Reefs

close up of yellow, mini-submarine on water surface

Starbug steals the show

Community engagement is a key component of the Ningaloo Outlook project which aims to increase the ecological understanding of the Ningaloo Coast World Heritage Area’s deep and shallow reefs and the reef’s shark and turtle populations.

Testing times for marine species

The crown-of-thorns starfish may end up being an unlikely hero in the quest to determine how best to help iconic marine species adapt to climate change.

Eye in the sky on reef pollution

Spotting an oil spill in a 2,300 km long marine park is no easy task, but new remote sensing technology is set to change that.

Queensland Coastline as seen from space shows the Great Barrier Reef and muddy water flowing from hte Burdekin River into the ocean.

Saving the Great Barrier Reef

The Great Barrier Reef is at risk from factors in and out of the water. Dr Christian Roth discusses what needs to change, and how, to save our reef.

Under water on the Great Barrier Reef showing coral and fish.

Sifting for solutions: how sediment analysis is improving reef health

Cattle, cane, cropping, coral. That’s the balance the Queensland ecosystem has to strike to help reduce sediment and improve Great Barrier Reef health.

Tourists look at a reef from on board a boat

Australians link identity to the Great Barrier Reef

The Great Barrier Reef is one of the world’s iconic ecosystems, but how important is it to Australians? Very, new surveys reveal.

Corals and ocean water on the Great Barrier Reef as seen from the air

Coral reef science enters the space age

New technology fitted into an aeroplane and flown over parts of the Great Barrier Reef will provide a more detailed survey of coral reef health than ever before and give a boost to global reef science.

two scuba divers swim past a colourful coral wall on The Great Barrier reef

The Great Barrier Reef faces a mixed future in acidifying oceans

Ocean acidification will hurt some parts of the Great Barrier Reef more than others.

Three small fish orange coloured with white stripes

Diving for treasure to help protect the world’s great reefs

Amid growing demand for seafood, gas and other resources drawn from the world’s oceans, and growing stresses from climate change, we examine some of the challenges and solutions for developing “the blue economy” in smarter, more sustainable ways. For example, could the diving industry, long criticised as contributing to declines in coral reef health around the world, better contribute to reef conservation?