Deliverance Island (Queensland)

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Deliverance Island (Warul Kawa) is a small island about 80 km South of Papua New Guinea and 200 km North of Thursday Island, Torres Strait, in the Torres Strait Queensland, Australia.

Deliverance Island is surrounded by a shallow reef platform characterised by rocky rubble interspersed with sandy patches with little live coral present. This island is located in the Cape York Peninsula Bioregion and its management is linked under the plan of management to the World Conservation Union Guidelines for protected area management under Category VI (managed resource protected area). Brown and green algae are predominating on the rocky substrate with some seagrass present. The island and surrounding reef support two internationally significant populations of sea turtles. It contains one of the largest rookeries for the flatback turtle, which is only found in Australian waters. The extensive shallow water habitats in the area support large numbers of migrating green turtles. The breeding assemblages in north and eastern Australia are the largest remaining rookeries for green turtles.The island and surrounding reef system have retained their high natural value due largely to their remoteness. Although Warul Kawa has been inhabited periodically by Europeans in the past, there has been little impact on the natural environment as evident by the presence of only two-recorded exotic plant species. The area has maintained high vegetation integrity of considerable diversity and complexity. These habitats support a variety of birds, including the yellow-footed scrubfowl, not reported on many other islands in Torres Strait. The area is likely to be important to migratory birds