4,000 kilometres off the south-west coast of the Australian mainland, the Heard and McDonald Islands are a little-known Australian wonder.
The islands are a collection of active volcanoes and rocks soaring up out of the Southern Ocean, closer to Antarctica than the mainland. They are home to millions of penguins, tens of thousands of elephant seals and fur seals, banks of slow-growing corals, and two types of birds found nowhere else on the planet.
These remote sub-Antarctic islands, and the enormous ocean area around them, are Australian territory. That means we’re responsible for protecting them.
The Australian government is currently conducting a once-in-a-decade review of the Heard and McDonald Island Marine Park. Their draft plans contain 378,000 new square kilometres of marine park, but crucial areas are at risk.
Most of the feeding grounds for macaroni penguins, king penguins, fur seals and black-browed albatrosses are still outside of marine sanctuary protection. Five of the six key conservation zones identified in a recent independent science report remain under-protected.¹
We must ensure our federal politicians support protecting key conservation areas for Heard and McDonald Islands marine life as much as we do.
Fill out the short form to automatically send a message to your local MP urging them to back strong marine sanctuaries in places where Heard and McDonald Islands marine life need them the most.
The next review of this marine park won’t be for another 10 years. Let’s ensure we make the most of this once-in-a-decade opportunity to preserve the Heard and McDonald Islands and all of the wild marine life that calls them home.
King penguins at Corinthian Bay on Heard Island. Image by laikolosse via Flickr CC BY 2.0.