Mewstone
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Mewstone is an unpopulated island, composed of
muscovite Muscovite (also known as common mica, isinglass, or potash mica) is a hydrated phyllosilicate mineral of aluminium and potassium with formula K Al2(Al Si3 O10)( F,O H)2, or ( KF)2( Al2O3)3( SiO2)6( H2O). It has a highly perfect basal cleavag ...
granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...
, located close to the south coast of
Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...
, Australia. The island has steep cliffs and a small flat summit and is part of the Pedra Branca group, lying southeast of Maatsuyker Island, and off the south coast of Tasmania. Mewstone comprises part of the
Southwest National Park Southwest National Park is an Australian national park located in the south-west of Tasmania, bounded by the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park to the north and the Hartz Mountains National Park to the east. It is a part of a chain of ...
and the
Tasmanian Wilderness The Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area, abbreviated to TWWHA, is a World Heritage Site in Tasmania, Australia. It is one of the largest conservation areas in Australia, covering , or almost 25% of Tasmania. It is also one of the last ex ...
World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
. The highest point of the island is approximately above sea level. Mewstone has abundant bird life and has been identified by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area (IBA) because it supports over 1% of the world populations of
shy albatross The shy albatross, also known as shy mollymawk, (''Thalassarche cauta'', formerly ''Diomedea cauta''), is a medium-sized albatross that breeds on three remote islands off the coast of Tasmania, Australia, in the southern Indian Ocean. Its li ...
es and
fairy prion The fairy prion (''Pachyptila turtur'') is a small seabird with the standard prion plumage of blue-grey upperparts with a prominent dark "M" marking and white underneath. The sexes are alike. This is a small prion of the low subantarctic and sub ...
s.


Etymology

In 1642 it was described by
Abel Tasman Abel Janszoon Tasman (; 160310 October 1659) was a Dutch seafarer, explorer, and merchant, best known for his voyages of 1642 and 1644 in the service of the Dutch East India Company (VOC). He was the first known European explorer to reach New ...
, who said it "resembles a lion". In 1773 it was named by
Tobias Furneaux Captain Tobias Furneaux (21 August 173518 September 1781) was an English navigator and Royal Navy officer, who accompanied James Cook on his second voyage of exploration. He was one of the first men to circumnavigate the world in both directions ...
in . It is likely that Mewstone was named after the Great Mew Stone, an island about south-southeast of Furneaux's birthplace in Plymouth,
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
. The Great Mewstone got its name from the old English name for the herring gull; mew. Although it is sometimes referred to as ''Mewstone Island'' or ''The Mewstone'', its official name is simply ''Mewstone''.


Flora and fauna

There is very little flora due to the rocky nature of the island. What little plant life there is grows in crevices in the rocks where soil has accumulated. Recorded breeding
seabird Seabirds (also known as marine birds) are birds that are adapted to life within the marine environment. While seabirds vary greatly in lifestyle, behaviour and physiology, they often exhibit striking convergent evolution, as the same enviro ...
s include
fairy prion The fairy prion (''Pachyptila turtur'') is a small seabird with the standard prion plumage of blue-grey upperparts with a prominent dark "M" marking and white underneath. The sexes are alike. This is a small prion of the low subantarctic and sub ...
(20,000 pairs),
silver gull The silver gull (''Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae'') is the most common gull of Australia. It has been found throughout the continent, but particularly at or near coastal areas. It is smaller than the Pacific gull (''Larus pacificus''), which ...
, black-faced cormorant and
shy albatross The shy albatross, also known as shy mollymawk, (''Thalassarche cauta'', formerly ''Diomedea cauta''), is a medium-sized albatross that breeds on three remote islands off the coast of Tasmania, Australia, in the southern Indian Ocean. Its li ...
(7,500 pairs). Mewstone is the largest of only three shy albatross breeding
colonies In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...
in the world, the other two being Albatross Island and Pedra Branca. Australian fur seals haul-out on small ledges. The Tasmanian tree skink is also present.


See also

*
List of islands of Tasmania Tasmania is the smallest and southernmost state of Australia. The Tasmanian mainland itself is an island, with an area of - 94.1% of the total land area of the state. The other islands have a combined area of , for a cumulative total of 99.75% o ...
*
South East Cape The South East Cape is a cape located at the southernmost point of the main island of Tasmania, the southernmost state of Australia. The cape is situated in the southern and south-eastern corner of the Southwest National Park, part of the Tasma ...
* South West Cape


References


External links


Mewstone viewed from the south
Islands of South West Tasmania Protected areas of Tasmania South West Tasmania Important Bird Areas of Tasmania {{Tasmania-geo-stub