Night Island is a small
granite island, with an area of 2.59
ha, is part of the Preservation Island Group, lying in eastern
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 ...
south of
Cape Barren Island in the
Furneaux Group,
Tasmania, Australia.
It is a Conservation Area.
[ The island has been identified 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 ...
(IBA) because it holds over 1% of the world population of black-faced cormorant
The black-faced cormorant (''Phalacrocorax fuscescens''), also known as the black-faced shag, is a medium-sized member of the cormorant family. Upperparts, including facial skin and bill, are black, with white underparts. It is endemic to coas ...
s.
Fauna
As well as up to 138 pairs of black-faced cormorants, recorded breeding seabird and wader species include little penguin
The little penguin (''Eudyptula minor'') is a species of penguin from New Zealand. They are commonly known as little blue penguins or blue penguins owing to their slate-blue plumage and are also known by their Māori name .
The Australian lit ...
, Pacific gull and sooty oystercatcher.[Brothers, Nigel; Pemberton, David; Pryor, Helen; & Halley, Vanessa. (2001). ''Tasmania’s Offshore Islands: seabirds and other natural features''. Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery: Hobart. ]
Other islands in the Preservation Group with breeding seabirds include[ the Preservation Island, the Preservation Islets, and the Rum Island.
]
See also
* List of islands of Tasmania
References
{{coord, 40, 29, S, 148, 01, E, display=title
Furneaux Group
Protected areas of Tasmania
Important Bird Areas of Tasmania