The Ningaloo Reef
The Ningaloo Reef is 260 km long and is one of the longest fringing reefs in the world. Fringing reefs are situated closer to land than barrier reefs. The closest part of the ocean-facing edge of the Ningaloo Reef to land is only around 300m offshore, making it nice and easy to get to in any conditions.
The Ningaloo is a divers paradise, with amazingly high biodiversity, hundreds of corals, an abundance of fish, comfortable warm water, as well as all the big exciting stuff which you never know might turn up on a dive! The Ningaloo reef supports over 500 different species of fish, from the pretty, colourful, reef fish, to big, hunting, pelagic fish, 300 species of corals, the majority being hard corals, but plenty of pastel soft corals and sponges at the islands and in the Gulf and, finally, over 500 species of mollusks, including shells, octopus, squid and nudibranches.
In 1987, the Ningaloo was designated as the Ningaloo Marine Park by the State Government. In 2011 the reef and surrounding areas – a total area of 2435 km2 – were World Heritage Site listed by the United Nations. As a result there are very strict regulations on where fishing can be carried out and the amount that can be done, as well as how tours such as ours have to operate to ensure the sustainability and minimise the impact of people on the area. This means the Ningaloo is kept as beautiful, remote and pristine as it has always been.
