Located 10km south of Tooradin, French Island Marine National Park is adjacent to the northern shoreline of French Island National Park in Western Port. Extending 15…
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Going Fishing?
Fishing is prohibited in marine national parks and sanctuaries. The Victorian Recreational Fishing Guide app includes a GPS locater to alert you to all the park boundaries.
French Island Marine National Park
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Bird watching
Canoeing
Snorkelling/SCUBA Diving
Yachting/Sailing
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- Established
- November 2002
- Area
- 2800ha
Located 10km south of Tooradin, French Island Marine National Park is adjacent to the northern shoreline of French Island National Park in Western Port. Extending 15km along the shoreline, the park encompasses approximately 2800ha. It includes one of Victoria’s most extensive areas of saltmarsh and mangrove communities and also includes mudflats of state geomorphological significance.
The tidal channel system of varying depths, profiles and orientations, contributes to the high diversity of habitats, including many seagrass beds in the surrounding waters. These seagrass beds are particularly important as they have largely disappeared in other areas of the bay since the 1950s.
These habitats are important feeding and roosting grounds for the 32 migratory wader bird species found in Western Port. Including these migratory birds, 295 bird species have been spotted in Western Port including Black Swans, Pied Oystercatchers and Royal Spoonbills. French Island Marine National Park is part of the Western Port RAMSAR site.
In addition to the bird life, there is a rich diversity of marine life. The seagrass beds support many commercially viable species such as King George Whiting, Black Bream and Yellow-eyed Mullet. The mudflats support a wide variety of benthic animals such as worms and bivalves. These animals are important for nutrient cycling because they convert the detritus of the bay into animal tissue which is fed upon by birds and fishes.
Access
The only way to access French Island Marine National Park is via boat (closest launching points at Tooradin or Warneet).
Aboriginal Traditional Owners
Parks Victoria acknowledges the Aboriginal Traditional Owners of Victoria - including its parks and reserves. Through their cultural traditions, Aboriginal people maintain their connection to their ancestral lands and waters.
Further information is available from Aboriginal Affairs Victoria AAV and Native Title Services Victoria
Related publications
- French Island Marine National Park - Marine Natural Values Study (PDF File 999.6 KB)
- Park note - Western Port Marine National Parks (PDF File 630.3 KB)
- Western Port Marine National Parks Management Plan (PDF File 4.8 MB)
Yaringa Marine National Park, French Island Marine National Park, Churchill Island Marine National Park
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Celebrations on Budj Bim Country at Mount Eccles
08 May 2013
There have been a couple of reasons for recent celebrations on the Budj Bim country also known as Mount Eccles National Park. One was to celebrate the six year anniversary of the Gunditjmara Native Title Settlement for the area, ratified in March 2007, and the other was the completion of a …