Six critically endangered southern brush-tailed rock-wallabies have been flown to the ACT in hopes of saving the species.
There are estimated to be fewer than 60 of the species left in the wild.
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The Australian
12 hours ago
- The Australian
Mystery green balls wash up on NSW beach, believed to be marimo 'Neptune Balls'
Months after an epidemic of 'grease balls' washed up along the coastline, dozens of mysterious green balls have perplexed locals along a beach on NSW's south coast. Mel Christensen took her dog to Culburra Beach, about 100km south of Wollongong, where she was greeted with dozens of the strange-looking, mosslike balls. Green and velvety in appearance, the phenomenon littered the coast. 'We just headed to the beach for a morning walk this morning at about 8am and noticed dozens, and dozens of balls along the beach,' Ms Christensen said. 'And of course, my dog ran for one only to discover that they weren't actually tennis balls.' The said her dog, Gypsy, 'was in doggy heaven' upon finding the mystery balls. 'On closer inspection, they were soft perfectly spherical and made of what felt (and looked) like moss. 'The strong southerly wind was blowing them up the beach and it looked kind of crazy with all these balls rolling around everywhere.' Ms Christensen said the balls had spread almost a kilometre up the beach. The balls are believed to be a phenomenon known as 'Neptune Balls', these ones being marimo — a rare velvety form of algae. A local newsletter asked locals if they had seen the 'weird little moss balls' which it said are more commonly found in lakes and rivers in Japan and Northern Europe. 'But right now they can be seen on Culburra Beach.' Ainu people in Japan hold a festival for the marimo moss balls each year at Lake Akan, a Japanese lake known for growing large marimo. The mossy wash-up comes just months after the emergence of mysterious black balls, which closed nine beaches in NSW. Following an extensive investigation from the state's Environmental Protection Authority they were revealed to be debris from nearby sewage networks. 'While we are yet to determine exactly what caused the pollution incidents to occur when they did, we can say the composition and the characteristics of the debris balls are consistent with a land-based sewage source,' EPA director operations Adam Gilligan said at the time. The balls first appeared in Sydney's eastern suburbs in October last year, but an expanded investigation was launched as they started popping up on the state's south coast and northern beaches. Mystery balls on beaches finally explained Brendan Kearns Cadet Journalist Brendan Kearns is a cadet journalist with News Corp Australia. He has written for The Australian, the Herald Sun, the Geelong Advertiser, CHOICE, Cosmos, and The Citizen. He won Democracy's Watchdogs' Student Award for Investigative Journalism 2024 and hosted the third season of award-winning podcast Uncurated. He studied as Master of Journalism at The University of Melbourne, before that he worked as a video producer and disability worker. NewsWire Anthony Albanese has requested a phone call with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, amid increased international pressure for Australia to recognise Palestinian statehood. NewsWire A much-loved social outlet for workers is under threat, as this group of Australians can no longer afford it.
News.com.au
13 hours ago
- News.com.au
‘Dozens along the beach': Locals perplexed as mystery green balls wash up on NSW beach
Months after an epidemic of 'grease balls' washed up along the coastline, dozens of mysterious green balls have perplexed locals along a beach on NSW's south coast. Mel Christensen took her dog to Culburra Beach, about 100km south of Wollongong, where she was greeted with dozens of the strange-looking, mosslike balls. Green and velvety in appearance, the phenomenon littered the coast. 'We just headed to the beach for a morning walk this morning at about 8am and noticed dozens, and dozens of balls along the beach,' Ms Christensen said. 'And of course, my dog ran for one only to discover that they weren't actually tennis balls.' The said her dog, Gypsy, 'was in doggy heaven' upon finding the mystery balls. 'On closer inspection, they were soft perfectly spherical and made of what felt (and looked) like moss. 'The strong southerly wind was blowing them up the beach and it looked kind of crazy with all these balls rolling around everywhere.' Ms Christensen said the balls had spread almost a kilometre up the beach. The balls are believed to be a phenomenon known as 'Neptune Balls', these ones being marimo — a rare velvety form of algae. A local newsletter asked locals if they had seen the 'weird little moss balls' which it said are more commonly found in lakes and rivers in Japan and Northern Europe. 'But right now they can be seen on Culburra Beach.' Ainu people in Japan hold a festival for the marimo moss balls each year at Lake Akan, a Japanese lake known for growing large marimo. The mossy wash-up comes just months after the emergence of mysterious black balls, which closed nine beaches in NSW. Following an extensive investigation from the state's Environmental Protection Authority they were revealed to be debris from nearby sewage networks. 'While we are yet to determine exactly what caused the pollution incidents to occur when they did, we can say the composition and the characteristics of the debris balls are consistent with a land-based sewage source,' EPA director operations Adam Gilligan said at the time. The balls first appeared in Sydney's eastern suburbs in October last year, but an expanded investigation was launched as they started popping up on the state's south coast and northern beaches.
ABC News
15 hours ago
- ABC News
Shot-hole borer researchers team up against tree-killing beetle in Perth
Whether it is development, mining, or dwindling groundwater, Perth's tree canopy is facing a myriad of challenges. In addition, since 2021 the city has been struggling to contain a tree-killing invasive beetle — the polyphagous shot-hole borer. The pest, which produces a deadly fungus, mainly infects exotic trees, but native varieties like melaleucas are also at risk. To quell the spread of the beetle, the state government has to date removed 4,794 trees, some from Perth's most popular green spaces — Kings Park, Hyde Park and Stirling Gardens. Last month, a national biosecurity taskforce moved from an eradication response to long-term management, worrying many working in the space, particularly those in WA's agriculture sector. Teams of researchers are working on new methods to identify, contain and kill the beetle. Funded by the WA government through the WA Agriculture Research Centre (WAARC), three major projects have received $2.17 million, paying for three years of research. Key stakeholders met this week at a symposium to hear from the funding recipients about their research so far. Theo Evans, associate professor of applied entomology at the University of Western Australia, told the symposium two trials, which commenced in September 2024, showed very promising early results. He has been trialling two methods to combat the borer — a chemical injection into infected trees and using commercially available nematodes to eat the beetle. Treena Burgess, forest pathologist and director of the Harry Butler Institute, has been overseeing several studies at Murdoch University, most notably one into the fungus the beetle produces. "A key piece of our research is going to be trying to understand how susceptible different tree species are to the fungus," Professor Burgess said. "The beetle is the vector, and the fungus is the killer of trees, and different tree species seem to be varying considerably in their susceptibility." She said some trees responded better than others to the infection. Professor Burgess said the need for information on the beetle was so acute that the universities and stakeholders would share data as it came to hand, rather than waiting for the lengthy peer-review process. "The purpose of this is to solve the problem," she said. Managing director of environmental consultancy ArborCarbon and adjunct professor at Murdoch University Paul Barber will use funding to send up an "ArborCam" to map Perth's tree coverage. ArborCarbon has already led biosecurity responses in the eastern states. "The ArborCam is special because it can collect 11 bands of data across the spectrum, and it measures things like the condition of vegetation, height, surface temperatures," Professor Barber said. ArborCarbon will use the technology to identify where the most susceptible trees are, to focus on-the-ground efforts. Professor Barber said the goal was to make the ArborCam data available online for stakeholders and researchers. Ben Phillips, professor of population biology at Curtin University, is creating models to understand how the shot-hole borer might spread, and measure how effective current methods of detection are. He has taken information from dozens of studies to create a model of population growth, and his team has discovered population growth is dependent on temperature. "Most of the eastern seaboard of Queensland is looking like a spot for the borer, particularly the area around Cairns." He said considering Perth did not even have the ideal climate, the beetle had an incredibly high growth rate. The female borer does not require a male to reproduce, and Professor Phillip's modelling showed the population could grow in Perth conditions from one to a million in just a year. All the researchers the ABC spoke to were optimistic their efforts would lead to better management tools for the dreaded pest.
