Macca's Meanderings

Hi again In between dealing with illegal foreign fishing vessels and asylum seekers we managed to get some more marine research done in November.  Concerningly, our research confirmed that marine turtles are facing some significant challenges. In the Croker Island area the main species is the Green turtle with Flatbacks, Hawksbills, Leatherbacks and Olive Ridleys also showing up in much smaller numbers.  Below, the CDU vessel with Elle, Carol and Garngi ranger Tyson waving for the camera. Over a couple of days we surveyed 35 kilometres of beach in northern Croker Island for recent turtle nests. There was a similar survey conducted in November 1996. Back then there were 75 nests recorded. In 2024 we only recorded 14 recent nests for the same area. We were expecting to see a decline in the numbers but not to this extent. This is very alarming! Below, the short video shows us on the east facing beach of Cape Croker. The conditions were hot and humid but very flat.  Drones ar...

 Hi As mentioned in the previous post we have had numerous interactions with Illegal Foreign Fishing Vessels  (IFFV) over recent times. Concerningly, this has continued. The last few months have seen a definite spike in this activity. On 10 November we headed out to continue our marine research and observed an IFFV in Somerville Bay, northern Croker Island. This was reported to the Australian Border Force (ABF). As we have been instructed not to approach these vessels we followed at a safe distance. The ABF subsequently advised that they would not have a patrol boat in our area for 36 hours so we had to depart the area and let the IFFV slip away. The photo below shows this IFFV a little after we first saw it (photo taken with a zoom lens). And then where the IFFV anchored west of Cape Croker. Unfortunately the ABF were not able to respond in a timely manner. Later that night two Chinese nationals were delivered to our research camp by local Croker Island residents. They spoke ...

Hi  For a few months now we have been reporting Illegal Foreign Fishing Vessels (IFFVs) in our area. Some may have seen reports of Indigenous rangers in the Kimberley's, WA discovering IFFVs, often hiding in creeks and sometimes actually going ashore and camping. Concerningly, we have had the same issues around here. Apart from the illegal fishing aspect there is also a very real biosecurity risk. Indonesian has many diseases that we do not want in Australia - Foot and Mouth, Rabies etc. Last Monday we observed an IFFV in the area where we were conducting our marine research - but more about that later. Firstly, let's back up a little.  Last year we detected an IFFV near McClure Island - see the photo below. The crew were apprehended and the vessel destroyed. A couple of months ago we reported sightings of IFFVs around Croker Island and the adjacent mainland.  Around 3 weeks ago we discovered three IFFVs and one canoe hiding in the creek near where we subsequently setup o...

 Hi again Dolphins have also been a significant part of our marine research recently. One day last week when the wind was light we headed northeast from Cape Croker to the southern part of the Arafura Marine Park. This is the most northerly marine park in Australia. We observed several pods of dolphins. As you can see in the photo below, the sea state was very flat.  The map below shows to southern part of the Arafura Marine Park sitting to the northeast of Croker Island.  Sometimes if we stop the boat dolphins will come and play around the boat however these were on the move to somewhere.  The calm sea state produces great visibility in the water. PhD candidate Natalee is standing at the bow of the boat with the camera. She provided the three great photos below.  The researchers can identify dolphins by their dorsal fin as each has a different shape and different markings. This one has a few 'war wounds'.  Usually dolphins keep the eyes below the surface a...

Hi In the previous post I mentioned that we were planning some marine research during the latter part of this year. After a lot of issues in the community and a change of location we finally got out on the water last week. What a joy that was! We were joined by three Charles Darwin Uni (CDU) researchers and one from WWF. This project is funded by the Commonwealth Marine Parks so we had one of their managers come along for a few days. The Mardbalk rangers from Goulburn Island also joined us. This photo shows the CDU and Mardbalk vessels. There is turtle in the nearest vessel.  The turtle is measured for length and width, a flipper tag attached to one of the front flippers, a DNA sample taken from one of the rear flippers and then returned to the water ASAP. The wet towel covering her head is to minimise any distress. A small sample of skin tissue for DNA analysis. We also attached trackers to some however at $4K each  there was a limited supply so we only placed these on the br...