Fraser Island

Fraser Island view

Fraser Island is an island located along the southern coast of Queensland, Australia, approximately 200 kilometres (120 mi) north of Brisbane. Its length is about 120 kilometres (75 mi) and its width is approximately 24 kilometres (15 mi).It was inscribed as a World Heritage site in 1992. The island is considered to be the largest sand island in the world at 1840 km². It is also Queensland's largest island, Australia's sixth largest island and the largest island on the East Coast of Australia.

The island has rainforests, eucalyptus woodland, mangrove forests, wallum and peat swamps, sand dunes and coastal heaths. It is made up of sand that has been accumulating for approximately 750,000 years on volcanic bedrock that provides a natural catchment for the sediment which is carried on a strong offshore current northwards along the coast. Unlike many sand dunes, plant life is abundant due to the naturally occurring mycorrhizal fungi present in the sand, which release nutrients in a form that can be absorbed by the plants. Fraser Island is home to a small number of mammal species, as well as a diverse range of birds, reptiles and amphibians, including the occasional saltwater crocodile. The island is part of the Fraser Coast Region and protected in the Great Sandy National Park.

Fraser Island has been inhabited by humans for as much as 5,000 years.Explorer James Cook sailed by the island in May 1770. Matthew Flinders landed near the most northern point of the island in 1802. For a short period the island was known as Great Sandy Island. The island became known as Fraser due to the stories of a shipwreck survivor named Eliza Fraser. Today the island is a popular tourism destination.




Mammals
Estimates of the number of mammal species present on the island range from 25 to 48.Mammals found on Fraser Island include swamp wallabies, echidnas, ringtail and brushtail possums, sugar gliders, squirrel gliders, phascogales, bandicoots, potoroos, flying foxes and dingoes. The Swamp Wallaby finds protection from dingos in the swampy areas which have dense undergrowth. There are 19 species of bats which live on or visit Fraser Island.
Until 2003, when they were removed by the Environmental Protection Agency, there were a few brumbies (horses) on the island, descendants of Arab stock turned loose for breeding purposes, and joined in 1879 by horses brought over for the logging industry.

Dingoes

Fraser Island's Dingo

Dingoes were once common on the island, but are now decreasing. The Fraser Island dingoes are reputedly some of the last remaining pure dingoes in Eastern Australia and to prevent cross-breeding, dogs are not allowed on the island. According to DNA-examinations from the year 2004, the dingoes on Fraser Island are "pure".However, skull measurements from the 1990s detected crossbreeds between dingoes and domestic dogs among the population.Up until 1995, there were no official records of dingoes attacking humans on Fraser Island. In April 2001, a boy named Clinton Gage wandered away from his family and was discovered dead, with indications of a dingo mauling.Over 120 dingoes were killed by rangers as a result of the incident, though locals believe the number was much greater.After the 2001 attack, four dedicated rangers were allocated dingo management roles and ranger patrols were increased.There are fines for feeding dingoes or leaving food and rubbish out which may attract them.

As of January 2008, the number of dingoes on the island was estimated to be 120 to 150, and sightings have become less common. A University of Queensland researcher, Nick Baker, claims the dingoes on Fraser Island have adopted unusual behaviour. Rather than hunt in small packs, Fraser Island dingoes had developed a tolerance for each other and work together in one big hunting pack.Dingo-proof fences, consisting of metals bars across a concrete pit and a 1.8 m high mesh fence were built around nine island settlements in 2008, to keep the dingos out of the townships.
In late 2009, a former ranger on the island, Ray Revill, claimed 70% of the dingo population, which was then estimated at between 100 and 120 animals, was malnourished.In March 2010, three separate reports of dingos biting tourists were made. Backpackers have been criticised for ignoring advice from park rangers as they try to provoke reactions from dingoes while taking photographs.

Reptiles & amphibians

There has been a total of 74 different species of reptiles recorded on Fraser Island.18 species of snakes have been identified with one third of them considered dangerous.Goannas, snakes, geckos, skinks and frogs are all present on the island. Some frog species have evolved to cope with the acidic waters of lakes and swamps on the island, and are appropriately called acid frogs. The island is home to the recently discovered Fraser Island sand skink. Freshwater turtles such as Kreffts river turtle are found in the island's lakes and creeks.



Fraser Island's Acid Frog



Saltwater crocodiles are exclusively tropical reptiles and usually found in Far North Queensland (several hundred kilometres north-west of Fraser Island,) however, occasionally during the warmer season (December through March, when water temperatures reach consistent tropical temperatures) crocodiles may appear in areas in and around Fraser Island. This is very rare, but during the 2008-2009 summer season at least four crocodiles (one over 4 metres in length) were present. It is thought that these reptiles are seasonal visitors, as they always disappear during the cold months (presumably returning to tropical northern Queensland.) This sort of activity was apparently reported but unverified decades ago (a handful of crocodiles have also historically been observed on very rare occurrences around Brisbane, the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coasts during the warmer season) but within recent years has been proven and observed more often. Crocodiles do not breed nor do they appear to have any permanent populations living on Fraser Island.

 

Birds

Fraser Island forms part of the Cooloola and Fraser Coast Important Bird Area (IBA).There are over 350 different species of birds on the island.Birds of prey include sea eagles, peregrine falcon, osprey and kites. Other common birds include pelicans, terns, honeyeaters, gulls, kingfishers, kookaburra, owls, doves, thornbills, ducks, brolgas, and cockatoos. The island is visited by 20 species of migratory wader birds from as far afield as Siberia. There are 22 different species of gulls and terns, four species of falcons and six species of kingfishers. A rare, bird on the island is the Eastern Ground Parrot, already extinct in some parts of Australia.

Cetaceans, such as Humpback Whales and some species of dolphins are frequent visitors to the area. Dugongs and tiger Sharks can also be found in surrounding waters.Mud crabs are found on the western side of the island near mangrove-lined estuaries.24 freshwater fish species are found in the island's lakes.

There has been 300 species of ants recorded on Fraser Island.Long finned eels and giant earthworms are also found on the island.

Reference:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraser_Island