Featured Article Summary #240

Heard Island and McDonald Islands are an Australian external territory in the southern Indian Ocean. They are remote, uninhabited sub-Antarctic volcanic islands on the Kerguelen Plateau, about 4,000 km from Australia and 1,700 km north of Antarctica. The territory includes Australia’s only active volcanoes, with Mawson Peak being the highest point outside the Australian Antarctic Territory. The islands were first confirmed in the 1850s, later used by sealers, and then claimed by the UK before being transferred to Australia in 1947; research activity continued until the mid-1950s. Today they are a managed nature reserve and World Heritage Site, dominated by Big Ben and heavily glaciated, with a harsh climate of strong winds, cold temperatures, and heavy rain and snow. They support large seabird and seal populations, but their glaciers are melting quickly in recent decades due to climate change. Heard Island was first confirmed in 1853 when Captain John Heard spotted it, and the McDonald Islands were seen soon after in 1854. Sealers then heavily exploited Heard Island for decades, producing large amounts of oil but also causing deaths and wrecks, until sealing declined in the late 1800s. After brief scientific visits, the British claimed the islands in the early 1900s, and Australia took control in 1947, setting up a research station that operated until 1955. From 1956 to 2004 there were multiple short research expeditions, and later efforts included monitoring, tourism, and a feasibility test for ocean studies. The islands became a World Heritage site in 1997, and commercial fishing began the same year; a major Marine Reserve was created in 2002 to protect marine life. More recently, environmental management visits in 2025–2026 included surveys, waste removal, and remote monitoring setup, and they confirmed that H5 bird flu had reached the island. Heard Island and McDonald Islands are an uninhabited Australian external territory and strict nature reserve, managed by the Australian Antarctic Division. Unauthorised entry has been banned since 2014, and any approved visitors must complete training and follow quarantine rules, though some illegal landings have still occurred and may pose biosecurity risks. The territory is run under a legal framework created by the Heard Island and McDonald Islands Act 1953, later environmental laws, and related management plans; Commonwealth laws apply only when specifically included. Environmental protection is mainly covered by the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, and in April 2025 the United States imposed a 10% tariff after incorrect information suggested U.S. imports from the islands in 2022. Heard Island and McDonald Islands have a 12-nautical-mile territorial sea, surrounded by an Australian exclusive economic zone (EEZ) that extends 200 nautical miles. Most of this area is protected by the Heard Island and McDonald Islands Marine Reserve, which includes strict sanctuary waters, a national park zone, and a habitat protection zone. In 2012 Australia also declared an extended continental shelf of 1,130,000 sq km around the islands to claim exclusive rights to seabed resources. Fishing is not allowed inside the islands’ territorial waters, but commercial fishing is permitted in the nearby EEZ and is managed by AFMA, which sets catch quotas and checks compliance with Antarctic marine protection rules. The fishery targets Patagonian toothfish (1–3 vessels using longlines) and mackerel icefish (2–5 vessels using trawls), with AFMA observers required on each vessel; bycatch of protected species is a concern. Illegal fishing has been reported in the past, including arrests starting in 1997, but patrols and cooperation—such as an agreement with France in 2003—have helped stop it, with no illegal fishing reported since about 2006–2007.