Heard Island can be found 4100 kilometres south-west of Perth, at coordinates 73°30' East, 53°05' South. Within this region of the ocean there is very little land and, because of this fact, the landscapes and wildlife of Heard and McDonald Islands are unique. A glance at any map of Heard Island will show that by far the most prominent feature is the mountain Big Ben, covering an area of 380 square kilometres (nearly the entire island). Mawson's Peak, at Big Ben's summit, is Australia's only active volcano, and rises to a height of 2745 metres. The volcano was last active in 1987, and the middle of the seventy metre deep crater contains molten lava.
At a height of 230 metres, McDonald Island is a much smaller island, consisting of two distinct parts joined by a narrow central isthmus. Located at 73°36' East, 53°02' South, 43 kilo metres to the west of Heard Island, McDonald Island is also volcanic in nature, and home to a variety of sub-antarctic fauna and flora. Like Heard Island, this island has cliff-lined coasts and rocky shoals which make access from the sea very difficult. As a result, only two successful landings have been made on McDonald Island.
Along with the Kerguelen group of islands (440 kilometres to the north-west), Heard and McDonald Islands form the only exposed parts of the submarine Kerguelen Plateau.
The Australian Territory of Heard Island and McDonald Islands (HIMI), 53° 05' S 73° 30' E, is one of the world's wildest, most remote and breathtakingly beautiful places.
The dense populations of penguins and seals thronging the beaches, and the range of seabirds breeding along the coastal margins, are some of the world's greatest wildlife sights.
In recognition of its abundant wildlife and vegetation, its intact ecosystems and unique geophysical attributes, HIMI was listed on the Register of National Estate on 1 November 1983, and inscribed on the World Heritage List on 3 December 1997.
Frequently buffeted by hurricane force winds, Heard and the McDonald Islands are situated in the middle of the Southern Ocean just south of the Antarctic Convergence, the meeting point of icy southern and more temperate northern waters.
Heard Island, the largest in the group (368 square km), is permanently glaciated and dominated by Big Ben. At 2745 metres, it is Australia's highest mountain outside the AAT. It has been successfully climbed only three times. Both Heard and the McDonald Islands have Australia's only active volcanoes.
These remote islands were unknown until the mid-nineteenth century, when predatory sealers and whalers discovered vast numbers of seals on Heard Island. Within 30 years, they had exterminated virtually the entire fur seal population and most of the elephant seals. Almost a hundred and fifty years later, the colonies are only just beginning to re-establish.
Between 1947 and 1955, Heard Island hosted an ANARE station at Atlas Cove. Since its closure, only short-term expeditions have visited the island. |
