Whitsunday Islands National Park

Whitsunday Islands Island National Park
IUCN category II (national park)

Whitehaven beach on Whitsunday Island
Coordinates Coordinates: 20°03′37″S 148°52′27″E / 20.06028°S 148.87417°E
Established 1944
Area 170 km2 (65.6 sq mi)
Managing authorities Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service

Whitsunday Islands is a national park in Queensland, Australia, 920 kilometres (570 mi) northwest of Brisbane.

Geography

The Whitsunday Islands lie midway along Australia's Queensland coast and are bordered by the Great Barrier Reef and the waters of the Coral Sea. Migrating humpback whales favour the waters around the Whitsunday Islands as a calving ground between May and September each year.[1] Marine stingers are found in the waters of the islands between October and May.[1]

The region spans from the beaches of Bowen in the north and Laguna Whitsundays in the south. All 74 of the islands are surrounded by the Great Barrier Reef and only eight of them are inhabited.

See also

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 Explore Queensland's National Parks. Prahran, Victoria: Explore Australia Publishing. 2008. p. 19. ISBN 978-1-74117-245-4.