The Coral Sea is one of Australia's most precious natural heritage jewels. It is often referred to as the Serengeti of the Sea - due to its great expanse and stunning array of marine life - and covers an area more than twice the size of the nearby Great Barrier Reef.

A series of spectacular coral reefs, formed by underwater mountains, rise thousands of metres from the sea floor and play host to some of the underwater world's most magnificent marine animals. These atolls are surrounded by oceanic superhighways where sailfish, oceanic sharks, tuna and turtles cruise by.
The Coral Sea is a rare example of a set of marine environments that are thriving. Bountiful fish populations including grey and white tip reef sharks, hammerheads, manta rays, tuna, barracuda, trevally and rare sea creatures such as the nautilus inhabit the waters, alongside an amazing and diverse range of corals.

Globally it is a different story. Coral reefs are vanishing at a rate five times faster than the world's rainforests, and the populations of large marine species - such as sharks and tuna - are estimated to have declined by up to 90 percent in many areas.

Due to its remoteness, the Coral Sea has largely managed to avoid this fate. The area is largely unprotected, leaving it vulnerable to the same impacts that have devastated other marine regions. WWF-Australia believes the time has come to protect this tropical marine wilderness.

WWF is calling on all Australians to persuade the Australian Government to declare the entire Coral Sea region a Marine Protected Area. This would create the world's largest Marine Park and protect the Coral Sea for future generations, before irreversible damage is done.

To find out how you can Save the Coral Sea click here