The Western Australian Museum/Woodside Energy Ltd. Partnership to explore the marine biodiversity of the Dampier Archipelago, Western Australia

WA Museum Records and Supplements | Updated 9 years ago

IINTRODUCTION – The Dampier Archipelago is one of the major physical features of the Pilbara coast of northwestern Australia. It lies between latitudes 20°20'S-20°45'S and longitudes 116°24'S-117°05'E and is situated at the eastern end of an extensive chain of small coastal islands between Exmouth and Dampier (Figures 1 and 2). The Pilbara region is an area of distinctive climate, geology, land forms, soils, vegetation and biota. It is also rich in iron ore and gas and oil reserves. Jones (200421) provide an introduction to the archipelago, its climate, geology and landform and the marine environments that surround it, as well as the history of its earliest occupation, discovery by western explorers and the modern economic forces that are driving its development. Reviews of the Dampier marine environment and its oceanography have also been provided by Wells and Walker (2003) and Pearce et al. (2003), respectively.