The Great Barrier Reef

The Great Barrier Reef is a slightly interrupted succession of coral reefs off the coast of Queensland in Australia, of 1200 miles extent, and 100 miles wide at the south, and growing narrower as they go north. They are situated away from 70 to 20 miles off the coast, and protect the intermediate channel from the storms of the Pacific.

This is a site of remarkable variety and beauty on the north-east coast of Australia. It contains the world’s largest collection of coral reefs, with 400 types of coral, 1,500 species of fish and 4,000 types of mollusc. It also holds great scientific interest as the habitat of species such as the dugong (‘sea cow’) and the large green turtle, which are threatened with extinction.