Middleton Reef

Location of Middleton Reef east of New South Wales

Middleton Reef is a

underwater plateau. It is around 230 km from Lord Howe Island and 555 km from the coast of New South Wales. In 1997 the Environment, Sport and Territories Legislation Amendment Bill 1996 included the reef in Australia's Coral Sea Islands Territory.^[1]

It is among the southernmost platform reefs in the world. Despite its relatively high latitude, there is a wide variety of flora and fauna on the reef and in the surrounding waters, due to converging tropical and temperate ocean currents.

It is about 8.9 km long by 6.3 km wide. At low tide most of the reef flat is exposed, at high tide only one cay is visible, The Sound, 100 m by 70 m and one metre above sea level.

The reefs form the Elizabeth and Middleton Reefs Marine National Park Reserve managed by the

Government of Australia under the Natural Heritage Trust

.

Middleton Reef image from NASA Millennium Coral Reef Mapping Project

Flora and fauna

Surveys by the

Sea cucumber (black teatfish), Holothuria whitmaei,^[4] were also found in high numbers at Elizabeth Reef. While the 2003 survey found only small numbers of crown-of-thorns starfish, a survey in 2005 indicated that that species is now active.^[5]

Shipwrecks

Along with Elizabeth Reef, the reef has been the site of numerous shipwrecks. According to the National Shipwrecks Database the ships stranded include: Middleton Reef: Agnes Napier, Annasona, Blue Jacket, Britannia, Defender, Maelgwyn, Mallsgate, Mary Lawson, Queen of the East, Stuart Russel, Runic, Fuku Maru no 7. Britannia is listed for both Elizabeth and Middleton Reefs. The yacht Sospan Fach was wrecked on Middleton Reef in 1974, and its crew of four was rescued after being stranded for six weeks, during which they lived on the wreck of the Fuku Maru.^[6]