‘Out on a swim’ is a coral reef blog that tells the stories of the characters who live under the waves and what has caught my eye when ‘out on a swim’ in the lagoons of Norfolk Island. It is also a record of the difficulties Norfolk Island’s reef faces, like many others around the world, as a result of the poor water quality that has been allowed to flow onto it.
This page shows the most recent blog posts. For the complete catalogue, visit the ‘Out on a swim index’ page.
This blog is rated in the Top 20 Coral Reef Blogs in the world.
Corals in western Slaughter Bay, close to the Kingston Pier Dredging Project
This correspondence with DCCEEW is about more than one dredging proposal. It is about what happens when an ecologically distinctive place is assessed through standard tools that do not always make its most important values easy to see. I am publishing it here because that is something we need to be aware of, both on Norfolk Island and more broadly in Australia.
Read MoreMy school’s logo and motto, Christ me spede
I left school in the UK nearly 50 years ago, so it was a pleasant surprise to be invited to share some images and take part in an interview for an article about my work, to be published in the annual glossy magazine the school now produces. Here is the end product.
Read MoreEclipse butterflyfish – Chaetodon bennetti, Norfolk Island
September is Biodiversity Month – the perfect time to celebrate the astonishing variety of life on Norfolk Island’s reef. From new fish sightings to coral mosaics, every observation is a reminder of how much there is still to learn and protect.
Read more about why biodiversity matters, globally and right here in our lagoon.
Read MoreBlue-barred parrotfish (Scarus ghobban), last seen in September 2021
In my ‘Year in review for 2023 on Norfolk Island’s reef’, published in December 2023, I made a few observations about the apparent disappearance of some fish species from Norfolk Island’s lagoons. I thought I would revisit these, principally because since December there has been so much additional fish activity here, with some exciting population increases and a few new species turning up.
Read MoreI couldn’t resist posting these beautiful images of floating seaweed. Enjoy!
Read MoreA Norfolk Island endemic species, the Norfolk Island blenny, Parablennius serratolineatus
After about 18 months of asking, and with the help of some wonderful people from the data department of the Atlas of Living Australia and the Australian Museum, the Atlas of Living Australia website now recognises iNaturalist citizen science observations for Norfolk Island. Which is definitely something worth celebrating!
Read MoreNorfolk Island blenny, Parablennius serratolineatus
It is fascinating to me that, in terms of biodiversity, there is still a slight feel of the frontier to Norfolk Island. So remote and isolated from any other land mass, it stands to reason that we have some different species that are found only here. On such is the Norfolk Island blenny.
Read MoreA common view of an aatuti as you swim into its territory!
One species that is doing remarkably well on Norfolk Island’s reef as it inexorably transitions from coral-dominated to algal-dominated is the banded scalyfin, Parma polylepis, which is unsurprising as their main food source is algae. The downside is they harass and bully all the other species that come anywhere near their territory, to the detriment of our biodiversity. Find out more here.
Read MoreFrom front to back: raccoon butterflyfish; blackback butterflyfish; three-striped butterflyfish Back right: Threadfin butterflyfish
Butterflyfish are ‘corallivores’, that is, they feed mainly on coral polyps and the energy-rich mucous that these produce. Corals also make a great place for butterflyfish to shelter in and under. Without healthy corals, then fish like these will become more and more scarce.
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