The D'Entrecasteaux Channel is a body of water located between

Bruny Island Bruny Island ( Nuenonne: Lunawanna-alonnah) is a island located off the south-eastern coast of Tasmania, Australia. The island is separated from the Tasmanian mainland by the D'Entrecasteaux Channel, and its east coast lies within the Tasman ...

and the south-east of the mainland of

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

, Australia. The channel is the mouth for the estuaries of the Derwent and the

Huon River The Huon River is a perennial river located in the south-west and south-east regions of Tasmania, Australia. At in length, the Huon River is the fifth-longest in the state, with its course flowing east through the fertile Huon Valley and empt ...

s and empties into the

Tasman Sea The Tasman Sea (Māori: ''Te Tai-o-Rēhua'', ) is a marginal sea of the South Pacific Ocean, situated between Australia and New Zealand. It measures about across and about from north to south. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abe ...

of the

South Pacific Ocean South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz ...

. It was sighted 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 Z ...

in 1642 and surveyed in 1792 by

Bruni d'Entrecasteaux Antoine Raymond Joseph de Bruni, chevalier d'Entrecasteaux () (8 November 1737 – 21 July 1793) was a French naval officer, explorer and colonial governor. He is perhaps best known for his exploration of the Australian coast in 1792, while ...

. Towns on the D'Entrecasteaux Channel include Snug,

Margate Margate is a seaside resort, seaside town on the north coast of Kent in south-east England. The town is estimated to be 1.5 miles long, north-east of Canterbury and includes Cliftonville, Garlinge, Palm Bay, UK, Palm Bay and Westbrook, Kent, ...

Kettering Kettering is a market and industrial town in North Northamptonshire, England. It is located north of London and north-east of Northampton, west of the River Ise, a tributary of the River Nene. The name means "the place (or territory) of ...

, Woodbridge,

Flowerpot A flowerpot, planter, planterette or plant pot, is a container in which flowers and other plants are cultivated and displayed. Historically, and still to a significant extent today, they are made from plain terracotta with no ceramic glaze, w ...

, Middleton and

Gordon Gordon may refer to: People * Gordon (given name), a masculine given name, including list of persons and fictional characters * Gordon (surname), the surname * Gordon (slave), escaped to a Union Army camp during the U.S. Civil War * Clan Gordon, ...

History

According to '' The Mercury'' newspaper, the channel "..... was discovered on April 20, 1792, by the celebrated French "Vice-Admiral

Bruni D'Entrecasteaux Antoine Raymond Joseph de Bruni, chevalier d'Entrecasteaux () (8 November 1737 – 21 July 1793) was a French naval officer, explorer and colonial governor. He is perhaps best known for his exploration of the Australian coast in 1792, while ...

, who, in the ships ''Recherche'' and ''Esperance'', was searching for ill-fated ''La Perouse''. Visiting Van Diemen's Land for the first time, he was attempting to find an anchorage in Adventure Bay, when, being himself ill in bed, the ships' navigators entered the channel to the west of Bruny Island, instead of going to the eastward of it. Thus, the discovery of the great channel was due to an accident. This is Labillardiere's account of the matter. A wrong bearing taken of the Mewstone accounts for the French navigator's error." Whaling stations operated on the shores of the channel in the first half of the 19th century.

Geography and environment

The D'Entrecasteaux Channel region sheltered by Bruny Island is increasingly affected by foreshore erosion, in some areas sandbagging aims to reduce the effects.''Flora Fox'',
Flora Fox, News and Information about Southern Tasmania
2011 The channel is a breeding ground for

scallops Scallop () is a common name that encompasses various species of Marine (ocean), marine bivalve mollusc, mollusks in the Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic Family (biology), family Pectinidae, the scallops. However, the common name "scallop" is also s ...

. Prior to 1969,

fishing dredge A fishing dredge, also known as a scallop dredge or oyster dredge, is a kind of dredge which is towed along the bottom of the sea by a fishing boat in order to collect a targeted edible bottom-dwelling species. The gear is used to fish for scall ...

s were used to collect scallops from the seafloor. Damage caused by the dredging has led to collection by

scuba divers This is a list of underwater divers whose exploits have made them notable. Underwater divers are people who take part in underwater diving activities – Underwater diving is practiced as part of an occupation, or for recreation, where t ...

. The D'Entrecasteaux Channel has become a popular location for keen photographers to capture images of the

aurora australis An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of br ...

with its numerous southern-facing water views and beaches, although light pollution from the numerous salmon farms is now starting to impact on this visual beauty from many locations.

Gallery

Kettering - Easter Sunrise 109.jpg, D'Entrecasteaux Channel from . D'Entrecasteaux Channel 20th December 2015.jpg, Aurora Australis over D'Entrecasteaux Channel near .

References

External links

* * * * {{Authority control Southern Tasmania Channels of Australia Bruny Island Whaling stations in Australia

History

Geography and environment

Gallery

See also

References

External links