island thus: "Penguins are fairly numerous; but excepting an occasional seal or two the mutton birds monopolize the island." Another account of the visit said of the muttonbirds: "At night these birds create an indescribable din, in company with the penguins, of which also there is a large number about the various rocks of its coastline." In 1907, visitors landed in May and found a few penguins in burrows along with evidence of recent occupation. Little penguin breeding sites were noted on North Neptune Island in a 1996 survey of South Australia's offshore islands. None were found in 2006 and the colony is now believed to be extinct. History The islands were first sighted by Europeans on Sunday 21 February 1802 from HMS Investigator whilst under the command of Matthew Flinders. The islands were named Neptune's Isles, "for they seemed to be inaccessible to men". The islands were subsequently visited by John Lort Stokes in 1840 and later in 1873-74 by Captain F. Howard, RN as part of an ongoing South Australian Government program to map the colony’s waters, identify shipping hazards and assess the suitability of the coastline for settlement. In the 19th century, the islands were visited by "sporting" parties who shot and killed Australian sea-lions and other wildlife. During World War II, the Neptune Islands became a strategic military site due to its lighthouse’s location at the approaches to both Spencer Gulf and Investigator Strait. This is evident in the act of the placement of a mine field approximately west-south west of the Neptune Islands by the German auxiliary cruiser Pinguin during November 1940. A naval depot including huts and observation towers was established on South Neptune Island along with a gun which was regularly fired. The South Neptune Island Lighthouse Complex is listed on the South Australian Heritage Register. In the 1970s, the Neptune Islands were a filming location where live-action shark sequences of the ground-breaking blockbuster Jaws were filmed. In 2012, the Neptune Islands Conservation Park was designated as a marine park. To this day, it endures a popular location for cage diving with great white sharks. Navigation aids Navigation aids have been located on islands within the Neptune Islands Group since the early 20th century. The need for a lighthouse in the Neptune Islands was considered for many years during the 19th century due to the islands' relatively low elevation. In 1901, the light