THE NOBBIES PHILLIP ISLAND VICTORIA 🇦🇺

The Nobbies, Phillip Island

Summerlands, Victoria 3922

It is also home to the Nobbies Information Centre, which is perched on the top of the hill and is the perfect place to watch the resident Australian fur seals as they play on the rocks.
The Nobbies, Phillip Island

Just a kilometre from the Centre, there is a smattering of rocks known as Seal Rocks, which are home to the largest colony of fur seals in the country.

From the headland, you can wander along the boardwalks to look out over the sea and spot the variety of natural sea birds that call the area home. As well as this, there are plenty of other things to get stuck into while you’re in the area. Phillip Island is a haven for wildlife watching both on the land and sea. After you’ve visited the Nobbies and spotted the Australian Fur Seals, why not try whale watching or see if you can spot some of the migratory birds that make their way to Australia annually.

What are the Nobbies?
The Nobbies is an incredibly important site for Australia’s largest colony of Fur Seals. These cobblestone rocks that jut out of the water are a dramatic strip of land attached to the Phillip Island coastline. At the Nobbies Visitor Centre boardwalk that leads out to the lookout, keep an eye out for the penguins who nest underneath the boardwalk.

Australian Fur Seals
The seals that you’ll see on Seal Rocks just a couple kilometres out from the Nobbies are the largest of all fur seals in the world. They are recognisable by the brown hair that covers the body and prefer to live along rocky coastlines. This makes the Seal Rocks a perfect breeding habitat for the Australian Fur Seals. The seals are skilful and agile hunters, swimming in the ocean to find food. They mostly eat bony fish, however, are known to also catch squid and octopus. The seals traverse on land using their front flippers to get around and raising their bodies. There is a notable difference between the males and females, as the males are larger and have a dark mane of hair. The population of the Australian Fur Seals suffered in the 1800s due to a large number of hunters who were after their fur coats. From hundreds of thousands, this number dropped down to 20,000 but in recent years has made a steady incline in the population thanks to conservation methods initiated by Parks Victoria and other government bodies.