IMAS @utas surveys off Tasmania's East Coast reveal rise in invasive urchin numbers from 11 million to 18m since 2001/02. Urchin barrens created by overgrazing kelp now cover 15 per cent of reefs 4-40m, up from 3 per cent bit.ly/2Uo23zbimas.utas.edu.au/urchins
#GreatSouthernReef Delegation visited Parliament House to speak with politicians about the $55M Centro Task Force Business Plan.
Aim: Protect the reef, boost urchin industry & ensure a sustainable future. It’s time for policymakers to act and invest in solutions #UrchinTaskForce
Great Southern Reef delegation to Canberra visiting parliament today to discuss a unified approach to tackling the longspined sea urchin issue, industry solutions and coordinated management strategies. #CentroTaskForce
🌟 What an incredible weekend of fieldwork! 🌿 Our dedicated team and I successfully deployed a series of conditioning experiments across Tasmania. 🚀 Excited to compare results with sites along the East Coast of Australia. @ScottDLing@IMASUTAS 🌏 #Fieldwork#teamwork
After a 1500 nautical mile @ReefLifeSurvey expedition from Perth to Adelaide, GSRF's @SBennett_131 highlights the blue groper, a remarkable #GreatSouthernReef. These massive, curious fish can live up to 70 years, but their slow maturity & small ranges make them vulnerable.
Climate-driven invasion and incipient warnings of kelp ecosystem collapse. Our @NatureComms paper highlights the critical need for early detection of range-shifting keystone species capable of transforming and collapsing ecosystems.
nature.com/articles/s41467-0…@ScottDLing
21 red handfish hatchlings have arrived at IMAS in the 2nd-ever conservation breeding event in captivity – and it’s an essential part of protecting this critically endangered species from extinction
🫶 Get more handfish baby love: bit.ly/Handfish-babies-have-…
📷Andrea Williamson
Scientists from GSR Research Partnership are monitoring the eastern #GreatSouthernReef, anticipating this summer's marine heatwave 🌊🔥
Data on shallow water species in NSW, Vic, Tas are being collected as a baseline to help understand potential impacts. #marineheatwave
Early Warning Signs ⚠️⚠️⚠️
Image taken 2-days ago shows the overgrazing urchin #Centrostephanus present at Actaeon Is. in southern Tasmania where a quarter of the world’s annual wild caught #abalone catch was once harvested 📸@SBennett_131@IMASUTAS
The Senate Inquiry urges immediate national funding for Centro Urchin management, backing the Centro Task Force's $55m, 5-year plan. Key goals: research, sustainable removal, processing & policy for #GreatSouthernReef's health. 📸 @SBennett_131
Urchin #SenateInquiry recommends federal govt. work with states to support and develop urchun fisheries. This pilot in Fortescue Bay is showing promising results. After 5 days of intense harvest, over 70K urchins landed representing ~30% of estimated biomass. @IMASUTAS@JPK_III
Urgent Senate inquiry highlights the threat of the longspined sea urchin (Centro) to the #GreatSouthernReef. With a range expanded due to warmer seas, over 2,000 km of coastline is now impacted by Centro overgrazing. Read the report: aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Bus…