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Cook Island Nature Reserve is a
protected area
Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...
in the Australian state of
new South Wales
New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
located on
Cook Island about off the coastline from the headland of
Fingal Head
Fingal Head is a village on the Tasman Sea coast in the far northeast of New South Wales, Australia, about 5 km south of the New South Wales and Queensland border. The village is often just called Fingal. The headland and the small off-shor ...
and about south-east of
Tweed Heads
Tweed Heads is a coastal city at the mouth of the Tweed River in the Northern Rivers region of the state of New South Wales, Australia. Tweed Heads is the northernmost town in New South Wales, and is located in the Tweed Shire local government ...
on the state's north coast.
[
The nature reserve consists of the full extent of Cook Island down to the Mean High Water Mark. The land under protection was first proclaimed as a fauna reserve under the ''Fauna Protection Act 1948 '' on 8 August 1959. It became a nature reserve under the ''National Parks and Wildlife Act 1967'' in 1967. It is surrounded by the Cook Island Aquatic Reserve.][ As of 2016, it covered an area of .][
In 1978, the nature reserve was described as follows:]
Cook Island provides a breeding habitat for seabirds, in particular the crested tern (''Sterna bergii'') and the wedge tailed shearwater (''Puffinus pacificus''). The crested tern is an international migratory bird.
The island is well vegetated with closed scrub. This vegetation provides shelter for the nesting birds. The island has a large population of wedge tailed shearwaters. Due to difficulty of access on to the island the vegetation has maintained its natural condition…
The nature reserve is classified as an IUCN
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...
Category Ia protected area.[ In 1978, it was listed on the now-defunct ]Register of the National Estate
The Register of the National Estate was a heritage register that listed natural and cultural heritage places in Australia that was closed in 2007. Phasing out began in 2003, when the Australian National Heritage List and the Commonwealth Heri ...
.
See also
*Protected areas of New South Wales
The Protected areas of New South Wales include both terrestrial and marine protected areas. there are 225 national parks in New South Wales. A number established since the late 1970s followed campaigns by local residents and environmentalis ...
*Nature reserve (Australia)
Nature reserve (Australia) is the title of a type of protected area used in the Australian jurisdictions of the Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Tasmania and Western Australia. The term “nature reserve” is defined by state and ...
References
*
External links
Official webpageWebpage on the Protected Planet website
{{Nature reserves of New South Wales , state=collapsed
Nature reserves in New South Wales
Protected areas established in 1959
1959 establishments in Australia
New South Wales places listed on the defunct Register of the National Estate