Devils Tower comprises two small and rugged
granite islands, with a combined area of , in south-eastern
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
. It is part of
Tasmania’s Curtis Group, lying in northern
Bass Strait
Bass Strait () is a strait separating the island state of Tasmania from the Australian mainland (more specifically the coast of Victoria, with the exception of the land border across Boundary Islet). The strait provides the most direct waterwa ...
between the
Furneaux Group and
Wilsons Promontory in
Victoria. It is a
nature reserve.
The island was sighted and named by Lieutenant
James Grant James Grant may refer to:
Politics and law
*Sir James Grant, 1st Baronet (died 1695), Scottish lawyer
*Sir James Grant, 6th Baronet (1679–1747), Scottish Whig politician
*Sir James Grant, 8th Baronet (1738–1811), Scottish member of parliament
* ...
on 9 December 1800 from the survey brig HMS
Lady Nelson.
[
]
Fauna
Recorded breeding
seabird species include
short-tailed shearwater
The short-tailed shearwater or slender-billed shearwater (''Ardenna tenuirostris''; formerly ''Puffinus tenuirostris''), also called yolla or moonbird, and commonly known as the muttonbird in Australia, is the most abundant seabird species in A ...
,
fairy prion and
common diving-petrel. The
metallic skink is present. The island is also used as a regular
haul-out site for
Australian fur seal
The brown fur seal (''Arctocephalus pusillus''), also known as the Cape fur seal, South African fur seal and Australian fur seal, is a species of fur seal.
Description
The brown fur seal is the largest and most robust member of the fur seals. ...
s.
[Brothers, Nigel; Pemberton, David; Pryor, Helen; & Halley, Vanessa. (2001). ''Tasmania’s Offshore Islands: seabirds and other natural features''. Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery: Hobart. ]
See also
The other islands in the Curtis Group:
*
Cone Islet
*
Curtis Island
*
Sugarloaf Rock
References
Islands of Tasmania
Protected areas of Tasmania
{{Tasmania-geo-stub