New Year Island (Tasmania)

New Year Island, part of the New Year Group, is a 98.22-hectare (242.7-acre) granite island and game reserve located in the Great Australian Bight, lying off the north-west coast of Tasmania, Australia.[1]

New Year Island
New Year Island, located top left, relative to King Island
New Year Island is located in Tasmania
New Year Island
New Year Island
Location of New Year Island in the Great Australian Bight, west of the Bass Strait
Geography
LocationRoaring Forties, Great Australian Bight
Coordinates39°40′12″S 143°49′12″E
ArchipelagoNew Year Group
Total islands5
Major islandsKing Island
Area98.22 ha (242.7 acres)
Administration
Australia
StateTasmania
LGAMunicipality of King Island

New Year Group

There are four islands in the New Year Group. Besides New Year Island, these are:

While King Island has the largest area of the four islands, the group is named after New Year Island because it was discovered by Europeans a few days earlier than King Island.[2][3]

Fauna

Breeding seabird and shorebird species include short-tailed shearwater, fairy prion, Pacific gull, silver gull and sooty oystercatcher. Reptiles include tiger snake, white's skink, metallic skink and eastern blue-tongued lizard. A species of mouse is present.[3]

The island forms part of the King Island Important Bird Area because of its importance for breeding seabirds and waders.[4]

Geography

According to the International Hydrographic Organization, the line separating the Bass Strait from the Great Australian Bight runs through King Island, so New Year Island lies in the Great Australian Bight.

New Year Island (centre, north), Christmas Island (centre, south) and King Island (bottom-right)

See also

References
  1. "New Year Island (TAS)". Gazetteer of Australia online. Geoscience Australia, Australian Government.
  2. "Travel: King Island". The Sydney Morning Herald. 8 February 2004. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  3. Brothers, Nigel; Pemberton, David; Pryor, Helen; Halley, Vanessa (2001). Tasmania's Offshore Islands: seabirds and other natural features. Hobart: Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery. pp. 50–51. ISBN 0-7246-4816-X.
  4. "King Island". Important Bird Areas factsheet. BirdLife International. 2011. Retrieved 16 July 2011.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.