Research > Collaborative linkages program > State linkage projects > project description Research: Collaborative linkages State linkage project: Twelfth International Marine Biological Workshop: The Marine Flora and Fauna of Esperance, Western Australia Background Western Australia is a huge State, occupying the western third of the continent. Until relatively recently, this vast coastline had been largely unexplored by scientists. The presence of some groups of organisms in the marine environment of Western Australia is still totally unknown. In 1986 Dr Fred Wells of the Western Australian Museum proposed that a series of marine biological workshops be held in Western Australia to allow scientists from interstate and overseas the opportunity to work with Western Australian scientists to generate scientific information about the marine environment of Western Australia. The proposal was accepted by the Museum and the WA Branch of the Australian Marine Sciences Association. From the outset the workshop has been a cooperative venture which has also included organisers from CSIRO (Dr Hugh Kirkman), and Murdoch University (Assoc Prof Roger Lethbridge). While the workshop organisers have changed from time to time, Prof Di Walker of The University of Western Australia has been actively involved since the Albany workshop. The Western Australian workshops have attracted about 200 scientists from leading institutions throughout the world: about one-half have been from overseas; one-fourth from the eastern states; and one-fourth from Western Australia. The workshops are modelled on workshops held at the University of Hong Kong since 1977, and are numbered as part of an international series. Other workshops, devoted specifically to molluscs, have been held in Hong Kong, California, Portuguese Azores, and the Florida Keys. Format Established researchers are invited to participate in the workshop. The Australian Marine Sciences Association has provided funds to allow one or two graduate students to participate. Each participant is responsible for obtaining his/her own fare for travel to/from Perth, to the workshop locality and the cost of the workshop. Workshops are held in as inexpensive a manner as possible. The local organisers provide basic accommodation, laboratory space, access to dive gear and boats. We know the local habitats and can arrange collecting and export permits, etc for the material collected. The workshops allow participants the opportunity to work on their own research projects with a minimum of hassle and organisational responsibilities. The presence of a number of other scientists at the workshop provides opportunities for joint research and a number of Western Australian scientists have taken advantage of the opportunities provided. It takes two years to plan and organise a workshop, and for the participants to obtain funding for their participation. The field portion the workshop is for 17 days. Each participant is expected to undertake one or more research projects in his/her area of expertise and publish the results in a workshop proceedings. Proceedings are published three years after completion of the field portion of the workshop. All papers are refereed. To date seven workshops have been held (including Esperance), and a total of 10 volumes have been published. A substantial portion of the workshop output has been devoted to documenting the marine ora and fauna of Western Australia (and the Northern Territory). There has also been considerable work on the ecology, physiology, functional morphology, and other aspects of the biology of various organisms. Recent workshops have benefited considerably from the preparation of papers by Alan Pearce of CSIRO and others which have drawn together published and unpublished information on the physical oceanography of the Houtman Abrolhos and the Dampier Archipelago. Much of the work has been of immediate practical advantage to managers of the marine environment, including the Environmental Protection Authority, Department of Conservation and Land Management and the Department of Fisheries Western Australia. Esperance Workshop SRFME generously supported part of the costs of the Esperance workshop, which was undertaken in February 2003. There were 28 participants in the field program. In addition to participants from WA, there were scientists from South Australia and Victoria. Overseas participants were from China, Germany, Singapore, Thailand, United Kingdom, and the United States. The goal of the marine biological workshops is to substantially increase the rate of exploration of the marine biology of Western Australia by attracting interstate and international colleagues to the State to work in a particular geographic area for a short period of intensive fieldwork. As the participants pay their own fares, etc, no attempt is made to specify what research they should undertake. However, as with previous workshops, the research can be divided into several components: Documentation. There is considerable need in the State for basic documentation of the biota which inhabits our waters. Many groups have never been examined by specialists. In conjunction with examination of specimens at the WA Museum, the workshops offer a unique opportunity for systematic research. New species were found at Esperance of marine mites, oligochaetes, molluscs, mysids, tanaids, and pycnogonids. Range extensions, often on the scale of hundreds of kilometres, were made in many taxa. Animal biology. A number of studies were made of the biology of animals, including reproductive biology of coralliophilid snails, feeding of the snail Lepsiella on limpets, ecology of trochid snails, infauna of Bandy Creek, bivalve ecology and morphology, and epiphytic grazers on seagrasses. Plant biology. There is a rich diversity of marine algae and seagrasses in the Recherche Archipelago. Considerable work was undertaken in documenting this biota and exploring the roles the plants play in the ecosystems, both algae and seagrasses. Studies included the distribution of rhodoliths, growth rates of seagrasses, nutrient status of inshore and offshore plants, and experimental work with the plants. Plant-animal interactions. Two studies integrated relationships between plants and animals. One was on the diverse fauna inhabiting the algal rhodoliths. The other was on an intriguing sponge-algal association found during the workshop. Benthic mapping project. A group led by Dr Gary Kendrick of the University of Western Australia is currently undertaking a major program of benthic habitat mapping in the Recherche Archipelago, funded by the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation and the Strategic Research Fund for the Marine Environment. Many of the WA scientists at the workshop are also involved in the habitat mapping project, allowing considerable synergies between the two programs which will benefit both. Publicity. One important aspect in furthering marine science in Western Australia is to make the findings available to the public. This was done in the following ways: newspaper articles in The Age (Melbourne), West Australian, Esperance Express, and Kalgoorlie Miner; radio interviews on ABC regional radio, ABC Perth and ABC Melbourne; and a television interview on GWN News. In addition, Sarah Coote and Corey Whisson visited local primary schools to talk to students about the workshop and what was happening. Publications and/or outcomes to date. Wells, F.E., Walker, D.I. and Kendrick, G. 2005. Proceedings of the twelfth international marine biological workshop: The marine ora and fauna of Esperance, Western Australia. Western Australian Museum, Perth. In press. (2 volumes, approx. 600 pages) Investigators/organizers Dr Fred E Wells1, Prof Diana Walker2, and Dr Gary Kendrick2 1Western Australian Museum. 2University of Western Australia back to top [collaborative linkages program]s

 

CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research | Department of Premier and Cabinet| Department of Conservation & Land Management | Department of Fisheries WA| Department of Environment | Department of Industry & Resources SRFME is a joint venture between the Western Australian State Government and CSIRO