List of corals of the Houtman Abrolhos
The marine waters of the Houtman Abrolhos, an island chain off the coast of Western Australia, have been recorded as containing 194 species of coral in 50 genera. This is a surprisingly high coral diversity, considering the high latitude of the reef, and the relatively low diversity of other biota. This is a list of corals of the Houtman Abrolhos:
Houtman Abrolhos
The Houtman Abrolhos (often informally called the Abrolhos Islands) is a chain of 122 islands, and associated coral reefs, in the Indian Ocean off the west coast of Australia. Nominally located at , it lies about eighty kilometres (50 mi) west of Geraldton, Western Australia. It is the southernmost true coral reef in the Indian Ocean, and one of the highest latitude reef systems in the world. It is one of the world's most important seabird breeding sites, and is the centre of Western Australia's largest single-species fishery, the western rock lobster fishery. It has a small seasonal population of fishermen, and a limited number of tourists are permitted for day trips, but most of the land area is off limits as conservation habitat. It is well known as the site of numerous shipwrecks, the most famous being the Dutch ships "Batavia", which was wrecked in 1629, and "Zeewijk", wrecked in 1727.