Redmap and the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS) will be chatting to fishers, boaters and the community at Seafest this Saturday, 2 April. Come along to the marine festival in Triabunna for your chance to win an aquarium full of lolly snakes or a marine book - and chat to the Redmap and IMAS staff about fishing and any weird and wonderful fish you've caught lately.
How do you turn a hobby like SCUBA diving into a job? Ask 17-year-old Tasmanian Jakob Lister. The high school student grabs his dive gear and heads underwater every chance he gets. Now he’s grabbed the chance to steer his love of the ocean towards a career. He’s won a Redmap scholarship to join a Marine Biology course, run by the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, on Maria Island …
WARM sea temperatures have lured an assortment of unusual sea creatures to Tasmania in recent months – some slithery and others scrumptious. Anglers are buzzing over the larger numbers of sought-after table fish visiting the island, with catches of whopper yellowtail kingfish, snapper and broadbill swordfish. Read the full story in The Mercury.
It spans up to 3 to 4 metres, breaks the scales at 1000 kilos and resembles a giant flattened pufferfish minus spikes. Redmap has been receiving sightings of the unusual-looking ocean sunfish (Mola mola)! Read about the world's heaviest fish...
The fixed division of labor between crested penguin parents increases their chicks' vulnerability to food shortages made ever more common by climate change. The parents have been unable to adapt their habits to the challenges of increasingly frequent years of limited food supply and, as a result, will become further threatened by extinction. Read more at Science Daily.
The D’Entrecasteaux and Huon Collaboration Report Card has been released - you can download it here. The report card focuses on water quality and sediment health, pollution types and sources, swimming and seafood safety, coastal and marine habitats, and climate. And it gives Redmap a good mention!
Human-induced climate change is triggering changes beneath the waves that could have a long-term effect on marine food webs, a study suggests. An assessment of phytoplankton in the North Atlantic found the microscopic organisms' pole-ward shift was faster than previously reported. Read more at BBC News.
Do you have an idea for an online citizen science project? Inspiring Australia is looking for a great new idea for the 2016 National Science Week citizen science project. The chosen project will be built and produced by the ABC and promoted across their TV, radio and online channels. Read more here.
Coral reefs around the world are facing a whole spectrum of human-induced disturbances that are affecting their ability to grow, reproduce and survive. These range from local pressures such as overfishing and sedimentation, to global ones such as ocean acidification and warming. With the third global coral bleaching event underway, we now more than ever, need to understand how coral responds to these stressors. Read more in The Conversation.
Are you in Year 11 or 12 and thinking of becoming a marine biologist? Then check out the amazing Temperate Marine Biology unit run by the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS). The course provides students with key concepts in marine biology plus a real-world, research experience on Maria Island, Tasmania. And REDMAP is offering one student a scholarship for the field trip part of the course!
