Recherche Archipelago

The Archipelago of the Recherche, known locally as the Bay of Isles,[1] is a group of 105 islands, and over 1200 "obstacles to shipping", off the south coast of Western Australia.

Archeologists have found ancient artefacts on Salisbury Island, a massive limestone remnant sitting on a granite dome 60 kilometres (37 mi) offshore, that included stone blades, lizard traps, axe heads, grinding stones and granite watering holes.

The objects are believed to extend up to 13,000 years before present, from a time of lower sea levels when many of the islands were joined to the mainland.

[3][4] The islands became known to Europeans when François Thijssen and Pieter Nuyts, sailing on Gulden Zeepaert, charted the coast in 1627.

[14] The Mountaineer was sunk off Thistle Cove near Cape Le Grand in 1835 while attempting to find shelter from a gale.

[16] On 14 February 1991 the Sanko Harvest a bulk carrier of 33,024 tons sank in the archipelago – and it became the second largest wreck that can be dived on in the world.

This is partly due to the Leeuwin current that flows in an easterly direction, this warms the cold seas to over 20 °C (68 °F) in summer.

A complex marine environment is found in the surrounding waters, the benthic habitat is various densities of seagrass meadows, reefs, or bare sand.

The waters around the islands meet often steep faces of granite, the extensive reefs and other features form habitat which supports a rich diversity of marine life.

[44] Marine mammals associated with the islands include two species of seal, large groups of common dolphins (Delphinus delphis), and minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata).

New Zealand fur seal (Arctocephalus forsteri) and Australian sea-lion (Neophoca cinerea) breeding colonies are found on some islands, with haul-out sites on many.

Other reptiles include the barking gecko (Underwoodisaurus milii), ornate dragon (Ctenophorus ornatus), and the southern heath monitor (Varanus rosenbergi).

It also supports over 1% of the world populations of flesh-footed shearwaters, sooty oystercatchers, fairy terns and, probably, white-faced storm-petrels.