SOUTHERN QUEENSLAND
SOUTH OF THE REEF

The Great Barrier Reef is easily Australia ’s top diving attraction. Millions visit ‘The Reef’ every year, and very few of these visitors think about the other diving destinations in Queensland . However, there are many diving adventures awaiting the diver prepared to explore south of the Great Barrier Reef .
    Queensland is Australia ’s Sunshine State . Situated in a tropical and sub-tropical zone, Queensland enjoys warm sunny weather for most of the year. The capital of Queensland is Brisbane , located at the south-eastern corner of the state, and home to half of the four million people that populate the state.

DIVERSE DIVING OFF BRISBANE
Most divers that visit Brisbane take one look at the brown waters of the Brisbane River and assume that there is no quality diving to be found. However, Brisbane has superb diving on coral reefs, rocky reefs, shipwrecks and artificial reefs, where divers will see abundant tropical marine life.
    Brisbane is situated on the banks of the winding Brisbane River , which drains into one of the most beautiful bays in the world, Moreton Bay . The bay is dotted with islands, and home to sea birds, dolphins, rare dugongs and a diverse range of fish species. Bordering the eastern side of the bay are two large sand islands, North Stradbroke Island and Moreton Island , where all of Brisbane ’s dive sites are found in the Moreton Bay Marine Park .
    Curtin Artificial Reef is one of Brisbane ’s most popular dive sites and is located on the western side of Moreton Island . Over a dozen ships have been sunk at this site by the Underwater Research Group of Queensland since 1968. The wrecks sit on a sandy bottom in depths from 15m to 25m, and are always fun to explore. Many of the ships can be safely penetrated, and it takes a number of dives to see the whole site.
    The wrecks are encrusted in hard and soft corals, and home to a variety of invertebrate species. Reef fish shelter on the wrecks, with parrotfish, angelfish, lionfish, butterflyfish, wrasse, batfish and moray eels seen in abundance. Wobbegong sharks are very common and divers should also watch out for stingrays, turtles, spotted eagle rays, shovelnose rays and schooling pelagic fish. One of the highlights is the resident groper population. Both estuary and Queensland gropers live on the wrecks, with some of the Queensland gropers being over 2m in length.
    At the northern end of Moreton Island is Brisbane ’s own coral reef, Flinders Reef. In depths from 6m to 25m divers can explore coral gardens, canyons, gutters and caves all around the reef. Invertebrate species are numerous, with octopus, cuttlefish, crayfish, clams, shrimps, crabs, featherstars and a multitude of nudibranch species, including Spanish Dancers. Colourful reef fish, stingrays, wobbegong sharks, pelagic fish and especially turtles are common. We have also seen giant anglerfish, numbrays and leopard sharks, and many divers have encountered humpback whales here over winter.
    The Cementco is one of the most interesting shipwrecks off Moreton Island . A 67m long hopper barge, the ship was to be sunk as an artificial reef when it accidentally went to the bottom in rough seas in July 1985. The Cementco now rest upside down in 26m and is fascinating to explore. Decorated by corals and home to reef and pelagic fish, the wreck looks like a giant space ship lying on the bottom.
    Cherub’s Cave is located on the eastern side of Moreton Island and is usually only dived over the winter months, June to September, when the seas are calmer. This also happens to be the time when grey nurse sharks are in residence. Up to a dozen of these impressive sharks can been seen slowly patrolling the rocky gutters at the site. The rocky reef here varies in depth from 15m to 35m, and is riddled with caves. Cherub’s Cave is a wonderful place to see turtles, wobbegongs and schools of barracuda and trevally. Other great dive sites off Moreton Island that are just as spectacular are Hutchison Shoal, China Wall, Smith Rock, Henderson Rock and the shipwrecks Aarhus, Marietta Dal and St Pauls.
    North Stradbroke Island , or ‘Straddy’ as it is commonly known, has a wealth of wonderful dive sites off its north-eastern end. Flat Rock offers brilliant diving year round. Surrounding this rocky island are gutters, walls and pinnacles in depths from 10m to 36m. The coral growth is prolific, as are reef fish and invertebrate species. Turtles, wobbegong sharks, pelagic fish, stingrays and spotted eagle rays are commonly encountered.
    Over the summer months, from November to April, leopard sharks are very common at Flat Rock and appear to breed around the island. The winter months sees the arrival of grey nurse sharks at Flat Rock. Up to a dozen sharks can be observed patrolling the gutters at the southern end of the rock, and divers can generally get quite close if they stay down low and wait for the sharks to investigate them. We have also encountered schools of cownose rays, mobula rays, bronze whaler sharks and even a rare leatherback turtle at Flat Rock.
    Straddy’s most popular dive site is Manta Bommie. The site consists of a rocky reef in 6m to 15m, with a number of small bommies and many sandy gutters. Reef fish and invertebrates are plentiful, and pelagic fish also visit the site, but the site is most famous for its manta rays. Up to a dozen manta rays can be seen cruising around the reef, feeding or hovering over one of the bommies to get cleaned by the resident cleaner wrasse. If that isn’t enough, divers can also see dozens of leopard sharks, turtles, giant white spotted shovelnose rays, spotted eagle rays, schools of stingrays, spotted and ornate wobbegong sharks, brown banded catsharks and even the occasional sea snake. The action happens over the warm months, October to May. Other brilliant dive sites off Straddy include Shag Rock, Middle Reef and Boat Rock.

COLOURFUL REEFS OFF THE SUNSHINE COAST
    One hundred kilometres north of Brisbane is the popular holiday destination of the Sunshine Coast . Stretching from Caloundra in the south to Noosa in the north, the Sunshine Coast offers the holiday maker beautiful beaches, fishing, shopping, surfing, bushwalking and diving. Mooloolaba is located in the heart of the Sunshine Coast and is the gateway to many fine dive sites, the best of which is the HMAS Brisbane.
    Scuttled in 27m of water in July 2005, the Guided Missile Destroyer HMAS Brisbane has quickly established a reputation as one of the best dive sites in Queensland . The 133m long ship is fascinating to explore, with over thirty access holes cut into its side to allow divers to investigate all parts of the ship. Highlights of a dive on the HMAS Brisbane include the engine room, funnels, boiler room and the galley, with the bow and stern gun turrets being popular photo stops. In the short time the vessel has been on the bottom she has become covered in growth and home to a wonderful collection of reef and pelagic fish.
    Also off Mooloolaba are the Inner and Outer Gneering Reefs, which cover a very wide area. The rocky reef here varies in depth from 10m to 25m, with the bottom covered in hard and soft coral. While pelagic fish are common, these reefs are a macro photographers dream. Dozens of nudibranch species, sea stars, shrimps, coral crabs, anemones with resident anemonefish and porcelain crabs, brittle stars, lionfish, scorpionfish, cuttlefish and cowries can be found.
    Noosa is the upmarket end of the Sunshine Coast with many expensive hotels, shops and restaurants. Offshore from Noosa are an interesting collection of rocky reefs covered in corals. Jew Shoal is a fascinating dive site here, and a great place to see reef fish, pelagic fish, turtles, sea snakes, wobbegongs and stingrays. There is some terrific terrain at Jew Shoal, with pinnacles, ledges, gutters and caves to explore in depths from 6m to 25m. One of the features here is the lovely nudibranchs, hundreds can be seen on some dives, including rare and many undescribed species. Other wonderful dive sites off the Sunshine Coast include Murphy’s Reef, North Halls, Sunshine Reef, Coolum Reef and Mudjimba Island .

ACTION PACKED DIVING AT RAINBOW BEACH
Rainbow Beach is a sleepy holiday town 230km north of Brisbane , and the gateway to the famous World Heritage listed Fraser Island . Also off Rainbow Beach are two of the best dive sites in Southern Queensland , Round Bommie and Wolf Rock.
    Round Bommie is a large monolith sitting in 15m of water. Surrounded by sand this rock attracts marine life like a magnet. Turtles, wobbegongs, stingrays, white spotted shovelnose rays, spotted eagle rays, gropers, batfish, barracuda, trevally, kingfish and even the odd manta ray. Leopard sharks are also common here in the summer months.
    Wolf Rock is located about one kilometre offshore and barely breaks the surface, but under the surface are five interconnected pinnacles. The southern side of these pinnacles drops into 36m of water, while on the northern side are a series of gutters in 20m to 30m. While there are lovely corals, abundant reef fish and a wide variety of invertebrate species to be seen, everyone visits Wolf Rock for action.
    Circling Wolf Rock are usually schools of trevally and barracuda, at times blocking out the surface light. Schools of spotted eagle rays cruise around the pinnacles, while in the gutters are turtles, stingrays and leopard sharks over summer. Grey nurse sharks also patrol the gutters. The grey nurse, reaching 3m in length, can be seen at any time of the year, but are more common in the summer months. Also common over summer are manta rays and giant Queensland gropers, on some dives we have seen up to a dozen of these massive fish. If that wasn’t enough the odd bronze whaler shark or tiger shark can be seen to really liven up a dive.
    When heading all the way over to Australia to dive the Great Barrier Reef, take a few extra days to discover the delights at the southern end of Queensland , you won’t be disappointed.

MORETON BAY MARINE PARK
The bountiful waters off Brisbane were protected as a marine park in 1993 to conserve the unique ecosystem of Moreton Bay . The bay is an important area for sea birds and fish spawning and has a large population of endangered turtles and dugongs. It is a multi-use marine park, similar to the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park , with a number of different zonings, some fully protected and others that allow fishing. Divers can explore the Moreton Bay Marine Park on day trips or on a weekend liveaboard trips on Big Cat Reality.

ENDANGERED GREY NURSE SHARKS
The grey nurse shark was the first shark in the world to be protected in 1984. Any easy target for fishermen and spearfishermen, their numbers were decimated in the 1960s and 1970s, and have continued to decline since protection. Recent diver surveys have recorded as few as 300 grey nurse in New South Wales and Southern Queensland . In 2003, the Queensland Government declared four known grey nurse aggregation sites, Wolf Rock, Flat Rock, Cherub’s Cave and Henderson Rock, as marine sanctuaries, in an effort to protect the critically endangered sharks from fishing pressures.

Article appeared in Ezdive Magazine No.6 April/May 2010