Carnac Island () is a , A-Class, island nature reserve about south-west of Fremantle and north of Garden Island in Western Australia.
History
Carnac Island is aeolianite limestone remnant of Pleistocene dunes.
In 1803, French explorer Louis de Freycinet, captain of , named the island (). It was also known as and later . in a stolen government stores boat.
In 1884, the colonial government gazetted the island as a quarantine station for Fremantle, but it appears never to have been used for that purpose. Apart from Carnac Island itself, the nature reserve includes the rocks north and south of the island.
Fauna
thumb|Sea lions on Carnac Island
The island is home to Australian sea lions, bottlenose dolphins and a large range of marine bird life. New Zealand fur seals are frequent visitors.
There is no permanent fresh water, providing a challenge for the animals that live there. The tiger snake colony has attracted research into how that species has adapted to a harsh island habitat, and the colony's origins has attracted significant debate. One example of a theory is that in 1929 a man named Lindsay "Rocky" Vane dumped his tiger snake collection on the island, after snake exhibitions were banned in Western Australia, after Vane's wife and his assistant died from snake bite. King's skinks also inhabit the island, and there is evidence of confrontation between King's skinks and tiger snakes.
Carnac Island is classified as an Important Bird Area because it supports a large colony of the vulnerable fairy tern, as well as small numbers of other nesting seabirds.
See also
- Islands of Perth, Western Australia
References
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