What animals live on MacQuarie Island?

Macquarie Island wildlife

• Elephant seals.
• Hooker's sea lion.
• Fur seals.
• King penguins.
• Royal penguins.
• Gentoo penguins.
• Southern rockhopper penguins.
• Albatrosses.

1. What flora and fauna exist on Macquarie Island?
2. Are there any rabbits on Macquarie Island?
3. What is Macquarie Island known for?
4. What is so unique about Macquarie Island?
5. Why were rabbits a problem on Macquarie Island?
6. Who owns Macquarie Island?
7. What did cats do Macquarie Island?
8. How did cats and rabbits get into Macquarie Island?
9. How did they eradicate animals from Macquarie Island?
10. Do humans live on Macquarie Island?
11. Does Macquarie Island have snow?
12. Can you visit Macquarie Island?
13. Are there any islands between Tasmania and Antarctica?
14. What is Penguin oil used for?
15. What effect did removing cats from Macquarie Island have?

What flora and fauna exist on Macquarie Island?

All of the vegetation of Macquarie Island is herbaceous, with no woody species present. Megaherbs are a distinctive and unique feature of the sub-Antarctic, occurring nowhere else in Tasmania. There are two megaherbs on Macquarie Island – Stilbocarpa polaris (Macquarie Island cabbage) and Pleurophyllum hookeri.

Are there any rabbits on Macquarie Island?

European rabbits were introduced to Macquarie Island in the 1870s, while ship rats and house mice were first recorded on the island in the 1890s. Following the eradication of feral cats in 2000, rabbits and rodents became the dominant pest species on the island.

What is Macquarie Island known for?

Macquarie was created a nature reserve in 1933, and it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1997. The island is the only known breeding ground of the royal penguin, one of some 25 bird species that breed there. It has a colony of fur seals, reestablished in 1956 after their near extermination in the 1830s.

What is so unique about Macquarie Island?

Macquarie Island is the only island in the world composed entirely of oceanic crust and rocks from the mantle, deep below the earth's surface. ... It is an island of unique natural diversity, a site of major geoconservation significance and one of the truly remarkable places on earth.

Why were rabbits a problem on Macquarie Island?

European rabbits were introduced to Macquarie Island in the 1870s, while ship rats and house mice were first recorded on the island in the 1890s. ... Rabbits consumed the large, leafy megaherbs and grasses, which lacked the ability to adapt to grazing.

Who owns Macquarie Island?

More information. Macquarie Island has a history of human presence since the early 19th century. It has been occupied by ANARE since 1948.

What did cats do Macquarie Island?

At their height it is estimated feral cats were killing 60,000 seabirds a year. The cats were finally vanquished from the island in 2000, but not before they had helped drive two native bird sub-species into extinction – the Macquarie Island parakeet and the Macquarie Island rail.

How did cats and rabbits get into Macquarie Island?

These species become quite entwined in the hundreds of years they are together." Cats were introduced to the Macquarie Island in 1818; sealers introduced rabbits 60 years later. The rabbits tore through the island's vegetation. In 1968, the rabbit flea was introduced.

How did they eradicate animals from Macquarie Island?

A baiting program was undertaken, before hunters and their dogs were brought in to eradicate any surviving animals. A monitoring program since then has not detected any pests for the past two years and the eradication program has been declared a success.

Do humans live on Macquarie Island?

Macquarie Island is an island in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, about halfway between New Zealand and Antarctica. ... The population of the base, constituting the island's only human inhabitants, usually varies from 20 to 40 people over the year.

Does Macquarie Island have snow?

Macquarie Island has an extreme oceanic climate with heavy cloud, strong westerly winds and an average rainfall of approximately 900 mm a year. ... Rain and snow are frequent, with only a few days each year with no precipitation. Days can be quite sunny in December and January but the winter months are generally cloudy.

Can you visit Macquarie Island?

You can only visit Macquarie Island on a small ship expedition cruise, so, sharing an onboard home with up to 50 other passengers, hopping on and off to explore unfamiliar surrounds, you'll need your sea legs. ...

Are there any islands between Tasmania and Antarctica?

Macquarie Island (34 km long x 5 km wide) is an oceanic island in the Southern Ocean, lying 1,500 km south-east of Tasmania and approximately halfway between Australia and the Antarctic continent.

What is Penguin oil used for?

Feathers were used for clothing decorations and as mattress stuffing. The extraction of oil from penguins' fat layers became economically important in the 1800s and early 1900s. Oil was used for lighting, tanning leather, and fuel.

What effect did removing cats from Macquarie Island have?

With the cats gone, the island's rabbits (also non-native) began to breed out of control, ravaging native plants and sending ripple effects throughout the ecosystem. The findings were published in the Journal of Applied Ecology online in January.