One of them, known to the locals as ‘Terrible Ted' very often comes to greet the divers and likes to nibble at fins and BCDs, he also loves to engage with his reflection in big camera dome ports offering a very detailed view of his tongue and mouth. Then there are a few substantial resident loggerheads (Caretta caretta) that call the rock home. Confident hawksbills (Eretmochelys imbricata) are found a bit deeper around the coral bommies. Young green turtles (Chelonia mydas) hang in the shallows close to the top of the rocks. The other iconic year-round residents are three species of sea turtles. Resident elasmobranchs also include the beautiful white-spotted guitar fish and small very rare sharks like the Colclough's shark as well as many of majestic eagle rays, huge bull rays and small blue spotted rays. At Julian Rocks, they are so many that they are often piled on each other. The smaller Ornate Wobbegong (Orectolobus ornatus) is actually more rare and endemic of New South Wales. The Hale's Wobbegong (Orectolobus halei) is probably the most impressive with beautiful coloured patterns and an imposing size, reaching 3 meters in length. The Spotted Wobbegong (Orectolobus maculatus) is the most common and can be seen everywhere swimming around or laying camouflaged on rocky outcrops. Three different species of wobbegongs live here in large numbers and are extra active in the Autumn and Winter months. At Julian rocks, they'll be swimming placidly mostly in shallower than 15 meters water. While grey nurse sharks are the Winter stars of the show many any other sharks and rays call Julian Rocks home year-round. Great encounters with grey nurse sharks are possible in many dive sites along the NSW coast but usually require diving deeper or in strong currents in more exposed locations. Ferocious looking with their irregular pointy teeth they are actually extraordinarily placid and harmless animal and very chilled around the divers. In Winter large numbers of grey nurse sharks (Charcarias Taurus) come up to Julian Rocks from further south. Weather is a lot more reliable in Winter with calmer sea and more consistent visibility reducing the risk of cancellations due to weather the are common in Summer with cyclones and streaks of heavy northerly winds. Daring the mildly colder waters will reward divers with some breathtaking underwater encounters. Air temperature is also never too cold in Byron's mild Winter and the ride to the rock is just under 10 minutes so it's a quick way out and back to cup of hot coffee. The colder water temperatures make it less appealing but with water not reaching below 18 degrees, even Winter diving is pretty warm compared to diving in the rest of NSW and Victoria and all it takes is a 5mm wetsuit with an extra warmth layer to be perfectly comfortable underwater. While the Summer diving is certainly spectacular at Julian Rocks, Winter diving is no less amazing yet very few divers outside the local community know how good it is. Julian Rocks thrives with marine life featuring one of the largest aggregations of leopard sharks in the world and frequent visits from iconic warm water species like Manta Rays. Summer diving is extremely popular, as Byron Bay gets packed with tourists and divers enjoying the lovely weather, gorgeous beaches and warm water. Awesome Julian Rocks Exceptional Winter Diving This creates a unique level of biodiversity year-round with over a thousand cold and warm water species found at the site. Just off the most easterly point of Australia, Julian Rocks has dramatic seasonal changes with water temperatures ranging from 18-20 degrees in Winter up to 26-27 degrees in the peak of Summer. Julian Rocks, a volcanic island just a few minutes by boat from Byron Bay main beach, was established as a marine reserve in 1982 and thanks to the over 35 years of protected status it is surrounded by thriving marine life. It recently made it to the National Geographic list of the top 20 dives sites in the world and, was named among the top 3 snorkelling spots in Australia. Diving at Julian Rocks in ANZ Byron Bay, winter diving at its bestīyron Bay is synonym with surfing and chilled beach life but not everyone knows that under its waters lies one of the best dive sites in the world.
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