Stokes Inlet
{{Short description|Inlet on south coast of Western Australia}}
{{Use Australian English|date=December 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{Infobox Australian place|type = other
| name = Stokes Inlet
| state = wa
| image = Stokes Inlet from the lookout at the Stokes Inlet Picnic Area, January 2024 02.jpg
| caption = The inlet seen from the lookout at the Stokes Inlet Picnic Area
| lga = Shire of Esperance
| local_map = yes
| zoom = 12
| coordinates = {{coord|33|49|11|S|121|9|39|E|region:AU-WA_type:waterbody|display=title, inline}}
| area =
}}
Stokes Inlet is an inlet in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia.
The inlet is situated {{convert|65|km|mi|0}} west of Esperance in Stokes National Park and is set is a large river valley with permanent deep water and high dunes located on either side. Thick bushland and paperbark trees surround the inlet and grow down to the waters edge. It is in a largely unmodified condition.
The inlet functions primarily as a result of wave energy and is a wave dominated estuary.
Stokes Inlet was named in 1848 by John Septimus Roe, the Surveyor General of Western Australia, while leading a five-man exploration expedition along the coast, commemorating John Lort Stokes' work on {{HMS|Beagle}}, surveying the Western Australian coast.{{cite web |last1=Jamieson |first1=Daryl |title=The Very Early Pioneers of Munglinup |url=https://sites.google.com/site/munglinuppioneers19571972/home/the-very-early-pioneers |website=Munglinup Pioneers 1957–1972 |access-date=7 July 2021}}{{cite book |last1=Hodgkin |first1=Ernest P. |last2=Clark |first2=Ruth |title=Estuaries and coastal lagoons of south Western Australia. Stokes Inlet and other estuaries of the Shire of Esperance: Stokes Inlet and other estuaries of the Shire of Esperance. |date=June 1989 |publisher=Environmental Protection Authority |location=Perth, WA |isbn=0 7309 19579 |url=https://library.dbca.wa.gov.au/static/Journals/080553/080553-05.pdf |access-date=7 July 2021}}
Geography
The inlet is managed by the Department of Environment and Conservation with a catchment that extends over {{convert|100|km|mi|0}} inland and is fed by two main rivers, the Young and Lort Rivers.
The inlet itself is {{convert|10|km|mi|0}} long and {{convert|2|km|mi|0}} wide with an area of {{convert|14|km2|sqmi|0}}, and receives an annual flow of 5 million cubic metres.{{cite web|url=http://www.rivercare.southcoastwa.org.au/infodata/youngc/stokesi/stokes.html|title=South Coast Rivercare - Stokes Inlet|year=2000|accessdate=1 November 2008}}
The central basin has an area of {{convert|8.6|km2|sqmi|0}} with intertidal flats having an area of approximately {{convert|2|km2|sqmi|0}}.{{cite web|url=http://dbforms.ga.gov.au/pls/www/npm.ozest.show_mm?pBlobno=9291|title=Estuary Assessment framework - Estuary 637 - Stokes Inlet|year=2002|accessdate=22 May 2009}}
The mouth of the river is in the middle of Dunster Castle Bay; it is closed by a sandbar that cuts the estuary off from the sea and only opens every few years. As a result, the salinity and water level fluctuate greatly dependent upon the amount of evaporation and river flow.{{cite web|url=http://www.dec.wa.gov.au/component/option,com_hotproperty/task,view/id,104/Itemid,755/|title=Department of Environment and Conservation - Park Finder|year=2008|accessdate=11 October 2010}}
Flora
The aquatic flora of the estuary are dominated by the small green algae Polyphysa peniculus, the stonewort Lamprothamnium papulosum, and the seagrass Ruppia megacarpa.
The waterbody of the inlet is fringed with salt water paperbarks with sedges and samphire common along the sandy sections.{{cite web|url=http://portal.water.wa.gov.au/portal/page/portal/WaterManagement/Waterways/RiversEstuaries/Content/Benwenerup%20a%20management%20plan%20for%20Stokes%20Inlet_final%20with.pdf|title=Benwenerup: A management plan for Stokes Inlet|year=2008|accessdate=1 November 2008}}
Fauna
Marine species flourish at times when the bar is open; blue manna crabs, juvenile prawns, cockles and mussels have all been identified in the inlet.
Many fish species inhabit the estuary, such as the common minnow, hardyheads, gobies, and larger species such as black bream and sea mullet.