To focus expertise, wisdom and enthusiasm for the benefit of Moreton Bay
For part of the year, they are alive with migratory shorebirds feeding and resting after their long journey south. Then, as the seasons turn, many lift into the sky and begin the journey north – back along the East Asian–Australasian Flyway toward breeding grounds in the northern hemisphere.
For months at a time, Moreton Bay is their refuge: a place to feed, rebuild energy, moult, rest, and prepare for one of the most demanding migrations in the natural world.
That is one of the reasons Moreton Bay is recognised as a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance.
Ramsar listing is not a decorative title. It’s a global recognition that these wetlands matter far beyond South East Queensland. Moreton Bay supports extensive seagrass meadows, mangroves, saltmarsh, sandy flats, mudflats, coral communities, turtles, dugongs, fish nurseries and internationally significant numbers of migratory shorebirds.
The Australian Government’s Ramsar information for Moreton Bay records that the site regularly supports more than 50,000 birds, at least 43 shorebird species, and at least 28 migratory shorebird species. It is also recognised as part of the East Asian–Australasian Flyway network and supports more than one percent of the flyway population of several migratory shorebird species, including the critically endangered eastern curlew and curlew sandpiper.
Recognition is not the same as protection.
The birds that have just left Moreton Bay depend on a chain of wetlands across countries and continents. Every link matters. When they return later in the year, the question is simple: will Moreton Bay be a little better for them – or a little worse?
‘Better’ means healthier feeding grounds. Safer high-tide roosts. Less disturbance from people, dogs, vehicles, boats and drones. Cleaner water. Better protected saltmarsh, seagrass, mangroves and mudflats. Better decisions across the catchment, because what happens upstream eventually reaches the Bay.
Moreton Bay is often the first Australian refuge migratory shorebirds use on their southern journey, and the last before they head north again. That gives this place a special responsibility.
The birds have done their part. They’ve flown thousands of kilometres, across oceans, weather systems and international borders, to return to the same feeding and roosting places year after year.
Now it’s our turn.
While the shorebirds are away, we can reduce the pressures on their southern home. We can support better science, protect critical habitats and build a stronger community voice for one of the world’s great coastal wetlands.
The Ramsar listing reminds us that Moreton Bay is not just our backyard, but part of the world’s natural heritage -a place whose mudflats, seagrass meadows, mangroves, saltmarsh and roost sites connect us to a global story of migration, survival and shared responsibility.
When the shorebirds return later in the year, we want them coming home to a Bay that is healthier, safer and better cared for than the one they left.