Phillip Island (pop. 13,799) is a popular tourist center in southeastern Australia. It is in the state of Victoria. Phillip Island lies at the entrance to Western Port Bay, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) from Melbourne. Its major population center is the township of Cowes, on the north coast. Other communities on the island include the townships of Cape Woolamai, Newhaven, and Ventnor. 
Phillip Island’s northern coast, on Western Port Bay, is made up of sheltered beaches and mangrove swamps, where the spreading roots of mangrove trees hold the soil. Its southern coast, on Bass Strait, has rugged cliffs and surf beaches. The island is known for its beaches, which are home to a variety of native sea birds.
Phillip Island is most famous for its population of little penguins, the smallest species of penguin. These birds are also called blue penguins or fairy penguins. They are a protected species in some parts of Australia, including on Phillip Island. The Phillip Island little penguins swim out of the ocean each night to return to their beachside nests. The birds’ nightly trip up the beach is a popular tourist event known as the Penguin Parade.
The Seal Rocks, off Phillip Island’s southwest coast, are home to a large colony of fur seals. Other tourist attractions on the island include the Koala Conservation Reserve and the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit race track. The track has hosted the yearly Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix (MotoGP) competition since 1997.
The Bunurong Aboriginal people are the traditional inhabitants of the island. In the Bunurong language, the island is known as Millowl. British colonizers named Phillip Island after Arthur Phillip, the first governor of the British colony of New South Wales. What is now Victoria was once part of New South Wales.
The English explorer George Bass visited Western Port Bay in 1798. Phillip Island was used by early sealers and whalers. John McHaffie, a Scottish sheep farmer, and his brother leased the island in 1842. Extensive settlement of the island began in the 1860’s. An access road to the little penguins’ nesting grounds was built in 1927. The first bridge between Phillip Island and the Victoria mainland opened in 1940.
