Investigator Strait

Investigator Strait is a body of water in South Australia lying between the Yorke Peninsula, on the Australian mainland, and Kangaroo Island. It was named by Matthew Flinders after his ship, HMS Investigator, on his voyage of 1801–1802. It is bordered by the Gulf St Vincent in the northeast.

Investigator Strait
Investigator Strait is the body of water between Yorke Peninsula (i.e. the central land mass) and Kangaroo Island
Investigator Strait is located in South Australia
Investigator Strait
Investigator Strait
LocationAustralia
Coordinates35.4°S 137.6°E / -35.4; 137.6
Basin countriesAustralia
Max. length135.3 km (84.1 mi)[1]
Max. width48 km (30 mi)[1]
Surface area6,100 km2 (2,400 sq mi)[2]
Average depth34 m (112 ft)[2]
Max. depth75 m (246 ft)[2]
IslandsAlthorpes
Chinamans Hat
Haystack
Seal
SettlementsMarion Bay, Stenhouse Bay, Cape Jervis, Stokes Bay, Emu Bay

Discovery and exploration

It was named Investigator’s Strait by Flinders on Monday 29 March 1802.[3]

Extent

Investigator Strait is bounded by Yorke Peninsula to its north and by Kangaroo Island to its south. Flinders identified its boundaries with the following adjoining bodies of water - Gulf St Vincent and Backstairs Passage. The Strait’s boundary with Gulf St Vincent is the line from Troubridge Point on Yorke Peninsula to Cape Jervis on Fleurieu Peninsula.[2] Its boundary with Backstairs Passage is the line from Cape Jervis on Fleurieu Peninsula to Kangaroo Head (west of Penneshaw) on Kangaroo Island. Flinders noted that Backstairs Passage is a body of water separate to Investigator Strait.[4] The boundary between the strait and Nepean Bay on the north-east coast of Kangaroo Island is a line between Point Marsden and Kangaroo Head.[5] The Strait’s western boundary by definition is the line from Cape Spencer on Yorke Peninsula to Cape Borda on Kangaroo Island.

Protected areas

A number of protected areas are located both within and adjoining the Strait’s extent.

Aquatic reserves

Marine parks
  • Southern Spencer Gulf Marine Park - the west end of the strait including the coasts of both Yorke Peninsula and Kangaroo Island.[7]
  • Lower Yorke Peninsula Marine Park - east end of the strait adjoining the south coast of Yorke Peninsula.[8]
  • Western Kangaroo Island Marine Park - west end of the strait adjoining the north coast of Kangaroo Island.[9]
  • Encounter Marine Park covers the east end of the strait including its boundaries with Nepean Bay and Backstairs Passage.[10]

National parks and other reserves

The following reserves are located on the south coast of Yorke Peninsula (from west to east):

The following reserves are located on the north coast of Kangaroo Island (from west to east):

The following reserve is located on Althorpe Islands, Haystack Island and Seal Island at the north-west end of the strait:

References
  1. Hydrographic Department, Ministry of Defence (1983). Gulf of St Vincent and approaches (chart no. 1762). – reproduced by the Royal Australian Navy Hydrographic Service
  2. Bye, J.A.T. (1976): Physical oceanography of Gulf St Vincent and Investigator Strait. In: Twidale, C.R., Tyler, M.J. & Webb, B.P. (Eds.), Natural history of the Adelaide Region. Royal Society of SA Inc, Adelaide. pp. 143.
  3. Flinders, Matthew (1966) [1814]. A Voyage to Terra Australis : undertaken for the purpose of completing the discovery of that vast country, and prosecuted in the years 1801, 1802, and 1803 in His Majesty's ship the Investigator, and subsequently in the armed vessel Porpoise and Cumberland Schooner; with an account of the shipwreck of the Porpoise, arrival of the Cumberland at Mauritius, and imprisonment of the commander during six years and a half in that island (Facsimile ed.). Adelaide: Libraries Board of South Australia. p. 256. Retrieved 2 May 2013.
  4. Flinders, Matthew (1966) [1814]. A Voyage to Terra Australis : undertaken for the purpose of completing the discovery of that vast country, and prosecuted in the years 1801, 1802, and 1803 in His Majesty's ship the Investigator, and subsequently in the armed vessel Porpoise and Cumberland Schooner; with an account of the shipwreck of the Porpoise, arrival of the Cumberland at Mauritius, and imprisonment of the commander during six years and a half in that island (Facsimile ed.). Adelaide: Libraries Board of South Australia. p. 262. Retrieved 2 May 2013.
  5. Sailing Directions (Enroute), Pub. 175: North, West, and South Coasts of Australia (PDF). Sailing Directions. United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. 2017. p. 215.
  6. "Troubridge Hill Aquatic Reserve" (PDF). Primary Industries and Regions SA (PIRSA). Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 April 2015. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
  7. "Southern Spencer Gulf Park Management plan summary" (PDF). Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources. p. 2 of 6. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
  8. "Lower Yorke Peninsula Marine Park summary" (PDF). Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources. p. 2 of 6. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
  9. "Western Kangaroo Island Park Management plan summary" (PDF). Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources. p. 27 of 29. Retrieved 23 June 2014.
  10. "Encounter Marine Park Management plan summary" (PDF). Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources. p. 2 of 6. Retrieved 17 June 2014.
  11. "Innes National Park Management Plan" (PDF). Department for Environment and Heritage. 2003. p. 6. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
  12. "Mainland Conservation Parks of Yorke Peninsula Management Plan 2009" (PDF). Department for Environment and Heritage. p. 2. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
  13. "Flinders Chase National Park, Kelly Hill Conservation Park, Ravine des Casoars Wilderness Protection Area and Cape Bouguer Wilderness Protection Area Management Plans" (PDF). Department for Environment, Heritage and Aboriginal Affairs. 1999. p. 5. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
  14. "Cape Torrens and Western River Wilderness Protection Areas Management Plan 2006" (PDF). Department for Environment and Heritage. p. 2. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
  15. Management Plan - Althorpe Islands, Goose Island and Troubridge Island Conservation Parks (PDF). Adelaide: Department of Environment & Heritage. 2009. pp. 1, 2 & 4. ISBN 978-1-921466-76-2.

Further reading
  • Arnott, T., (1996), Investigator Strait Maritime Heritage Trail, Heritage Branch, Department for Environment, Heritage and Aboriginal Affairs. Adelaide (ISBN 0 7308 4720 9).
  • Coroneos, Cosmos & McKinnon, Robert; (1997), Shipwrecks of the Investigator Strait and the Lower Yorke Peninsula, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Adelaide, South Australia. (ISBN 0-9588496-3-3).
  • McKinnon, R.; (1993), Shipwreck sites of Kangaroo Island, State Heritage Branch, Department of Environment and Land Management. Adelaide (ISBN 0730826929).
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