Bunurong Marine and Coastal Park

The Bunurong Marine and Coastal Park collectively are a marine park and a coastal park located along the reef and coast of Harmers Haven, Cape Paterson and Inverloch in the South Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia. Collectively, the parks are located approximately southeast of Melbourne, between Coal Point in the west to Wreck Creek in the east, and are used for walking, picnicking, boating, education and research.The 1203ha Bunurong Marine Park comprises two separate areas along of coastline and was gazetted on. The broad rock platforms and underwater reefs of Bunurong Marine Park support a remarkable range of habitats, containing a diverse array of plants and animals.The 93ha Bunurong Coastal Park includes the narrow strip of public land adjacent to Bunurong Marine Park and Bunurong Marine National Park, between the eastern boundary of the Cape Paterson Foreshore Reserve at Undertow Bay in the west and Wreck Creek in the east, and was gazetted in June 1984.Both parks draw their name from the Australian Aboriginal Bunurong people who are the traditional owners of the land and water in the region.EtymologyThe Bunurong parks are named after the Bunurong Aboriginal people whom were custodians of this stretch of coast for thousands of years prior to white settlement. The Boakoolawal clan lived in the Kilcunda area south of the Bass River, and the Yowenjerre were west of the Tarwin River along what is now the Bunurong Marine and Coastal Parks near Wonthaggi. Middens containing charcoal and shellfish mark the location of their campsites along the coast.