SPOTLIGHT ON WESTERN AUSTRALIA'S MARINE DISCOVERY CENTRES: Bunbury and Hillarys

One of the truly great things going in Australia are the networks of marine environmental education centres here. Here are two Western Australian favourites:

Dolphin Discovery Centre, Bunbury, Western Australia 

The Dolphin Discovery Centre is a non-profit organisation committed to dolphin research, education, conservation and tourism.  The Centre was opened in 1994, and is the first Centre in Australia dedicated entirely to dolphin research. The Centre is located in Bunbury, a thriving city approxi mately 180 kilometres south of Perth in Western Australia. Facing Koombana Bay to the North, the Centre enables people to interact with Bottlenose dolphins in a variety of ways.

There are up to 100 dolphins living in the Bay and groups of them regularly visit the shallow waters in front of the Centre.  

To find out more about the Bunbury center click here 

Naturaliste Marine Discovery Centre – Hillarys Boat Harbour, Western Australia
The NMDC is situated within the Department of Fisheries’ Western Australian Fisheries and Marine Research Laboratories. The display was conceived around three major themes: marine biology and ecology; knowledge-driven management; and people and communities. It contains live exhibits (aquaria), interactive displays, touch screens with high-quality multimedia content, LCD screens, objects, viewing windows into working laboratories, artworks, a gift shop, education programs and a future marine discovery trail linking the Centre with the Aquarium of WA at the southern end of the harbour. 


To find our more about the Hillarys centre click here

MARINE LABORATORY OPENS: Sapphire Coast Marine Discovery Centre

It is a great thing when science and education can keep so close company. In Eden, NSW, that is just what is happening with the launch of their new Marine Laboratory. Visit this fascinating Marine Discovery Center here to find out more.

Australia’s Coral Sea Red List

Cleaning station courtesy of Guy Shepherd

There was a time when the Coral Sea was primarily known for it's treacherous uncharted reefs. The once terrifying Coral Sea still has many mysteries and stories to discover but our knowledge has increased exponentially in the last 50 years. First we were mystified, then dazzled and now there is growing concern. 

At the southern reach of the Coral Sea the Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS) here recently held a social dive and snorkel at Flinders Reef, part of the Moreton Bay Marine Park. The event provided both novice and veteran divers alike with a remarkable surprise as they ventured into the rich coral gardens. The underwater vistas of tropical fish, coral and turtles rivaled more famous reefs to the north. 

Photo courtesy of Tony Isaacson

On the outbound journey the visitors were primed with much interesting and valuable information by Reef Check volunteers here, who have been surveying this reef and many other locations for some time.

It has been pointed out, however, that the Coral Sea is not immune to the vagaries that beset our oceans. The following are Quick Facts about the Coral Sea Red List here provided for your information by the Protect Our Coral Sea campaign

. 

Australia’s Coral Sea Home to over 300 Threatened Animal Species:

Quick Facts

Overview:

·         336 IUCN Red Listed species occur in the Co

ral Sea Conservation Zone (CSCZ). The majority of the species (51%) have decreasing population trends, indicating that they are either slow to respond to protection measures or that protection measures to date have been insufficient to stop their global decline.

Birds:

·         24 IUCN Red Listed species occur in the CSCZ, including the critically endangered Beck’s Petrel. A fairy tern that resembles the New Caledonia race has been confirmed to occur in the CSCZ. With an estimated 100-200 breeding pairs of this species, the islets and cays of the CSCZ may be habitat for a significant portion of this species[1].

Corals:

·         219 IUCN Red Listed species occur in the CSCZ. Globally, 229 coral species are listed as critically endangered, endangered, or vulnerable[2] and 96 (42%) of these occur in the CSCZ.

Dolphins and Whales:

·         There are 26 IUCN Red Listed species that occur in the CSCZ, including the endangered blue, sei and fin whales.  The blue whale is the largest animal on Earth.

Fish:

Lepoard shark courtesy of AMCS

·         16 bony fish species on the IUCN Red List occur in the CSCZ. The majority of these fish are associated with coral reefs and belong to the grouper family (e.g. Orange-spotted grouper, brown-marbled grouper).  Barry the humphead wrasse, the charismatic spokesfish for the Protect Our Coral Sea campaign, is endangered globally, though populations appear healthy in Australia.  This species is currently taken from the wild for the marine aquarium industry.

·         46 species of shark and ray on the IUCN Red List occur in the CSCZ including the endangered squat-headed hammerhead and scalloped hammerhead sharks.

Marine Turtles:

·         At least five of the seven species of marine turtle occur in the CSCZ. Green turtles are listed as endangered, leatherback and hawksbill turtles are both critically endangered and olive ridley and loggerhead turtles are listed as vulnerable.

[1] Wildiaries Trip Report. 2009. Project Lihou Trip Report.[ http://oceans.wildiaries.com/trips/223]. Downloaded on 5^th October, 2010.

[1] IUCN 2010. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2010.3. [http://www.iucnredlist.org/about/summary-statistics]. Downloaded on 5^th October, 2010.

Climate Literacy: "The Essential Principles of Climate Sciences"

Want to know if your perceptions about climate change are on the money? A great site to help you make sure has A Guide for Individuals and Communities and you can find the document here


Teachers: find AUSMEPAs unit plan on the Effects of climate change on coral bleaching here

REEF LIFE SURVEY

Reef Life Survey (RLS) here is a national program that commenced three years ago with the goal of improving marine resource management by developing and resourcing a network of skilled volunteer SCUBA divers to collect reliable and scientifically-credible information on the state of the marine environment. Through the skills and experience of appropriate SCUBA divers, as well as partnerships with relevant management agencies,  RLS strives to facilitate sustainable biodiversity management by providing managers with biodiversity information at spatial and temporal scales beyond those possible by scientific teams (which have to work with increasingly limited resources).

RLS involves only the most enthusiastic and capable amongst the recreational diving community, and provides thorough training and ongoing support for trained volunteers. Because RLS works directly with marine conservation managers, the data collected by RLS divers are directly contributing to management decisions - for example data have already contributed to MPA planning in South Australia and the zoning review for the Lord Howe Island Marine Park. They also formed the baseline for reef biodiversity in the recently declared Cod Grounds Commonwealth Marine Reserve (see www.environment.gov.au/coasts/mpa/publications/cod-grounds-biodiversity.html), and form part of the ongoing monitoring of many Victorian and NSW marine reserves.

In addition to contributions to biodiversity management, RLS data are used in scientific analyses to tackle questions that require broad-scale standardised data - for example, to establish general principles associated with the effectiveness of MPAs (See the ‘Reports’ section of the RLS website for recent publications). Student projects and collaborative scientific studies are also supported, and continue to build as the RLS database expands.

Following the monumental survey expedition around northern Australia this year, the RLS database now contains species-level data on reef fishes, mobile invertebrates and photo-quadrats of coral and seaweed cover from over 2200 surveys across >1100 sites. This invaluable resource represents the first circum-Australian dataset of marine biodiversity data collected using standardised quantitative methods. These data are freely available to the public for non-profit purposes, so not only managers, but also dive operators, dive clubs  and schools may use these data to look at changes over time in their own local reefs (Please see attached map for distribution of RLS sites around Australia).

Given that an original goal of gathering a continental baseline of reef biodiversity data has been achieved, the priority of the program going forward over the next few years will be to undertake targeted re-surveys of existing priority areas for which we hope to establish long term datasets. It is hoped that approximately 20 locations can be established for long-term monitoring to contribute to reef conditions reports, with numerous sites at each.

MELBOURNE: Undaria eradication at Apollo Bay and Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef Project

Photo courtesy of Mark Rodrigue

Our friends at Reef Watch in Victoria here are part of a wonderful brew of cooperative marine educators, managers, scientists and volunteers doing their part to raise awareness of the incredible and highly endemic south eastern coast of Australia. In their latest newsletter they've highlighted project for undaria eradication in Apollo Bay 

The Japapnese kelp,Undaria pinnatifida, is an invasive species that has entrenched itself in Port Phillip Bay and has now been discovered in down Victoria's west coast. The Department of Sustainability and Environment [DSE] have recorded this on their webpage here. 

Along with another treatment Reef Watch is calling for volunteer divers to hand pull plants on 6-7 and 13-14 Nov. If you can make it along to assist please email Luke as soon as possible at: luke@beaconecological.com.au 

Reef Watch is also listed as a sponsor for a delightful  reef art project on display at the Melbourne Museum (see below). 

INTERNATIONAL KIDS TEACHING KIDS COASTAL CONFERENCE, Caloundra 2010

The Kids Teaching Kids Conference is underway lighting up the Caloundra Events Centre. Conference organisers did a great job kicking things off with respectful acknowledgement of the traditional owners of the land in Caloundra, the Gubbi Gubbi tribe. Then there were the antics of the Postal Pirates and some well known comedians.

Participating in the conference were schools from Tasmania all the way to the Torres Strait. Some words  that seemed to sum up the underlying philosophy of the conference were about sustainability education requiring head (learn), heart (care) and hands (act). And a terrific quote, "If you always do what you've always done then you'll always get what you've already got", Can't argue with that!

If your school hasn't yet pariticpated in one of these conferences I strongly suggest that you put it on your radar and plan to come to the next one. Wonderfully organised and just magic for the participating students.