They are set in environments which could hardly be more different, but together two enormous wildlife sanctuaries announced by Australia this week will give protection to hundreds of thousands of endangered plants and animals.
The government announced the creation of two huge reserves, one in the southern ocean to protect fish stocks, and another in the deserts of Western Australia.
The marine reserve - the largest in the world - will cover an area roughly the size of Switzerland around Heard and McDonald islands, remote and windswept Australian territories in sub-Antarctic waters.
Heard Island has Australia's only active volcano, Big Ben, which last erupted in 1992.
McDonald Island's cliffs are so steep that only two successful landings have been made in the last century.
Lying more than 4,000 kms southwest of Australia and 1,000 kms north of Antarctica, the reserve is intended to protect fish stocks and wildlife, including sharks, whales and the endangered southern elephant seal.
