This record provides an overview of the NESP Marine and Coastal Hub project "Updating knowledge of Australian white sharks". For specific data outputs from this project, please see child records associated with this metadata. -------------------- The white shark is listed as vulnerable and migratory under Australia’s Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. The national White Shark Recovery Plan 2013 sets out research and management actions necessary to support the recovery of the white shark in Australian waters. Previous research funded by the National Environmental Science Program (NESP) provided updated estimates of white shark breeding population size and trend. However, the results were based on modest data sets and were limited by some critical knowledge gaps in relation to pupping and juvenile nursery areas, and uncertainty about how populations are connected between eastern and south-western Australia. Recent unpublished work has raised the prospect of a single Australian population. The White Shark Recovery Plan 2013 has identified a critical need for a quantitative assessment of population trends and evidence of any recovery of the white shark in Australian waters. This project will provide an update and reduce uncertainty regarding the status, trends, and population structure of white sharks in Australian waters. Specifically, it will focus efforts to identify critical habitats and biologically important areas for white sharks and improve the understanding of population status through advancing close-kin mark recapture research. Three project sub-components will involve: • Investigating the feasibility of filling knowledge gaps about juvenile and pupping areas and adult movements; • Investigating population structure to resolve mixing/connectivity questions; and • Updating population estimates based on significant new data. The project approach will comprise of: (1) A pilot study to assess the effectiveness of tagging adult females (>4.5 metres) and juveniles (>2 m) throughout the southern-western white shark range. Genetic samples will be gathered from around Australia and sought from South Africa and New Zealand to conduct a comprehensive update of white shark stock structure. (2) Using an expanded tissue sample set from New South Wales (~1000 samples) to update and refine estimates of adult population size and population trend for the eastern white shark population. Juvenile numbers will be estimated using data from the New South Wales shark management program. Additional samples from South Australia and Western Australia will be combined with previous samples in the southern-western population to refine estimates of population size. (3) Population estimates undertaken using close-kin mark-recapture, a technique that combines advanced genetics and statistical modelling to infer population demographics by identifying close-kin-pairs (parent-offspring or half-siblings) among a collection of sampled animals. Outputs • New genetic samples and sequencing data for white sharks [dataset] • Tracking data derived from 12 PAT tags [dataset] • Final technical report (including recommendations for systematic future research to assist in identifying additional critical habitat for the south-western white shark population) [written]

This record provides an overview of the scope and research output of NESP Marine Biodiversity Hub Project A13 - "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

This record provides an overview of the scope and research output of NESP Marine Biodiversity Hub Project A1 - "Northern Australian hotspots for the recovery of threatened euryhaline species". For specific data outputs from this project, please see child records associated with this metadata. -------------------- Euryhaline elasmobranchs represent over half of the EPBC-listed threatened sharks and rays, with northern Australia of national importance for this threatened species community. Critical information gaps remain, limiting the implementation of Recovery Plan objectives. This project will fill many data gaps through the application of acoustic telemetry, traditional and advanced molecular research (population genetics and close-kin mark-recapture), life history studies and Indigenous knowledge and education. End-users, primarily the Department of the Environment, state and territory fisheries and wildlife agencies, and Indigenous organisations, will be provided with information necessary to improve management and facilitate recovery of these threatened species, focusing on three themes: (1) Monitoring and understanding euryhaline species; (2) Indigenous partnerships for management of euryhaline species, and; (3) Knowledge for the reassessment of river shark status. Planned Outputs • Updated assessment of river shark status • Manuscripts on ecology and status relevant to the management of threatened euryhaline species • Manuscripts on optimal design of acoustic receiver arrays and statistical methods for estimating mortality • Threatened marine species education package for Indigenous communities • Media releases around key field and engagement activities • Data and information outputs of this project will include distribution, extent of occurrence and area of occupancy estimates for key marine species, Indigenous knowledge on key species distribution and occurrence, mortality and survivorship data on key species, the first data on river shark age determination (an essential component of understanding demography), molecular data on population structure and population connectivity of key species, and lower population size estimate for Glyphis garricki. Data will be housed on appropriate explorable databases and made fully available to DOE • Refining the identification of biologically important areas (BIAs) within the NT and WA for threatened euryhaline elasmobranchs (using published BIA protocols)