Coral Sea Islands
The Coral Sea Islands Territory is a collection of remote Australian coral cays, reef systems and small islands scattered across the southwest Pacific, far east of Queensland. Most land is little more than sand or coral rubble above the sea, with a few cays supporting grassland, shrubs or Pisonia forest. The territory forms part of the enormous Coral Sea Marine Park, which protects 67 cays and islets alongside extensive reefs and deep ocean habitats. The Coringa-Herald and Lihou Reefs and Cays are particularly important, containing some of the least-disturbed oceanic reef and island habitats in the region. There is no permanent population, and the islands are rarely visited. Access is therefore fundamentally different from conventional island destinations: visits are generally associated with research, conservation patrols or specialist expeditions, rather than normal tourism.
Overview
The Coral Sea Islands are exceptionally important for seabirds, despite their tiny land area. The cays support breeding colonies of 13 seabird species, with regionally significant populations of Red-footed Booby, Lesser and Great Frigatebird, Red-tailed Tropicbird, Black Noddy and Brown Booby. Some sites regularly support more than 20,000 seabirds, while Black Noddies alone can number in the tens of thousands. The reefs and cays also provide stopover habitat for migratory shorebirds including Pacific Golden Plover and Ruddy Turnstone. For birders, the attraction is therefore huge seabird colonies in almost untouched tropical island habitats, rather than endemic landbirds. This is not a practical destination for ordinary birding tourism: the islands are remote, uninhabited and access to several important cays is restricted or closed for conservation.
Top 10 target species
| Species | Annual frequency | January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brown Booby Sula leucogaster | 50.8% | 56.3% | 66.7% | 75.0% | 75.0% | 70.0% | 29.2% | 25.0% | 43.8% | 53.3% | 29.2% | 61.0% | 25.0% |
| Red-footed Booby Sula sula | 47.8% | 62.5% | 66.7% | 66.7% | 56.3% | 70.0% | 12.5% | 25.0% | 31.3% | 66.7% | 50.0% | 46.5% | 20.0% |
| Masked Booby Sula dactylatra | 41.1% | 31.3% | 66.7% | 33.3% | 62.5% | 68.3% | 37.5% | 25.0% | 43.8% | 35.0% | 16.7% | 53.3% | 20.0% |
| Sooty Tern Onychoprion fuscatus | 29.2% | 31.3% | 29.2% | 41.7% | 31.3% | 33.3% | 8.3% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 31.7% | 33.4% | 55.1% | 5.0% |
| Wedge-tailed Shearwater Ardenna pacifica | 23.4% | 25.0% | 29.2% | 25.0% | 43.8% | 30.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 18.3% | 33.3% | 56.0% | 20.0% |
| Brown Noddy Anous stolidus | 20.7% | 25.0% | 33.3% | 50.0% | 6.3% | 21.7% | 8.3% | 25.0% | 0.0% | 15.0% | 12.5% | 46.7% | 5.0% |
| Lesser Frigatebird Fregata ariel | 16.6% | 0.0% | 20.8% | 8.4% | 12.5% | 25.0% | 12.5% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 30.0% | 0.0% | 35.1% | 5.0% |
| Great Frigatebird Fregata minor | 14.2% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 33.4% | 6.3% | 21.7% | 29.2% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 5.0% | 0.0% | 9.8% | 15.0% |
| Black Noddy Anous minutus | 12.2% | 25.0% | 8.3% | 41.7% | 6.3% | 21.7% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 15.0% | 0.0% | 19.0% | 10.0% |
| Great Crested Tern Thalasseus bergii | 9.7% | 25.0% | 0.0% | 8.3% | 31.3% | 8.3% | 16.7% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 26.5% | 0.0% |