Fun Facts About Australia

Australian Fun Facts And Funny Stories From Australia

Here under Australian fun facts you can learn some new fun facts about Australia and read funny stories that have occurred in Australia.

I keep stumbling across these stories on the net and add the stuff as I find it. When I find interesting facts or funny facts, not about Australia, but that remind me of something Australian, I put that in as well...

So come back every now and then to see if there's something new!

Newest Australian Fun Facts:

Apparently the first European settlers in Australia drank more alcohol per person than any other community in the history of mankind.
Australian mines (one of our most important industries, which accounts for 15% of Australia's GDP) cover 0.02% of Australia's land mass. More land is occupied by pubs. (Can't find any statistics on the GDP here. My guess is: substantial)
In 1954 Bob Hawke made it into the Guinness Record Book: he sculled 2.5 pints of beer in 11 seconds. Bob Hawke went on to become the Prime Minister of Australia.

Fun Facts About Australia - The Latest Stories

Crocodile Slams Into Tree
Who do you think was more scared? The Australian family camping in Kakadu National Park who woke up when a three metre crocodile tried climbing up on their tent? Or the crocodile, when the family started screaming?

The poor croc turned straight around and raced back towards the water, unfortunately overlooking the tree in its way. The tree lost a fair bit of bark and there were two big wet circles where the croc's nose had slammed into the tree...

I Can't Find Uluru
A tourist from New South Wales had to stop another vehicle to ask for directions to Ayers Rock. Nothing strange or funny about it?

Well, Ayers Rock is huge (348 metres high), is the only significant feature along the only road in the area, and he was right in front of the rock with his headlights shining on it! You'd think you'd notice, wouldn't you?

Nope. He pulled over the next car coming along, to ask for directions. The car looked like a ranger's vehicle to him. Well, they were cops instead and they immediately whipped out their breathalyser... 0.116. Too bad...

Fun Facts About Australia - Animals

There are 1500 hundred species of Australian spiders.
If you read about our spiders you might not like this: the average person swallows three spiders a year.
We have over 6000 species of flies, about 4000 species of ants, and there are about 350 species of termites in Australia.
The combined mass of all termites in the world is more than ten times the mass of all people.
Termites are also called white ants, but they're not ants, in fact not even closely related to ants.
Australia has the world's largest population of wild camels with one hump.
The Tasmanian Devil does exist, and it has the jaw strength of a crocodile.
Sharks are immune to all known diseases.
There are more than 150 million sheep in Australia, and only some 20 million people.

Fun Facts About Australia - Geography

No part of Australia is more than 1000 km from the ocean and a beach. (The point in the world that's the furthest from any ocean would be in China.)
Australia has the world's largest cattle station (ranch). At 30,028 km² it is almost the same size as Belgium.
Population density in Australia is usually calculated in km² per person, not people per km².
Australians have 380,000 m² per person available. Yet well over 90% are cramming into our coastal cities. (Don't ask me why, I sure prefer it here in the Outback.)
We call Australian's from Queensland "banana benders", and people from Western Australia "sandgropers".
Tasmania has the cleanest air in the world.
The Great Barrier Reef has a mailbox. You can ferry out there and send a postcard, stamped with the only Great Barrier Reef stamp.
The Australian Alps, or Snowy Mountains as they are also known, receive more snow than Switzerland.
Melbourne has the second largest Greek population in the world, after Athens.

Other Miscellaneous Australian Fun Facts

Imagine the fully welded rails of the Ghan train track weren't restrained properly: on a hot Outback desert day they would expand at 200km/hour and at the Darwin end they'd stick out 1.1 km into the ocean.
Star gazing: under ideal viewing conditions, like in the Australian Outback, the naked eye can detect about 5,780 stars.
The Sydney Opera House roof weighs more than 161,000 tons.
The Great Barrier Reef is the largest organic construction on earth.
Termite mounds are the tallest non-human constructions on earth.
Yulara, the Aboriginal name of the Ayers Rock Resort, means "crying", "weeping". Nasty tongues say because that's what visitors do when they see their bill...

If you find that any of these Australian fun facts are out of date or plain wrong, don't crucify me. Just let me know. I'll fix it. And if you know any more good fun facts about Australia, or have a funny story, let me know, too. I'll add it.

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