Michaelmas and Upolu Cays National Park

Protected area in Queensland, Australia

16°36′30″S 145°58′21″E / 16.60833°S 145.97250°E / -16.60833; 145.97250Established1975Area30 km²Managing authoritiesQueensland Parks and Wildlife ServiceWebsiteMichaelmas and Upolu Cays National ParkSee alsoProtected areas of Queensland

Michaelmas and Upolu Cays is a national park in Queensland, Australia, 1,409 km (876 mi) northwest of Brisbane and 33 km (21 mi) east of Cairns. It comprises two small cays on Michaelmas Reef, which forms the north-eastern section of the Arlington reef complex, within the Great Barrier Reef.

Flora and fauna

Plants

The vegetation on Michaelmas Cay is characteristic of cays found on the outer barrier reef. Low-growing, it consists of beach spinifex, stalky grass, goatsfoot, bulls-head vine, sea purslane and tar vine. Nutrients fertilising the vegetation come from seabird droppings and carcasses. The smaller Upolu Cay is un-vegetated.^[1]

Animals

Michaelmas Cay is important as a breeding site for several species of terns. It has been identified by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area (IBA) because it supports over 1% of the world populations of greater and lesser crested terns.^[2] Sooty terns and common noddies also breed there. Other terns that have nested on the cay in the past include roseate and black-naped terns.^[3]

Green turtles sometimes nest on the cays. The surrounding reefs have a rich marine fauna, including giant clams.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b "Michaelmas and Upolu Cays National Park". Michaelmas and Upolu Cays National Park. Queensland Government. Archived from the original on 23 May 2024. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
^ "IBA: Michaelmas Cay". Birdata. Birds Australia. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 15 August 2011.
^ BirdLife International. (2011). Important Bird Areas factsheet: Michaelmas Cay. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org Archived 3 March 2024 at the Wayback Machine on 15 August 2011.

Far North Queensland, Queensland

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v t e National parks of Queensland
Central	Baga Blackdown Tableland Bulburin Byfield Capricorn Coast Capricornia Cays Carnarvon Castle Tower Curtis Island Deepwater Epping Forest Eurimbula Expedition Goodedulla Humboldt Isla Gorge Junee Keppel Bay Islands Kroombit Tops Littabella Mazeppa Minerva Hills Mount Archer Mount Colosseum Mount Etna Caves Mount O'Connell Mount Walsh Nuga Nuga Palmgrove Peak Range Precipice Rundle Range Snake Range Taunton Warro West Hill Wild Cattle Island
Darling Downs	Bendidee Bunya Mountains Crows Nest Erringibba Girraween Main Range Mount Binga Pidna Southwood Sundown The Palms Wondul Range
Far North	Alwal Annan River Apudthama Barnard Island Group Barron Gorge Basilisk Range Blackbraes Bulleringa Cape Melville Chillagoe-Mungana Claremont Isles Clump Mountain Crater Lakes Daintree Danbulla Davies Creek Dinden Djiru Ella Bay Endeavour River Eubenangee Swamp Family Islands Fitzroy Island Flinders Group Frankland Group Forty Mile Scrub Great Basalt Wall Green Island Grey Peaks Girramay Girringun Goold Island Hann Tableland Hasties Swamp Herberton Range Hinchinbrook Island Hope Islands Howick Group Hull River Japoon Kalkajaka Kirrama Kuranda Kurrimine Beach Kutini-Payamu Lama Lama Little Mulgrave Lizard Island Ma’alpiku Island Macalister Range Malaan Maria Creek Marpa Michaelmas and Upolu Cays Millstream Falls Mitchell-Alice Rivers Mitirinchi Island Moresby Range Mount Cook Mount Hypipamee Mount Lewis Mount Spurgeon Mount Webb Mount Windsor Mowbray Ngalba Bulal Nymph Island Oyala Thumotang Palmerston Rocks Piper Islands Possession Island Raine Island Rinyirru Rocky Islets Russell River Sandbanks Saunders Islands Sir Charles Hardy Group Staaten River Starcke Three Islands Topaz Road Tully Gorge Turtle Group Two Islands Undara Volcanic Wooroonooran Wuthara Island Yamarrinh Wachangan Islands Yungaburra
North	Blackwood Brook Islands Bowling Green Bay Brampton Islands Broad Sound Islands Cape Hillsborough Cape Palmerston Cape Upstart Conway Dipperu Dryander Eungella Gloucester Island Halifax Bay Wetlands Holbourne Island Homevale Lindeman Islands Magnetic Island Molle Islands Moorrinya Mount Aberdeen Mount Martin Mount Ossa Newry Islands Northumberland Islands Orpheus Island Paluma Range Pioneer Peaks Reliance Creek Repulse Island Round Top Island Smith Islands South Cumberland Islands South Island Swain Reefs Whitsunday Islands
South West	Alton Chesterton Range Culgoa Floodplain Currawinya Diamantina Hell Hole Gorge Idalia Lake Bindegolly Mariala Narkoola Thrushton Tregole
North West	Boodjamulla Camooweal Caves Porcupine Gorge White Mountains
Central West	Astrebla Downs Bladensburg Cudmore Diamantina Forest Den Goneaway Lochern Munga-Thirri Narrien Range Welford
Wide Bay-Burnett	Auburn River Beeron Beninbi Burrum Coast Cania Gorge Coalstoun Lakes Fairlies Knob Goodnight Scrub Goomboorian Great Sandy Grongah Mount Bauple Pipeclay Poona Tarong Woocoo Woondum Woowoonga
Brisbane and Surrounds	Bellthorpe Bribie Island Burleigh Head Conondale D'Aguilar Deer Reserve Dularcha Esk Eudlo Creek Ferntree Creek Fort Lytton Freshwater Gatton Glass House Mountains Kondalilla Lamington Lockyer Mapleton Falls Mooloolah River Moogerah Peaks Gheebulum Kunungai Mount Barney Mount Chinghee Mount Coolum Mount Pinbarren Naree Budjong Djara Nicoll Scrub Noosa Nerang Ravensbourne Sarabah Southern Moreton Bay Islands St Helena Island Springbrook Tamborine Teerk Roo Ra Tewantin Triunia Tuchekoi Venman Bushland West Cooroy Wickham
Former national parks	Blue Lake
Protected areas of Queensland