AusOcean

29/08/2026

Seagrass might look simple, but it plays a vital role along South Australia’s coast.

These underwater flowering plants provide food and shelter for marine life, stabilise the seabed, improve water quality and help protect our coastline from erosion. They also capture and store carbon, making them an important blue-carbon habitat.

Protecting seagrass means protecting healthier oceans and coastlines for the future.
BlueCarbon MarineEcosystems HealthyOceans CoastalConservation UnderwaterWorld

26/08/2026

Look a little closer.

South Australia’s ocean is full of details that are easy to miss. From the intricate structures of marine life to bold colours, patterns and textures, there’s an incredible amount happening beneath the surface.

These small details are all part of a much bigger, interconnected marine ecosystem.

A closer look at the underwater world we’re working to better understand, monitor and protect.

18/08/2026

A glimpse at our team underwater, documenting South Australia’s marine environments and the work that happens below the waterline.

Every dive gives us another opportunity to observe, document and better understand our ocean.
SouthAustralia

16/08/2026

Leafy seadragons (Phycodurus eques) are endemic to southern Australian waters and are closely related to seahorses and pipefish. Their leaf-like appendages provide camouflage, helping them blend into the seaweed and seagrass habitats they call home.

The male leafy seadragon carries the eggs on a specialised area of his tail until they hatch, making their reproductive strategy particularly unique among fish.

These photographs were taken at Rapid Bay before the harmful algal bloom (HAB) and the subsequent closure of the dive site.

📸 Have you spotted a leafy seadragon along the South Australian coast? Share your photos in the comments.

13/08/2026

This footage of the Glenelg Dredge was captured before South Australia’s harmful algal bloom (HAB), showing the marine life and growth that had established around the wreck.

Sunk in 1985 as an artificial reef, the Glenelg Dredge shows how submerged structures can provide habitat as marine organisms colonise them over time.

Now, the MV Andrew Wilson is set to become a new artificial reef off Adelaide’s coast.

As South Australia’s marine ecosystems face the impacts of the HAB, what role could new artificial reefs play in the future of marine habitat and recovery?
MarineHabitat MarineRecovery SouthAustralia OceanConservation MarineScience AdelaideCoast

06/08/2026

The ocean's RGB is more than colour. It's information.

Colour can reveal species identity, camouflage, communication, habitat and even ecosystem health. By documenting the diversity of marine life, we gain a deeper understanding of how these underwater environments function and change over time.

04/08/2026

The historic MV Andrew Wilson is set to be intentionally transformed into an artificial reef off the coast of Brighton, creating new underwater habitat for marine species.

Artificial reefs provide hard surfaces where algae, sponges and other marine organisms can establish themselves. Over time, these communities attract fish, crustaceans and countless other species, helping to increase biodiversity and create thriving underwater ecosystems.

While artificial reefs won't reverse the impacts of South Australia's harmful algal bloom on their own, they can play an important role in supporting long-term marine recovery by creating new habitat where marine life can return and flourish.

Every restoration effort is a reminder that healthy oceans depend on both protecting existing ecosystems and investing in their recovery.

What do you think about using artificial reefs to support marine recovery? Do you believe projects like this can make a lasting difference? Share your thoughts below. 👇

30/07/2026

South Australia is home to one of the world’s most extraordinary temperate marine ecosystems.

Hidden beneath the surface is a world of towering reefs, intricate invertebrates and remarkable wildlife, where every dive offers a glimpse into an ecosystem that few people ever get to witness.

Once you’ve seen it, it’s impossible to look at the ocean the same way again.

🌊 What’s your favourite underwater encounter?

29/07/2026

28/07/2026

These images show Edithburgh Jetty before the harmful algal bloom, when its pylons supported a thriving underwater ecosystem built over decades.

Sponges, ascidians, bryozoans and algae formed a complex habitat that provided food and shelter for a remarkable diversity of marine life. What appears to be a simple jetty above the surface was, below the water, a living reef.

While marine ecosystems have the capacity to recover, recovery is a complex process. The question isn't just whether life will return, but whether this ecosystem will regain the diversity and ecological complexity it once supported.

What do you think?

Will Edithburgh Jetty one day look like this again, or are we witnessing the beginning of a different underwater ecosystem?

Share your thoughts below. 👇