The Great Barrier Reef is one of the richest, most complex and diverse natural areas in the world. It is larger than Victoria and Tasmania combined, covering approximately 350 000 square kilometres and stretching more than 2300 kilometres along the northeast coast of Australia.
The Great Barrier Reef is the only living structure that can be seen from the moon. According to marine biologist Robin Aiello, “There are more different species of animals and plants in a
cubic metre of the Great Barrier Reef, than in any other environment in the world – including tropical
rainforests. In fact, some reefs in the Great Barrier Reef have more different fish types than in the entire
Caribbean Ocean.”
It's a special place
The Great Barrier Reef is home to an amazing variety of fascinating plants and animals, which live underwater and on the shores of the Reef’s many islands. It is alive with colour, movement and diversity.
Its Indigenous history stretches back for millennia with many of these connections maintained today. European exploration and the growth of Reef industries means that the Reef is now closely woven into the fabric of coastal Queensland.
What makes the Reef special?
The Great Barrier Reef is undisputed as one of the world’s most important natural assets. It is the largest natural feature on earth stretching more than 2300 km from the northern tip of Queensland to just north of Bundaberg. It is in fact a collection of about 2900 individual reefs.
At 348 700 square kilometres, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park is the world's largest World Heritage Area and the biggest tropical marine reserve.
The Reef is a complex ecosystem with many creatures relying on each other for food and survival. Virtually all groups of marine plants and animals are abundantly represented in the Reef. Only tropical rainforests come close to rivalling the Reef for richness of species. There are also many threatened species that are protected within the Marine Park, including dugongs and six of the world’s seven species of marine turtles.
It's culturally special
Many Indigenous values and traditions are linked to the Reef, focussing on trade networks, beliefs, music, art, laws and creation stories. The links between Indigenous groups and the Reef have been imbedded into the culture over thousands of years and continue today. There are coastal communities along the entire Great Barrier Reef coast who have traditional affiliations with the Great Barrier Reef and take an interest in its management.
It’s rich in history
Captain James Cook is one of the most famous Great Barrier Reef explorers, charting and naming many of the Reef’s landmarks during his 1770 voyage on the Endeavour. However, he didn’t name the Reef. That honour fell to Matthew Flinders in 1803. In the early days of settlement along the Queensland coast, shipping in the waters of the Great Barrier Reef was one of the most reliable ways to transport goods, supplies and, of course, people to the expanding coastal communities. The legacy of this era is a number of significant shipwrecks, plus historic lighthouses and ruins on some islands.
It’s different
Many marine parks throughout the world are set up as strict preservation areas (‘look but don’t take’) that do not allow any extractive activities such as fishing and collecting. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park is different — it is a multiple use protected area. In other words, the Marine Park is managed to protect the Reef’s natural and cultural heritage values, and at the same time allow for a diverse range of sustainable commercial and recreational activities including fishing, tourism, research and education.
The goal of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority is to provide for the protection, wise use, understanding and enjoyment of the Great Barrier Reef in perpetuity through the care and development of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.
And it's popular
Drawn by the Reef’s spectacular beauty and international reputation, tourists make over 1.9 million visits to the Marine Park each year, while recreational users make an estimated 4.9 million visits annually. The number of tourists visiting the Marine Park has been stable over the last decade, following strong growth in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
There are about 820 permitted tourism operators in the Marine Park, most operating in the Cairns/Port Douglas area or in the Whitsundays. Although these two areas are less than 10% of the Marine Park, they are visited by over 85% of visitors.
Great Barrier Reef Fast Facts
Location: Northern Queensland.
Size:
- 348 000 sq kilometres
- About 70 million football fields
- Bigger than Victoria and Tasmania
- combined
- Bigger than New Zealand
- Bigger than the United Kingdom
- Roughly the same size as Japan
- Approximately half the size of Texas.
Fast Facts:
1. Contains 1500 of the world's 13,000 species of marine fish (just over 10 per cent). It's possible to find as many as 200 different types of fish in just one hectare on the Reef.
2. Contains 360 species of hard corals
3. Contains 629 species of seaweed
4. Contains 6 of the world’s 7 species
of marine turtles
5. Contains 215 species of birds
6. Contains 14 000 dugongs
7. Contains 130 species of sharks
and rays.
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