Osprey Reef

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title: "Osprey Reef" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["coral-sea-islands", "coral-reefs-of-australia", "seamounts-of-the-pacific-ocean", "underwater-diving-sites-in-australia"] description: "Submerged atoll northeast of Queensland, Australia" topic_path: "geography/australia" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osprey_Reef" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Submerged atoll northeast of Queensland, Australia ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c9/Osprey_Reef_map.png" caption="mi}} from the northern part of the [[Great Barrier Reef"] ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8a/Coral_Garden.jpg" caption="''[[Acropora]]'' coral garden with [[giant clam]] at Raging Horn, Osprey Reef"] ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/Osprey_Reef_-_Nautilus_sampling_and_tracking_detection_sites.png" caption="Osprey Reef from the air, showing [[nautilus]] detection sites used in a 1998–2008 study by Dunstan ''et al.''"] ::

Osprey Reef is a submerged atoll in the Coral Sea, northeast of Queensland, Australia. It is part of the Northwestern Group of the Coral Sea Islands. Osprey Reef is roughly oval in shape, measuring 25 by, and covers around 195 km2. It has a perimeter of 69.5 km. The central lagoon is only 30 m deep.

The reef sits atop a seamount in deep water. It is an isolated location some 60 km from other reefs. The almost vertical reef walls, which rise from a depth of about 2000 m, are home to a dwarf form of Nautilus pompilius that is isolated from other nautilus populations by more than 100 km. Schindleria brevipinguis, one of the world's smallest fish, is found in the Osprey Reef lagoon.

The reef has no intertidal or emerged sand cay. The surrounding waters are part of the South Equatorial Current. The reef is protected within the Coral Sea Commonwealth Marine Reserve.

Corals

A 2009 expedition aimed to make discoveries in the deeper parts of the reef between 92 and below sea level. Relict fauna communities consisting of rock sponges, glass sponges, brachiopods and stalked sea lilies were discovered.

Diving

The reef has been described as the "ultimate reef diving adventure". The reef is home to large and colourful soft corals. Sharks are common.

References

References

1. (2011). "Nautilus at risk – estimating population size and demography of ''Nautilus pompilius''". PLOS ONE.
2. [http://www.dive-the-world.com/diving-sites-australia-great-barrier-reef-osprey-reef.php Osprey Reef]. Dive the World.
3. (2011). "''Nautilus pompilius'' life history and demographics at the Osprey Reef Seamount, Coral Sea, Australia". PLOS ONE.
4. (2011). "Vertical distribution and migration patterns of ''Nautilus pompilius''". PLOS ONE.
5. (March 2018). "The world's smallest vertebrate, ''Schindleria brevipinguis'', a new paedomorphic species in the family Schindleriidae (Perciformes: Gobioidei). }}{{dead link".
6. "Morphology And Ecology Of The Deep Fore Reef Slope At Osprey Reef, (Coral Sea)". Proceedings of the 6th International Coral Reef Symposium, Australia, 1988, Vol.2.
7. (20 January 2016). "Secrets of the Coral Sea revealed". [[Australian Geographic]].
8. Simon & Schuster. (2008). "Dive Atlas of the World". New Holland Publishers.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::