Australia's Coral Coast - Shark Bay Marine Park : DriveWA

Shark Bay Marine Park

Francois Peron NP, image courtesy fo Len Zell

Hamelin Pool Stromatolites, image courtesy fo Len Zell

Shark Bay is a testimony to the wonders of the natural world. World Heritage listed since 1991 it is one of only 16 sites in the world to satisfy all four criteria for the prestigious listing. The four areas are; major stages of the world’s evolutionary history, geological and biological processes, natural beauty and threatened species.

The major stages of the world’s evolutionary history are satisfied by the most diverse and abundant examples of prokaryotic, three dimensional, grazing stromatolites in the world. Hamelin Pool offer the only extensive living collection of these beautiful specimens. Made up of layered rocks, they are the oldest life form on the planet dating back to 3.5 million years ago. Although the structures at Shark Bay are relatively new, only about 3000 years old, they have helped to unravel the history of life on earth.

Stromatolites grow in Hamelin Pool because of the extreme salinity of the seawater, the limited circulation and the occurrence of calcium carbonate. This environment evolved over 10,000 years to become the perfect environment for the microbes to flourish. Stromatolites also grow extremely slowly, less than 1mm per year!

Shark Bay is home to an abundance of threatened species including, 51 plants only found in that region, five endangered mammals, six endemic bird species, eight endemic reptile species and the magnificent loggerhead turtles that use Shark Bay as their main nesting site.

There is also a profusion of more common species such as manta rays, green turtles, humpback whales, and the famous Monkey Mia dolphins that visit the beach each day to interact with tourists. There are also around 10,000 dugongs which forage in the safety of the Shark Bay Marine Park.

Within this area lies the opportunity to see nature at its finest.

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