Marine life

Fur seal by Matt Carr

The Jervis Bay region supports hundreds of species of fish, sharks, rays, marine mammals, birds, crustaceans and marine plants.

  • The park is home to a unique mix of tropical and temperate species including the weedy sea-dragon, eastern blue devil fish, bottlenose dolphin and little penguin. Fur seals and whales also use the park.
  • More than 220 fish species have been recorded on the park's shallow reefs.  These are mainly temperate species, but some subtropical species arrive in summer.
  • Jervis Bay's reefs provide food for economically important open water carnivores such as tuna, mackerel and sharks.
  • Jervis Bay is home to a resident pod of approximately 60 Indo-pacific bottlenose dolphins and two Australian and New Zealand fur seal haul-out sites.
  • Steamers Head in the park's south is home to about 120 seals at the season's peak and a new haul-out site established at Drum and Drum Sticks in recent years has over 100 animals.
  • The park's sandy beaches, coastal rocky shores and estuaries are key nesting, feeding and roosting sites for waders, shorebirds, seabirds and birds of prey.
  • The threatened Hooded Plover inhabits pockets of Bhewerre Beach and its numbers are being carefully monitored.

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