thumb|right|380px|The red sand beaches of northern Roebuck Bay

thumb|380px|Astronaut photo of the coastline of Roebuck Bay, 2015. [[Broome, Western Australia|Broome is just offscreen at top right.]]

Roebuck Bay is a bay on the coast of the Kimberley region of Western Australia. Its entrance is bounded in the north by the town of Broome, and in the south by Bush Point and Sandy Point. It is named after , the ship captained by William Dampier when he explored the coast of north-western Australia in 1699. The Broome Bird Observatory lies on the northern coast of the bay.

Description

Roebuck Bay is a 550&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup> (210&nbsp;mi<sup>2</sup>) tropical, marine embayment. It has red sandy beaches and areas of mangroves, with the eastern edge of the bay being made up of linear tidal creeks. It is surrounded by grasslands and pindan woodland.

The northern shore of the bay is dominated by a long and low red cliff, 2–6 m in height, of pindan soil which gives the beaches there their distinctive red colouration. It overlies yellowish-red Broome Sandstone of Cretaceous age which, when exposed at the base of the cliff, shows occasional fossil footprints of dinosaurs.

Flora and fauna

thumb|Waders in flight across Roebuck Bay

thumb|Waders roosting on Campsite Beach, Roebuck Bay

Eleven mangrove species are found in Roebuck Bay.

The bay regularly supports more than 1% of the population of at least 22 wader species: greater sand plover, lesser sand plover, oriental plover, red-capped plover, grey plover, bar-tailed godwit, black-tailed godwit, red knot, great knot, red-necked stint, curlew sandpiper, sanderling, eastern curlew, little curlew, Eurasian whimbrel, common greenshank, common redshank, grey-tailed tattler, Terek sandpiper, ruddy turnstone, Asian dowitcher, and pied oystercatcher.

Access and usage

Broome is a major tourist destination, and Roebuck Bay is used for recreational and tourism activities such as fishing, sightseeing and birdwatching. Broome Bird Observatory conducts shorebird research and public education. This railway would have been about 1000 miles (1600&nbsp;km) long.

Roebuck Bay, with its sheltered waters, was the site chosen for the undersea telegraph cable from Asia to come ashore in 1871, to continue overland to Perth.

References

Notes

Sources

  • Roebuck Bay at www.westernaustralia.com