Marine Life
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From playful dolphins to majestic seals, marine mammals are some of the most captivating inhabitants of the Great Southern Reef. These air-breathing ocean dwellers rely on the reef’s rich food sources and sheltered bays to thrive in this temperate marine environment.
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Squids, octopuses, and cuttlefish—these clever creatures are the brainiacs of the Great Southern Reef. With their amazing ability to change colour and shape, they outsmart predators while also playing a crucial role in balancing the reef's food web.
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From the colourful weedy seadragon to the sleek southern bluefin tuna, The Great Southern Reef is home to an incredible variety of fish species, many of which are found nowhere else in the world.
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Crabs, lobsters, and prawns scuttle along the rocky reef floors of the Great Southern Reef. These creatures are expert recyclers, helping to keep the reef clean while also providing food for other marine animals. Some, like the golden decorator crab, even use seaweed to blend in with their surroundings!
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Invertebrates like sea stars, sea urchins, and sponges are the unsung heroes of the Great Southern Reef. These animals may lack a backbone, but they play vital roles in recycling nutrients, creating habitats, and supporting the overall health of the ecosystem.
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The Great Southern Reef is home to over 1500 species of seaweed. Kelp and other habitat forming species provide food and shelter for countless marine creatures, making these forests the backbone of the reef's biodiversity.
Explore the GSR
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Marine Life
The Great Southern Reef is a global biodiversity hotspot with many species found no where else on the planet. From cuttlefish to crabs and seadragons to starfish, in our marine life page you will learn about some of the iconic marine species that live in Australia’s kelp forests.
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People
Get inspired by the people who live and breathe the Great Southern Reef. We celebrate the passionate stewards — from abalone farmers pioneering sustainable practices to artists drawing inspiration from the underwater realms and indigenous custodians sharing age-old stories and wisdom. Here, we bring you closer to the people who, with their unique perspectives and endeavours, contribute to the rich and diverse narrative of the Great Southern Reef.
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Places
Venture into the untouched corners of the Great Southern Reef, where pristine landscapes meet remote havens of biodiversity. Our places page guides you through a curated taste of the GSR’s iconic places, each offering a unique glimpse into the diverse ecosystems that flourish both above and below the water.
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Values
The Great Southern Reef provides a myriad of benefits to humans. All these benefits have value and will hold importance for people, for a variety of reasons. An artist might value the reef for the awe and wonder it provides that inspires their creativity whereas a traditional owner might value the reef for the connection to cultural practices that have been passed on for thousands of generations. Our values page explores how the GSR enriches our lives, and how scientists are working towards quantifying this value.
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Restoration
Australian researchers are working at the global forefront of marine habitat restoration, with projects underway in every state along the Great Southern Reef. Habitat restoration is a resource intensive exercise used as a last resort for areas where vital habitats have been lost or are in decline and natural recovery is not occurring. Our restoration page showcases some of the active restoration projects on the GSR working to restore seaweeds, seagrasses, and oyster reefs.
