Marine Natural Values Study Summary - Parks Victoria

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It also protects feeding areas for seveninternationally important migrant birdspecies, including the glossy ibisPlegadis falcinellus and ruddyturnstone Arenaria interpres.The red algae Bonnemaisonia australisand the swimming crab Ovalipescatharus are believed to be at theirdistributional limits within thesanctuary. The southern hooded shrimpAthanopsis australis is presumedendemic to the sanctuary.Major ThreatsMeasures to address or minimisethreats identified for Ricketts PointMarine Sanctuary form part of thepark management plan. Parks Victoriaalso uses an adaptive managementapproach which includes periodicreviews of priority natural values andthreats through processes such as theState of the Parks evaluation andsetting of desired conservationoutcomes. Through these processesParks Victoria has identified emergingthreats and developed appropriatemanagement responses.Serious threats include trampling,nutrients from discharges, increasedsedimentation, disturbance of birdsand invasive marine pests.Several introduced species have beenfound in the sanctuary including theJapanese kelp Undaria pinnatifida,The nudibranch Ceratosoma brevicaudatum is foundon the subtidal reefs in Ricketts Point Marine Sanctuary.Photo by Julian Finn, Museum Victoria.green algae Codium fragile subspeciesfragile, Northern Pacific SeastarAsterias amurensis and green shorecrab Carcinus maenas.There have also been reports of thepurple urchin Heliocidariserythrogramma increasing inabundance and forming barrens(usually devoid of macroalgae) in thenorthern part of the bay, includingin Ricketts Point Marine Sanctuary.It is unclear whether the recentincreases in abundance are partof a natural cycle or a persistentincrease in this native species.Climate change also poses a seriousmedium to long term threat to naturalvalues. Parks Victoria will use anadaptive management approach todevelop responses and actions thatfocus on priority climate change issuessuch as extreme weather events andexisting risks that are likely to beexacerbated by climate change.Research and MonitoringParks Victoria has establishedextensive marine research andmonitoring programs that addressimportant management challengesfor the marine national parks andsanctuaries. These focus on improvingbaseline knowledge, as well as appliedmanagement questions.Since the establishment of theparks in 2002 our knowledge andunderstanding of natural values andthreats for the system have improvedsignificantly through the marine scienceprogram. Much of the research has beenundertaken as part of the ResearchPartners Program involvingcollaboration with variousresearch institutions.There are six ongoing research projects,and one habitat mapping project thatare relevant to Ricketts Point MarineSanctuary, while nine research projectsand two habitat mapping projectshave already been completed.The sanctuary has ongoing intertidaland shallow subtidal reef monitoringprograms. Several community basedmonitoring programs have beenimplemented in the sanctuaryincluding Reef Life Survey andSea Search, as well as a numberof other research and monitoringprograms conducted by an activevolunteer group.While recognising there are stillknowledge gaps Parks Victoriawill continue to focus on addressingthe information needs that willassist management.For more information, includingmarine habitat mapping products,please see the full versions of theMarine Natural Values reportson www.parks.vic.gov.au.51
Marine Natural Values Study SummaryYaringa Marine National ParkAustralia’s southern waters areunique. Ninety per cent of ourmarine plants and animals arefound nowhere else on earth.The system of Marine NationalParks and Sanctuaries hasbeen established to representthe diversity of Victoria’smarine environment, itshabitats and associatedflora and fauna.Victoria’s marine environmenthas been classified into fivebioregions according toa nationally agreed schemebased on physical andbiological attributes.Yaringa Marine National Parkis one of three marine nationalparks in Western Port Bay,which is part of the VictorianEmbayments bioregion.Image left:Periwinkle Austrocochlea sp. on submerged mangroveleaves. Photo by Julian Finn, Museum Victoria.Image right:Intertidal bare sediment and mangroves in Yaringa MarineNational Park. Photo by Adam Pope, Deakin University.DescriptionThe park covers 776 hectares, in thenorth west of Western Port Bay inWatsons Inlet between WatsonsCreek and Quail Island. It is about9 kilometres south-west of thetownship of Tooradin.It extends from the high water markalong 20 kilometres of the WatsonsInlet coastline. Its southern boundaryis between the shore north of theYaringa Marina channel and thesouthern tip of Quail Island.The park is accessible only by boat.It is part of three special protectionareas that cover Western Port Bay.These include the Western Port Ramsarsite, the East Asian-AustralasianFlyway, and Mornington Peninsulaand Western Port UNESCOBiosphere Reserve.The park also includes a SpecialProtection Area for sensitive mangroveand saltmarsh, areas of value forroosting and feeding for seabirdsand shorebirds.Parks Victoria acknowledges theAboriginal Traditional Owners ofVictoria – including its parks andreserves. Indigenous tradition indicatesthat the park is part of Countryof Boonwurrung.Physical Parameters and ProcessesThe substrate in the marine nationalpark is soft sediment and the parkis influenced by high turbidity inWestern Port Bay, which arises fromdaily reworking and re-suspensionof fine sediment by tidal, wind andwave action.The park is not subject to large wavesor swell and the large tides are themajor driving force. Tidal variationis 2.6 metres for spring tides and0.9 metres for neap tides.Surface water temperatures varybetween an average 20.5°C in thesummer and 11.5°C in the winter.Watsons Creek flows into the parknorth of Bungower Rd in WatsonsInlet. Langwarrin Creek flows intothe park in the north-west andCannon Creek from behind QuailIsland in the north east.Marine Habitat Distributionand Ecological CommunitiesThe main habitats protected by thesanctuary include subtidal andintertidal soft sediments (includingmangroves, saltmarsh, mudflats andseagrass), and the water column.More than 82 per cent of the parkis intertidal.The park includes areas of saltmarsh(dominated by Tetricornia arbuscula52
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Page 18 and 19: e seen at low tide, though itis gen
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Page 40 and 41: on the unvegetated sand beds.Specie
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Page 57 and 58: provide habitat for epiphyticfilame
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Page 67 and 68: and polychaetes.Subtidal reefs and
Page 73 and 74: The introduced New Zealand seastarA
Page 75 and 76: The marine flora and fauna of thesu
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Marine Natural Values Study Summary - Parks Victoria

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