Australia

AIMS' Long-Term Monitoring Program measures the status and trend of reefs in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area.
AIMS' Long-Term Monitoring Program measures the status and trend of reefs in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area.

Continued coral recovery recorded across two-thirds of the Great Barrier Reef

Published today, AIMS’ Annual Summary Report on Coral Reef Condition for 2021/22 shows another year of increased coral cover across much of the Reef.

The increasing frequency of warming ocean temperatures and the extent of mass bleaching events highlights the critical threat climate change poses to all reefs, particularly while crown-of-thorns starfish outbreaks and tropical cyclones are also occurring. Future disturbance can reverse the observed recovery in a short amount of time.

AIMS monitoring program team leader Dr Mike Emslie

Vibrant life on GBR - as it should be
The Great Barrier Reef is home to more than 1,500 types of fish, over 400 kinds of hard corals and dozens of other species.

Australia pledges 1 billion to protect Great Barrier Reef

Prime Minister Scott Morrison unveiled the nearly decade-long conservation package days ahead of a February 1 deadline set by UNESCO to submit a report on the reef's state of conservation, and months after it narrowly avoided being placed on the UN's cultural agency's "danger" list due to the threat of climate change.

“Any additional funding for the environment in Australia is welcome, as it is severely under-resourced. However, handing out cash for the Great Barrier Reef with one hand, while funding the very industry – fossil fuels – that’s driving devastating climate impacts like marine heatwaves and coral bleaching, means they are adding to the very problem they are claiming they want to fix.”

— Climate Councillor, climate scientist and Distinguished Professor of Biology at Macquarie University, Professor Lesley Hughes

Plastics comprises 84 percent of Australia's beach debris

As much as 84 percent of the rubbish found on Australian beaches in the past ten years is plastic.

Almost half of all the debris originates from land-based sources (littering, dumping on land, etc), and seven percent from dumping activities at sea.

The remaining 42 percent could not be traced to a specific source as they had broken down into smaller fragments, which would eventually become microplastics.

In Deep with Andrew Fox: Born to Great White Sharks

Andrew Fox and great white shark
Photo-illustration of Andrew Fox with great white shark. Photos courtesy of Andrew Fox

The great white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) is undeniably the most well known of the ocean’s many predators. It has, one could say, “form” and is widely considered as a ruthless and terrifying man-eater, which has taken the lives of many innocent swimmers, surfers and divers.

Great Barrier Reef corals (Kyle Taylor / Flickr / CC BY 2.0)
Great Barrier Reef corals (Kyle Taylor / Flickr / CC BY 2.0)

Deciphering the corals' scents

Last December, marine biologist Caitlin Lawson made her way to the Great Barrier Reef.

Like countless others, she was there for the annual spawning of the corals. However, she was armed, not with expensive photographic equipment, but small plastic containers rigged with tubing.

Her mission? To collect the gaseous chemicals released by the corals (as well as their algal and bacterial symbionts) before, during and after the spawning event.

Last Chance - $20,000 of Prizes!

YES! That's right!  In fact, the Grand Guru Award winner will take home a prize bundle worth $10,000 - made up of $5,000 of gleaming SEACAM Silver and thanks to CameraPro, Canon's latest mirrorless EOS R6! 
 
The Five Photo Category winners all receive $500 cash and fabulous product prizes thanks to ScubaPro, Momento Pro and Living Image.
 
There's A People’s Choice category too!