Ningaloo Reef World heritage area
Western Australia is the fantastic home of the Ningaloo Coast World Heritage Area, stretching 604,500 hectares to include:
- Ningaloo Marine Park (Commonwealth and state waters)
- Cape Range National Park
- Muiron Islands Marine Management Area
- Muiron Islands Nature Reserve
- Jurabi and Bundegi coastal parks
- Learmonth Air Weapons Range.
The Ningaloo Coast was inscribed on the World Heritage List on June 24, 2011 in recognition of its:
- aesthetically striking coastal and terrestrial environment of the Ningaloo Reef adjacent to the Cape Range
- the lush and colourful underwater scenery and its contrast with the arid and rugged land
- annual aggregation of whale sharks, one of the largest in the world
- important aggregations of other fish species and marine mammals
- high marine diversity, including an unusual diversity of marine turtle species
- rare and diverse subterranean creatures
- diversity of reptiles and vascular plants in the drylands.
The Ningaloo Marine Park stretches 260 kilometres from Bundegi Reef near the town of Exmouth to Amherst Point near Coral Bay in the south. It reaches nearly 20 kilometres seaward, encompassing a massive 5,000 square kilometres of ocean with 500 species of tropical fish and 220 species of coral in all.
It’s one of the largest fringing reefs in the world and unlike many others, you can get to it just by stepping off the beach. If your dream is to swim through an underwater paradise of vibrant coral, brightly coloured fish, turtles and manta rays in just about the clearest turquoise water on earth – then Exmouth Western Australia is for you.
When you make it up here to the Ningaloo Coast, be sure to contact Kings Ningaloo Reef Tours to be shown what North Western Australia is all about.
