. Normally only initiated men of a tribe can enter the latter, but in places this rule is relaxed for foreigners, who may glimpse the extraordinary carvings and masks inside.
GeographyPapua New Guinea consists of over 600 islands and lies in the middle of the long chain of islands stretching from mainland South-East Asia. It lies in the South Pacific, 160km (100 miles) north of Australia. The country occupies the eastern half of the second-largest non-continental island in the world, as well as the smaller islands of the Bismarck Archipelago (Admiralty Island, Bougainville, New Britain and New Ireland), the D’Entrecasteaux Island group and the three islands of the Louisiade Archipelago. The main island shares a land border with Irian Jaya, a province of Indonesia. The mainland and larger islands are mountainous and rugged, divided by large fertile upland valleys. Fast-flowing rivers from the highlands descend to the coastal plains. A line of active volcanoes stretches along the north coast of the mainland and continues on the island of New Britain. To the north and south of this central mountain range on the main island lie vast stretches of mangrove swamps and coastal river deltas.
Volcanoes and thermal pools are also found in the southeast of other islands. Papua New Guinea offers the greatest variety of terrestrial ecosystems in the South Pacific, including five types of lowland rainforest, 13 types of montane rainforest, five varieties of palm and swamp forest and three different mangrove forests. Two-thirds of the world’s species of orchids come from Papua New Guinea. Birds include 38 species of the bird of paradise, and the megapode and cassowary. Marsupials and mammals include cuscus, tree kangaroos, wallabies, bandicoots, spiny anteaters and, in the coastal waters, the dugong. There are between 170 and 200 species of frog and 450 species of butterfly.
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