Lizard, Queensland Explained

Type:suburb
Lizard
State:qld
Coordinates:-14.7544°N 145.34°W
Pop:65
Postcode:4871
Area:2833.7
Timezone:AEST
Utc:+10:00
Lga:Shire of Cook
Stategov:Cook
Fedgov:Leichhardt
Near-N:Coral Sea
Near-Ne:Coral Sea
Near-E:Coral Sea
Near-Se:Coral Sea
Near-S:Hope Vale
Near-Sw:Hope Vale
Near-W:Starcke
Near-Nw:Starcke

Lizard is an offshore locality consisting of a number of islands in the Great Barrier Reef area of the Coral Sea within the Shire of Cook, Queensland, Australia. It includes Lizard Island. In the, Lizard had a population of 65 people.

Geography

The locality consists of many island groups and islands. Being in the Great Barrier Reef area, there are many coral reefs with low-lying islands (known as coral cays) which can develop or erode over time. Consequently many are unnamed or poorly documented. The named features are listed in the table, from north to south.

!Name!Size!Coordinates!Notes
Nymph Island-14.6543°N 145.2529°WIt is surrounded by the Nymph Reef. It is part of the Turtle Group National Park.[1]
Prince Charles Island-14.6666°N 145.4439°WAlso known as Osprey Island, it is just off the west coast of Lizard Island connected by the Lizard Island Reef. It is part of the Lizard Island National Park.
Lizard Island-14.6671°N 145.4606°WNamed on 12 August 1770 by Lieutenant James Cook, commander of HMS Endeavour, noting "...the only land animals we saw here were lizards".[2] [3] It is a continental island rising to above sea level with the Lizard Island Reef. It is the largest island in the Lizard Island National Park.
Seabird Isletapprox -14.6916°N 145.4658°WA small continental island, covered in grass, shrubs and granite boulders. It is a nesting site for osprey, black-naped terns, bridled terns, silver gulls, Torres Strait Pigeons and reef herons.[4] It is south of Lizard Head on Lizard Island and is part of the Lizard Island Reef and the Lizard Island National Park. It is the only named island in the Bird Islets.
Bird Islets-14.6922°N 145.4663°WAn island group south of Lizard Head on Lizard Island within the Lizard Island Reef. Its only named island is Seabird Islet.[5]
Palfrey Island-14.6926°N 145.4464°WA continental island rising to to south of Research Point on Lizard Island and part of the Lizard Island Reef and the Lizard Island National Park.[6]
Eagle IslandWithin the Eyrie Reef, it was named by Lieutenant James Cook on the HMS Endeavour on 13 August 1770. It is part of the Lizard Island National Park.[7]
South Island-14.7018°N 145.4544°WAlso known as Newt Island, it is a continental island rising to south of Lizard Island. It is part of the Lizard Island Reef and the Island Island National Park.[8]
Turtle Group-14.7227°N 145.1938°WAn island group consisting of a number of unnamed islands within the Turtle Group Reef. It is part of the Turtle Group National Park.[9]
Pethebridge Islets-14.7338°N 145.0916°WAn island group consisting of two unnamed islands within the Pethebridge Islets Reef, formerly known as Q Reef or Kew Reef. It is part of the Turtle Group National Park.[10]
North Direction Island-14.7455°N 145.5115°WAlso known as Northern Direction Island, it is surrounded by the North Direction Reef.[11]
South Direction Island-14.8285°N 145.5249°WIt is surrounded by the South Direction Reef.[12]
Rocky Islets-14.8625°N 145.4772°WAn island group of 3 unnamed islands joined by the Rocky Islets Reef. One of them rises to . The group is within the Three Islands Group National Park.[13]
There are three national parks within the locality:

History

The locality takes its name from Lizard Island, the largest island in the locality. The island was named on 12 August 1770 by Lieutenant James Cook, commander of HMS Endeavour, with the comment "...the only land animals we saw here were lizards".[17]

Heritage listings

Mrs Watson's Cottage on Lizard Island is listed on the Queensland Heritage Register.[18]

Demographics

In the, Lizard had a population of 49 people.

In the, Lizard had a population of 65 people.

Education

There are no schools in Lizard nor nearby. The options are distance education and boarding school.[19]

Transport

Lizard Island Airport is on Lizard Island (-14.6712°N 145.4525°W).[20]

Notes and References

  1. 25 November 2020.
  2. 25 November 2020.
  3. Web site: 12 November 2020 . Marine islands - Queensland . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20201125063021/https://www.data.qld.gov.au/dataset/geographic-features-queensland-series/resource/ffa00969-099d-4fd4-98f8-81e9aea26df6 . 25 November 2020 . 25 November 2020 . Queensland Open Data . Queensland Government.
  4. 1 October 2023.
  5. Web site: 12 November 2020 . Island groups - Queensland . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20201125062205/https://www.data.qld.gov.au/dataset/geographic-features-queensland-series/resource/35dda38a-7be9-42b4-be8d-e0ebb180b0d6 . 25 November 2020 . 25 November 2020 . Queensland Open Data . Queensland Government.
  6. 25 November 2020.
  7. 25 November 2020.
  8. 25 November 2020.
  9. 1 October 2023.
  10. 1 October 2023.
  11. 1 October 2023.
  12. 25 November 2020.
  13. 1 October 2023.
  14. Web site: 2009-10-19 . Lizard Island National Park . 2023-10-27 . Parks and forests . Queensland Government . en-AU . 7 June 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230607032900/https://parks.des.qld.gov.au/parks/lizard-island . live .
  15. Web site: 2009-10-22 . Turtle Group National Park . 2023-10-27 . Parks and forests . Queensland Government . en-AU . 31 May 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230531195907/https://parks.des.qld.gov.au/parks/turtle-group . live .
  16. Web site: 2010-03-01 . Three Islands Group National Park . 2023-10-27 . Parks and forests . Queensland Government . en-AU . 10 June 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230610122225/https://parks.des.qld.gov.au/parks/three-islands . live .
  17. 30 October 2019.
  18. 7 July 2013.
  19. Web site: Layers: Locality; Schools and school catchments . 27 October 2023 . Queensland Globe . . 19 December 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171219175447/https://qldglobe.information.qld.gov.au/ . live .
  20. Web site: 22 October 2020 . Airports - Queensland . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20201115071531/https://www.data.qld.gov.au/dataset/transport-features-queensland-series/resource/f5e72c21-4f70-4cca-a22e-f2265b85ee56 . 15 November 2020 . 3 November 2020 . Queensland Open Data . Queensland Government.