Mindfulness in May

News from the field

Stories and updates from our teams out & about. Check out some of these regional stories on our website!

South East Queensland

La Balsa Park, Survey Dive

Remembering the clearest water we had on our clean up dive, the Reef Check Australia team was excited to jump in and check out the site, and see how much it might have changed since our last reef health monitoring survey here.

Reef Check Australia has been monitoring La Balsa as a reef health monitoring site in 2018 due to a growing interest in the area. Plenty of critters utilise this area as a nursery, and due to its location, the substrate and animals that live there change semi regularly.

The water was certainly clear, with the substrate consisting of lots of rock with turf algae, sand, a few bryozoans, a macro algae called Padina, and several large solitary ascidians. We were lucky enough to spot two cleaner shrimp, two Drupella snails, and a collector urchin amongst plenty of fishing line along the transect (removed once counted, and if safe to do so).

We also spotted several flatworms which we have never spotted in the area before. They are not new to the Sunshine Coast, but new to this area. Interestingly, we did not find any other flatworm or nudibranch along the transect area. We did however find a set of small turtle remains.

Thankyou to Scuba World for the tanks and to our volunteer Kade Chambers who completed his first Reef Check Australia survey dive after completing his training late last year. We hope it’s the first of many!

Reef Check Acknowledge the Kabi Kabi people of the Sunshine Coast, Traditional Custodians of the land and sea country on which these activities took place and we pay our respects to their elders past, present and future.

This project is supported by the Sunshine Coast Council’s Environmental Levy Partnerships Grant.

Moreton Bay - St Helena - Survey Dives

Despite heavy rains in the lead up, Moreton Bay put on a show for our team, showing just how gorgeous the on-water conditions can be, meaning this tiny but mighty Reef Check Australia team was able to get out and conduct a summer reef health survey at Saint Helena Island, to document any changes to the reef in the area.

Reef Check Australia has been monitoring Southeast Queensland reefs since 2007, and Saint Helena Island since 2017, as part of a partnership with Port of Brisbane to monitor the effects of activities in the Bay. These locations are monitored twice a year (summer and winter) to detect any seasonal changes.

St Helena Island is located 5km from the mouth of the Brisbane River. The island itself has an interesting history. From 1867 it operated as a high security colonial prison, operating for 65 years as a self sufficient set up, complete with lime kiln, sugar refinery, a sugar cane plantation, and almost no native vegetation due to its removal early on.

Reef Check Australia has two long term monitoring sites around the island. Ray of Sunshine, is towards the south east, and has a greater density of hard corals than Palindrome which is near the jetty, and has a patchy reef full of both hard and soft corals.

Both sites were quite green underwater, although it was clearer at Ray of Sunshine than Palindrome. Ray of Sunshine has plenty of hard coral colonies, although on this particular occasion, there was a high number of bleached hard corals recorded. High silt loading was also recorded (over an inch deep!), as well as plenty of macro algae, although at this site it appeared to have more Padina than Sargassum.

Palindrome had a high level of silt and purple filamentous nutrient indicator algae covering almost every surface. The macroalgae Sargassum also took up large areas of the site, offering refuge to a variety of marine creatures including a wobbegong, Drupella snails and a lobster.  A small amount of marine debris was recorded; mostly glass bottles.

We look forward to heading out again in a few months to continue monitoring any changes that might occur as a part of this long term monitoring program.

Thankyou to Go Dive Brisbane for getting us to our reef health monitoring site. We appreciate that many of the sites we visit are not regularly on the tourist circuit, although we believe they should be!

Reef Check Acknowledge the Quandamooka people, Traditional Custodians of the land and sea country on which these activities took place and we pay our respects to their elders past, present and future.

This project is supported by the Port of Brisbane as a part of their environmental monitoring program.

Ray of Sunshine - Site Photo

Palindrome - Soft Coral

Peel Island - Land Based Clean Up

The Reef Check Australia team headed out to Peel Island, Moreton Bay at the end of March to conduct a beach clean-up along Horseshoe Bay on Peel Island, Moreton Bay. Peel Island is a small, heritage-listed island and national park located in Moreton Bay, just 4km from the mainland at Cleveland. The island is known for its natural beauty and wildlife enjoyed by locals and visitors alike and is accessed only by boat or watercraft.

Before European settlement, Peel Island was known to the local Quandamooka people as Teerk Roo Ra (Place of Many Shells).

In the mid-19th century, Peel Island was used as a quarantine station for Brisbane. Incoming ships would stop at the island, disembark passengers for a quarantine period and be fumigated and scrubbed down before heading into Brisbane. At the start of the 20th century it was used as an asylum for vagrants, and then a sisal farm.

Between 1907 and 1959 the island was a leper colony. Hundreds of people who contracted the disease were sent to the island. As the only intact example of a multiracial lazaret in Australia it is now a protected heritage site.

In 2007, the island was declared as Teerk Roo Ra National Park and Conservation Park.

Just over 8.5kgs of lightweight rubbish was collected in two hours from an 800m stretch of beach. Debris collected included paint lids, lots of plastic food packaging, pegs and alcohol containers.

An additional 50kg of debris was also recorded and reported to local authorities to assist with removal, made up of metal sheets, wooden pallets, piles of rubbish bags including camping equipment, and building supplies.

Remember, every little bit counts.  If you see rubbish on the beach; pick it up. Take away your own rubbish when you leave and together, we can and will make an ocean of difference.

Reef Check Acknowledge the Quandamooka people, Traditional Custodians of the land and sea country on which these activities took place and we pay our respects to their elders past, present and emerging.

This project has received funding support from the Queensland Government’s Community Sustainability Action grant program.

Amity Point, Stradbroke Island, Survey Dive

With a forecast for potential heavy rain falls and storms leading up to the weekend of the survey, the team was watching the weather with eagle eyes and baited breath for the final call on if the survey would go ahead.  Safety is out number one priority for all our volunteers, so decisions are not made lightly when we choose to proceed or cancel.

Contrary to the initial forecast, the team was greeted by perfect conditions at Amity Point. Light easterly winds, fine, sunny weather and 8m – 10m of underwater visibility!

Amity Point is located on the northwest end of North Stradbroke Island, and is frequented by vast numbers of fishers, boaters and divers all year round. The site sits adjacent to a busy boat ramp and artificial rock wall near a popular camping and fishing ground. Whilst there is limited hard and soft coral, the site hosts extensive marine life including unusual creatures like cuttlefish and ghost pipefish.

Our team consisted of 5 RCA members – including divers and a surface watch. We completed a reef health monitoring survey at Site 2. This site was set up in 2016 after we had conducted a clean-up, and recognised just how diverse this site is, and the importance of monitoring it long term.

Plenty of wobbegong sharks were sighted on the transect plus dozens of diadema sea urchins, an octopus, banded coral shrimp and plenty of anemones with fish. Turf algae covered the site, and we found no nutrient indicator algae; a great sign. This site has an unexpected abundance of life but is heavily impacted by recreational fishing activities.

Thanks to all the volunteers and organisers who made this trip a success!

Reef Check acknowledges the Quandamooka people of Minjerribah, the Traditional Custodians of the land, sea and country on which these activities took place, and we pay our respects to their elders past, present and emerging.

This project has received funding support from the Queensland Government’s Community Sustainability Action grant program.

Great Barrier Reef

Brain Food

Reviews and details on books, documentaries, and podcasts that we have come across, & wanted to share.

Current Coral Affairs

Check out some of the latest news and research about our ocean

Have you ever seen a Sea Spider?

Sea spiders are strange creatures, and the gangly lancer sea spider is one of the strangest of all

Read in: Discover Wildlife

What is marine cloud brightening?

Check it out at: Great Barrier Reef Foundation

What are sea urchins?

Check out this guide to the fascinating and strange, if somewhat prickly, creature that inhabits to sea floor. 

Discover Wildlife - Sea Urchins

Get with the Program

Here's what we've got coming up in the next few weeks, keep checking the website for more updates.