This record provides an overview of the scope and research output of the NESP Marine Biodiversity Hub project "A standardised national assessment of the state of coral and rocky reef biodiversity". For specific data outputs from this project, please see child records associated with this metadata. -------------------- This project will involve integration of a national suite of reef biota Underwater Visual Census (UVC) monitoring datasets (Reef Life Survey (RLS), University of Tasmania (UTAS), Australian Institute for Marine Science (AIMS), Parks Victoria (PV), SA Department of environment, water and natural resources (DEWNR)) to provide a comprehensive update to the state of Australian Reefs report for the next national State of the Environment Report. Maps and indicator trends will show changes in the health of rocky and coral reefs nationally from 2005 to 2020. The update will include addition of a new index which summarises the population trajectories for 600-1000 reef species nationally. Individual species trajectories will provide the only threat status information for the majority of these species, assisting future listing of previously unassessed species if significant declines are detected. Planned Outputs • Maps and trends in SoE indicators • Raw data underlying SoE analyses (data use agreement must be signed with AIMS for access to that data) • Various scientific papers

The AUStralian Tidal Energy (AUSTEn) project was a three year project (2018 - 2020) funded by the Australian Renewable Energy National Agency (agreement number G00902) led by the Australian Maritime College (University of Tasmania), in partnership with CSIRO and University of Queensland. The project had a strong industry support (Atlantis Resources Limited, MAKO Tidal Turbines Ltd, Spiral Energy Corporation Ltd). The aim of the project was to assess the technical and economic feasibility of tidal energy in Australia, based on the best understanding of resource achievable. For further information and output of the project, please visit the AUSTEn project website www.austen.org.au.

The AUStralian Tidal Energy (AUSTEn) project was a three year project (2018 - 2020) funded by the Australian Renewable Energy National Agency (agreement number G00902) led by the Australian Maritime College (University of Tasmania), in partnership with CSIRO and University of Queensland. The project had a strong industry support (Atlantis Resources Limited, MAKO Tidal Turbines Ltd, Spiral Energy Corporation Ltd). The aim of the project was to assess the technical and economic feasibility of tidal energy in Australia, based on the best understanding of resource achievable. For further information and output of the project, please visit the AUSTEn project website www.austen.org.au.

This record provides an overview of the scope and research output of the NESP Marine Biodiversity Hub project "Estimation of population abundance and mixing of southern right whales in the Australian and New Zealand regions". For specific data outputs from this project, please see child records associated with this metadata. -------------------- A comprehensive understanding of the population abundance and degree of spatial connectivity of southern right whales in Australian waters is currently lacking. This limits assessments of the species recovery and understanding of the nature and degree of difference between the south-eastern and south-western Australian populations. This project will provide, for the first time, an abundance estimate of the total Australian population of southern right whales. It will also investigate the connectedness of whales that utilise breeding areas on the eastern, southern and western coasts of Australia. Information provided by this project will allow the Australian government to better evaluate progress made against the Conservation Management Plan for southern right whales and ensure conservation efforts for the species are effectively coordinated at the regional level. Planned Outputs • Data summaries for populating models used to estimate abundance and connectivity • An estimate of population abundance at the national scale and associated uncertainty • An evaluation of movement and spatial mixing across southern Australia

The AUStralian Tidal Energy (AUSTEn) project was a three year project (2018 - 2020) funded by the Australian Renewable Energy National Agency (agreement number G00902) led by the Australian Maritime College (University of Tasmania), in partnership with CSIRO and University of Queensland. The project had a strong industry support (Atlantis Resources Limited, MAKO Tidal Turbines Ltd, Spiral Energy Corporation Ltd). The aim of the project was to assess the technical and economic feasibility of tidal energy in Australia, based on the best understanding of resource achievable. For further information and output of the project, please visit the AUSTEn project website www.austen.org.au.

Data were collected from 28 artificial reefs varying in size and supporting different densities of transplanted kelp (Ecklonia radiata). We used rope fibre habitats (RFHs) attached to the benthos of the reefs and destructive sampling of understory algae to collect data on epifaunal invertebrates that naturally colonised the reefs (e.g. secondary productivity, species richness, Shannon diversity). The goal of the research was to understand how kelp structure influences the biodiversity and secondary productivity of epifauna.

CSV files of location data (position estimates) for hammerhead sharks tagged with Wildlife Computers miniPAT archival tags and SPOT6 tags. Note that miniPAT data estimates may be up to 100 km (Kevin Lay, Wildlife computers pers comm). Location estimates from archival miniPAT tags also need to be considered against ARGOS location classes (see http://www.argos-system.org/manual/3-location/34_location_classes.htm). Collectively, movements are restricted within state waters with no hammerheads moving across state or International boundaries.

This record provides an overview of the scope and research data outputs of the NESP Marine Biodiversity Hub project "Assisting the restoration of seagrasses at Shark Bay". For specific data outputs from this project, please see child records associated with this metadata. -------------------- This project is a collaboration between scientists and the Shark Bay Malgana Indigenous community into jointly developed seeding and shoot planting methods to assist natural recovery of seagrasses in preparation for future devastating impacts of climate change. The Shark Bay World Heritage Site (WHS) is unique globally for its natural values, including stromatolites, seagrass meadows and marine megafauna including dugongs, sharks, turtles, and dolphins. The immediate goal is to scale up the existing restoration research to assist recovery of the dominant seagrasses, Amphibolis antarctica and Posidonia australis following the 2011 marine heat wave. Planned Outputs • A seagrass restoration toolkit (multimedia and report format) - will include information on sourcing suitable genetic material • Data on the trial seed restoration outcomes