🦘 Australian Fossil Mammal Sites (Riversleigh / Naracoorte)
UNESCO World Heritage fossil sites documenting 30 million years of Australian mammal evolution
Naracoorte, specifically the Victoria Fossil Cave, is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site known as the Australian Fossil Mammal Sites (Riversleigh/Naracoorte).
📌 Fast Facts
- Two complementary fossil sites spanning 30 million years of Australian mammal evolution
- Riversleigh (Queensland) preserves Oligocene–Miocene fossils, 10–30 million years old
- Naracoorte (Victoria) contains mid-Pleistocene to present-day vertebrate fossils, 530,000 years to today
- Among the world's ten most significant fossil sites, with one of the richest records of extinct Australian megafauna
The Australian Fossil Mammal Sites encompass Riversleigh in Queensland and Naracoorte in Victoria, representing two of Earth's most important paleontological locations. Together, they document the evolution of Australia's distinctive fauna over approximately 30 million years, from the early Oligocene epoch through the ice ages to the present day. These complementary sites provide an exceptionally complete record of how Australia's unique mammals adapted to profound environmental and climatic ...