Pelorus Islet
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.jpg) Pelorus Rocks, off Kangaroo Island, ca 1925 | |
  Pelorus Islet | |
| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Location | Great Australian Bight |
| Administration | |
Australia | |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 0 |
Pelorus Islet (also known as Pelorus Reef and Pelorus Rock) is an islet in the Australian state of South Australia located in Great Australian Bight off the south coast of Kangaroo Island approximately 7 kilometres (4.3 miles) east south-east of Cape Gantheaume. It was named by Captain Francis Harding, RN after HMS Pelorus.
Pelorus Islet is about 7 kilometres (4.3 miles) east south-east of Cape Gantheaume. It consists of three separate islets - a main round topped peak of 12 metres (39 feet) height with a reef with several rocks sitting above water level to its east and another exposed rock to its south-west. It is inaccessible by boat as it is subject to continuous swells.[1]
Formation, geology and oceanography
Peloris Islet was formed between 7500 and 8900 years ago after sea levels rose at the start of the Holocene when Kangaroo Island became separated from Yorke and Fleurieu Peninsulas.[2] Pelorus Islet is the remains of a volcanic intrusion reported as being some 506 million years old.[1] The islet rises abruptly from a depth of 35 metres (115 feet).[3]
Flora and fauna
As of 1996, no terrestrial vegetation was present as the islet has been ‘scoured of any soil and small eroded fragments, leaving only a few large boulders’ while the only vertebrate animals observed were New Zealand fur seals and crested terns.[1]
