Goose Island is a small (2 ha), rocky island lying about 550 m from the northern end of the much larger Wardang Island, off the west coast of the Yorke Peninsula, in the Spencer Gulf of South Australia. Rising to a height of 26 m, its vegetation is dominated by African Boxthorn on clay and calcarenite soils. The waters surrounding the island are protected in the Goose Island Aquatic Reserve.[1]
Goose Island, along with other nearby rocks and islets contained in the Goose Island Conservation Park (including Little Goose Island, White Rocks, Seal Rocks and Rocky Island), has been identified by BirdLife International as a 35 ha Important Bird Area (IBA) because it supports over 1% of the world population of Black-faced Cormorants, holding up to 750 breeding pairs. It is also a frequently used site for Fairy Terns which have been recorded as breeding there.[2] The IBA also contains refuge and breeding habitat for Australian Sea Lions.[1]
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