Breaksea Islands (Tasmania)

The Breaksea Islands Group is a group of six islands, located in the Southern Ocean, off the south western coast of Tasmania, Australia.[1]

Breaksea Islands Group
Breaksea Islands
Location off the south western coast of Tasmania
Geography
LocationPort Davey
Coordinates43°19′12″S 145°57′36″E
Adjacent bodies of waterSouthern Ocean
Total islands6
Area16 ha (40 acres)
Administration
Australia
StateTasmania
RegionSouth West
Demographics
Population0

Located near the mouth of Port Davey, the group comprise the North Breaksea and Main Breaksea Islands,[2] the Fitzroy, Kathleen, and Munday islands, and the Mavourneen Rocks. The group have a total area of approximately 16 hectares (40 acres) and are contained within the Southwest National Park, part of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Site and the Port Davey/Bathurst Harbour Marine Nature Reserve.[3]

Fauna

The islands are noted as a breeding site for many seabird species, including little penguin (400 pairs), short-tailed shearwater (3-5000 pairs), fairy prion (20 pairs) and silver gull. The Tasmanian tree skink is present.[2] Rabbits were introduced in the 19th century by whalers.[4] and have caused some damage to vegetation and soil.[5]

The islands are part of the Port Davey Islands Important Bird Area, so identified by BirdLife International because of its importance for breeding seabirds.[6]

See also

References
  1. "Breaksea Islands (TAS)". Gazetteer of Australia online. Geoscience Australia, Australian Government.
  2. Brothers, Nigel; Pemberton, David; Pryor, Helen; Halley, Vanessa (2001). Tasmania's Offshore Islands: seabirds and other natural features. Hobart: Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery. ISBN 0-7246-4816-X.
  3. "Port Davey/Bathurst Harbour Marine Nature Reserve". Sea Fishing & Aquaculture: Area Restrictions: Marine Reserves. Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment, Tasmanian Government. 3 September 2014. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  4. White, Gary (1980). Islands of South-West Tasmania. Sydney: self-published. ISBN 0-9594866-0-7.
  5. "Small Southern Islands Conservation Management Statement 2002" (PDF). Parks & Wildlife Service Tasmania. 2002. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 August 2006. Retrieved 23 July 2006.
  6. ""Port Davey Islands"". BirdLife International. Retrieved 16 June 2018.


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