Macca's Meanderings

Hi again Further to my last blog post, Jane Bardon, an ABC Darwin journalist wrote the following article about the workshop i attend recently and marine research along the NT coast. The link to this article is below. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-17/nt-marine-rangers-climate-change-turtles-sea-level-temperature/101981606 This morning the alarm rang at 5:30am. I woke to the sound of heavy monsoon rain on the roof. Why was I waking early on a wet Sunday morning? The barge that carries our supplies was coming at this time. Thankfully, by the time I arrived at the barge landing the rain was easing. The barge, which had arrived during the night allowing the crew to catch a few hours of comfortable sleep in the sheltered waters of Mission Bay, had just raised its anchor and was making it's way to the landing.  The last 300 meters of their approach is cautious during to the shallow water.  The first mate stands on the lowered ramp/door and the directs the skipper onto the landi...

Hi everyone Last week I was able to participate in a Marine Mega Fauna Workshop in Darwin. Eight ranger groups from along the Northern Territory coast who have been working with some Charles Darwin University (CDU) scientists doing some marine research all came together. It was very interesting and a very useful time. I also got to hang out with Dean Kristy and Noah, which was very special. More about that later. Most of the marine research dollars are spent on the east coast, and a little on the west coast however sadly very little on the north coast. Consequently, very little is known about the marine animals along the north coast.  DNA research has shown that the northern dolphin populations are not related to either the east or west coast populations. Turtles are known to travel large distances from their grazing areas to the nesting sites. We know that some turtles that graze around Croker Island came from the northern Great Barrier Reef and some from shoals north west of Broo...

Hi In the last blog post I mentioned that there has been increased crocodile activity lately. This is quite normal for the wet season.  A local resident sent the short video below to me. It was taken near the Croker Island Airport on Palm Bay beach. It shows a large male croc making it's way back to the sea.  It could have been just sunning itself to increase its body temperature (crocodiles being cold blooded animals) or it could have been travelling from a creek a few hundred metres behind the beach.  Take particular notice at the end of the video - one second the croc is visible and the next it not. They are masters of stealth!  Recently we noticed this dead crocodile on the floodplain (near the road that crossed the floodplain) estimated to be 3-3.5 meters in length. How did it died? This appears to be a male. In the NT it is an offence to kill a crocodile without a permit. We were unable to drag the croc to the land for a closer examination and we certainly were...