St. Crispin's Reef

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St. Crispin's Reef is an elongate outer-shelf [1] coral reef in the Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, Australia.

Contents

Location and topography

Named after St. Crispin, the French patron saint of cobblers and tanners, [2] St. Crispin's Reef is located 35 miles off the Queensland coast in the Coral Sea, [3] in latitude 16° 07' 54.14" S longitude 145° 48' 22.46" E, at a depth of 9 metres. [4] It lies east of Undine Reef and south of Agincourt Reefs, close to Opal Reef. [5] [6] Protected by neighbor reefs, St. Crispin's structure consists of many shallow sandy channels that reticulate around coral mounds, rather than a typical reef slope. It has an abundance of soft corals and colourful marine life. [7]

Marine life

St. Crispin's Reef is a popular diving and snorkeling spot for expeditions from Port Douglas and Cairns. [8] Nicknamed "Flower garden", the reef is host to Sergeant majors, Sweet lips, reef sharks, feather stars and bumphead parrot fish. [3] [9]

Classification

Classified by the Marine Park Authority for "Intensive use", [10] the reef has four moorings. [3] In 1998, divers Tom and Eileen Lonergan were accidentally left here by their dive expedition, and went missing. Their bodies were never found. The tragedy inspired the film Open Water. [11]

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References

  1. ↑ Great Barrier Reef coral bleaching surveys 2006 (research publication no. 87). Australia: Great Barrier reef Marine Park Authority. 2006. p. 48.
  2. ↑ "Survey 22 - St. Crispin's reef". Surveys of the Great Barrier Reef. Catlin Seaview Survey. Archived from the original on 27 May 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
  3. 1 2 3 "Snorkeling at St. Crispin's reef". Wavelength. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
  4. ↑ "St. Crispin's Reef". Transects of St. Crispins reef. Global Reef Record. Archived from the original on 27 May 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
  5. ↑ "Location of St. Crispin's reef". Wikimapia. Archived from the original on 27 May 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
  6. ↑ "Map of great barrier reef". Dive Maps of Australia. PADI - Professional Association of Diving Instructors. Archived from the original on 27 May 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
  7. ↑ "2012 survey - St. Crispin's reef". Catlin Seaview Survey. Archived from the original on 31 July 2017. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
  8. ↑ "Major reef sites from Port Douglas". Frommers. Archived from the original on 27 May 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
  9. ↑ Zell, len (1 May 2014). The Great Barrier Reef: A Journey Through the World's Greatest Natural Wonder. Murdoch Books. ISBN   978-1743361795.
  10. ↑ "Classification of reefs". Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. Archived from the original on 27 May 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2014.
  11. ↑ https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/mystery-couple-left-behind-shark-24255681

Coordinates: 16°07′54.14″S145°48′22.46″E / 16.1317056°S 145.8062389°E / -16.1317056; 145.8062389

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