Great Australian Bight Marine Park (formerly Great Australian Bight Commonwealth Marine Reserve) is a

marine protected area Marine protected areas (MPA) are protected areas of seas, oceans, estuaries or in the US, the Great Lakes. These marine areas can come in many forms ranging from wildlife refuges to research facilities. MPAs restrict human activity for a con ...

located in the

Great Australian Bight The Great Australian Bight is a large oceanic bight, or open bay, off the central and western portions of the southern coastline of mainland Australia. Extent Two definitions of the extent are in use – one used by the International Hydrog ...

south of

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest o ...

in waters within the

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

n Exclusive economic zone.DoE (map), 2015 It was gazetted in November 2012 to replace the

Great Australian Bight Marine Park (Commonwealth waters) Great Australian Bight Marine Park (Commonwealth Waters) is a former marine protected area located in the Great Australian Bight immediately south of South Australia and its immediate onshore waters. On 8 November 2012, it was replaced by a ne ...

. It was renamed on 11 October 2017. The marine park consists of three zones - a marine national park zone (

IUCN Category II IUCN protected area categories, or IUCN protected area management categories, are categories used to classify protected areas in a system developed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The enlisting of such areas is part ...

) with an area of , a multiple use zone (

IUCN Category VI IUCN protected area categories, or IUCN protected area management categories, are categories used to classify protected areas in a system developed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The enlisting of such areas is part ...

) with an area of and a special purpose zone (IUCN Category VI) which occupies three separate areas of ocean with a total area of . The purpose of the marine park is to protect habitat used for calving by the

Southern right whale The southern right whale (''Eubalaena australis'') is a baleen whale, one of three species classified as right whales belonging to the genus ''Eubalaena''. Southern right whales inhabit oceans south of the Equator, between the latitudes of 20 ...

and as a feeding area for the following species -

Australian sea lion The Australian sea lion (''Neophoca cinerea''), also known as the Australian sea-lion or Australian sealion, is a species of sea lion that is the only endemic pinniped in Australia. It is currently monotypic in the genus '' Neophoca'', with the ...

sperm whale The sperm whale or cachalot (''Physeter macrocephalus'') is the largest of the toothed whales and the largest toothed predator. It is the only living member of the genus ''Physeter'' and one of three extant species in the sperm whale famil ...

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 ...

and

great white shark The great white shark (''Carcharodon carcharias''), also known as the white shark, white pointer, or simply great white, is a species of large mackerel shark which can be found in the coastal surface waters of all the major oceans. It is nota ...

. It is part of a group of

Australian marine parks Australian marine parks (formerly Commonwealth marine reserves) are marine protected areas located within Australian waters and are managed by the Australian government. These waters generally extend from three nautical miles off the coast to the ...

known as the South-west Marine Parks Network. It is also part of the group of marine protected areas which are located together in waters within Australian and South Australian jurisdictions within the Great Australian Bight and which were collectively known as the

Great Australian Bight Marine Park Great Australian Bight Marine Park is the name given to a group of marine protected areas which are located together within both Australian and South Australian jurisdictions in the Great Australian Bight and which has been in use as recently a ...

as recently as 2005.Director of National Parks, 2005, page iii It lies to the west of the

Western Eyre Marine Park Western Eyre Marine Park (formerly Western Eyre Commonwealth Marine Reserve) is a marine protected area located in the Great Australian Bight south of South Australia in waters within the Australian Exclusive economic zone. It was gazett ...

South-west Commonwealth Marine Reserves Network map

Citations and references

;Citations ;References * * * *

External links

Official webpageWebpage for the Great Australian Bight Commonwealth Marine Reserve on the Protected Planet website
{{Protected areas managed by the Australian Government , state=collapsed IUCN Category II IUCN Category VI Australian marine parks Protected areas established in 2012 2012 establishments in Australia Great Australian Bight

See also

Citations and references

External links