Aug 18, 2015 | Biodiversity, Research
Polychaetes are an important component of marine ecosystems around the world. More than 10,000 species have been described. Some are breathtakingly beautiful in form and colour, while others are rather plain. Polychaete is Greek for “many bristles”. They are also... 
Apr 22, 2015 | Biodiversity, Education, LIFG
Science teacher Edward Sze-Tu visited the Lizard Island Research Station with a group of school students, where he made an exciting discovery. This is his story: We were learning about classifications. I thought it would be a great opportunity for the students to... 
Jan 23, 2015 | Biodiversity, Fellowships, Reef condition, Research
Reefs on the northern and eastern exposures received the full brunt of the cyclone-induced waves, so our objective was to document the status of reef communities in those areas and compare the results to identical surveys undertaken in 2011. See also fish diversity.... 
Jan 22, 2015 | Biodiversity, Fellowships, Reef condition, Research
As on land, the damage to the coral reefs was very patchy; some places were stripped bare while some others have remained largely intact. At each site, we surveyed two depths (8-10m and 3-5m); recording the entire fish and coral community, including species,... 
Jul 31, 2014 | Biodiversity, LIFG
These little animals are only a millimetre or so in diameter, but together with countless of their close relatives they make a mighty contribution to our world. Coral polyps build reefs, including Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. And reef are very important. Although... 
Jul 26, 2014 | Biodiversity, LIFG
Wherever you dive or snorkel near Lizard Island you encounter wonderful fish. This one is a bicolour parrotfish (cetoscarus bicolor), but how could you know? How could you know that as a juvenile this same species would have an entirely different colouring and that...