Orpheus Island National Park

Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use Australian English Template:Infobox Australian place Orpheus Island National Park is a national park on Orpheus Island, in North Queensland, Australia. The Aboriginal (possibly Nyawaygi) name for this island is Goolboddi Island. It is one of the Palm Islands group, Template:Convert northwest of Brisbane, as is Pelorus Island Template:Convert to the north; both are in the Shire of Hinchinbrook. Besides Orpheus Island, the national park also includes Albino Rock, which is located Template:Convert east of Great Palm Island (usually known as Palm Island). Orpheus Island is a continental island.

Prior to the arrival of Europeans, Orpheus Island was inhabited by an Aboriginal people, probably the Nyawigi people.<ref name=aussie>Template:Cite web</ref> The name "Orpheus" was given to the island in 1887 by Lieutenant G. E. Richards, referring to HMS Orpheus, a Royal Navy ship which was wrecked off the coast of New Zealand in 1863.<ref name=aussie/>

In 1960 it was declared a national park. In 2002 the island was bought by Jim Wilson who had developed the Freycinet Lodge in Tasmania, and bought off him in 2011 by Chris Morris, the Computershare mogul.<ref name=aussie/>

A research station, operated by James Cook University, is located on the island. Since 2000, St Michael's Grammar School (of St Kilda, Victoria) has run a marine biology project each June.<ref name=project>Template:Cite web</ref> Since 2018 Reef Ecologic has run an annual reef restoration and leadership workshop at the research station. The group published a research paper on findings from citizen scientists on a rare, large coral bommie at Orpheus Island in 2021<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> A citizen science database using iNaturalist has recorded over 700 observations of 334 species with the most observed species the Australian Green Tree Frog<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

There is also a luxury resort on the island, the Orpheus Island Great Barrier Reef Luxury Resort.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Great Palm Island is the closest location with government facilities.<ref name=aussie/>

See also

• List of islands of Queensland
• Protected areas of Queensland

External links

• Template:Cite web

Template:Great Palm Island group Template:National Parks of Queensland Template:North Queensland