Closer look: Marine life in and around the Great Sandy Biosphere

Within the Great Sandy Biosphere, between Fraser Island and the mainland of south-east Queensland, Australia, lies the Great Sandy Strait. These coastal sandy habitats support species such as resident and migratory turtles and shorebirds, dugongs, and humpback whales.

A little further south in the Great Sandy Marine Park, the endangered grey nurse shark can be found.

However, pressure from fishing, unsympathetic tourist activity and the degradation of coastal habitats is putting the species that rely on these ecosystems at risk. That’s why Fauna & Flora International (FFI) is working with the Burnett Mary Regional Group to ensure the area and its rich wildlife is well conserved.

Great Sandy marine quick facts

• The Ramsar-listed Great Sandy Strait is an important site for migratory bird species – it hosts at least 49% of the resident and frequent migratory birds known to Australia on less than one per cent of Australia’s landmass
• Important site for migratory fauna species, including the Indo-Pacific humpback dolphin, the humpback whale and the flatback, green and loggerhead turtles
• Threats to the south-east Queensland turtle populations include light pollution, boat strike, feral predators, by-catch, crab pots and climate change. The loggerhead has lost 50-80% of its annual nesting population in the last decade
• Provides essential habitat for grey nurse sharks
• Home to the dugong, who rely on the region’s rich seagrass beds for food
• Coastal mangrove habitats are critical for breeding life stages of fish as well as roosting and food sources, for migratory bird species. They also protect the shoreline from erosion and play an important role in water quality improvement for estuarine, marine and ground water systems