Learn about the Great Southern Reef

AUSTRALIA’S Great Barrier Reef is well known and well loved, but the Great Southern Reef (GSR) is a geographical feature less familiar to most people.

Ocean Grove Coastcare is inviting people to learn about the reef at a free session next week.

The group noted the GSR is bigger than you might think, as anyone who has ever swum, fished, surfed or kayaked along any of the coastline from the NSW/Queensland border to Kalbarri in Western Australia has been in and around the reef.

Spanning 8,000km of coastline, this interconnected system of temperate (cool water) reefs supports an abundance of marine life, much of which is not found anywhere else in the world.

Local species include seadragons, harlequin fish, bull kelp and Australian sea lion.

There are parts of the GSR where vital seaweeds, kelps and seagrasses are in decline, and many restoration projects are under way to restore those habitats that support the huge array of marine life.

Ocean Grove Coastcare will host an evening with two presenters whose work focus on the GSR, and has extended an open invitation to anyone who is keen to hear more about the watery environment that surrounds us.

Dr Prue Francis from Deakin University and marine biologist Madi O’Brien will provide images and stories from their research, giving the audience a greater appreciation of what may have been a previously unknown reef to them.

The event will be held at the Bellarine Training and Community Hub, 1 John Dory Drive, Ocean Grove on Thursday, February 29 from 7-8.30pm.

Attendance is free but donations are welcome.

For more information, email [email protected]