The Burdekin River is a river in North and Far North Queensland, Australia. The river rises on the northern slopes of Boulder Mountain at Valley of Lagoons, part of the western slope of the Seaview Range, and flows into the Coral Sea at Upstart Bay over 200 kilometres to the southeast of the source, with a catchment area of approximately 130,000 square kilometres. The Burdekin River is Australias largest river by (peak) discharge volume.
The river was first encountered by Europeans during the expedition led by Ludwig Leichhardt in 1845 and named in honour of Thomas Burdekin, one of the sponsors of the expedition.
Neosilurus mollespiculum is a species of eeltail catfish endemic to the Burdekin. Many other species such as Agassizs glassfish, Irwins turtle, banded grunter, barramundi, black catfish, eastern rainbowfish, empire gudgeon, freshwater longtom, mangrove jack, tilapia and yellowbelly are found throughout the catchment.
