Spotting a shark while snorkelling as a child then, in a flash, realising it was gone was an early lesson on these supposed ‘monsters of the deep’ for marine biologist Dr Charlotte Birkmanis. “I was 10 when I first saw a shark and I remember thinking that here was an animal that I’m supposed to […]
A ground breaking project, to securely share data from industry, academia and government and better inform environmental approval processes, has been launched in Perth this morning by Western Australian Science Minister Stephen Dawson. The Shared Environmental Analytics Facility (SEAF), which now has pilot programs in Cockburn Sound and the Pilbara, takes data from a broad […]
A safety system that tracks ships and helps prevent collisions is being used as part of a study of noise levels in Cockburn Sound and their potential impact on marine life. Cristina Tollefsen from Curtin University said researchers were using ship location information from the worldwide Automatic Identification System along with data from recorders on […]
A newly-refurbished vessel was launched today to be used for a landmark research, training and environment rehabilitation collaboration in Shark Bay – an area which has been hit hard by devastating marine heatwaves. The 23-metre ‘Marine 2’ is owned by The Jock Clough Marine Foundation, which offered it to the Indigenous-owned and operated Tidal Moon […]
Researchers from The University of Western Australia and Murdoch University are analysing DNA from the excrement of little penguins in Cockburn Sound to find out what, other than fish, they are eating and whether it is affecting their breeding. Penguin researcher Dr Belinda Cannell, from UWA, said analysing the animals’ diet in greater detail would […]
Cockburn Sound research teams have started delivering project reports for their work on the WAMSI Westport Marine Science Program. These are now published on WAMSI’s Cockburn Sound webpage under ‘Research Themes and Reports‘. More than 100 scientists and researchers are working across 33 projects, helping to build a picture of the Sound’s environment and provide […]
Pre-seeding new port structures to encourage the colonisation of native species is one of the mitigation measures against invasive marine plants and animals, outlined in a new report prepared for the WAMSI Westport Marine Science Program. The literature review by Curtin University School of Molecular and Life Sciences Adjunct Professor Fred Wells lists many of […]
Dozens of core samples, taken from sediment around Cockburn Sound, will play a crucial role in the creation of a model of the area’s ecosystem to help inform environmental assessment of the proposed port. The work, being done as part of the WAMSI Westport Marine Science Program, involved divers collecting three sediment cores from 12 […]
Even for a veterinarian who regularly anaesthetises antelopes, giraffes and hippopotamuses, the Australian sea lions off Perth were a new challenge for Werribee Open Range Zoo’s Dr Brett Gardner. The Victorian based wildlife vet, supporting Dr Simone Vitali – a former specialist veterinarian with the Department of Biodiversity Conservation and Attractions in Perth – helped […]
As a graduate scientist with a passion for marine biology and fisheries, Jenny Shaw was excited to be selected for an expedition to the Abrolhos Islands. That was, until she was bumped from the vessel’s manifest when someone more senior discovered ‘J. Shaw’ was a woman. The knockback didn’t deter her, and in the decades […]