The coastal region in this image is the central part of Eighty Mile Beach. The beach and the surrounding mudflats and marshes are one of the most important migratory stop-over areas for shorebirds in East Asia and Australia and is included in the list of RAMSAR sites. The unpolluted waters off the beach host some of the world’s richest pearl beds. The actual beach width averages about 328 feet (100 meters), with a tidal range of about 20 feet (6 meters). Inland from the coast the sandy plains and ridges (parallel bands of alternating light and dark streaks) are covered by an assortment of grasses.