| Huon Commonwealth Marine Reserve | |
| Iucn Category: | VI |
| Location: | Pacific Ocean, Australia |
| Coordinates: | -44.31°N 147.78°W |
| Coords Ref: | [1] |
| Nearest Town: | Cockle Creek, Tasmania |
| Area Km2: | 9991 |
| Governing Body: | Parks Australia (Commonwealth of Australia) |
| Url: | http://environment.gov.au/topics/marine/marine-reserves/south-east/huon |
Huon Commonwealth Marine Reserve is a 9,991 km2 marine protected area within Australian waters. The former Tasmanian Seamounts Marine Reserve created in 1999[2] was incorporated into the Huon reserve in 2007,[3] and is part of the South-east Commonwealth Marine Reserve Network.
Huon reserve contains a cluster of approximately 70 seamounts peaking 750m (2,460feet) to 1700m (5,600feet) above the sea floor. They appear as cone-shaped submerged mountains, which provide a range of depths for a diversity of plants and animals. The reserve is a foraging area for great white sharks and seabirds and a spawning or nursery area for important commercial fish, including ocean perch and blue warehou.[4]
A majority of the Huon marine reserve area is IUCN protected area category VI and zoned as 'Multiple Use'. A smaller section of 'Habitat Protection Zone' in the west of the reserve protects the unique and vulnerable benthic communities of the reserve's seamounts.[4]
| Zone | IUCN | Activities permitted | Area (km2) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Recreational fishing | Commercial fishing | Mining | |||
| Habitat Protection | IV | 389 | |||
| Multiple Use | VI | 9,602 | |||