Boondelbah Island, also known as the Boondelbah Nature Reserve, is a

protected Protection is any measure taken to guard a thing against damage caused by outside forces. Protection can be provided to physical objects, including organisms, to systems, and to intangible things like civil and political rights. Although th ...

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

and uninhabited island lying off the mouth of Port Stephens on the coast of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, Australia. The reserve and island is one of two breeding sites of the nominate

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

of the

threatened Threatened species are any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensat ...

Gould's petrel Gould's petrel (''Pterodroma leucoptera'') is a species of seabird in the family Procellariidae. The common name commemorates the English ornithologist and bird artist John Gould (1804–1881). Description Gould's petrel is a small gadfly petr ...

and, with the nearby

Cabbage Tree Island Cabbage Tree Island, also known as the John Gould Nature Reserve, is a protected nature reserve and uninhabited continental island lying off the mouth of Port Stephens on the coast of New South Wales, Australia. The reserve and island is named ...

which hosts the principal

colony In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the ''metropole, metropolit ...

, has been classified by

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...

as an

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

Description

Boondelbah Island is a small, flat-topped, V-shaped island, surrounded by cliffs, about , with a maximum height of about . In contrast to rainforest-covered Cabbage Tree, Boondelbah is virtually treeless with the vegetation dominated by mat rush and coastal rosemary, with tussocks of paroo lily and knobby club rush. Prickly pear covers much of the cliff tops.

Conservation

Both Boondelbah and Cabbage Tree Islands are

gazetted A gazette is an official journal, a newspaper of record, or simply a newspaper. In English and French speaking countries, newspaper publishers have applied the name ''Gazette'' since the 17th century; today, numerous weekly and daily newspapers ...

nature reserves under the , so protecting the islands' habitat from land uses incompatible with nature conservation. Access is only permitted for scientific and conservation purposes.

Fauna

Little penguins breed on Boondelbah Island and shearwaters also roost there.

Gould's petrel conservation management

Although the larger Cabbage Tree Island had been known for its breeding colony of Gould's petrels for many years, it was only in 1995 that a few breeding birds were found on Boondelbah. In order to establish a second colony, in February 1999 a hundred Gould's petrel chicks were translocated from Cabbage Tree to Boondelbah and placed in artificial

nest box A nest is a structure built for certain animals to hold eggs or young. Although nests are most closely associated with birds, members of all classes of vertebrates and some invertebrates construct nests. They may be composed of organic materia ...

es, with a further hundred being translocated in March 2000. Almost all the chicks fledged successfully.

References

Islands of New South Wales Island restoration Important Bird Areas of New South Wales Nature reserves in New South Wales Mid-Coast Council Uninhabited islands of Australia Penguin colonies {{NewSouthWales-protected-area-stub

Description

Conservation

Fauna

Gould's petrel conservation management

See also

References