The Lawrence Rocks are a group of two rocky islets, 6.8 ha and 1.5 ha in area, with an associated reef, 2.4 km south-east of Point Danger in western

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, and about 6 km south-east of the city of

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

. Geologically, the group is formed from the remnants of an extinct

volcano A volcano is commonly defined as a vent or fissure in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most oft ...

, with the

islets An islet ( ) is generally a small island. Definitions vary, and are not precise, but some suggest that an islet is a very small, often unnamed, island with little or no vegetation to support human habitation. It may be made of rock, sand and ...

composed of

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...

and

tuff Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock co ...

. The islets were sighted by Lieutenant James Grant on 5 December 1800 from the survey brig HMS ''Lady Nelson'' and named for Captain Effingham Lawrence, one of the Elder Brethren of

Trinity House The Corporation of Trinity House of Deptford Strond, also known as Trinity House (and formally as The Master, Wardens and Assistants of the Guild Fraternity or Brotherhood of the most glorious and undivided Trinity and of St Clement in the ...

Fauna

The rocks are protected as a

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...

and are the site of a breeding colony of

Australasian gannet The Australasian gannet (''Morus serrator''), also known as the Australian gannet or tākapu, is a large seabird of the booby and gannet family, Sulidae. Adults are mostly white, with black flight feathers at the wingtips and lining the trailing ...

s, the overspill from which led to the establishment of a sister colony at Point Danger. The group has been identified by

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding i ...

as an

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

(IBA), because it supports over 10% of the world population of Australasian gannets, being used by over 6000 birds. Other birds recorded on the rocks, and likely to breed there, include

little penguin The little penguin (''Eudyptula minor'') is the smallest species of penguin. It originates from New Zealand. It is commonly known as the fairy penguin, little blue penguin, or blue penguin, owing to its slate-blue plumage and is also known by ...

black-faced cormorant The black-faced cormorant (''Phalacrocorax fuscescens''), also known as the black-faced shag, is a medium-sized member of the cormorant family. Upperparts, including facial skin and bill, are black, with white underparts. It is Endemism, endem ...

crested tern The greater crested tern Retrieved 28 February 2012 (''Thalasseus bergii''), also called crested tern, swift tern, or great crested tern, is a tern in the family Laridae that nests in dense colonies on coastlines and islands in the tropical and ...

silver gull The silver gull (''Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae'') is a gull in Oceania. It 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 (''L ...

sooty oystercatcher The sooty oystercatcher (''Haematopus fuliginosus'') is a species of oystercatcher. It is a wading bird endemic to Australia and commonly found on its coastline. It prefers rocky coastlines, but will occasionally live in estuaries. All of its fea ...

s and small numbers of

Cape gannet The Cape gannet (''Morus capensis'') is a large seabird of the gannet family, Sulidae. They are easily identified by their large size, black and white plumage and distinctive yellow crown and hindneck. The pale blue bill is pointed with fine se ...

s. The rocks are also used as a haul-out site by

Australian fur seal The brown fur seal (''Arctocephalus pusillus''), also known as the Cape fur seal, and Afro-Australian fur seal, is a species of fur seal. Description The brown fur seal is the largest and most robust member of the fur seals. It has a large an ...

s.BirdLife International. (2011). Important Bird Areas factsheet: Lawrence Rocks. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 04/08/2011.

Seal hunting Seal hunting, or sealing, is the personal or commercial hunting of Pinniped, seals. Seal hunting is currently practiced in nine countries: Canada, Denmark (in self-governing Greenland only), Russia, the United States (above the Arctic Circle ...

was conducted on the island in the 19th century.

Recreational dive sites

There are several named sites: *The Nursery, at the eastern side, where there are four caves, one known as the Cockpit with a small chamber at the top, at 38° 24.280′ S, 141° 40.260′ E *North Point, a boulder ridge off the northern end of Lawrence Rocks, at 38° 24.225′ S, 141° 40.004′ E *The Saddle, a gully that cuts through the centre of the rocks, at 38° 24.331′ S, 141° 40.082′ E *The Harbour, an area of gutters, ledges and swim-throughs, at 38° 24.514′ S, 141° 40.136′ E *The wreck of the Emily S, a short distance northeast from Lawrence Rocks.

References

Seabird colonies Islands of Victoria (state) Nature reserves in Victoria (state) Underwater diving sites in Australia Important Bird Areas of Victoria (state) Seal hunting {{VictoriaAU-geo-stub