SURG News

Estuary Fact Sheets

Posted: 2 weeks 1 day ago

The estuarine habitat resilience project is nearing its close with a report soon to be published. As part of the project SURG has created fact sheets to educate the public in the health of our often overlooked estuaries.
Have a look at these fact sheets!

Red Rock Survey and Clean up

Posted: 3 weeks 6 days ago

Despite days of rain and a dreary forecast the rain cleared momentarily and the creek was clear enough for SURG members to go ahead with their planned survey and clean up at Red Rock over two October days.

On the 12th the creek was surveyed for debris. A team of 5 divers set out four 25m transects and found very little debris.

On the 13th a team of 7 divers cleaned the creek. The majority of the debris was found upstream from the surveyed site and included a fishing net and reels, sunglasses and surprisingly two shovels.

The sausage sizzle following the clean up was... Read more

SURG Annual General Meeting

Posted: 3 months 4 weeks ago

SURG AGM was held on the 18th July and a new committee was formed. The committee comprises of six members.

Committee bottom row, left to right: Mel Buhler (Sectretary), Nicola Fraser (President), top row, left to right: Susan Gibbs (Treasurer), Neil Vaughan (Social), Darryl Wong (Vice President), not in photo: Tom Mair (Expeditions officer)

Other SURG members contribute to the running of the club as can be seen by the turn-out at the AGM.

The AGM and Business Meetings cover a variety of topics from what's going to happen... Read more

Annual camping trip

Posted: 4 months 3 weeks ago

SURG isn't only about diving and research. SURG members also enjoy sharing other activities such as camping, hiking and kayaking.

In May this year SURG members and their families trekked south for what is becoming an annual event – the camping weekend at Hat Head. Arriving on the Friday, tents and camper trailers were erected and the fire wood gathered for the after dinner fire later in the evening. During the day the caravan park filled up, and on the Saturday morning the reason became clear, there was a vintage motor vehicle show in the adjacent park. This was a bit of a trip... Read more

Planting out remediation site on Corindi River

Posted: 7 months 3 days ago

SURG members and local Red Rock volunteers helped to plant 14 Casuarina glauca (Swamp She-oak) seedlings that were supplied by Jaliigirr Nursery and they also transplanted Juncus and other native grasses into the previously installed coir matting.

Previously planted lomandra longifolia seem to be faring well but some are struggling a bit which is possibly due to foot traffic.

The site was also topped up with more soil behind the coir logs where the soil had sunk following repeated wetting.

Ian Shaw, a Red Rock local, will keep an eye on these plants to see if they... Read more

Next stage of estuarine research

Posted: 7 months 3 weeks ago

SURG is in the next stage of the Estuarine project with the rehabilitation and protection of the foreshores of Corindi Creek.

With the help from several Red Rock locals and materials supplied by SURG and Reflections Holiday Parks, the group undertook the first stage of the Corindi River bank stabilisation work. Twenty, three metre long coir logs and coir netting were placed over the eroded bank near the viewing platform adjacent to Jew Fish Point Reserve Boardwalk.

It was a great effort by all involved, especially under sometimes wet conditions. With the... Read more

Sea anemone research surveys

Posted: 8 months 3 weeks ago

"Do you like sea anemones? If so, I would love to hear from you. My name is Nicola Fraser, I'm a PhD student at Southern Cross University in Australia, and I'm really keen to learn about sea anemones in the marine aquarium trade. As part of my project, I'm interested in which sea anemones you keep or sell, or would like to keep or sell. This important information will help us understand the marine aquarium trade as it relates to sea anemones because it will tell us which species are the most popular, and why. There is a short introductory video below. If you would like to... Read more

Critical habitat surveys at Red Rock

Posted: 1 year 3 months ago

A team of SURG members explored the lower reaches of Red Rock estuary last weekend, taking advantage of the clear water and perfect weather to better understand the areas ofcritical habitat. On Friday Tom Mair and Ian Shaw dived the high tide from the shop to the boat ramp, where they searched for threatened cod species, pipefish and seahorses. While there were two cod species sighted, both noted the absence of tropical species particularly the lack of butterfly fish, possibly due to the cool water temperature of 18 degrees. It was good to see large numbers of juvenile bream,... Read more

Cleaning the plinths on the underwater trail

Posted: 1 year 4 months ago

In 2002 SURG members constructed an underwater trail made up of interpretive plinths. These plinths describe the landform and animals that inhabit the area around each plinth.
The plinths quickly build up algae and coral and need to be cleaned every year. This year most were in good shape. All were readable and none had moved so it was possible to follow the direction of the trail arrows.

The boat was full with 8 divers who quickly cleaned the plinths with scrapers and brushes. After the cleaning the divers enjoyed a second recreational dive at Elbow Cave.... Read more

Manta rays still at Nth West Solitary Island

Posted: 1 year 5 months ago

Despite the cooler May water temperature Manta Rays can still be seen at North West Solitary Island. Two Mantas, which were approximately 2 metres across, circled the SURG research divers for half an hour. The photos of the undersides detailing their identifying marks have been sent to Project Manta for identification.

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