What is Macquarie Island famous for?
The island is an important site for a proliferation of wildlife, including extensive seal colonies and an array of penguin species. Around 3.5 million seabirds and 80,000 elephant seals arrive on Macquarie Island each year to breed and moult.
Why do people go to Macquarie Island?
Macquarie Island is home to a large variety of wildlife, including thousands of seals and millions of penguins, and has been designated a World Heritage site. The Australian Antarctic Division research station is located at the north end of the island. The island is 5km wide at its widest point and 34km long.
What happened on Macquarie Island?
The island was named for Colonel Lachlan Macquarie, Governor of New South Wales from 1810 to 1821. Between 1810 and 1919, seals and then penguins were hunted for their oil almost to the point of extinction.
Why should we save Macquarie Island?
Covering more than 16 million hectares, it was declared to protect the habitat of threatened species such as the royal and southern rockhopper penguins, the subantarctic fur seal, southern elephant seal and five species of albatross.
Why is Macquarie Island in danger?
Macquarie Island under threat Feral cats (as well as other feral animals) contributed to the extinction of two native bird species – the Macquarie Island parakeet and the Macquarie Island rail – before cats were totally eradicated in 2000. Introduced rabbits, rats and mice are a growing threat on the island.
Who protects Macquarie Island?
the Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife Service
How is Macquarie Island used today?
It has no permanent human population, but a meteorologic and geologic research station has been maintained on the island since 1948, and many botanists and biologists have studied the local flora and fauna. Macquarie was created a nature reserve in 1933, and it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1997.
Can you visit Macquarie Island?
You can only visit Macquarie Island on a small ship expedition cruise, so, sharing an onboard home with up to 50 other passengers, hopping on and off to explore unfamiliar surrounds, you’ll need your sea legs.
Does Macquarie Island have snow?
Macquarie Island has an extreme oceanic climate with heavy cloud, strong westerly winds and an average rainfall of approximately 900 mm a year. Rain and snow are frequent, with only a few days each year with no precipitation. Days can be quite sunny in December and January but the winter months are generally cloudy.
How cold does it get on Macquarie Island?
36°F to 47°F
Who discovered Macquarie Island first?
Frederick Hasselburg
Why were rabbits a problem on Macquarie Island?
Rabbits consumed the large, leafy megaherbs and grasses, which lacked the ability to adapt to grazing. Extensive damage was occurring to the tall tussock grassland, resulting in a loss of breeding habitat for nesting seabirds and the destabilisation of slopes.
How did they eradicate animals from Macquarie Island?
In 2007, the Australian and Tasmanian governments jointly funded a $25 million project to eradicate pests from the 13,000-hectare island. A baiting program was undertaken, before hunters and their dogs were brought in to eradicate any surviving animals.
What effects did removing cats from Macquarie Island have?
With the cats gone, the island’s rabbits (also non-native) began to breed out of control, ravaging native plants and sending ripple effects throughout the ecosystem. The findings were published in the Journal of Applied Ecology online in January.
What is the vegetation like in Macquarie Island?
All of the vegetation of Macquarie Island is herbaceous, with no woody species present. Megaherbs are a distinctive and unique feature of the sub-Antarctic, occurring nowhere else in Tasmania. There are two megaherbs on Macquarie Island – Stilbocarpa polaris (Macquarie Island cabbage) and Pleurophyllum hookeri.
Are there trees on Macquarie Island?
There is not a tree or shrub, but long stretches of yellow tussock are varied with patches of the bright green Stilbocarpa polaris, the Macquarie Island cabbage, a plant resembling very fine rhubarb in growth, and of Pleurophyllum, a handsome Composite, with long, sage-green leaves and purple flowers.
How many animals live on Macquarie?
The biodiversity of the island does not end with its large birds and mammals. Although no reptiles or amphibians have been recorded on the island, there is a healthy terrestrial invertebrate community of approximately 300 species, with an estimated 10% thought to be endemic.
Is Macquarie Island part of Tasmania?
During this period, a dispute between the colonies of Tasmania and New Zealand about sovereignty over the island was resolved in Tasmania’s favour. Macquarie Island is now part of Tasmania’s Huon Municipality.
Is Tasmania near Antarctica?
Hobart is the natural gateway to Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. Hobart’s deep water port is 1,390 nautical miles from the Antarctic mainland and 1,852 nautical miles from Australia’s Casey station. In Hobart you’ll find a great a range of fantastic Antarctic attractions.