Pakana Rangers pilot surveys of seagrass habitat in the proposed Tayaritja Milaythina Muka IPA

Seagrass beds are culturally and ecologically important habitats in the proposed Tayaritja Milaythina Muka Indigenous Protected Area (IPA). This collaborative hub project is mapping their extent for the first time. The results will contribute to the management plan being developed by the Pakana community for the proposed IPA, and to a Pakana Ranger seagrass monitoring program.

“Knowing and caring for milaythina (Country) is vital for the continuity of culture and connection,” Pakana Sea Country Ranger Fiona Maher said. “We have a responsibility to care for our seagrass beds for future generations. This project will help our community establish a monitoring program for our seagrass beds.”

With Pakana Rangers at the helm during the February survey, a benthic observation survey system (BOSS) camera was deployed 248 times to map seagrass presence and species composition. The information collected will also help determine how satellite imagery may be used to predict the presence of seagrass.

In the intertidal zone, information was collected about the epiphytes that grow on seagrass and how they affect the associated animals living on seagrass leaves across six sites. Epiphytes include algae, coralline species and shellfish. Excess epiphyte cover may negatively affect seagrass bed health.

Samples were taken from five field sites for laboratory analysis and genetic samples were taken from 10 sites to assess connectivity between seagrass beds.

Sediment cores were taken to measure how much carbon is stored in the seabed. Carbon accumulates in seagrass beds over time and these ecosystems can store up to twice as much carbon per hectare as forests on land. The project team is keen to discover how much carbon is stored in the seagrass beds of the proposed Tayaritja Milaythina Muka IPA.

The intertidal research team with Pakana Rangers on their barge, the Lucy Beeton. Pictured from front left, Kelsie Fractal, Sophie Sinclair, Paul Carnell, Fiona Maher, Noyan Yilmaz, and at rear Beth Strain. Image: Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre.

Sea Country IPA Coordinator Zoe Cozens and Pakana Sea Country Ranger Alice Wise proudly raise the flag to celebrate the commencement of the fieldwork. Image: Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre.

Blue Carbon coring at Killiecrankie, Flinders Island. Image: Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre

Intertidal and genetic work at Petrification Bay. Image: Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre.

Pakana Sea Country Ranger Alice Wise (right) watches the work that Beth Strain of UTAS is doing on epiphytes at Petrification Bay. Image: Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre.

Pakana Sea Country Project Officer Jam Graham-Blair deploys the BOSS camera from the Andra Maynard. Image: UTAS

The BOSS camera in shallow waters. Image: UTAS

The intertidal work will also help answer questions about how seagrass habitat in the region is changing and how the Pakana Rangers can look after it into the future. To address this challenge, Pakana Rangers, Pakana knowledge holders and hub researchers from the University of Tasmania, University of Queensland and Deakin University are investigating:

1. How accurately seagrass beds can be modelled based on satellite imagery.
2. What species are growing where.
3. What species dominate the seagrass beds.
4. The genetic diversity of the seagrasses.
5. How much blue carbon is stored in the seagrass beds and underlying sediments.
6. What else lives in the seagrass habitat.
7. Whether the seagrass beds are being affected by increased nutrification.
8. How the Pakana community and Pakana Rangers can best monitor the seagrass.

New methods and understanding generated by this project will advance the capacity for Aboriginal-led management of the proposed Tayaritja Milaythina Muka IPA.