Sea surface temperatures remain relatively stable across the Marine Park and slightly above the long-term average for this time of year.

We’ve moved some of our crown-of-thorns starfish control vessels north to respond early to a new outbreak, while keeping control efforts underway in the central and southern Reefs to protect coral cover.

High rainfall across Reef catchment areas during January has contributed to some cooling of sea surface temperatures with increased cloud cover and rain, reducing the risk of heat stress on reefs. However, this has led to flood plumes in the Northern, Central and Southern regions of the Marine Park. Water quality monitoring is underway to understand how these conditions may affect nearby reefs.

Temperature

In the Far Northern region, sea surface temperatures are around 0.2°C above long-te ...