There are a few fish species in Norfolk Island’s bays that are easily mixed up. Here’s four commonly confused pairs, with a few pointers to help you identify them.
Read MoreCasting your offspring to the currents – sea star reproduction
In May on Norfolk Island, the day after the full moon and at low tide, I witnessed an enormous Leach’s sea star, Leiaster leachi, as it broadcast its gametes into the water column. What an amazing WOW moment! And what a privilege to witness such a rare event. Here are some images and video of the action.
Read MoreThe resilience of corals
On Norfolk Island’s reef, acropora coral colonies upturned in storm surges in September 2020 initially struggled to survive, but now they are now showing signs of new, healthy growth. This incredible photo is of those early days as it struggled. You can read more and see what it looks like today in my latest blog post, here.
Read MorePretty in pink – the real coral reef builders
Animal, vegetable or mineral? What are crustose coralline algae? Are they important? What role do they play on our coral reefs?
There’s a lot to learn about coralline algae. For a humble lifeform, they really pack a punch.
Read MoreFor the sake of our grandchildren
What will my grandson see when he is old enough to snorkel on Norfolk Island’s reef? Will there be anything left as I know it? Or will he think it is all great because of that hoary old phenomenon called ‘shifting baseline syndrome’? This record of all my photos and observations will give him some idea of what we had in our bays in the 2020s.
Read MoreBlack Blenny - a new record for Norfolk Island
This is a copy of the Australian Fishes journal post about new fish sightings on Norfolk Island: ‘This observation [of a black blenny] highlights the power of citizen scientists working with professional ichthyologists to achieve important outcomes,’ Mark McGrouther, Senior Fellow at the Australian Museum.
Read MoreDoris – just one turtle?
Many of the turtles that live in Norfolk Island’s coral-reef lagoons are juveniles. In other words, they are the future of their species, and an important piece in the genetic jigsaw. Yet they seem to fall through the cracks when it comes to being protected by the EPBC Act.
Read MoreA pair and a spare – snubnose darts on Norfolk Island's reef
Norfolk Island’s reef is small and intimate. We can count the numbers of some species of fish on one hand, and that is how I can watch the comings and goings with interest as I swim among them. I love the stories that play out and which I get to witness – these snubnose darts (Trachinotus blochii) are a case in point.
Read MoreA tale of two corals
My March focus on Norfolk Island’s reef could almost go on for a full year, there’s so much to write about. But time dictates, so I will confine my efforts to one concentrated effort of randomness! Randomness, because there has been no plan to my posts. They have evolved as the month has progressed. Today I highlight two very different corals commonly seen, but not necessarily common.
Read MoreBubble and fizz – a quick guide to coral reef chemistry
March is often the warmest month on Norfolk Island’s reef, so it's no surprise that the algae are very busily photosynthesising and flourishing. Yesterday, I noticed that the algae had created a thick carpet of bubbles. As I swam my face was gently brushed by thousands of tingling bubbles, fizzing to the surface. It was quite a sight. And a rather weird sensation. So what is going on here?
Read MoreBeneath the waves in Emily Bay, Norfolk Island
Looking across Emily Bay, do you wonder what is beneath the waves in there? Although this is not strictly part of Norfolk Island’s reef, it is part of one continuous ecosystem; therefore, in today’s March focus on Norfolk Island’s reef I thought it was worth showing you what you can see at your feet as you wade into the shallows.
Read MoreTiptoeing through the government silos
In the 1960s we had reports voicing concerns around water quality, but nothing was done. When the Commonwealth of Australia’s EPBC Act came into force in 1999, nothing was done. Surely it is high time the issues of failing and inadequate infrastructure, deficient Norfolk Island laws and unsatisfactory protections were fixed once and for all?
Read MoreWe can't say we weren't warned
Today’s post for the March focus on Norfolk Island’s reef is a letter. Just that, and nothing more. The authors of this letter have very generously given me permission to reproduce it here. In it, Dr Kellie Pendoley and Dr Martin Goldsmith warn us about the future of Emily Bay. Written nearly eight years ago they give the coral reef habitat five to ten years before it is gone as we know it.
Read MoreButterfly, flutterbyfish
Butterflyfish are flighty, brightly coloured and beautifully conspicuous on our coral reef in their bright yellows and oranges, white and black livery. On Norfolk Island we regularly see fourteen species, just a small portion of the more than 100 species, globally. Large numbers of butterflyfish are a good sign of a healthy reef.
Read MoreBy the hair of a goatfish's chinny chin chin!
If you go for a snorkel on Norfolk Island’s reef, one family of fish that you are bound to see is members of the goatfish family. I have seen have six different species inside our lagoons. You can see them all here.
Read MoreAgeing elegantly – the elegant wrasse's lifecycle
It’s always fascinating to see how fish change in appearance as they mature. Today’s blog post features the elegant wrasse, Anampses elegans. But not only do they change how they look, they also change how they socialise and move about the reef.
Read MoreNorfolk Island's endemics on record
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 MoreOne small fish for one big job
Bluestreak cleaner wrasse, Labroides dimidiatus, are important critters on our coral reefs. These fish offer a swim-through full-body maintenance shop for other fish species – their clients – nibbling away dead skin and any nasty ectoparasites that might be living on their clients. There’s a lot to be learned about a reef from watching these busy little fish.
Read MoreA rare gem – Cemetery Bay, Norfolk Island
No focus on Norfolk Island’s reef would be complete without a look at Cemetery Bay. It’s worth strolling along this beautiful beach at low tide. It is the island’s dog beach, so you will see plenty of locals out walking here, but better still is what you can see in the water – healthy corals happily growing right up to the beach.
Read MoreA boring, brown reef?
People say that Norfolk Island’s reef is rather boring and brown when compared to the Great Barrier Reef. While it may not be as colourful, I think you have to agree that it is anything but boring brown!
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