Bass Strait Islands St. Helens Bicheno Hobart Tasman Peninsula
Surrounded by farmland and a rocky coastline, Wynyard is one of the few towns on the northern coast of Tasmania that has a professional dive shop.
The Scuba Centre runs regular boat dives to a wide variety of reefs in the area, but those divers on a budget can scuba dive, or snorkel the many interesting shore dive sites.
The little island of Barrenjoey has a large Australian fur seal colony and having the opportunity to scuba dive, or snorkel with them is an unbelievable experience.
Young Australian Fur seal Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus with the most appealing eyes one could ever wish to see. These amphibious acrobats were just amazing to swim with. We had two dives at Barrenjoey Island before calling it a day. The experience of a lifetime. ( photo: Neville Coleman)
Surrounded by farmland and a rocky coastline, Wynyard is one of the few towns on the northern coast of Tasmania that has a professional dive shop. The Scuba Centre runs regular boat dives to a wide variety of reefs in the area, but those divers on a budget can explore the many interesting shore dive sites. Accommodation is limited in Wynyard, so book early.
Golden Canyon
The subject of amazing brightly coloured scenes in the temperate waters of Tasmania these Yellow Zoanthids Parazoanthus sp. almost cover the large red, or pink sponges they inhabit as a commensal. ( photo: Neville Coleman)
An interesting artificial reef can be explored at Golden Canyon in depths varying from 8-21 m. Patches of sponges and zoanthids cover much of the reef, where you will find plenty of nudibranchs, sea stars, brittle stars, crabs and other invertebrates. Fish life is generally small, but leatherjackets, old wives, boarfish, wrasse, morwong and bullseyes are common.
Sanctuary
The rocky reef at the Sanctuary has many caves, gutters and swim-throughs located at depths from 8-20 m. Around the reef are plenty of reef fish, and the occasional school of pelagic fish.
Pickle Bottle
Extensive kelp beds cover the rocky outcrop known as the Pickle Bottle, from the shallows to 25 m. Hidden under the kelp are numerous caves and swim-throughs with sea spiders, sea stars, nudibranchs and molluscs. The kelp-covered terrain also supports a large population of reef fish, including morwong, perch, leatherjackets, blennies, wrasse and scorpionfish.
Found in a range of colours from red to grey, mauve, yellow and orange, the Velvet Sea Star Petricia vernicina is a common inhabitant of Tasmanian reefs, rubble botoms and sea grass meadows. (photo: Neville Coleman)
Western Bay
Although a long walk, Western Bay is an excellent shore dive with lots to see. The right side of the bay is generally the most interesting. Following the reef edge, descend to 16 m, where nudibranchs, sea stars, cuttlefish, small reef fish, and sometimes rock lobsters are found along the rocky bottom.
Feeding exclusively on compound ascidians ( which it resembles) , the Southern Lamellarid Lamellaria australis is only found ( to date) along the northern coasts in Bass Strait. ( photo: Neville Coleman)
Bird Rock
A variety of dive sites are available at Bird Rock. On the western side are several ledges; numerous pinnacles are found on the eastern side. The northern side drops off into 25 m of water, where there are pretty sponge gardens, plentiful reef fish and invertebrates, and occasionally pelagic fish.
Glory Hole
A shallow shore dive, the Glory Hole is always a good place to see reef fish. The rocky reef here varies from 4-9 m in depth, with numerous ledges and caves. Common reef fish include perch, morwong, old wives, wrasse and a wide variety of leatherjackets.
Although not as rare as their photographic records suggest, the Warty Prowfish Aetapcus maculatus so resembles the sponges it hides amongst, few have the visual experience required to recognise them. ( photo: Neville Coleman)
Elephant Shark Rock
Three rocks with lovely sponge gardens can be explored at Elephant Shark Rock. The depth varies from 18-25 m. Bullseyes, boarfish, leatherjackets and an occasional school of pelagic fish are usually found around here.
Sisters Island
Luxuriant sponge gardens are located in less than 14 m at Sisters Island. Macro-photographers will find nudibranchs, sea spiders, sea stars, cuttlefish and many other invertebrates as subjects.
Living beneath sea urchins, or rocks, the American Bumblebee Shrimp Gnathophyllum americanum only grows to 15 mm and is thought to browse on the tube feet and soft outer skin of sea urchins. ( photo: Neville Coleman)
Anniversary Point
The rocky reef at Anniversary Point has many colourful sponges in depths from 10-16 m. The reef is only sparsely populated by reef fish, however, schools of Port Jackson sharks frequent the area, as do stingarees, and occasionally a draughtboard shark. The most unusual creature found here is the warty prowfish, which has brown leather-like skin (which it sheds). These lie motionless among the sponges, and are very difficult to find.
Rocky Cape
The National park at Rocky Cape offers excellent shore diving, however, an entry fee must be paid to enter the park. Once at the cape, you can either dive the shallow eastern side where nudibranchs, cuttlefish and other invertebrates species can be seen, or the more rugged western side. The western side drops down to 16m, where there are plenty of boarfish, rock lobsters, leatherjackets, perch, morwongs, wrasse and colourful invertebrates.
This species of hermit crab appears to be far more common in the deeper waters of the continental shelf than it does along the coast. Found in New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania the White-spotted Hairy Hermit Crab Strigopagurus strigimanus inhabits coastal reefs and it seen mostly at night. ( photo: Neville Coleman)
The Castle
This large rocky pinnacle, which rises from 14-6 m, always seems to have plenty of fish life swarming around it, bullseyes, trevally, kingfish, boarfish, old wives, morwong, leatherjackets and wrasse. The Castle is situated off Rocky Cap, and is covered in sessile marine life and kelp.
Southern Cross Shipwreck
After disappearing in 1920, the fate of the wooden barquentine Southern Cross and her crew of 10 was unknown for many years. The ship now lies in 8-12 m of water off Rocky Cape, and is still an interesting dive, although badly broken up. The boilers, the propeller and the prop shaft are scattered along the bottom.
Outer Reef
The most colourful, action-packed dive sites off Wynyard would have to be on the Outer Reef, which covers a large area, and drops into 35 m. Interesting diving can be found at any depth. Sponges, gorgonians, ascidians, bryozoans and zoanthids cover much of the reef, and sheltering among them are many small reef fish and invertebrates. Divers are likely to encounter cuttlefish, draughtboard sharks, boarfish, Port Jackson sharks, and rock lobsters. Pelagic fish gather at the reefs edge, and it is not uncommon to be surrounded by schools of magnificent butterfly perch.
Barrenjoey Island
Inhabited by over 400 Australian Fur Seals Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus this very busy little island was surrounded by forests of Giant Kelp Macrocystus angustifolia attached to rocky reef boulders with thousands of sea urchins living in the crevices.
Average visibility is around 8 to 12 metres and the entire area is subject to huge swells which sweep through Bass Straits during winter.
Access is only possible from by boat during calm seas and trailer based boats can be launched from Devonport, or Georgetown. In reality, the only thing one might go out there for is to dive with the fur seals, and certainly my experiences were at the time, unbelievable. The dive boat guys that took us out were strangly shy to dive that day....and as the future showed..they had good reason.
I had this great idea at Barrenjoey Islland, to hide in the Sargassum weed, stick my fin up and wiggle it to see if a curious fur seal might bite it and I would get some interesting wide angle shots. The idea worked and I captured the fur seal with its mouth open ready for the bite....( photo: Neville Coleman)
Steve Parish was my dive buddy at the time and Steve got a shot of the fur seal actually biting my fin. ( photo: Steve parish)
Unfortunately I was so overcome by the moment I ( what was thought to be impossible at the time) actually double exposed the frame by overiding the film sprocket winding system. To this day I never know how it happened, but it happened...so much for my first film clip stills experiment.
( photo: Neville Coleman)
Bass Strait Islands St. Helens Bicheno Hobart Tasman Peninsula
Neville Coleman's diving expeditions, fauna surveys, photographic fauna surveys and marine life identification courses include every major group of marine life.
Neville Coleman's expertise in marine life identification extends to the identification of Algae, Sea Grass, Forams, Sponges, Stony Corals, Soft Corals, Sea Anemones, Sea Jellies, Zoanthids, Corallimorphs, Black Corals, Flatworms, Segmented Worms, Crustaceans, Barnacles, Shrimps, Rock Lobsters, Hermit Crabs, Squat Lobsters, Molluscs, Chitons, Univalves, Bivalves, Cephalopods, Octopus, Cuttlefish, Squid, Opisthobranchs, Nudibranchs, Sea Slugs, Bryozoans, Sea Mosses, Echinoderms, Sea Stars, Feather Stars, Brittle Stars, Sea Urchins, Sea Cucumbers, Ascidians/Sea Squirts, Marine Fish, Sharks and Marine Mammals, all found in the waters.
( Copyright Neville Coleman/Nigel Marsh)
