Subantarctic · Indian Ocean
Heard Island
Australia's other subantarctic territory holds more than a million penguins — but it is a strict reserve with effectively no tourism.
The place
Heard Island
Far out in the southern Indian Ocean, Heard Island is Australia's other subantarctic territory — a wild, glaciated volcano ringed by more than a million penguins: eastern rockhopper, gentoo, macaroni and king. It is the clear Australian stronghold of the macaroni penguin.
Heard is a strict Marine Reserve and World Heritage Area with effectively no tourism. We include it as a wildlife fact and a place to marvel at from afar, rather than a destination you can visit.
All places to see penguinsRegion
Subantarctic (Indian Ocean)
Nearest
Remote Australian territory
Species
Rockhopper · gentoo · macaroni · king
Best time
—
Access
No visitor access
Protected
Marine Reserve · World Heritage
Good to know
- There is no visitor access — Heard is a strict reserve.
- Home to one of the great penguin concentrations on the planet.
- A reminder of how much of Australia's penguin life lives far beyond the mainland.