Archive for the 'Tasmania' Category
Representing sweet success for a recent expedition off Tasmania, this 1.6-foot-wide (50-centimeter-wide), 6.5-foot-tall (200-centimeter-tall), “waffle cone” sponge is one of many new species found with a remotely operated submersible, scientists announced January 18, 2009.
The submersible, called Jason, is the size of a small car. It trawled the seas around the Tasman Fracture Zone, to a depth of 13,455 feet (4,010 meters)–the deepest such expedition yet in Australian waters. [National Geographic]
A new species (pictured) of gorgon’s-head coral–apparently named for its members’ resemblance to snake-haired Medusa and the other gorgons of Greek myth–was discovered just over a mile (1,700 feet) underwater.
The soft coral is one of many new animals found off Tasmania, Australia, by a recent expedition, scientists announced on January 18, 2009.
“There’s a whole suite of brand new communities down there. Some of them are really bizarre,” said Ron Thresher of Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO), which co-led the expedition with the California Institute of Technology.
The team’s findings include previously unknown sea spiders, giant sponges, and purple-spotted sea anemones. [National Geographic]
Sad news from Tasmania in regards to the recent beaching of 43 whales there:
A pod of about 50 whales, mostly mothers and calves, beached themselves on Perkins Island, north-west of Tasmania on Thursday night.
Marine biologists and Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife staff spent Friday on the island trying to save the seven whales still alive.
Two died on Friday afternoon and another three overnight.
Marine biologist David Penberton said the situation is “very negative but very positive”.
“It’s bad because there are so many animals dead but good because there are two alive who are floating at high tide,” Mr Pemberton said this morning.
“They are just bobbing in the water amongst the dead whales.”
Rescuers will now look at an action plan and work on trying to get the pair out to sea.
That is unlikely to happen until later on today or tomorrow morning.
“I can’t put a time limit on it right now, it’s a long way off because at this stage we are assessing it and looking at the best way to go about and set them out to sea.” [AAP]
For whatever reason beaching of whales on Tasmania continues to be a problem:
No hope ... 43 whales died in a mass stranding off the northwest tip of Tasmania / Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife
RESCUERS are battling the odds to save five sperm whales that survived a mass stranding on the northwest tip of Tasmania.
Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife spokeswoman Liz Wren said four staff members had made their way in a dinghy to Perkins Island, near the mouth of the Duck River at Smithton, where 48 whales beached themselves last night.
“They are stabilising the five surviving whales and are monitoring them until the next high tide due this afternoon, which will give them an opportunity to rescue them,” Ms Wren said.
She said the area where the whales had stranded themselves was treacherous, with numerous sandbars making navigation difficult.
She said some of the surviving whales were up 18m long.
Department of Primary Industries and Water spokesman Warwick Brennan said sperm whales were the “lords of the sea”.
“They weigh up to 50 tonnes and have a lot of blubber so they easily overheat,” he told The Mercury. [News.com]
Just a couple of months ago 64 whales were found beached on Tasmania as well. The first beaching happened near Stanley, Tasmania with this one happening at Perkins Island just a short distance to the west:
Locations of whales beached in Northwest Tasmania.
The Bass Strait between Tasmania and the Australian mainland is known for its treacherous currents. I wonder if the beaching of whales that continues to happen regularly in Australia has anything to do with the current that flow through the Strait that possibly the whales use to help navigate?
Finds of strange sea life continued to be discovered in the waters around Australia:
An oddity among oddities, this newly discovered carnivorous sea squirt traps fish and other prey in its funnel-like front section, scientists announced today. Most of the 2,000 or so known sea squirt species are filter feeders that strain plankton from seawater.
Tethered to the seafloor 13,143 feet (4,006 meters) underwater, the 20-inch (50-centimeter) sea squirt, or ascidian, is one of the deepest-dwelling animals ever found in Australia. The new species is one of many new deep-sea creatures discovered on a recent expedition that used a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) near southern Tasmania, Australia.
The joint U.S.-Australian endeavor explored the Tasman Fracture Zone, a crack in Earth’s crust 1.2 miles (2 kilometers) to more than 2.5 miles (4 kilometers) deep. [National Geographic]
The story of the eleven pilot whales that beached themselves on a Tasmanian beach has been making some pretty big global headlines:
Australian scientists are using satellite technology to track 11 whales that survived a mass stranding in the southern state of Tasmania over the weekend. The long-finned pilot whales were the only survivors of a pod of 64 found beached near the small town of Stanley. From Sydney, Phil Mercer reports.
Volunteers spent the weekend tending to the stranded whales, which had beached themselves near Stanley on Tasmania’s north-west coast. Fifty-three of the large marine mammals died but rescuers did manage to save 11 others.
They were taken back into deeper water. Tracking devices the size of a matchbox were attached to the dorsal fin of five long-finned pilot whales.
The devices show the whales have been swimming freely in open seas in Bass Strait, the large body of water that separates Tasmania from the Australian mainland.
Scientist Rosemary Gales hopes the global positioning technology will last.
“That is a little bit of an unknown because we haven’t done this before. It partly depends on how often the fin, the dorsal fin is out of the water because it can only transmit out of the water and then that in turn has an effect on its battery life. But we are hoping several weeks at this point,” said Gales. [Voice of America]
Let’s hope these tracking devices do work and that these whales do no beach themselves again.
You can see video of the rescue operation here.
So which girl is it for Harry Potter’s Daniel Radcliffe?:
Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe was simply looking for the mystery Aussie girl who once caught his eye, but now he has two woman claiming to be the girl of his dreams – and one bemused boyfriend.
Because while 20-year-old Cassi McKay might have worked her magic on Hollywood’s boy wizard, Sydney electrician Matt Wesley is taking the new development in his stride.
The 23-year-old, who has been dating Sydney insurance worker McKay for almost three years, was aware that she had met Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe at a function last year. [Herald-Sun]
However, Cassi McKay is not the only one claiming to be Radcliffe’s dream girl:
As if a protective boyfriend wasn’t enough, a second local beauty emerged today to claim she was the mystery siren who took his heart.
And guess what? Yes, she has a boyfriend, too.
Melbourne saxophonist Savannah Blount, 23, is the woman pictured on Radcliffe’s other arm during a fleeting backstage embrace at the AFI awards in 2006, according to MX newspaper.
Blount said she was charmed by the teen wizard and was happy to go on a date with him if the chance arose during one of her regular UK tours.
Both are pretty good looking girls. So who do you think is Radcliffe’s Dream Girl?
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