Biodiversity and Threatened Species

Marine biodiversity and threatened species surveys represent core services provided by Aquenal. Our studies encompass invertebrate, fish, aquatic flora and shorebird communities in offshore through to coastal environments. These studies may be performed as independent research and monitoring programs, or as components of environmental impact assessments and management plans. Services include species and marine biodiversity field surveys; design and implementation of threatened fauna relocation programs; and management plans for threatened species, sites with special biodiversity values, and threatening processes. …Further information

Biodiversity and Threatened SpeciesBiodiversity and Threatened SpeciesBiodiversity and Threatened Species

Further Information

Aquenal’s range of services for threatened species and biodiversity assessments include:

  • Field surveys using sensitive techniques to assess the distribution, habitats, abundance and population characteristics of threatened species
  • Baseline and monitoring surveys of fish, invertebrate and macro-algal communities using standardised techniques developed for marine park monitoring
  • Statistical analysis of community data to identify biodiversity hotspots and values
  • Mapping of threatened species distributions and biodiversity values
  • Impact and risk assessments, and management plans for threatened species, areas of high biodiversity value and threatening processes
  • Design and implementation of relocation programs for threatened species likely to be affected by proposed anthropogenic activities or other conditions
  • Biodiversity discovery through collections of representative samples for research on medicinal compounds in marine species

We also have the capacity to contribute to biodiversity monitoring networks (eg. Reef Life Survey) and development of marine guides such as Australian Marine Life through the research of our Scientific Director Dr Graham Edgar.

Aquenal houses a biodiversity database that includes photographs and quantitative distributional data on over 3000 species. The database is managed by our Benthic Ecology Laboratory and provides a valuable information resource for biodiversity assessment.