Fraser Island Novelty Number plate

Aluminium with embossed border

FRASER ISLAND is a heritage-listed island located along the southeastern coast of the state of Queensland which is approximately 250 kms north of Brisbane. It’s in the Great Sandy Strait, with other islands –  Slain Island, Tooth Island, Roundbush Island, Moonboom Island, Gardner Island, Dream Island, Stewart Island, and the Reef Islands.

Its about 123 kms long and 22 kms wide and was inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1992. The island is considered to be the largest sand island in the world at 1,840 km2. It’s also Queensland’s largest island and Australia’s sixth largest island

The island has rainforests, eucalyptus woodland, mangrove forests, wallum and peat swamps, sand dunes and coastal heaths. It is made up of sand that has been accumulating for approximately 750,000 years on volcanic bedrock that provides a natural catchment for the sediment which is carried on a strong offshore current northwards along the coast. Unlike on many sand dunes, plant life is abundant due to the naturally occurring mycorrhizal fungi present in the sand, which release nutrients in a form that can be absorbed by the plants.

Fraser Island is home to a small number of mammal species, as well as a diverse range of birds, reptiles and amphibians, including the occasional saltwater crocodile. The island is protected in the Great Sandy National Park.

Fraser Island has been inhabited by humans for as long as 5,000 years. Explorer James Cook sailed by the island in May 1770. Matthew Flinders landed near the most northern point of the island in 1802. For a short period the island was known as Great Sandy Island. The island became known as Fraser due to the stories of a shipwreck survivor named Eliza Fraser. In 2009 as part of the Q150 celebrations, the Fraser Island was announced as one of the Q150 Icons of Queensland for its role as a “Natural attraction”.