Seagrass monitors take to the sky

Sunday, 28 March 2010 09:13

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Fisheries scientists, the TSRA and Indigenous rangers have teamed up to deliver a new initiative to map and assess seagrass habitat vital to local fisheries.

The 23-day helicopter and boat survey began earlier this month and will help fisheries scientists and the community develop a detailed picture of seagrass health in the Torres Strait.

Fisheries Queensland, a service of the Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation (DEEDI), is conducting the survey in partnership with the TSRA Land and Sea Management Unit and is expected to complete the survey by the end of the month.

TSRA Chair Toshie Kris said the survey was an excellent example of government, local government and community working together for a common purpose.

“Seagrasses are the natural nursery grounds for fish and prawns and a vital food source for dugong and turtle,” Mr Kris said.

“The information obtained will be fed into local dugong and turtle management plans.

“At the same time it will keep management agencies, including the TSRA, up to date on seagrass health.”

TSRA through its Environmental Management Program aims to achieve sustainable management of natural resources in region

DEEDI fisheries biologist Helen Taylor said Torres Strait seagrasses supported a number of major fisheries and a greater understanding of them would help address the threats they faced, including shipping accidents and oil spills.

“We need to determine what species of seagrass are out there and how healthy they are and to monitor and understand any changes in the habitat,” she said.

“The Torres Strait contains some of the most-sensitive marine habitats in Australia, including seagrass, coral, algae and mangroves.

“Information collected will be incorporated into emergency planning and shipping accident oil spill response plans.”

Fisheries Queensland will use helicopters to survey exposed areas at low tide between the Muralag (Prince of Wales) Channel north to Mabuiag Island.

The survey will be conducted on research vessels within sub-tidal coastal regions around Badu Island and deep-water regions in the Dugong Sanctuary.”

“Fisheries Queensland looks forward to working closely with the Indigenous Rangers on Badu and Mabuiag,” Ms Taylor said.

The survey builds on previous work conducted in the Great North East Shipping Channel and sub-tidal regions around Mabuiag Island and assists the long term monitoring.

“We have mapped some 60,000ha of seagrasses to date and we have so far identified 11 out of a possible 16 Queensland species of seagrass in the area,” she said.

The research team based at Northern Fisheries Centre is internationally recognised as leaders in assessment and monitoring of tropical seagrasses.

Principal scientist Robert Coles, who leads the Cairns-based group, said the skills and expertise developed were published internationally and used throughout the Pacific as part of international networks of seagrass monitoring.