MIGRATORY BIRDS: Gold Coast’s coastal environment provides an important refuge area for many migratory bird species. The importance of areas such as The Broadwater, Federation Walk Coastal Reserve, South Stradbroke Island and Wavebreak Island are increasing as the Gold Coast grows and becomes more urbanised. These areas support large mixed flocks and roosting sites with some species protected under international treaty agreements such as the Japan-Australia Migratory Bird Agreement (JAMBA) and the China-Australia Migratory Bird Agreement (CAMBA). For this reason, the protection of our coastal habitat and connecting riparian corridors is extremely important.
Bush-stone Curlew (Burhinus grallarius) are very shy birds and can be seen at Federation Walk Coastal Reserve (Nicolas Rakotopare)
REPTILES: Reptiles, such as snakes, lizards and turtles, are commonly found within the Gold Coast’s dunes. Those you may encounter include Blue-tongue lizards, Bearded-dragons, Common Tree Snake, Carpet Python, Whipsnakes, and Eastern Brown Snake.
Crested Tern (Thalasseus sp.) are a migratory bird that visit Australia and use tropical and sub-tropical coastlines for nesting (Nicolas Rakotopare)
Turtles also use the beach environment, which is critical for their nesting stage. Both the Loggerhead Turtle (Caretta caretta) and the Green Turtle (Chelonia mydas) breed over the summer on the beaches of South Stradbroke Island.
MAMMALS: With urban sprawl occurring on the mainland, South Stradbroke Island is a key coastal habitat for many native mammals. Low-lying areas of understory coastal grasses are important foraging habitats and are an ideal home for Macropods (e.g. wallabies). The mature hollow-bearing trees are integral for arboreal mammal assemblages (such as possums). Mammals found on the Gold Coast dunes include: • • • • •
Swamp Wallaby (Wallabia bicolour bicolour and W. b. welsbii) Pretty faced Wallaby/ Whiptail Wallaby (Macropus parryi) Squirrel Glider (Petaurus norfolcensis) Possums Bats
Bearded-dragons can be seen sunning on the hot sand during summer (Nicolas Rakotopare)
Agile Wallaby can be seen at South Stradbroke Island (Nicolas Rakotopare)
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