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14 images Created 8 Jul 2021

Bay of Plenty

The rich biodiversity of Moreton Bay, in Queensland, has seen it recognised as a Hope Spot, part of a series of global marine sites considered critical to the health of the world’s oceans. The waters of this subtropical east coast waterway are as close as 14 kilometres to the city’s CBD, and the coastal lands that fringe its westerly edge have been impacted by European settlement since the late 1800s. These days there is ever-growing pressure on the natural ecosystems here, with the bay – which extends about 125 kilometres, from Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast in the south, to Caloundra on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast in the north – being on the doorstep of Australia’s fastest-growing urban strip.
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  • Griffith University’s Johan Gustafson investigates estuarine habitat use. Because they are top-order predators, bull sharks are sensitive indicators of environmental change. So having them around is a sign of a healthy ecosystem, Here, he releases a bull shark back into waters just north of the Gold Coast.
    Moreton_01.jpg
  • A series of artificial canal estates has been developed from the Gold Coast to the Sunshine Coast to meet an ever-increasing demand for housing. Their construction often requires the reclamation of natural wetlands.
    Moreton_02.jpg
  • Marine plants such as the common grey mangrove play key roles in the Moreton Bay ecosystem. They contribute to primary production, food security and habitat for a huge range of marine animal species and are threatened by foreshore development.
    Moreton_03.jpg
  • Between 1963 and 1984 a cluster of ships was scuttled by the Queensland government to provde safe anchorage for recreational boat owners on Moreton Bay’s eastern side. Tourists now enjoy exploring the shadowy underwater world created by the rusty hulks now thriving with marine life.
    Moreton_04.jpg
  • Currents carrying the larvae of marine invertebrates have since established the Tangalooma Wrecks as artificial reefs attracting more than 100 fish species. They’re also visited by turtles, dugongs, cormorants and other large charismatic marine species, turning these wrecks into tourist attractions, particularly popular for snorkelling and scuba diving.
    Moreton_05.jpg
  • Professor Rodger Tomlinson is the Foundation Director of the Griffith Centre for Coastal Management at the Gold Coast Campus. His research interests address the major challenges to coastal community of natural hazard and climate change. For example, the Southport Seaway and the world’s first permanent sand bypassing system.
    Moreton_06.jpg
  • Jetski's and other water users are common in the Southport Seaway near the artificially constructed wave break island. Vessels are often associated with marine wildlife strike, particularly turtles, dugong and humpback dolphins.
    Moreton_07.jpg
  • Dr Elizabeth Hawkins, Founding Director of Dolphin Research Australia studies Australian humpack and bottlenose dolphin populations in Moreton Bay and their interaction with people. Dorsal fins are used for identification, but can sometimes be subject to veesel strike.
    Moreton_08.jpg
  • The rare Australian humpback dolphin is listed as Vulnerable in Queensland (Nature Conservation Act 1992). Australian humpback dolphins prefer inshore habitats in Moreton Bay. The western side, around the Brisbane River, is a key habitat for them. The turbid estuarine waters there support the species’ southernmost east coast population.
    Moreton_09.jpg
  • This green turtle was found dead with its flipper tangled in a discarded recreational crab pot in Moreton Bay. The Queensland government’s Moreton Bay stranding database shows there has been an annual average of about 298 strandings for each of the past five years. The figures include dead, sick, injured, incapacitated, entangled or rescued marine turtles.
    Moreton_10.jpg
  • Dr. Kathy Townsend, Lecturer in Animal Ecology at the University of the Sunshine Coast studies the interaction between people and turtles in the Moreton Bay Marine Park. Necropsies are conducted on dead sea turtles as part of her research.
    Moreton_11.jpg
  • This assortment of marine debris in this photograph were obtained from the stomach of a single turtle during a necropsy undertaken by Dr Kathy Townsend at the Fraser Coast Campus, of the University of the Sunshine Coast.
    Moreton_12.jpg
  • Postgraduate research student Amalya Vale from the University of the Sunshine Coast studied the interaction between marine debris and seabirds in coastal areas of the Moreton Bay.
    Moreton_13.jpg
  • Flinders Reef is a small isolated reef near Moreton Island, and protected by the Moreton Bay Marine Park. It has the highest number of coral species of any sub tropical reef system along Australia’s east coast, and is home to a large nmbers of turtles that  shelter in these protected waters as a sign of hope on the doorstep of Australia’s fastest growning urban stip..
    Moreton_14.jpg