View allAll Photos Tagged NingalooCoast
without the gap between the words, but then I googled it and it turns out there is a lipstick called this. Perhaps I should be in advertising.
On a pipe at the Tantabiddi boat ramp, where the whale shark tour and other boats leave from. Osprey on the cape were as common as crows and seagulls elsewhere. In fact there were many sizes and types of raptor, so prey must have been plentiful.
Rhipidura phasiana:
Mangrove Bay Bird Hide,
Cape Range National Park,
Ningaloo Coast,
Western Australia.
There were vast numbers of coral skeletons on the beach, especially at the tip of the Cape and around the other side in Exmouth Gulf. We hardly saw any on the beaches facing the reef. Maybe to do with the prevailing currents. Also this area is known as Cyclone Alley, so the summer tropical cyclones might break up the corals.
3.14pm AWST
One of a set that records an event over 24 hours at Coral Bay, Western Australia.
www.flickr.com/photos/sunphlo/sets/72157643559755784/
"The colours of the slick can be vivid due to the photosynthetic pigments in the algae, including chlorophyll that is green, and phycoerythrin that is purple. These coloured pigments absorb the sunlight energy that drives photosynthesis."
On the left is the arid Cape Range National Park where summer temperatures exceed 50C (we were there in winter or the dry season as it is often known in the tropics. The temperature range was a pleasant 24-29C). On the right is Ningaloo Reef Marine Park, where you can snorkel right off the beach. Both together are part of the Ningaloo Coast World Heritage Area. Listed by UNESCO for 'the outstanding universal value of the area's diverse and abundant marine life, its amazing cave fauna and the spectacular contrast between the colourful underwater scenery and the arid and rugged land of the Cape Range.'
When we discovered the Wallabies in the rugged and steep rock faces, we sat down in a shady spot and watched them very calmly, by the way, they did the same with us :-)
The distinctive Sturt Desert Pea, Swainsona formosa, with its woolly grey foliage, is South Australia's floral emblem. However this one is among many I’ve seen recently in the Pilbara and Gascoyne areas of Western Australia’s more arid areas as well, particularly in the Cape Range National Park, part of the Ningaloo Coast World Heritage Area. It is such an eye-catching sight in its natural arid habitat, and one that brings a smile to my face on the rare times I see one in the wild..
The first recorded sighting of this plant was by William Dampier in 1699, although it is named after the Australian explorer, Charles Sturt, who recorded sighting many of these plants while exploring Central Australia in 1844. Specimens cannot be collected in the wild without a permit or, on private land, without written permission from the owner.
To read the Australian Aboriginal legend about how this plant got its name of the Flower of Blood go to enargea.org/tales/Australian/The_Blood_Flower.html
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There were vast numbers of coral skeletons on the beach, especially at the tip of the Cape and around the other side in Exmouth Gulf. We hardly saw any on the beaches facing the reef. Maybe to do with the prevailing currents. Also this area is known as Cyclone Alley, so the summer tropical cyclones might break up the corals.
washed clean,
the very next morning,
Coral Bay,
Ningaloo Coast,
Western Australia.
The last in a set of images that documents the most extraordinary 24 hours at Coral Bay.
"It is expected that blooms may increase due to anthropogenic effects in the coming years. Phosphate loading of the environment (through fertilizer pollution, waste disposal, and mariculture) will reduce the growth constraints associated with limited phosphate and likely increase bloom occurrences.[9] Likewise, global warming is projected to increase stratification and cause a shallowing of the mixed layer depth. Both of these factors are associated with Trichodesmium blooms and may also cause an increase in the occurrence of blooms in the future.[7]”
some people were saying it was coral spawning...
1.35 pm AWST
"Coral slicks are often confused with the naturally occurring blue-green algae (Trichodesmium) blooms and can form large slicks stretching for kilometres. They can occur throughout the year along the WA coastline usually in calm, hot weather. They are frequently reddish-pink or brown when they start decomposing. At this stage they are often confused with oil slicks. They are commonly referred to as red-tides or sea sawdust. True coral slicks will only be seen in narrow windows of 7-11 days after the full moon. The two are easily distinguished by shape when observed very closely, Trichodesmium are splinter-like whereas planulae are globular."
www.exmouthwa.com.au/pages/coral-spawning/
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trichodesmium
algal bloom
they said,
and this is just the beginning.......
2.04 pm AWST
"Coral slicks are often confused with the naturally occurring blue-green algae (Trichodesmium) blooms and can form large slicks stretching for kilometres. They can occur throughout the year along the WA coastline usually in calm, hot weather. They are frequently reddish-pink or brown when they start decomposing. At this stage they are often confused with oil slicks. They are commonly referred to as red-tides or sea sawdust. True coral slicks will only be seen in narrow windows of 7-11 days after the full moon. The two are easily distinguished by shape when observed very closely, Trichodesmium are splinter-like whereas planulae are globular."
blue sky, blue and green and brown sea with mottled brown and white sand
What is happening, one wondered. What is that stuff?..............What happened to that blue and white beach?
1.18pm AWST
others said it was the wrong time of year, moon, for coral spawning
1.36 pm AWST
"Coral slicks are often confused with the naturally occurring blue-green algae (Trichodesmium) blooms and can form large slicks stretching for kilometres. They can occur throughout the year along the WA coastline usually in calm, hot weather. They are frequently reddish-pink or brown when they start decomposing. At this stage they are often confused with oil slicks. They are commonly referred to as red-tides or sea sawdust. True coral slicks will only be seen in narrow windows of 7-11 days after the full moon. The two are easily distinguished by shape when observed very closely, Trichodesmium are splinter-like whereas planulae are globular."