Ambassador - CITIZEN SCIENCE FOR THE FUTURE OF OUR REEFS - CoralWatch
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EVENTS June / July
Ambassador JULY -OCTOBER 2019
In this newsletter
International Coral Reef Workshop
National Science Week events
ReefBlitz
New CoralWatch materials
CITIZEN SCIENCE FOR THE FUTURE OF OUR REEFS
EVENTS July/August 2019
STEM Display - Open Day
25 July Brisbane Boys College, Brisbane
CoralWatch displays and VR experiences were held at the
Junior, Middle and Senior school to introduce potential
students and families to the STEM opportunities on offer
at Brisbane Boy’s College. As the resident CoralWatch
Ambassador at the school, over the last year I have
incorporated CoralWatch into the STEM Club program and
provided CoralWatch educational resources to the teachers.
Visitors to the school were captivated by the virtual reality
International Coral Reef Workshops experience which provided an opportunity for them to explore
4 and 17 July, MacQuarie University, Sydney the coral reef environment.
As part of the Gateway learning program public speaking
program, visiting students from China, Mongolia, Taiwan Outreach: 40 parents, 30 students, 10 teachers
and Vietnam attended CoralWatch Coral Reef workshops to Maria
discover more about Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. Students
were actively engaged with learning about coral reefs through
video presentations, interactive quizzes and games, and VR
experiences. Students discovered how they could protect the
reef from home by reducing their environmental footprint and
became citizen scientists for the afternoon as they learned how
to monitor reef health using Coral Health Charts. The Gateway
learning students also demonstrated their understanding of the
afternoon’s workshop by creating and presenting a coral reef
inspired poster.
Data collection at Lady Musgrave
16 August, Gidarjil Traditional Owners Onboard Lady
Musgrave Experience
As part of the citizen science project (Lady Musgrave Reef
Custodians), and following a training that Diana/CW presented
at and trained LME staff and Gidarjil rangers, 2 rangers came
out to collect data at Lady Musgrave Island. The special
For most of the students, this was their first experience of guests onboard attracted a lot of attention from guests and a
Australia and with English as their second language it was really reef presentation was delivered to around 40 guests. Issues
important to make the workshop as interactive as possible. The such as reef health and climate change, as well as possible
interactive quiz presentation worked really well encouraging all actions to reduce these were presented and discussed among
students to become involved with learning about the reef. The participants and guests on board.
VR was also a big hit and great experience. The creation of a The Gidarjil Rangers were really engaged and collected a full
coral reef poster provided the opportunity for the students to CoralWatch chart of data.
show what they had learned while practising public speaking.
Outreach: 2 Gidarjil Rangers, 40 passengers
Outreach: 146 students, 11 teachers Natalie L.
Maria and Suzanne
Training workshop in June, Gidarjil Rangers and LME staff
practising CoralWatch data entry.
EVENTS August 2019
High School Workshop CoralWatch Stall at the Bundaberg Oceanfest
2 August,Northside Christian College 24 August, Bundaberg Port Marina
Maria and Karen J. visited the college as part of National Festival goers learned about coral reefs, and celebrated
Science Week Festivities. Not your ordinary lunch hour, the their own local Southern Great Barrier Reef. CoralWatch
CoralWatch team took the Coral Reef to the lunch room to Ambassador, Natalie presented in the educational ‘Reef Room’
expose students and teachers to corals through a virtual swim. about reef health and citizen science. Ambassadors Dave and
Students were actively engaged with learning about coral Maria assisted with the display. Various interactive activities
reefs through quizzes, observing coral skeletons and the VR and competitions attracted attention and involved participants.
headsets. As usual the Virtual Reality was a hit!
What worked well: The VR set up - utilising the long lab
benches enabled the team to efficiently engage with waves of Number of participants at event: 600 (300 students/children,
students surging in for the VR session. 300 adults,10 teachers)
What didn’t work so well: Setting up and clearing up were
time pressured. The allocated room was in demand for lessons Thanks Dave for traveling South and Maria for travelling North
as soon as lunch period was over. to assist with this big event. It was really wonderful to have
lots of help, couldn’t have done it alone!
Outreach: 115 secondary students, 5 teachers Natalie L., Maria, David and 2 Taiwanese interns
Maria and Karen J.
Community Event Community outreach and data collection
10 August, QLD Museum National Science Week Festivities 25 August, Coral Cove Community Coralwatch, Barolin Rocks
CoralWatch and Coastal Protection Core joined forces to share Community Citizen Science Workshop and data collection
the wonders of the marine environment with museum visitors snorkelling event as part of National Science Week activities.
for this year’s National Science Week. Together there was an During the workshop people learned about threats to the reef
array of activities with corals and marine species to see and and how to collect data using the CoralWatch Health Chart and
touch, virtual reality reef activities with corals and marine how to protect corals for the future. There was a coral naming
species to see and touch, virtual reality reef dives to experience competition, coral reef quiz and a dry land virtual reef activity.
as well as Moreton Bay quizzes. For those participants eager to go for a swim, there was the
Stall location by the giant squid is just fantastic. The squid is opportunity to get amongst the magical world of coral reefs for
such an attention getter. hands on data collection. Participants were engaged with all
activities.
Outreach: 106 people (60 students/children; 30 adults; 10
teachers; and 6 museum staff) Outreach: 30 People (15 students; 15 adults; 2 teachers)
Maria and UQ volunteers Phebe, and Amy Natalie L., Maria, David and 2 Taiwanese interns
EVENTS August 2019
‘Act to Protect’ Community event, Palm Island
22 August, Palm Island Knowledge Centre
Suzanne and Valentine organised an outdoor display at the
Bwgcolman Indigenous Knowledge Centre to introduce Community event and data collection
the local community to CoralWatch. Community members 25 August, Orpheus Island, Yanks jetty
participated in virtual reef monitoring and how to get involved Suzanne and Valentine organised free spots for CoralWatch on
in monitoring the health of local Palm Island reefs as citizen the Orpheus Island scenic day cruise with Sealink Townsville. In
scientists. Many curious children visited the stall after school return, CoralWatch provided a talk, information brochures and
and loved the virtual reality. Great first event and introduction display and visitors were invited to participate in citizen science
to the island community. and collect data at Orpheus Island.
Another great opportunity to learn about corals and the
Number of participants at event: 40 importance of the reef systems and how to protect them. For
Valentine, Suzanne, Karen H, Diana those who were less keen to get in the water, virtual reality was
an exciting experience on the way back. Some keen individuals
entered their data directly and were awarded with a price.
Number of participants at event: 60
Suzanne, Karen H, Diana
School Event
23 August, St. Michaels School, Palm Island
CoralWatch delivered two interactive workshops to students
from prep to year 6 at St Michael’s Catholic School. 80 of the
100 enrolled students learned about coral reef through a
formal presentation, practiced using the Coral Health Chart
on virtual reefs, created their own reef art work, experienced
Virtual Reality of the GBR and tested their newly learnt Additional science week events
knowledge using our online quiz. A busy day with lots of Maryborough in collaboration with the Office of the QLD
energy from the students. Chief Scientist
• Display at Community event ‘STEM Pop-up’ (Karen H and her
Number of participants at event: 80 son Aamon)
Valentine, Suzanne, Karen H, Diana • STEM workshops for Prep to Year 4 students from Torbanlea
State School and Maryborough Central State School, along with
a group of home-school students (Karen H and her son Aamon)
Brisbane
• ‘Street Science Festival’ Student day (Karen J, Diana and Erin)
• ‘Street Science Festival’ Community day (Karen J, Erin and UQ
volunteers)
• Moreton Bay cruise (Diana, Erin)
• School visit Yeronga SS and kindy (Carissa Klein)
Thanks Suzanne and Valentine for your hospitality and Gold Coast
guidance for 3 days. We loved our introductory visit to Palm, • Soap box science (Carissa Klein)
where we could meet people, explore options and make
plans together for our events as part of our Great Barrier Reef CoralWatch organised a total 14 National Science week events
Foundation grant. Looking forward to return next year. More photos and info in additional document- overview of all
Diana and Karen H. events) Total outreach: 6,790 people
EVENTS September/ October 2019
ReefBlitz is an annual event that lets you
contribute to a snapshot of catchment and reef
health, and get involved in practical actions to
help look after Queensland’s reefs. CoralWatch
likes to award our biggest data contributors
during our ReefBlitz month.
SeaWeek - School event
2-8 September, Perth
Sharon (first year ambassador) relocated to Melbourne and Highest individual contributor of this month was Nicole from
works at a school with really motivated Science students who Bundaberg, monitoring 120 corals at Lady Musgrave.
are passionate about conservation issues - in particular marine. Highest group effort was by Gordonvale SHS in Cairns,
We have send materials to her and she was able to download students collected 170 corals at Flynn reef. Both will receive a
our new VR content to use with her own headset. CoralWatch book and DVD as a thank you for their efforts.
It all went really well, the students thoroughly enjoyed all the
activities and learned a lot about coral reefs! There was a really In addition, we like to thank Small World Journeys, they got 4
great buzz in the library, and I’m sure we would love to be schools participating in CoralWatch during October, collecting
involved with more Coralwatch activities next year. data from 274 corals on Fitzroy Island.
Thank you so much for all your help and wonderful resources.
Sharon
STEM Faire
14 September, Thuringowa Library, Townsville Biodiversity Roadshow
The Townsville STEM Hub brings together a celebration of 13 October, Wellington Point
science, technology, engineering and maths in the North Biodiversity Roadshow is hosted by UQ each year where
Queensland community. the community can come and learn about marine related
CoralWatch inspired conversations about all things. science. There are plenty of activities run throughout the
Participants put on the Virtual Reality Headsets for a virtual day. Coralwatch was invited to have a stall there. We had the
dive and brought the world of coral reefs into the library. VR sets and quiz for people to participate. The VR sets were
Paddy gave a formal CoralWatch presentation. great as usual, and the books Drawdown and 2040 were great
Win News report has a few CoralWatch snipets. There was a stimulation for deeper discussions. it was a really good day
video of the STEM Faire on facebook but unfortunately you with a lot of genuine interest
can’t view it anymore.
Outreach: >1800 people Number of participants at event: 110
Paddy and Lucy Natalie M, Maria
Ambassador EVENTS 2019
EMBEDDED AMBASSADOR ACTIVITIES
We have noticed that for many of our ambassadors,
CoralWatch is now embedded in regular activities or programs.
This is a great outcome of our Ambassador program. Thanks for
all your ongoing efforts and enthousiasm to help reefs.
Boyne Island Environmental Education Centre (BIEEC)
Somone at BIEEC started running a lesson using VR goggles
to explore the coral reef and look at coral bleaching and the
sustainable practice of breeding clown fish. She is embedding
sustainable practices in the lessons and she has been sharing
her knowledge of CoralWatch with the students. They are using
the images from Lizard Island Research Station to demonstrate
the speed at which bleaching is occurring - which is very
powerful. Students are asked to generate ways they can ‘think
global and act local’ to help save the reef. They found the Data collection at Fitzroy Island
posters ‘Save coral reefs from home’ and the ‘Great Barrier 3 September and 6 September, Fitzroy Island
Reef Factsheet’ really beneficial for this. They are both updated Laurie and the team from Small World Journeys made
in July this year, the latest versions are available online. CoralWatch education and data collection part of the regular
program so many schools get involved.
We supplied Somone with a The latest group from Alamanda College Melbourne (Prep to
SAVE REEFS FROM HOME
non-coloured version of the
REDUCE
WATER
CHANGE
AIRCON CONTAINERS
RECYCLE
Year 9) enjoyed a range of snorkelling and water activities at
‘Save coral reefs from home’
Install low flow showerheads
and take shorter showers
Save
at least $100yr
Change from 21 to 24°
reduce 25%
Save
up to $208yr
Recycle for change, make
money from bottles
Earn
at least $25yr
Fitzroy Island, learning CoralWatch data collection skills and
as a great activity for the MEAT TRANSPORT WATER knowledge about threats and human impacts on coral reefs.
During the school visit, students completed 30 surveys, and
Become a flexitarian and Reduce speed, Install a water tank &
reduce meat intake save fuel by 30% plant native trees
younger students to be able Save
Saveat $1072
up to least yr
Save
up to $583 yr
Save
up to $200 yr
to colour in the idea that FOOD WASTE
Think before you buy
ENERGY
Change electricity
CLOTHES
Buy fewer and revive to
have plans to revisit with another school group in 2020.
to solar reduce landfill
they can commit to. Save
up to $3800 yr
Save
up to $760 yr
Save
at least $2000 yr
Outreach: 29 (24 students; 5 teachers)
Numbers are based on average family household (2 adults/2 children). Sources: www.energy.gov.au/households, www.containersforchange.com.au, www.moneysmart.gov.au (australian-spending-habits). July 2019, produced by CoralWatch.
Great idea, Somone! REDUCE CARBON EMISSIONS - SAVE $$ AND CORAL REEFS
GET INVOLVED
WWW.CORALWATCH.ORG
‘Bundaberg Reef Keepers’ and ‘Marine Biologist for
a Day’ program at Lady Musgrave Island
Lady Musgrave Experience launched their Marine Biologist for
Small World display at Teacher Conference a Day program! The program brings together the Great Barrier
1 October, Gold Coast Geography Teacher Conference Reef Marine Park Authority’s Eye on the Reef program with
Laurie recently attended the Geography teacher conference CoralWatch to help more reef guests get involved in citizen
at the Gold Coast. Part of her display included CoralWatch science! This included a partnership with a the new Bundaberg
materials. Reef Keepers - a community group working hard to learn
The conference was well attended, and the Fun Fieldwork about and collect reef health information with Lady Musgrave
at The Great Barrier Reef workshop was attended by nine Experience and Master Reef Guides. Look out for them in your
teachers. The co-presenter was Chris Mann from The John community as they set out to share their learnings and become
Monash Science School, who related the activities back to the ambassadors for the beautiful Great Barrier Reef!
curriculum and provided a first hand account of his school’s These activities were made possible thanks to a partnership
experience with Small World Journeys and CoralWatch. We between the Australian Government and Great Barrier Reef
introduced the virtual coral reef, and got teachers involved Foundation.
with the waterproof slates to determine coral colour. We even
had a teacher volunteer her hands to be finger coral so we Thanks to Natalie inspiring many people, lots of data being
could practice the data collection on her! We encouraged the collected over the last few months at 2 main locations:
teachers to take advantage of all the tools available through - Lady Musgrave, May - Oct, 49 surveys >600 records
CoralWatch, even if they were not able to get to the reef itself. - Barolin Rocks, June - Oct, 13 surveys > 193 records.
Laurie Natalie L.
New RESOURCES available
Where do we
Steep hea find corals?
on which dlands provide
ACT NO
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such ma ae can att ble rocky substra
The Great Barrier Reef
At Your rals
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to
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of mobile the sea floor con unlikely to WWW.
the GBR including coral bleaching.
CORALW
CAPRICORN COAST - AUSTRALIA
sed iments. sis ts of sof ATCH.OR 2,900 REEFS - 2,300 KM
t G WORLD’S LARGEST REEF
EK
Rat Island
The diverse reefs of the Port Curtis
localit in the
and Keppel Bay are home to more
norvary What makes the Great Barrier Reef so special?
than 150 species of coral. y for Petconditions
Environmental thegreatly
rn par between
harreef rophyllia t of Por t
Backpage includes solutions and how
these reefs and each
d cor
hosts a coral community
for its conditions. These inshore al
that is specialised
(Ar are ofhel
coral communitiescho
Curtis is Containing the largest collection of coral reefs in the world, the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) is a vibrant and colourful
onland wit
reefs hou
and
t zoo ia)
high the ecosystem stretching 2,300km along the Queensland coastline. The second largest barrier reef is in Belize and it
ecological, economic y to exist inimportance
recreational andxan theour
require care. rediviva, a stretches only 290km. The GBR is made up of more than 2,900 individual reefs, 900 islands, 450 species of hard
and des the llae tha corals, over 1,625 species of fish and 30 species of mammal. Similar in size to Italy or Japan, it is so big it can be seen
INSHORE REEFS cription fossil record OFFSHORE t was tho
until its REEFS ught from space! The GBR was inscribed in 1981 as a World Heritage site for its cultural and natural significance and is the
in 1979. discovery only site to meet all four natural significance criteria. The GBR is a beautiful and fascinating destination.
to get involved in CoralWatch.
Why do we need to protect the GBR?
Reefs provide habitats and shelter for many marine organisms and these are
the source of nitrogen and other nutrients essential for marine food chains. VALUE
One-quarter of all marine species live in or around a reef. Healthy reefs produce
food for millions of people and help to protect coastal land from cyclones
56 BILLION
annual Australian economic,
and storm surges. Reefs support local economies, providing employment in social and icon value
tourism and fishing industries. The GBR is the number one reason visitors come 64,000 JOBS
Characteristics Characteristics
to Australia on holiday. Coral reefs and marine animals are a source of new
medicines being developed to treat cancer, arthritis, Alzheimer’s disease, viruses 2 MILLION
visitors every year
• Temperature range: 19 to 29 °C Lost fishin • Temperature range: 18 to 29 °C and other illnesses. Reefs need our protection as one of earth’s natural wonders.
g
corals and line can damage
• High levels of sedimentation and turbidity • Low levels of turbidity
This brochure is an update version of
• Changes in salinity other mari
ne life. High•wate
Little changes in salinity What are the main threats to the GBR?
r temp
Many hu
• Low coral diversity - 11 coral taxa eratu • High coral diversity - 72% of the
stressors
can make res and other
Coral reefs globally are in decline and this includes Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. Scientists have shown that the future
How you ma
• 150 coral species
n activ corals blea coral species found on the Great of coral reef ecosystems are in danger from both local and global threats. On the GBR the main threats are:
can help toities affect corals!
Locations - Port Curtis ch. Barrier Reef.
Rat Reef; Gatcombe Head, North and STORMS AND FLOODS CROWN-OF-THORNS STARFISH CORAL BLEACHING
protect the
2016- Global Bleaching Event.
East Points, Pearl Ledge; Sable Chief and Reef areas of Capricorn Coast where coral can
n Reduc be found. Locations - Heron Island
e, Reuse
m!
Seal Rocks.
Source: Esri, DigitalGlobe, GeoEye, Earthstar Geographics,
Locations - Keppel Bay n Drive and Rec
CNES/Airbus DS, USDA, USGS, AEX, Getmapping, Aerogrid, Heron Island, One Tree Island, Wistari
less, driv ycle
Landsat
Bald, Man & Wife, Barren Island; Great IGN, IGP, swisstopo, and the GIS User Community.
Reef, Masthead Reef, Polmaise, Sykes
n BuyAuthority. eBarrier
Reef data courtesy of the Great
ene smReefart
Marine Park
Middle and North Keppel. , tak Reef, Polmaise Ree
n Reduc rgy-efficient pro e the bike
USGS/NASA
e SOFT ducts
n Avoid your carbon foo
CORALS HARD VERSUS CORALWATCH
CR
EK
CR
anchor dam tprint Tropical cyclones can cause extensive Crown-of-thorns starfish (COTS are In healthy coral, symbiotic algae
n Protec age – use damage to corals and the structure marine invertebrates that feed on (zooxanthellae) live within the coral
t shoreli mo orings
n Plant nes and of the reef. Floodwaters running off coral and occur naturally on reefs. COT tissue, providing the coral with food
a river ban
n Get inv tree
the land and into the Great Barrier outbreaks occur when phytoplankton, and energy and give the corals colour.
ks Reef lagoon can form reduced- the COTS larvae food source, becomes Stressful environmental conditions
olved in salinity plumes laden with nutrients, more abundant. The abundance is including climate change and
a loc
Capricorn Coast Virtual Reef
such as
CoralWatc al monitoring pro
sediments and agricultural chemicals driven by run-off and over-fertilisation warming of the ocean, can cause the
This proje such as fertilisers and pesticides, of the land. It is estimated that one coral to expel the algae, changing the
h grams ct is supp
orted all of which can cause coral reef starfish can eat up to 10m2 of coral coral colour to white. This whitening
Did you
from the
Australia by Fitzroy Basi ecosystems to become stressed or per year, with reefs taking 10-20 years of coral is called ‘coral bleaching’.
kn
n Gove n
Hard corals - Characteristics Soft corals - Characteristics CoralWatch integrates coral reef rnment’s Association
Coast is ow that Caprico
die. Storms and floods are increasing to recover. Single COTS may produce Once this occurs, corals may die if the
National Inc.,
• Hard calcium carbonate skeleton • No calcium carbonate skeleton education and global reef monitoring.
© Cora Landcare through fund with climate change. 50 million eggs a year. stressful condition persists.
Using the Coral Health Chart volunteers Photos: lWatch Cora Program. ing
ho
• Reef building – may appear soft or leathery CoralWat
• Rigid structure • Non reef building from around the globe can monitor Karen Hofm ch,Doorstep
ls at Your
me to rn
species more
This virtual
reefs andreef shows youcoraldifferent coral types and the
an, Diandifference between bleached and healthy
150 corals. than
• Symbiotic relationship with • Soft structure that can move contribute to our global
a Kleine,
zooxanthellae • Only some have symbiotic zooxanthellae bleaching database. Anyone can get Emma Ken
You caninvolved.
use Download
the Coral Health Kit’ Chart to measure the health of these corals. nedy
of co rals?
Community report cards
• Each polyp has 6 tentacles or • Each polyp has 8 tentacles or a ‘Do It Yourself
multiples of 6 multiples of 8 and order a free Coral Health Chart at
• Lots of research • Not much research www.coralwatch.org today!
These report cards provide an overview of all CoralWatch
data available from a specific area with data outcomes and
5 8
2
3
7
contributors. It also includes photos of the area and general
1 4
6
info. We produced one for Keppel Islands, Lady Musgrave
Do you know? Port Curtis and Keppel Bay have more than 150 coral species?
CORAL HEALTH CHART INSTRUCTIONS WWW.CORALWATCH.ORG
Island and provided an overview of all GBR data of 2018. We
B1 B2 B3 B4 B5 B6
C1
C2
E6
The Coral Health Chart is based on For each coral, use the Coral Health Chart to record: Visit our website to view © 2019 CoralWatch
C3
E5
the actual colours of bleached and Port Curtis, Keppel Islands
Queensland Brain Institute
• darkest and lightest colour scores The University of Queensland
CORAL HEALTH CHART healthy corals. Each square on the and worldwide data for This poster is part of the Capricorn Coast
C4
E4
• coral type Coralwatch Education Package package, to order
Chart corresponds to reefs, and compare coral
contact CoralWatch: info@coralwatch.org
are planning to use these as a template for other areas in the
C5
E3
Photos: CoralWatch, Andrew Gill, Karen Hofman,
the concentrations of TIP ing health scores between Diana Kleine
Funded by:
symbiotic algae which Avoid measur reefs and over time.
C6
E2
corals
g tips of ly
growin are natural
D6 D5 D4 D3 D2 D1
live in the coral tissue. becaus
e they Boulder (BO) Branching (BR) Plate (PL) Soft (SO)
E1
white. This project is supported by Fitzroy Basin Association
Inc., through funding from the Australian Government’s
National Landcare Program.
near future.
Capricorn Coast Education Package ‘Corals at
COMMUNITY REPORT CARD
Great Barrier Reef
CORALWATCH DATA OVERVIEW 2018 WWW.CORALWATCH.ORG
Your Doorstep CoralWatch uses the Coral Health Chart to measure changes
COMMUNITY REPORT in CARD
coral colour associated with coral bleaching. The chart is easy to use, you
Keppel Islands
can help collect data and contribute to the CoralWatch global database.
GREAT BARRIER REEF
2018 STATISTICS
David undertook a rewrite of the original work that was
WWW.CORALWATCH.ORG
CoralWatch data overview: May 2013 - June 2019
469 KEPPEL ISLANDS
CoralWatch uses the Coral Health Chart to measure
Highest changes in
data contributor April 2013 - June 2019
11 Remote Sensing Research
coral colour associated with coral bleaching. TheUniversity
Centre, chart is easy to use, you
of Queensland
developed by the CoralWatch team for Moreton Bay Corals.
11
139 can help collect data and contribute to the CoralWatch global database.
COMMUNITY REPORT CARD
2
2
Lady Musgrave Island
During his training as an ambassador, David identified the
30 33 Highest data contributor
67 reefs Rockhampton Grammar WWW.CORALWATCH.ORG
CoralWatch data overview: April 2012 - June 2019
View results from your local area 75
6
https://coralwatch.org/index.php/data/map/ LADY MUSGRAVE ISLAND
CoralWatch uses the Coral Health Chart to measure changes in
April 2012 - June 2019
coral colour associated with coral bleaching. The chart is easy to use, you
need for a similar resource for Central Queensland and
can help collect data and contribute to the CoralWatch global database.
9
548 10
12 reefs
261 surveys
734 17
committed to developing one. The new work highlights the
Highest data contributor
44 6 Mountain Creek SHS
2
Single survey x Number of surveys completed 2013-2019 133 surveys
View all results from your Keppels and other areas: www.coralwatch.org/index.php/data/map/ 103 8
7,419 corals
coral communities of Keppel Bay and Port Curtis. Boyne Island
COLOUR SCORE
174 127 8 3 reefs
Single survey x Number of surveys completed 2002-2019
View all Great Barrier Reef results: www.coralwatch.org/index.php/data/map/
3,403 corals
8 2
and North Keppel Island Environmental Education Centres.
COLOUR SCORE data 2018
2
258 surveys
CoralWatch supplied many images and assisted David with the
What does the data tell us? Single survey x Number of surveys completed 2013-2019
View all results from your Keppels and other areas: www.coralwatch.org/index.php/data/map/
The graph shows for
each sector on theCOLOUR
GBR SCORE
(Northern, Central and
Southern) and South CORAL TYPE 2,959 corals
What does the data tell us? East Queensland (SEQ),
rewrite of materials. A grant from the Fitzroy Basin Association,
Australia, the number
The graph above shows an average coral score between 3-4, indicating healthy reefs, although at the start of 2017
of corals surveyed (blue
some potential bleaching was identified on Great Keppel. The graph at the right shows that the dominant coral type
bar, primary y-axis) and
being monitored at Great Keppel is branching while at North Keppel more soft corals were monitored. When interpreting
average colour score (red
Cairns/Cooktown Townsville/Magnetic the Mackay/Capricorn
data, keep in mind that some
Sunshine coralsBay
Coast/Moreton are naturally lighter than others. One survey is just a snapshot in time. Regular
dots, secondary y-axis) per
Management area Management area CoralWatch surveys
Management Area areManagement
needed toarealook at health over time or pick up trends of bleaching and recovery.
funded the printing of 250 packages.
quarter in 2018.
KEPPEL ISLAND CORALS
What does the data tell us? CORAL TYPE
The graph above shows an average coral score between 3-4, indicating healthy reefs. The graph at the rights shows
KH
KH
RB
AG
Branching coral, Acropora sp. Boulder coral, Favites sp. thatAcropora
Plate coral, sp.
the dominant coral, Sarcophyton
Soft being
coral type monitored sp. at Lady Musgrave is branching. Branching corals are fragile and form an
important habitat for reef fish and invertebrates, hence why it’s important to monitor. When interpreting the data, keep
in mind that some corals are naturally lighter than others. One survey is just a snapshot in time. Regular CoralWatch
The education package includes coral Identification sheets,
surveys are needed to look at health over time or pick up trends of bleaching and recovery.
LADY MUSGRAVE CORALS
information leaflets, posters and a science lessons booklet
CR
CR
CR
CR
Branching coral, Acropora sp. Boulder coral. Plate coral, Acropora sp Soft coral, Sinularia sp.
for Year 7. The package will be launched in Gladstone and
Postcards
Rockhampton at the FLOW centre early next year. Very exciting
For National Science Week we produced a gift set of postcards
to have these new materials available, thanks for taking the
with beautiful images and scientific information on the back.
initiative David!
The set is available in our online shop - 10 dollar per pack of 6.
Instructional CoralWatch video
CoralWatch online quiz
Erin Houselander, a lecturer at Griffith film school, offered to For National Science Week we
create a CoralWatch instructional video. The final results is 2.5 produced an online ‘Citizen
minutes, and gives a very clear overview of ‘How to use the Science’ quiz to run on our Ipads as
Coral Watch Health Chart in a few easy steps’. Available on our a new activity. We trialed it during
website. https://coralwatch.org/index.php/news/videos/ some of the events but it is still
a bit challenging since it requires
internet. Have a go ..
Other CoralWatch updates
Other updates -
CORALWATCH STAFF
- Karen Hofman - who replaced Monique during her
maternity leave - has now moved with her husband
James to a tropical island. They are the new caretakers
of Low Isles, a small island with lots of day visitors, close
to Port Douglas. Not a bad change! We are looking
forward to visiting.
- Monique started back 2 weeks ago. Her little boy Nikita
is now 9 months. Great to have back in the office!
EVENTS
- In July, Diana, Erin, Karen J participated in another Karen J. (left) and Erin (right) organised another Moreton
Brainbee event at QBI where highschools compete in Bay cruise as part of ReefBlitz together with the fantastic
science activities. Good opportunity to catch up with staff from with Moreton Bay Environmental Education
Paddy as well, who came with students from Townsville. Centre. Together they showcased the amazing and little
- Karen J and Justin were part of an Q&A session at the known corals of Moreton Bay. This event was proudly
‘Map to Paradise’ movie in Indooroopilly events complex supported by the Moreton Bay Environmental Education
on 25 September. Questions include wanting to know Centre and Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd.
more about the current state of corals on the GBR, the - Diana and Maria attended the Ecomarines final
impact of agriculture run-off and what citizens can do presentation at the convention centre. There were over
from home to help. >40 schools attending, all got involved in various ways,
- creating a wave of change in their schools, families
and communities. Several schools participated in the
CoralWatch challenge.
GRANTS / CONFERENCES - NEW SUBMISSIONS
- National Science Week 2020, to participate in 3 science
festivals (Melbourne, Brisbane and UQ Sustainability)
and to create / print the ‘What can I do’ action booklet.
- Madeline D. submitted an abstract for the poster
session at the International Coral Reef Conference
Diana organised an ‘Act to Protect’ workshop in Cairns (ICRS) in Bremen next year. Title: ‘CoralWatch - a citizen
during the Marine Teachers Association Queensland science tool to monitor coral bleaching and create reef
(MTAQ) conference which included a field day. It was awareness’ and CoralWatch submitted an abstract for a
very successful, reconnecting with existing teaching talk ‘CoralWatch: Creating global reef awareness through
contacts and introducing new teachers to the CW coral monitoring, education and outreach’.
program and resources.
And I am sure there was more...
Upcoming events/opportunities will be posted on facebook and emailed to you.
Please check regular, we really appreciate your assistance, input and ideas!
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