Declared Fish Habitat Area summary - Princess Charlotte Bay
Princess Charlotte Bay
Location
180 km north-west of Cooktown, across Princess Charlotte Bay between Claremont Point and Bathurst Head and tidal parts of adjoining waterways.
Plan number
Size
122,530 ha
Management level
A
Declaration dates
19 November 1983 (original declaration)
1 July 2010 (redeclared to cadastral boundaries and extended seaward)
Local government
Cook Shire Council
Management features
Protection and conservation of barramundi habitat and associated wetlands; (Former) Department of Primary Industries survey stations in the Marrett, Normanby, Bizant and Kennedy rivers and at Bathurst Heads supported original declaration; seaward boundary aligned with trawl closure boundary for ease of boundary identification.
Habitat values
Closed mixed mangrove forests (Ceriops along tidal creeks), open mangrove stands (Avicennia) and tall closed mangrove stands (Rhizophora); extensive salt pans and coastal seagrass beds; tidal sand and mud flats; rocky headlands at Bathurst Head have fringing reefs.
Fisheries values
Commercial, recreational and Indigenous fisheries significance; major recreational barramundi fishery in hinterland; blue salmon; grey mackerel; queenfish; grunter; mangrove jack; tiger prawns; mud crab.
Unique features
Some of the most diverse seagrass beds between Cairns and Cape York; shoreline of Princess Charlotte Bay is one of largest tidal wetland areas in Australia. Lies within and adjacent to the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area.
Other values
Adjoining freshwater lagoons and billabongs in some areas.