Largest Natural Feature on Earth
The largest natural feature on earth is so large, that it can be seen from space!
Earth’s largest natural feature is the Great Barrier Reef.
The Great Barrier Reef is a massive collection of coral reefs located along the north eastern side of Australia. It is the world’s most extensive coral reef system and is one of the world’s richest areas in terms of faunal diversity.
The reef is part of the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area, which at 35 million hectares, is the world’s largest World Heritage Area. About 98 percent of the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area is located in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, which was declared in 1975 with the purpose of preserving the area’s outstanding biodiversity whilst providing for reasonable use.
Here are some interesting facts about the Great Barrier Reef:
- There are more than 2900 coral reefs
- 600 continental islands
- 71 coral islands
- 300 coral cays
- 1500 species of fish
- 4000 species of molluscs
- 500 species of seaweed
- 350 types of starfish and various echinoderms
- More than 215 species of birds
- 1.9 million tourists visit the Great Barrier Reef each year
- The Great Barrier Reef is over 12,000 years old
- The reef itself stretches more than 2300 km from the northern tip of Australia’s Queensland to just south of Bundaberg (also in the state of Queensland)
- The Great Barrier Marine Park covers 348,000 square kilometers - that’s larger than the whole of the UK and Ireland combined!
The Great Barrier Reef is Under Threat
Unfortunately, the Great Barrier Reef is under threat from overfishing, land-based pollution and coral bleaching. Coral bleaching is exacerbated by increased sea temperatures due to global warming. As a result of public campaigning and pressure from WWF, the Australian Government has committed to protecting 33% of the reef where it can (previously, only 4% had been protected).
Regarding the impact of global warming on the reef, it’s not just affecting the Great Barrier Reef. To date, 10% of all reefs around the world have been destroyed due to coral bleaching. At the current rate, 70% of the world’s reefs will be destroyed over the next 40 years.
As hopeless as this may sound, there are things we can do to help. By developing greener habits, we can all do our part in reducing global warming. For example, here are 5 ways to reduce greenhouse gases. And here are some simple steps you can take to live sustainably.
Tags: australia, Climate Change, coral bleaching, fish, Global Warming, great barrier reef, world records, wwf
March 14th, 2008 at 8:34 pm
[...] Natural Environment Blog Blogging for the Natural Environment « Largest Natural Feature on Earth [...]
March 18th, 2008 at 10:28 pm
[...] had a love of scuba diving. It is well known that he explored the Great Barrier Reef and the Indian ocean. His 1957 novel The Deep Range was inspired after scuba diving in the Great [...]
April 2nd, 2008 at 3:46 am
[...] Pacific Ocean, Indian Ocean, and Atlantic Ocean. For example, there are many cays throughout the Great Barrier Reef - the largest coral reef in the world. Some popular cays in the area include Green Island, [...]
April 5th, 2008 at 1:30 am
[...] of the fact that many of the world’s coral reefs are actually dying. In my article on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, I mentioned that factors such as global warming, overfishing, and land pollution are causing major [...]
May 14th, 2008 at 11:14 pm
[...] $200 million will be allocated to protecting the Great Barrier Reef [...]
June 23rd, 2008 at 7:41 pm
[...] attempt by the Australian government to revive coral trout numbers in the Great Barrier Reef appears to be doing the [...]
October 1st, 2008 at 10:16 pm
[...] to Google Maps. And it is certainly large - at 2,300 kilometers long, the Great Barrier Reef is the world’s largest natural feature. The Great Barrier Reef can now be seen as a large mass sitting off the coast of north-eastern [...]
October 11th, 2008 at 4:13 am
[...] The report, released by the Queensland Premier, Anna Bligh, shows that the water quality around the reef is not improving. The report 2007 Water Quality Report for the Great Barrier Reef was the first in a regular series of reports on the health of the Great Barrier Reef - the largest natural feature on earth. [...]
October 13th, 2008 at 7:19 pm
[...] research, compiled by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, was carried out in the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland, Australia. The research was then used for a report called Seabirds and Shorebirds [...]