Babel Island
|
Aerial view from south east | |
  Babel Island (Tasmania) | |
| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Location | Bass Strait |
| Coordinates | 39°56′S 148°19′E / 39.933°S 148.317°ECoordinates: 39°56′S 148°19′E / 39.933°S 148.317°E |
| Archipelago | Furneaux Group |
| Area | 440 ha (1,100 acres) |
| Country | |
|
Australia | |
| State | Tasmania |
Babel Island is a granite island, with an area of 440 ha located off the east coast of Flinders Island. It is part of the Furneaux Group Archipelago, at the eastern end of Bass Strait, between Victoria and Tasmania, Australia. It was named by Matthew Flinders from the noises made by the seabirds there.[1] It is privately owned.[2]
Fauna
The Babel Island group is classified as an Important Bird Area.[3] Babel island is home to the largest colony of short-tailed shearwaters in the world, with an estimated 2.8 million pairs, or about 12% of the whole population of this species, and is subject to annual muttonbirding. It also has a major colony of little penguins, with 20,000 pairs. As well as the shearwaters and penguins, other seabirds and waders recorded as breeding on the island include silver gull, Pacific gull, sooty oystercatcher and crested tern. White-bellied sea-eagles breed on the island and peregrine falcons nest on the eastern cliffs.[2]
Mammals found there are the red-necked wallaby and Tasmanian pademelon as well as the introduced house mouse and feral cat. Resident reptiles include the metallic skink, three-lined skink, White's skink, eastern blue-tongued lizard and tiger snake.[2]
References
- ↑ Flinders, Matthew (1814), A Voyage to Terra Australis, London: G. and W. Nicol, entry for 9 February 1798
- 1 2 3 Brothers, Nigel; Pemberton, David; Pryor, Helen; & Halley, Vanessa. (2001). Tasmania’s Offshore Islands: seabirds and other natural features. Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery: Hobart. ISBN 0-7246-4816-X
- ↑ "IBA: Babel Island Group". Birdata. Birds Australia. Retrieved 2011-05-19.