Natural Values
The Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area is the world’s largest marine protected area and protection of its natural values is the primary concern of GBRMPA.
Management of the natural values concentrates on three major conservation management directions:
- The protection of threatened species
- The identification and protection of representative areas
- The improvement in understanding the effects of large-scale disturbances eg. Crown-of-Thorns Starfish and coral bleaching
Biological Diversity of the GBRWHA includes:
- Continental islands
- Low wooded islands
- Coral cays
- Bottom-dwelling communities
- Deep ocean troughs
- Mangrove estuaries - 54% of world’s mangrove diversity
- Algal and sponge gardens
- Seagrass beds - > 43000 km2
- Over 2900 coral reefs built from over 360 species of hard coral
- Over 1/3 of the world’s soft coral species
- Over 1500 species of fish
- Six of the world’s seven species of marine turtle
- World’s largest green turtle breeding area
- One of the world’s most important dugong populations
- Important seabird breeding islands
- Breeding area for humpback and other whale species
Related Links
- Whale & Dolphin Policy
- Guidelines for Managing Visitation to Seabird Breeding Islands
- Threats to marine wildlife
- Marine Turtles in the Great Barrier Reef Work Heritage Area
- Fauna and Flora of the Great Barrier Reef Work Heritage Area
- Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service
