We used to focus just on protection of vital ecosystems like the reef. But as climate change and other threats accelerate, we need to actively help nature get ready for the heat.
Academic rigor, journalistic flair
Australian Institute of Marine Science
The Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) is a leader in tropical marine science.
The Institute is consistently ranked among the top one per cent of specialist research institutions internationally and is known for its unique capacity to investigate topics from broad-scale ecology to microbiology.
AIMS is committed to the protection and sustainable use of Australia’s marine resources. Its research programs support the management of tropical marine environments around the world, with a primary focus on the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area, the pristine Ningaloo Marine Park in Western Australia and northwest Australia.
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In recent years, the Barrier Reef has had a reprieve – and coral has regrown strongly. But now the reprieve looks to be over and the heat is back on
New research has unravelled the mystery of why sea sponges die when the water gets too warm. The cause of death appears to be the sudden loss of microbes that usually act to detoxify sponge tissue.
Coral in the Great Barrier Reef is once again bleaching, with water temperatures up to 3°C higher than normal in some places.
Australia’s ‘blue economy’ needs a strong basis in marine science.
The triple whammy of the moon’s wobble, sea level rise and more intense storms will bring worse tidal floods into coastal communities in the 2030s. This includes in Australia.
Traditional ecological and cultural wisdom was embraced and valued, enhancing Western scientific knowledge of a beautiful, fragile marine area.
Le génie génétique permet de s’intéresser à la biodiversité, et à comment mieux la préserver.
New research involving CRISPR technology has furthered our understanding of corals’ gene functions. Specifically, it has revealed a mechanism underpinning how corals withstand heat stress.
They’re more used to taking visitors to the reefs, but COVID-19 gave tour operators time to help check the condition of the corals. What they found doesn’t bode well.
Restoring the reef represents one of the most significant science and technology challenges in the history of nature conservation.
The findings will help determine the age of whale sharks, protecting the endangered animals into the future.
The Western Australian coral reefs may not be as well known as the Great Barrier Reef, but they’re just as large and diverse. And they too have been devastated by cyclones and coral bleaching.
Marine sponges are ancient organisms that have survived mass extinctions. Many are more tolerant of climate change and may dominate over corals in future reef systems.
Every year buoyant bundles rise from a spawning coral, giving the impression of an upside-down snowstorm.
Corals on the Great Barrier Reef that are tolerant to warmer waters can be used to help repair other parts of the reef damaged by recent coral bleaching events.
You can learn a lot about the movement of people and animals if you tap into the tracking data from many of today’s mobile phones.
Two-thirds of the corals in the northern part of the Great Barrier Reef have died on in the reef’s worst-ever bleaching event, according to the latest underwater surveys.
How you tell one whale shark from another? Spots and stripes.
Marine parks need to cover large swathes of ocean, but they also need to cover the right areas if they are to deliver the best conservation. New research off Australia’s northwest suggests how.
Authors
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Principal Research Scientist, Exploring Marine Biodiversity, Australian Institute of Marine Science
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Research fellow, Australian Institute of Marine Science
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Executive Director of Strategic Development at Australian Institute of Marine Science, Australian Institute of Marine Science
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Chief Research Officer, Australian Institute of Marine Science
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Research Program Director- Reef Ecology and Monitoring, Australian Institute of Marine Science
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Research Scientist, Australian Institute of Marine Science
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Research Scientist: Coral Ecology, Australian Institute of Marine Science
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Research Fellow and Indigenous Partnerships, Australian Institute of Marine Science
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Australian Institute of Marine Science
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Principal Research Scientist, Australian Institute of Marine Science
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Research Program Director, Australian Institute of Marine Science
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Senior Principal Research Scientist, Australian Institute of Marine Science
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Senior Research Scientist, Australian Institute of Marine Science
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Principal Research Scientist, Australian Institute of Marine Science
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Australian Institute of Marine Science
