Great Southern Reef

The Great Southern Reef is a system of interconnected reefs that spans the southern coast of continental Australia and Tasmania and extends as far north as Brisbane to the east and Kalbarri to the west. It covers 71,000 km2 (27,000 sq mi) of ocean and straddles five states, running along the coast for 8,000 km (5,000 mi). The Great Southern Reef is named after its world-famous neighbour to the north, the Great Barrier Reef, but has received a fraction of the attention and protection given to the latter. The Great Southern Reef is an important biodiversity hotspot and annually contributes more than AU$10 billion to the Australian economy. The Australian rock lobster and abalone fisheries, together worth four times the value of all commercial fishing in the Great Barrier Reef, operate within the Great Southern Reef. The robust health of the reef can be attributed to its cool, oxygen-rich waters and sprawling forests of giant and golden kelp. The kelp provides food and shelter for thousands of species, and its endemic species include all three known species of seadragon, one of the world's smallest species of penguin, and Australia's only endemic pinniped. The Aboriginal people of Australia and Tasmania developed and practiced sustainable management of the Great Southern Reef's abundant resources for thousands of years before Western colonisation. Modern scientific research on the

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