Coral branches into bay

Brian Williams
February 28, 2007
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CLIMATE change may see Brisbane's Moreton Bay become a haven for corals driven south from tropical waters.
Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies director Terry Hughes said marine ecosystems would be in for a stressful time as they struggled to cope with climate change.
"We could well see more and more corals and other species migrating south from the Great Barrier Reef to Moreton Bay as tropical conditions move further south," Professor Hughes said.
But University of Queensland environment management centre scientist Daryl McPhee said yesterday it was simplistic to say corals would move south.
Dr McPhee said the bay was in the process of change that included the modification or movement of fauna, particularly in western areas.
An area where change was visible at low tide was Raby Bay Harbour, an artificial environment at Cleveland, east of Brisbane.
Thousands of faviid, soft corals and other corals loosely described as brain corals were growing in its enclosed waters.
Dr McPhee said conditions that might have encouraged coral growth were possibly warmer water and the fact the harbour had plenty of rock.
"When you modify environments species change. Some disappear and some appear," he said.
Professor Hughes said Environment Minister Lindy Nelson-Carr's Moreton Bay Marine Park Zoning Plan review was welcome because the bay was a treasure in danger of being loved to death, as the population climbed from 2.77 million to 3.2 million by 2016.
"There's no other major city in the world where you can still see dugongs, whales and dolphins," he said. "Currently, only half a per cent of Moreton Bay Marine Park is classified as green zone – where fishing is prohibited but boating and diving are encouraged."
Dr McPhee said a marine park such as Moreton Bay could not effectively be protected from climate change, coastal development and drought.
"The park is largely impotent with such large-scale issues," he said.