The Lord Howe Island Signal, 31 March 2025
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2025 Lord Howe Island Sea Slug Census February, 28 to March 9
Lord Howe Island will host its eighth annual Sea Slug Census from February 28 to March 9. Launched at Nelson Bay, NSW in December, 2013, the Sea Slug Census program has spread across Australia, and to sites in Indonesia and Vanuatu, with more than 4,000 participants photographically documenting the distribution of over 1,100 species to date.
The last ‘Met Family’ depart Lord Howe – is this the end of an era?
On Thursday, 20th February, Andrew Jenner’s rotation as local observer for the Bureau of Meteorology came to an end ... If all goes according to plan, Andrew and Misty will be the last Met observers to be resident on Lord Howe.
The story of Lord Howe’s Meteorological Service – by Daphne Nichols
Daphne Nichols. Rainfall readings commenced on the Island in 1886, and records of climatological data began the following year ... The Meteorological Office shared the two-room wireless station from 1939, until 1955, when an independent station was completed on the eastern side of the Island above Middle Beach.
The Lord Howe Island Signal, 28 February 2025
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MV Island Trader suspend shipments to the island
The MV Island Trader sustained a critical defect of the hull during transit from LHI to Port Macquarie on 19 January 2025. As a result, the MV Island Trader is required to dock at short notice to affect immediate repair.
Coral health update
Last summer saw the highest global Sea Surface Temperatures on record and waters in the Lord Howe Island Marine Park (LHIMP) followed this trend. When water temperatures are warmer than average, marine "heat stress" builds up over time.
Unusual bird sightings, December and January
Ian Hutton. Some 240 birds have been recorded on Lord Howe Island ... A couple of notable unusual sightings for the past December and January have been made: A female Australian Shelduck was seen at Moseley Park Swamp, first seen by Zsolt Balogh on 21 December, and subsequently by others over the next week before it moved on.
The Lord Howe Island Signal, 31 January 2025
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Sea urchin boom and bust
Sea urchins play an important ecological role on reefs in the Lord Howe Island Marine Park (LHIMP). They graze on seaweed, and sometimes completely clear it, creating unique habitats known as ‘barrens’ which are instead covered in encrusting algae and coral.

