Australia is a continent and it is also a country of its own. Australia is located between the South Pacific and Indian Oceans. Australia is often called, "the land down under," because it lies entirely within the southern hemisphere. In Latin, Australia means "southern." The official name of the country is "the Commonwealth of Australia." Australia is surrounded by water like an island, but geographers classify it as a continent rather than an island because of its great size. Australia covers about 5% of earth's land area. Most of Australia is low and flat, the highest and most mountainous land lies along the east coast. Nearly all the land west of this region consists of level plains and plateaus.At one time, all the continents were part of one huge land mass. Australia became separated from this landmass about 200 million years ago. As a result, its animals developed differently from those on other continents. Australia's most famous native animals include kangaroos, koalas, wallabies, wombats, and other marsupials.
