Wildlife Queensland Bayside Branch Newsletter June 2016

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1 In this edition 2 From the executive Out and About President s Report STEVE 3 Coral bleaching GBRMPA 6 SEQ Coral Report Reef Check Wildlife Queensland Bayside Branch Newsletter June 2016 Upcoming Events Next Meeting 7.30pm Friday 24 th June Redlands Indigiscapes Centre Wetlands of South East Queensland - Mike Ronan Our speaker this month is Mike Ronan Manager Wetlands, Queensland Wetlands Program, Department of Environment and Heritage Protection. Mike will talk about the wetlands of South East Queensland. We are lucky to live in a region supporting many and diverse wetland habitats, from freshwater wetlands to our bay, estuaries and marine environment. Mike will talk about these wetlands and the important information tools, available through WetlandInfo that are being used to manage them, including our mangroves. This information is vital to providing a comprehensive picture of South East Queensland wetland areas. Mike will also demonstrate the recently released catchment story map journals to promote whole-ofcatchment understanding. Free entry light supper provided. 7 Cicada Award SEQ Regional Plan 8 Moreton Bay Mangrove talk Herbarium 9 Resources Contacts Weblinks Membership Application Peaks to Point festival When July 16th 9.15 am to pm Redlands Indigiscapes Centre Event presented by Wildlife Queensland Coastal Citizen Science and Bayside Branch Three presentations Afternoon activities to be at Wellington point reserve with guided walk out to King Island GOING DIGIT@L Have you considered receiving your newsletter by ? If you would like to see the full colour version of the newsletter each month, please let us know by ing wildlifebb@bigpond.com It will save paper, envelopes and postage.

2 Presidents Report Out and About Every time I listen to the news I seem to hear about more money being thrown at the Great Barrier Reef half a billion here another billion there, 16 billion to fix it up over the next 10 years. They may be very laudable proposals, but upstream there are still feasibility studies being conducted for 14 new dams in North Queensland with their attendant downstream problems erosion, sediment, loss of biodiversity, increasing the viability of farming on marginal land, exploration for new mines will continue and undoubtedly some will open. Like for our Koalas, we have heard these platitudes before, we all know the causes and effect, money will not fix the underlying issues, only change of practice Locally we will face some of same downstream issues particularly if the reclamation for Toondahharbour goes ahead, suffocation of our seagrass beds and mangroves by sediment is a distinct possibility. Our elected bodies need to be more pro-active in enforcing and monitoring environmental conditions and not rely on businesses self-regulating and then walking away from the consequences of their inactions. Community groups have to use their expertise, science and independence to ensure that any proposal does not impact negatively on the environment. Unfortunately IndgiDay out was cancelled due to inclement weather, but Bayside Branch will be supporting the, Seek, Unearth, Explore QuandamookaCountry event which will be on Friday 1 July at Indigiscapesand will feature many of the same stalls. We are part of the peaks to points festival on the 16th July which will start with seminars at Indigiscapesand continues to Wellington point and a guided walk to King Island. I feel more confident than ever that the power to save the planet rests with the individual consumer. Denis Hayes

3 Coral bleaching As the climate changes, coral bleaching is predicted to become more frequent and severe. Sea temperature increases and coral stress from other impacts may increase corals' vulnerability to bleaching. As part of its Reef Health Incident Response System, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority has a Coral Bleaching Response Plan for detecting and responding to coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef. What is coral bleaching Many types of coral have a special symbiotic relationship with a tiny marine algae (zooxanthellae) that live inside corals' tissue and are very efficient food producers that provide up to 90 per cent of the energy corals require to grow and reproduce. Coral bleaching occurs when the relationship between the coral host and zooxanthellae, which give coral much of their colour, breaks down. Without the zooxanthellae, the tissue of the coral animal appears transparent and the coral's bright white skeleton is revealed. Corals begin to starve once they bleach. While some corals are able to feed themselves, most corals struggle to survive without their zooxanthellae. If conditions return to normal, corals can regain their zooxanthellae, return to their normal colour and survive. However, this stress is likely to cause decreased coral growth and reproduction, and increased susceptibility to disease.

4 Bleached corals often die if the stress persists. Coral reefs that have high rates of coral death following bleaching can take many years or decades to recover. What causes coral bleaching The main cause of coral bleaching is heat stress resulting from high sea temperatures. Temperature increases of only one degree celsius for only four weeks can trigger bleaching events. If these temperatures persist for longer periods (eight weeks or more) corals begin to die. High water temperatures can affect reefs at regional and global scale. Other stressors can also cause bleaching, including freshwater inundation (low salinity) and poor water quality from sediment or pollutant run-off. Coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef The Great Barrier Reef has experienced mass coral bleaching events in the past. In 1998, there was a global mass bleaching event where 50 per cent of the reefs on the Great Barrier Reef suffered bleaching. During this time, sea temperatures on the Great Barrier Reef were the highest ever recorded. Mass bleaching also occurred in 2002, with 60 per cent of reefs were affected. This was the largest coral bleaching event on record. Two periods of hot weather resulted in sea surface temperatures a few degrees centigrade higher than long-term summer maxima. In both events, about five per cent of the Great Barrier Reef's coral reefs were severely damaged.

5 Coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef Of all the reefs we surveyed, only 7% (68 reefs) have escaped bleaching entirely. At the other end of the spectrum, between 60 and 100% of corals are severely bleached on 316 reefs, nearly all in the northern half of the Reef.

6 Reef Check SEQ Report Source:

7 Cicada Awards continue the call Debra Henry The Cicada Awards is giving youth a voice to be heard. It s a project of the Wildlife Preservation Society Qld Bayside Branch and is a short film and animation awards for students. Entrants are encouraged to offer solutions to issues of environmental significance in South-East Queensland. Many have chosen subjects about marine assets mangroves, seagrasss and saltmarsh have been topics tackled by the students. For more information please visit the Bayside Branch Blog To view the films from previous years click here. Community for Responsible Planning calls on residents to contribute to south east Queensland regional plan Community Alliance for Responsible Planning spokeswoman Lavinia Wood said any review of the plan had to recognise that the region had a population carrying capacity. Without this, it would not be possible to maintain a genuine balance between the environment, economy and community. "As this applies to the Redlands, so it applies to south east Queensland,'' she said. "Right now as we are developing houses, we are annhilating koalas. We have to stop. "The Redlands is a microcosm of south east Queensland, Australia and the world.'' Source:

8 Mangrove and Associated Communities of Moreton Bay

9 Resources Pg 5: Pg 6 Committee & Contacts President Steve Homewood V President Vacant Secretary Simon Baltais baltais@bigpond.net.au Treasurer Executive Maureen Tottenham Don Baxter Bayside Newsletter Editor Wildlife Diary Editor Alix Baltais/Simon Baltais Simon Baltais bayside@wildlife.org.au Web: Blogs: Keep Up to Date Online! Wildlife Queensland Coastal Citizen Science Wildlife Bayside Curlew Watch Websites: Wildlife Bayside Ornate Rainbowfish Memberships Types $30.00 Single $20.00 Concession (Pensioner/Full Student) $45.00 Family or Non Profit Group $12.50 Junior Optional Wildlife Magazine Subscription $47.00 per year inc GST (Four Issues) $90 for 2 years inc GST (Eight Issues) $70.00 per year (International Post) $135 for 2 years (International Post) Optional Donation $ For Campaign (Bayside does not tax deductible status) Postal address: PO Box 427, Capalaba 4157 Membership Application Wildlife Preservation Society of Queensland Name Address P/C Phone No Special Interests Pay by Credit Card Card Type: VISA Mastercard Card No Exp Date / Name on Card Signature Forward to WPSQ Bayside, PO Box 427, Capalaba Q 4157