Custodians of the Great Barrier Reef have been fighting, but not winning, a war against an alien-like invader, the Crown Of Thorns Starfish (COTS). But the tide looks set to turn with the introduction of the COTSbot, an underwater robot that can seek and destroy individual starfish.
You may have read the recent Great Barrier Reef Obituary which claims that ‘Climate change and ocean acidification have killed off one of the most spectacular features on the planet.’ Why do people believe it?
Every time it rains, fine sediment and fertilisers are being washed into the waters around the Reef choking fish and coral, creating algal blooms and weakening the fragile marine ecosystem. Fortunately Greening Australia has a simple and effective solution.
CoralWatch is a citizen science initiative using a colour-coded chart to help users to survey coral reefs and detect coral bleaching in its early stages. Simple to use … watch the video … order your own CoralWatch Chart
With virtually no damage to the reef from the coral bleaching event further north, business is booming for sustainable Whitsundays operators.
Cleo was born at Reef HQ – the Great Barrier Reef Aquarium in Townsville. Cleo’s Mum is a leopard shark called Leonie, and here’s the surprise: Cleo doesn’t have a father.
Armed with only wetsuits, scuba gear and syringes, an underwater army of newly-trained divers is taking on one of the more significant threats to the Great Barrier Reef – the Crown of Thorns Seastar – one shot at a time.
You may have heard the news that Sir Richard Branson is working with Greening Australia to help save the Reef. Great news: but how is Sir Richard doing what our government appears unable to, and who the hell is Greening Australia..?
Great Barrier Beer is a charity brew where half the proceeds of its sales will go to the Australian Marine Conservation Society to help save the reef – the Great Barrier Reef.
This year’s coral bleaching event is a wake up call for us all to start behaving differently – to reduce our carbon footprint. It is not a reason to stop exploring our underwater world.