Australia’s Coral Sea

Australia’s Coral Sea is one of the world’s last remaining pristine tropical marine environments. Covering approximately 1 million square kilometres – three times the size of the neighbouring Great Barrier Reef and four times the size of Great Britain!

The Coral Sea comprises a series of spectacular coral reefs, formed by underwater mountains, rising thousands of metres from the sea floor. It is a rare example of a marine environment that is thriving. Bountiful fish populations including grey and white tip reef sharks, hammerheads, manta rays, tuna, barracuda, turtles, whales and rare sea creatures such as the nautilus inhabit the waters, alongside an incredibly diverse range of corals.

Globally it is a different story. Coral reefs are vanishing at a rate five times faster than the world’s rainforests, and the populations of large marine species – such as sharks and tuna – are estimated to have declined by up to 90 percent in many areas.

Due to its remoteness, the Coral Sea has largely managed to avoid this fate. The area is largely unprotected, leaving it vulnerable to the same impacts that have devastated other marine regions, including sea level rises caused by global warming, illegal fishing and the potential for large-scale oil and gas exploration in the region.

WWF-Australia believes the time has come to protect this tropical marine wilderness. They are calling on all Australians to ask the Australian Government to declare the entire Coral Sea region a Marine Protected Area.

This would create the world’s largest Marine Park and protect the Coral Sea for future generations, before irreversible damage is done. Australia’s Coral Sea is a large marine region that is extraordinarily biologically rich and deserves the best possible management and protection Australia can provide.”