Any inland area that lies far from large, populated centres is called an Outback in Australia. It usually refers to the semiarid inland areas of eastern Australia and the arid centre of the Western Plateau and its semi arid northern plains where water bodies are scattered and sometimes dry. Such places are important in terms of environment as well as tourism.
Historically, even the driest remote regions have been inhabited by indigenous Australians for around 50,000 years. As a result, such areas have become part of the Australian heritage, history and folklore.
Today, the Outback is regarded as the largest remaining, intact natural area on Earth. The MacDonnell Ranges, the town of Birdsville, the Katherine Gorge, Uluru and the Devil’s Marbles are some of the popular tourist attractions in the country’s Outback. Many animals like red kangaroos and dingoes that are well-adapted to the climatic conditions can be seen in the regions.
Livestock grazing or pastoralism, using cattle and sheep form the largest industry across the Outback.