Gabo Island facts for kids
 Gabo Island
Location in Shire of East Gippsland
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| Geography | |
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| Location | Bass Strait |
| Coordinates | 37°33′47″S 149°54′39″E / 37.5629167°S 149.9109722°E |
| Length | 2.4 km (1.49 mi) |
| Width | 0.8 km (0.5 mi) |
| Highest elevation | 52 m (171 ft) |
| Administration | |
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Australia
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| State | Victoria |
Gabo Island is a 154-hectare (380-acre) island located off the coast of eastern Victoria, Australia, between Mallacoota and Cape Howe on the border with New South Wales. It is separated from the mainland by a 500-metre (1,600 ft) wide channel; access is available by arranged flights and boats. Gabo Island is a shipping reference commonly referred to in Victorian weather warnings issued by the Australian Bureau of Meteorology.
Gabo Island Lighthouse
Gabo Island is well known for its historic lighthouse. This lighthouse, Australia's second tallest, was completed in 1862 and made from pink granite quarried from the island itself. The focal plane of the light is situated at 55 metres (180 ft) above sea level, the characteristic is a group of three flashes that occurs every twenty seconds. A keeper's house is occupied by a caretaker; another building may be rented for overnight stays.
Climate
| Climate data for Gabo Island Lighthouse | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 40.8 (105.4) |
39.1 (102.4) |
38.6 (101.5) |
35.0 (95.0) |
26.6 (79.9) |
22.5 (72.5) |
23.3 (73.9) |
26.7 (80.1) |
31.0 (87.8) |
35.6 (96.1) |
37.2 (99.0) |
38.4 (101.1) |
40.8 (105.4) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 21.3 (70.3) |
21.6 (70.9) |
21.0 (69.8) |
19.2 (66.6) |
16.9 (62.4) |
14.8 (58.6) |
14.1 (57.4) |
14.7 (58.5) |
15.9 (60.6) |
17.2 (63.0) |
18.4 (65.1) |
19.9 (67.8) |
17.9 (64.2) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 15.8 (60.4) |
16.2 (61.2) |
15.4 (59.7) |
13.5 (56.3) |
11.2 (52.2) |
9.3 (48.7) |
8.2 (46.8) |
8.5 (47.3) |
9.7 (49.5) |
11.2 (52.2) |
12.8 (55.0) |
14.4 (57.9) |
12.2 (54.0) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 6.3 (43.3) |
7.8 (46.0) |
7.8 (46.0) |
6.4 (43.5) |
2.2 (36.0) |
3.3 (37.9) |
2.0 (35.6) |
2.8 (37.0) |
2.8 (37.0) |
2.8 (37.0) |
1.7 (35.1) |
7.2 (45.0) |
1.7 (35.1) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 70.2 (2.76) |
67.7 (2.67) |
72.5 (2.85) |
84.4 (3.32) |
98.3 (3.87) |
103.4 (4.07) |
85.4 (3.36) |
71.5 (2.81) |
72.5 (2.85) |
74.4 (2.93) |
73.1 (2.88) |
66.7 (2.63) |
941.9 (37.08) |
| Average precipitation days | 9.4 | 9.1 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.4 | 13.7 | 13.3 | 13.3 | 13.3 | 11.6 | 10.8 | 144.7 |
| Source: Bureau of Meteorology | |||||||||||||
Birds
The island is home to the world's largest colony of little penguins. Gabo and nearby Tullaberga Island have been identified by BirdLife International as an Important Bird Area because of the numbers of breeding penguins (up to 21,000 pairs) and white-faced storm petrels (up to 20,000 pairs). Concern of predation of native birds and animals led to a successful feral cat eradication program on the island between 1987 and 1991.
