[1] The bay covers 4,000 square kilometres (1,500 sq mi) with a main opening facing northwards.

[2] Hervey Bay is partly protected from oceanic swells by the southern extension of the Great Barrier Reef.

[5] Hervey Bay was logged by Lieutenant James Cook on 21 May 1770 on his exploration of the eastern Australian coast in the HM Bark Endeavour.

[8] Lieutenant Joseph Dayman was the first to navigate through the Great Sandy Strait on 10 November 1846 in a small decked boat called the Asp.

Hervey Bay is a resting place during the annual migration of approximately 35,000 humpback whales along Australia's east coast from the Great Barrier Reef down to the Antarctic Ocean.

[15] Not only was light blocked killing the sea grass in deeper parts but also the meadows experienced the physical removal of seagrass caused by the cyclone and storms in the shallow areas.

[15] In 2022, monitoring of seagrass meadows across Hervey Bay by James Cook University showed almost none remaining in known mapped areas.

[16] The loss is attributed to sediment from floods blocking sunlight to the depths where the sea grass grows.