Marine

Harwood Slipway will continue the transformation into a more diversified marine precinct servicing vessels along Australia’s east coast after the Polaris Marine Group purchased the facility last week, signalling the beginning of a new marine dynasty for the Clarence – Polaris Marine Dockyards. Established in 1969, Harwood Slipway was focused on designing, building, and repairing ships...

Patrick Goldsmith. Yorke Peninsula Council’s first coastal protection structures and adaptation projects community information session was attended by about 30 people at Warooka ... Further sessions will be held in Coobowie, Pine Point, James Well and Port Clinton as council looks to deal with the looming threat of flooding to coastal towns.

The Shire of Derby/West Kimberley is very pleased to hear the news that Tassal seafood producers will purchase Marine Purchase Australia, the company behind Cone Bay barramundi. Shire President Geoff Haerewa said that he was delighted to hear that the business will continue, and possibly even expand, and that 50 jobs will also be saved.

Tassal Group Limited (“Tassal”) has completed its acquisition of MPA Fish Farms Pty Ltd and MPA Marketing Pty Ltd (“MPA”), which operate Australia’s only ocean-based barramundi farm at Cone Bay, Western Australia ... Tassal remains focused on its purpose of ‘Sustainably Feeding Tomorrow’ and are delighted to add barramundi to its ever-growing list of products.

John Anderson. If ever there was a family of birds that exhibits supreme mastery of the skies, albeit those close to the ocean, it is the albatross family. The CSIRO Australian Bird Guide lists 17 species of albatross that can be seen in Australian waters. They range over vast areas of the Southern Ocean, nesting on Sub-Antarctic Islands such as Macquarie Island and in winter push northwards to patrol the southern coastline of Australia.

Recovery of seagrass and coral around lagoon moorings has occurred since new environmentally friendly designs were installed. The new Marine Flex moorings use heavy-duty elastic, rather than relying on lifting heavy chain for shock absorption.

On a visit to the Torres Strait, Minister for Agricultural Industry Development and Fisheries Mark Furner announced the composition of the new 10-person Cape York Special Fisheries Working Group to provide advice on fisheries issues in the region.

In ideal conditions Wilson Inlet spectacularly opened on June 29 at 1.26 AHD, 100m from the western cliffs. Water levels in May were at -.2 AHD, with a dry winter forecast predicted. Consistent rain started in early June.

Angry Angourie locals have taken it upon themselves to clean up kilos and kilos of debris from the 15-metre steel ketch Chinook that ran aground on Saturday July 8, on rocks near Spooky Beach, after the boat’s owner abandoned the vessel ... Angourie local Kim said as the yacht was left scattering debris for six days in the ocean and surrounds.

On 11 May 2023 a deceased beaked whale washed into shallow water at the Western end of Old Settlement Beach ... The preliminary identification is a male Blainsville’s Beaked Whale (Mesoplodon densirostris), consistent with the two large tusks in lower jaw, with stalked barnacles growing on their exposed tips.

A marine park ranger involved in his first whale rescue says freeing a 10m humpback whale – first sighted entangled in ropes just north of Two Rocks – was an amazing experience. Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions senior ranger Ben Leeson said the job of freeing the whale caught up in ropes from two rock lobster pots was carried out over three days.

A fishing season for a high value sea cucumber in the Torres Strait has reopened for the first time in 20 years thanks to a concerted conservation and stock restoration effort ... Torres Strait Islanders will have exclusive access rights to black teatfish, which is estimated to be worth $380,000 to the local economy.

Jenn Lavers. In April, the Adrift Lab team returned to Lord Howe Island ... While Lord Howe Island is the world’s single largest population of Flesh-footed Shearwaters, this same iconic species also breeds throughout the Recherche Archipelago off the coast of Esperance.

On 14th of February 2023, 20 students aged 8 to 11 years old from Lord Howe Island became marine scientists for the day. In doing so, they joined UNESCO’s global environmental DNA research initiative that is being rolled out across 25 marine World Heritage sites to better understand ocean biodiversity and the impacts of climate change.

The DPIRD researchers are working with commercial rock lobster and crab fishers to deploy and retrieve high tech cameras that film the marine environment and fish on their way down to the seabed as well as record the water temperature on the ocean floor ... DPIRD said by the middle of this year, more than 30 of the so-called POTBots will be deployed off Western Australia...

From kindergarten to high school, Sunshine Coast students are turtle-y in love with turtles ... “Hatchlings are the most popular topic with the kids wanting to know if they can breathe under the sand, how they get out of the nest, what happens if they get left behind and if a mother turtle can find the hatchlings if the nest is relocated": Leisa Baldwin.

Boat operators are urged to take special care in the Tweed River, with several sightings of a dugong reported to Council over the past 12 months. While dugong are known to occur in Moreton Bay, the presence of one of these marine mammals in the Tweed is both unusual and exciting.

A fishing season for a high value sea cucumber in the Torres Strait has reopened for the first time in 20 years thanks to a concerted conservation and stock restoration effort ... Torres Strait Islanders will have exclusive access rights to black teatfish, which is estimated to be worth $380,000 to the local economy.

Just like on other tropical reefs, corals in the LHIMP undertake synchronised mass spawning each year, releasing millions of tiny egg and sperm bundles into the water. This allows fertilisation to take place, resulting in coral larvae with new genetic combinations which can settle back on to the reef and enhance its diversity and resilience.

Wilson Inlet could become a thriving commercial fishery for rock oysters and mussels given the correct salinity levels, says aquaculturalist Zak Launay. The sustainable product feeds on phytoplankton and has the capacity to contribute greatly to the local economy, creating jobs and local fresh seafood.

The annual Sustainable Seafood Awards held by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council in partnership with the Marine Stewardship Council were held ... at Melbourne Zoo, showcasing the Aussie heroes of responsible seafood farming and sustainable fishing practices in Australia ... The winners were a fantastic mix of organisations and individuals who have made significant contributions to responsible aquaculture, from retailers to producers and even an inspiring young person in the industry.