Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority

Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority The official page for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. This page is moderated from 9am-5pm Monday to Friday.

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority is responsible for managing the Great Barrier Reef to protect it for the future. The Marine Park is a multiple-use area and our challenge is to assess, advise on, regulate and implement policies that ensure the best possible outcomes for the Reef.

07/09/2026

Gentle giants

Dugongs spend much of their time doing exactly this: grazing on delicious seagrass meadows. These iconic mammals can eat up to 40kg of seagrass per day!

Unfortunately, Dugongs are a vulnerable species in Queensland. Their populations can be affected by:

🌿 Damage and loss of seagrass habitat
🎣 Accidental capture in fishing nets
🛥️ Boat strikes
🗑️ Marine debris
💦 Poor water quality and coastal development

Dugongs are protected in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, with a range of management measures like zoning and Traditional use of Marine Resources Agreements (TUMRA) helping protect them and their habitat.

If you’re boating in shallow water or around seagrass, keep a lookout for dugongs and slow down if you see one. Avoid damaging seagrass and report injured or dead dugongs to 1300 130 372.

This National Threatened Species Day, let’s give these gentle giants the space and protection they need to thrive.

📹

Registrations are open for the Great Barrier Reef Clean-up 2026.This October, communities across the Great Barrier Reef ...
05/09/2026

Registrations are open for the Great Barrier Reef Clean-up 2026.

This October, communities across the Great Barrier Reef region and its connected catchments are coming together to remove and record marine debris. Every clean-up makes an impact.

You can:
🧤 Register a clean-up with your workplace, school, community group, friends or family, or
📍 Join a clean-up happening near you.

Every item collected and recorded helps build the evidence needed to better understand marine debris and support long-term solutions.

To register now, check the link in our comments 👇

04/09/2026

The Great Barrier Reef in technicolour 😍

Corals are the building blocks of the Reef, and come in a variety of hues from brilliant purples to reds, yellows and green. The tiny algae cells that live in the corals called zooxanthellae give the colours their colour.

But not all corals are this colourful. Many corals come in brown and beige, and are still indicative of a healthy Reef.

📸 @/a.slonchak_photography via IG

04/09/2026

Picture this... you're snorkelling through the Reef when you hear the crunching and grinding of this colourful critter - the Parrotfish.

But there's more to these fish than meets the eye. That grinding sound is the sound of these Reef grazers feeding on algae, which in turn provides a vital service for their coral reef home! Parrotfish break off chunks of limestone with their 'beaks', and grind it down with a second set of jaws to extract their food. These species feed on the algae which can take-over deceased corals and Reef substrate, not only controlling the algae's spread, but creating new real estate for baby corals to settle and grow, and for existing corals to spread into.

Like the Reef's clean-up crew, Parrotfish play a vital role in maintaining balance in coral reef ecosystems. That's why it's so important to each do our bit, and avoid catching or spearing these critical critters when we're out on the Reef. When we leave reef grazers alone, we're supporting healthy reefs and in turn, supporting more fish for the future.

📹 @/jackmckee_uwphotography via IG

03/09/2026

"That is a southern Great Barrier Reef trophy right there" Reel Destinations

Let's keep Reef fishing epic by fishing for the future. 😎

02/09/2026

True beauty doesn’t always demand attention.

Coral comes in many colours, determined by its own natural pigments and microscopic algae living within its tissues. And healthy coral isn’t always the brightest on the Reef.

Often, it’s the subtle, the subdued and the humble coral tones that tell the story of a healthy reef system.

01/09/2026

Wally just came to check you're aware it's biodiversity month this month... 🐟

Maori wrasse are among the 1625 types of fish that inhabit the Great Barrier Reef. They get their name from the striking patterns on their face.

Got a cool fish fact? Pop it in the comments below 👇

📹 @/dive_down_under via IG

01/09/2026

It's Biodiversity Month! 🐢 🐋 🐠 🦈 🐙 🐚 🪸🌱 🏝️

Cool... but, what is Biodiversity?

Biodiversity is the term used to describe the variety of life on Earth - or in our case, on the Great Barrier Reef. From the tiniest algae cell and coral polyp to the greatest Humpback whale or Whale shark - or from the coastal mangroves to the coral reef ecosystems - biodiversity encompasses all the flora, fauna and habitats of the Marine Park.

It is this biodiversity that makes the Great Barrier Reef such a renowned place, and it is this biodiversity that we must continue to protect. Biodiversity helps the Reef bounce back from disturbances, such as coral bleaching and cyclones. With the Reef facing mounting pressures from a changing climate, it's critical we all do our bit to protect the Great Barrier Reef and its incredible biodiversity.

Visit our website to find out what we're doing, and what you can do.

31/08/2026

Turtles at sunrise. This is what it's all about. 🐢

Queensland National Parks
Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water Threatened Species Commissioner

The Reef's under pressure. Small choices on the water can make a big difference.⚓ Drop it where it’s soft: Anchor in san...
30/08/2026

The Reef's under pressure. Small choices on the water can make a big difference.

⚓ Drop it where it’s soft: Anchor in sand, mud or rubble, not coral.
🔄 Broaden your bragging rights: Target different, legal species to ease pressure.
🐟 Fish for a feed not to fill the freezer: Fresh fish > freezer fish.
🐠 Give us a break: Let the cleanup crew do their job.
🫶Handle with care: Return undersized, oversized, no-take and closed-season species.

Every choice counts. Every fisho can make a difference.

Head to our website to learn more.

Address

235 Stanley Street
Townsville, QLD
4810

Telephone

+61747500700

Website

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