Coral Sea Marine Park

Conservation values

Species and habitat

• Humpback whales during their annual migration along the east coast of Australia;
• Nesting and inter-nesting sites for green turtles;
• Breeding and foraging areas for multiple seabird species including noddies, terns, boobies, frigatebirds, and tropic birds;
• White shark distribution and whale shark aggregation.
• Transient populations of highly migratory pelagic species, including small fish schools, billfish, tuna and sharks.
• The East Australian Current forms in the region and is considered a major pathway for mobile predators such as billfish and tunas. Black marlin undergo seasonal movements into the Queensland Plateau area.

  Bioregions and other features

• Includes three Key Ecological Features: the reefs, cays and herbivorous fish of the Queensland Plateau and the Marion Plateau and the northern extent of the Tasmantid Seamount Chain.
• Heritage values include several historic shipwrecks including three World War II shipwrecks from the Battle of the Coral Sea.
• The reserve represents the full range of seafloor features found in the region, including numerous reefs ranging from Ashmore and Boot Reefs in the north of the region to Cato Island and surrounding reefs in the south. The reserve includes canyons, troughs and plateaux, including Bligh Canyon approximately 200 kilometres off the coast from Lockhart River and the Townsville Trough, which separates the Queensland and Marion Plateaux. The reserve extends into the deeper waters of the Coral Sea Basin in the north, and provides protection for the pinnacles of the northern extent of the Tasmantid seamount chain.
• Six provincial bioregions, 94 depth ranges, and 16 seafloor types are represented in the reserve.

  History

Former reserves

Summary of protection zones