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Project details
| Title: | Environmental baselines for Wessel Marine Park, northern Australia |
| Id: | 2499 |
| Investigator(s): | Rachel Przeslawski
Geoscience Australia [details] |
| Description: | This project aims to collect and analyse valuable environmental baseline information in a data-poor marine park. Specifically, we will use a combination of multibeam sonar and towed imagery to map the seafloor and characterise seafloor habitats in a northern area in the Wessel Marine Park region. Collected data will be combined with the limited data available from previous surveys, as well as museum records, to test assumptions about the Wessel Marine Park drawn from the 2018 management plan. These assumptions are: (A) Includes some of the most diverse environments in the North Marine Region. (B) Includes some of the most species-rich environments in the North Marine Region. (C) Supports a number of endemic species. (D) Acts as a transition point for sessile invertebrate and fish species. In addition, we will test the hypothesis that the raised seabed features (banks, shoals) in the park are relict reefs that formed at lower sea levels in the early Holocene period (ca. 12,000 to 7,000 years before present). Results from this study will inform detailed implementation plans to be developed by the Department of Environment and Energy over the next 10 years. In particular, this study will expand the currently limited species inventory from the region, contribute to an assessment of the significance of raised geomorphic features in the park, and identify geomorphic features, habitats, or communities of interest. |
| Years: | 2019 |
Publications
Journal Article
- Przeslawski R, Beaman R, Fava L, Nichol S, Woehler E, Yule C (2020). Wessel Marine Park: Post-Survey Report for INV2019T02. Report to the National Environmental Science Program, Marine Biodiversity Hub. Geoscience Australia Download file
- data sourced from following voyages IN2019_T02
List of surveys that this project was on.
Use [details] link to view survey details (map, reports, metadata etc) including links to download data.
| Survey | Investigator | Description |
|---|---|---|
| IN2019_T02 [details] |
Rob Beaman (JCU) | RV Investigator research voyage in2019_t02, titled “Deep seascapes of the Great Barrier Reef: Uncovering submarine canyons and landslides.” |