Out of the Blue

For many of us, when we think of the history of the seas, we think of one thing: pirates.In this episode, Bise chats to maritime historian Chris Maxworthy about the Australian tradition of piracy, including women pirates and the role piracy played in imperial government.Listen now to this swashbucklin' interview!PS: Can you help us keep making Out Of The Blue? This June, we need your support for 3CR's Radiothon. You can make a donation at https://www.givenow.com.au/cr/outoftheblue

 Water is an integral part of many artists' practices, from inspiration to materials and motifs, but how does water interact with art-making for those of us who live far from the ocean? On today's show, we're speaking with Emma Russell, an incredible Gamilaroi artist who shared a bit about her experiences using ochre from the local Moonee Ponds creek in both her arts practice and her teaching.Emma tells us about how her artistic practice is 'a family affair' and the influence of her local environment, living on Wurundjeri country, on her work. Plus we touch on the history of the urbanised and sometimes under-appreciated waterways of Melbourne's north-west.You can keep up to date with Emma's work at her instagram, @emmarussellarts and keep an eye out for her upcoming arts workshops!Artwork by Emma Russell. 

Who's the king of the high seas? Nobody. To whom does the ocean floor belong?All of us.  A playground for whales, pirates, fishing trawlers and cargo ships, the High Seas make up most of the blue planet. Yet humans spend very little time interacting with, or even thinking about them.But that's not the case for Dr Ellycia Harrould-Kolieb, expert on global ocean governance at the University of Melbourne. We talk about the ocean as archive of human history, the international accords and treaties which shape how we interact with the 'commons', and sobering developments in Deep Sea Mining. LINKS: https://www.dosi-project.org/https://deep-sea-conservation.org/https://findanexpert.unimelb.edu.au/profile/443897-ellycia-harrould-koliebArtwork by Alexandra Gwynne

Each winter southern Australia hosts the return of Southern Right Whales from Antarctica, who come to warmer waters to calve. These mysterious whales were hunted almost to extinction during commercial whaling, but unlike other whales, their recovery has been much slower. New research suggests it may even have stalled.To find out why, and what that means for the oceans, we speak to researcher Anne Grundlehner at the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies at the University of Tasmania. Her answers offer a fascinating insight into the world of these whales.Image: Southern Right Whale mother and calf. robdownunder/Flickr 

  On today's show we're getting knee deep in the salty sediment of mangroves with Sabrina Olsson, Research officer for the Regenerating our Coasts program.We talk about the multifaceted charms of mangroves, from crustaceans to carbon sequestration, and some of the threats and pressures on these ecosystems. We also hear what it's like to do mangrove restoration (muddy!) and some of the fandangled new contraptions being trialled to help Victorian mangroves to recover, funded by Beach Energy Ltd.LINKShttps://arcg.is/1zTWyy0www.bluecarbonlab.org/facilitated-restorationwww.linkedin.com/in/sabrina-olsson/www.linkedin.com/in/stacey-trevathan-tackett-a9a07125/Search #RegenOurCoasts on Instagram and LinkedIn 

As the oceans warm, marine life is on the move. In Australia, fish and other marine species are moving beyond their usual ranges to keep pace with climate change.What does that mean for marine ecosystems? To find out, we chat to Dr Barrett Wolfe from the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies at the University of Tasmania, who is tracking the movement of species.Read Dr Barrett's latest research here >>. You can also help monitor marine life movement by getting involved with Redmap or the Reef Life Survey.Image: Sea urchins are one of the species moving south. John Turnbull.

Host Tessa Campisi speaks to Louise Morris, Offshore oil and gas campaigner at the Australian Marine Conservation Society, about current proposals to conduct seismic blasting off Victoria's south-west coast. They speak about the impact on marine life, the weakening of our federal environment laws, and past successes of vocal community opposition to offshore oil and gas. NOTESSign the petition against seismic blasting

When we say 'nature', what do we mean? What is conservation actually conserving? Does extinction matter? In her new book Human/Nature, author Jane Rawson asks those very questions, and more. In this episode, we get philosophical about nature. Plus, we chat to Jane about her earlier books and her fascinationg with cephalopods.You can catch Jane speaking with James Whitmore at The Sun Bookshop on 1 May: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/humannature-jane-rawson-in-conversation-tickets-1304949943409?aff=ebdsoporgprofile

Shipworms. Burrowing Clams. Termites of the Sea. Wait, what? On this week's show, host Tessa Campisi speaks with Cardiff-based illustrator Archie Mckenzie about these curious wood-eating molluscs. They talk about their anatomy, their lifeways, and how they have wormed their way into human history over the years.More from Archie Mckenzie (they/them)www.archillustrates.comwww.instagram.com/archillustratesMore on Shipworms Shipworms Devour Captain Cook's EndeavourShipworms in JapanArchie's book "Weird or Wonderful? All About Shipworms"Cover art by Archie McKenzie

South east Queensland's beaches look a bit different after Cyclone Alfred. On the Gold Coast, erosion has left small cliffs on the beach. Where has all the sand gone? And will it come back? To find out, we speak to Dr Javier Leon, sand scientist and surfer at the University of Southern Queensland.Image: Cyclone Alfred approaches Queeland. NASA Johnson.

The strange and spectacular Maugean Skate is only known to live in Macquarie Harbour on the West Coast of Tasmania, where industrial salmon aquaculture is driving low oxygen conditions which Dr Leo Guida of the Australian Marine Conservation Society describes as a "Hypoxic Time Bomb".In this episode, we talk about the challenges facing the Maugean Skate, and some of the actions and notable inaction being taken to keep it from sliding further towards extinction.Useful Links:Salinity and temperature modeling of Macquarie harbourMaugean Skate Recovery Team Marine Conservation Society Cover art by Tessa Campisi

In this episode, Andrew Christie interviews Associate Professor Dr Vicki Karalis and Dr Kate Robb of the Marine Mammal Foundation, who give tremendous insights into the challenges posed by jet skis. A range of topics are covered, including threats to human health (to both the general public and the riders themselves) and noise pollution and the effects on the biota, particularly around marine mammals such as dolphins.

A marine heatwave has been building off Western Australia's coast since September 2024, killing fish in the Pilbara and causing some coral bleaching in the Kimberley. In this episode we chat to Sina Pinter, a PhD researcher at the University of Western Australia, about what is causing the heatwave, and what we can do to reduce the impact to marine life.Image: West Australian coast. Source: Wikimedia.

Melbourne has a surprising number of marine mammals, right in our watery backyard. Seals and dolphins live in the bay, and even whales sometimes visit. But to help protect these animals, scientists need to know more about them. On March 1 the Marine Mammal Foundation is hosting its first Marine Mammal Bioblitz, and is asking people to come and help search for marine mammals. Jemima Beddoe, Research Associate at the foundation, joins us to explain how the bioblitz works. Find out how to get involved in the bioblitz at: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/port-phillip-bay-marine-mammal-bioblitz-tickets-1117190700459Image: Dolphins in Port Phillip Bay. DocklandsTony/Flickr

Each November cold water upwelling off the south west coast of Victoria creates the perfect conditions for the world's biggest animals - Blue Whales. Blue Whales are endangered after they were hunted nearly to extinction during commercial whaling. Now they're slowly recovering, but they remain extremely mysterious.In this episode, we chat to Dr Pete Gill, founder of the Blue Whale Study, who has been studying southern Australia's Blue Whales for over 20 years. Find out more at bluewhalestudy.org.Image: James Maughn

Australia is surrounded by a network of 60 marine parks, and scientists are still making incredible discoveries about the wildlife that live in them.A recent scientific expedition to the Beagle Marine Park in Bass Strait discovered thousands of Port Jackson Sharks - a species normally seen in shallow coastal waters - gathered on the seabed. What exactly they're doing is a mystery still to be solved.In this episode we take a dive into the Beagle with expedition leader Dr Jacquomo Monk from the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies at the University of Tasmania and find out what makes this part of the ocean so special.The Beagle expedition is supported by the Australian Government's National Environmental Science Program and a grant of sea time from the Southern Coastal Research Vessel Fleet (SCRVF). The SCRVF is a partnership between the South Australian Research and Development Program and the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development, with funding from the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy and support from the CSIRO Marine National Facility, to provide the marine research community with better access to coastal research vessels in Southern Australia. The survey is a collaboration between Parks Australia, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (University of Tasmania) and the University of Western Australia. Image: Port Jackson Sharks gathering on the sea bed of the Beagle Marine Park. NESP-IMAS.

 In this episode we chat to Jessie Coughlan, campaigner at NOFF in Tasmania, about shareholder and consumer activism against the salmon farming industry.Image: Andrea Pokrzywinski

James Bradley's new non-fiction book Deep Water is a gripping and moving account of our relationship to the seas, tracing our intimate history with the ocean and exploring the damage we're doing from pollution to fishing to climate change.You can catch James this week at the State Library of Victoria and the Port Fairy Literary Weekend.

The lovely mermaid and aquatic scientist and educator Sheree Marris chats about her new book on Octopuses, and what it was like working with these incredible animals in a wide-ranging and fun interview with Andrew Christie.

Climate change is the biggest threat to the Great Barrier Reef, but other threats are making it harder for the reef to adapt to warming seas.Water quality is one of them. For over 20 years, scientists have been monitoring water quality on the reef in the effort to improve its health, and the latest scientific consensus report has just been released. To find out why water quality matters, and how it is changing on the reef, we speak to Dr Katharina Fabricius from the Australian Institute of Marine Science.Image: Sheila Dee.

Australia's southern coast used to be bordered by incredible oyster reefs. But now, nearly all of them are gone thanks to dredging and mining for lime.Because the reefs create such important habitat for marine life, scientists and conservationists are trying to bring them back. To do so, they need to attract baby oysters to settle on the reef. In this episode, we chat to Dr Brittany Williams from the University of Adelaide, whose research is showing that sound is really important for restoring reefs, and that to save oyster reefs, we need to reduce human-made ocean noise as much as we can.Image: John Turnbull, Flickr. 

In this interview, Dr Allyson O'Brien (who for many years was a presenter on Out of the Blue!) covers a broad range of topics, including the influences on her career and experiences in the marine environment to marine bioloyg and ecotoxicology.

This past summer, the corals on the Great Barrier Reef were exposed to the greatest heat stress ever recorded. In March, scientists declared the reef was experiencing its fifth mass bleaching event, part of a global mass coral bleaching event.Corals can recover from bleaching, but scientists doing surveys on a reef near Lizard Island found nearly all the corals had died. To find out what that means for the reef more broadly, and for marine life, we speak to Professor Jane Williamson from Macquarie University.Image: ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies.

 Recently Beach Energy got the go ahead to begin producing gas from its Enterprise project off Victoria's Otway Coast, the first new gas extraction approved in a decade. At the same time, this area of the ocean is slated for some of the first offshore wind farms in Australia. What does all this mean for fighting climate change? What about the marine environment? To find out, we chat to Dr Kat Lucas-Healey from Environment Victoria.Plus, it's Radiothon, and we listen back to some of our favourite moments from the oceans in the last year. Thank you to all who donated to keep Out Of The Blue on air!Image: gérard

One in ten of Australia's sharks and rays are at risk of extinction, and globally shark populations are declining. The biggest reason: people eating them.In this episode, we chat to two shark experts about what we need to do to ensure sharks survive. First, Dr Adam Stow from Macquarie University talks about his research looking at what's really in flake. Then, Dr Jordan Goetze, Adjunt Professor at Curtin University, explains how marine protected areas are helping some sharks, but we have to do more.PS: If you enjoy Out Of The Blue, please help us stay on air by making a donation to 3CR's Radiothon. Head to: https://www.givenow.com.au/cr/outoftheblueImage: Scalloped Hammerhead, Kris-Mikael Krister. 

Red Handfish are one of the rarest fish in the world, with only about one hundred individuals left in the wild, living on two tiny reefs in south ast Tasmania.This summer, as a marine heatwave bore down on these critically endangered fish, scientists leapt into action to prevent the species' extinction, taking 25 Red Handfish out of the sea and caring for them on land until waters cooled.Now, they've been able to release nearly all of them back into the wild. We're joined by Dr Andrew Trotter from the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies at the University of Tasmania to learn about this extraordinary effort.Image: John Turnbull/Flickr.

Sea creatures might seem to lead very strange lives compared to our own. But maybe we're just as weird. In their new book, US writer and journalist Sabrina Imbler fuses science and memoir to compare the lives of sea creatures to their own. Highlights include how deep sea yeti crabs are like queer night clubs, and jelly-like salps are like queer communities. In this episode, we discovered how queer the oceans really are.Sabrina's book is How Far The Light Reaches, published in Australia as My Life In Sea Creatures.

Marine heatwaves this summer have struck the waters around eastern Australia, particularly around Tasmania, the Sea Country of the Tasmanian Aboriginal community. In this episode we chat to pakana Sea Country Ranger Fiona Maher and Sea Country IPA Coordinator Zoe Cozens from the Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre about what the rangers are doing to care for marine life as the oceans warm.  Image: John Sampson/Flickr.

Salt. It's one of the things that makes seawater, well, seawater. In this episode, we chat to Dr Neil Malan from the University of New South Wales about why this mineral is so important in the oceans, shaping the way water moves and where ocean animals and plants live (did you know seabirds get their freshwater from the surface of the ocean after it rains?). Neil's recent research looks at how the huge floods on Australia's east coast had a big impact on the marine environment.Photo by Pavel Neznanov on Unsplash

The Great Southern Reef is just as sunique as the Great Barrier Reef, but far fewer people have heard of it. Stretching from southern New South Wales to Western Australia, this special place is home to amazing species like seadragons and giant cuttlefish. Stefan Andrews from the Great Southern Reef Foundation is raising awareness about the reef and in this episode Stefan joins us to talk about the trip he recently took to Western Australia to meet with coastal communities.Zebra Fish on the Great Southern Reef in South Australia. Image: John Turnbull/Flickr.

The Great Ocean Rescue campaign, organised by OCEAN, the Otway Coastal Environment Network, has been making its way along the Great Ocean Road since 5 January. From Barwon Heads to Portland, campaigners have been raising awareness about huge seismic blasting proposals for the ocean off the coast. We catch up with Lisa Deppeler from OCEAN to find out how the campaign is going. Find out more at: https://www.ocean.org.au/greatoceanrescueImage: Great Ocean Roasd, J. Philipp Krone/Flickr

The Great Southern Reef, not to be confused with its tropical cousin, stretches from New South Wales to Western Australia, one of the largest reefs systems in the world. A network of rocky reefs and kelp forests, the reef is home to hundreds of species found nowhere else.But this summer the reef is facing the threat of marine heatwaves, with extreme water temperatures already occurring off the coast of Victoria and Tasmania. Conservationists are calling on the Australian Government to do something before it's too late.We speak to Stefan Andrews from the Great Southern Reef Foundation, which is dedicated to raising the profile of this amazing place.Image: John Turnbull/Flicker.

Scalloped Hammerhead sharks are found all over the world, but very little is known about them. So when researcher Andrea López from the University of Western Australian discovered large schools of Scalloped Hammerheads in a marine park near Perth, it was an opportunity to learn more about this endangered species.Remarkably, even though the Scalloped Hammerhead is considered at risk of extinction, it is still legal to hunt it in Australian waters — even in marine parks. In this episode, we chat to Andrea about what needs to change to protect this amazing species.Image: Kris-Mikael Krister

In this episode, Andrew Christie interviews Morgan Ellis and Lucy Coals of Deakin University, who are discussing a range of topics, but mainly marine pests and seagrasses respectively, and they also delve into the exciting world of genetics.  

The Southern Ocean: wild, beautiful, home to amazing wildlife. It also helps fertilise the oceans and regulate the planet's climate. But as the Earth warms and we pump more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, what's happening to this remarkable place?To find out, we speak to Dr Andrew Constable from the University of Tasmania, the lead author of the first Marine Ecosystem Assessment for the Southern Ocean, a comprehensive report on the present and future health of this vast sea. He explains what policymakers need to do now to protect the Southern Ocean.Image: Black-browed Albatross. Gregory "Slobirdr" Smith/Flickr. 

The ocean off Victoria's coast has been selected for Australia's first offshore wind farms, which will help displace fossil fuels and reduce Australia's carbon emissions. But some of those areas are already being mined for oil and gas. And coastal communities have a variety of concerns about offshore energy, from seismic blasting to test for gas to the visual impact of wind farms.So who makes the decisions about offshore energy developments? And how do communities have a say? We're joined by energy law expert Professor Samantha Hepburn from Deakin University to explain.

In this episode, Andrew Christie interviews Ashley Dungan and Laura Geissler for an interesting discussion on corals and the microbes that they co-exist with. This is an area that many people don't really think about, but is something that is crucial for some of the world's coral reef ecosystems. Ashley and Laura provide some very interesting commentary on their research and what it all means for the world's oceans.

The endangered Maugean Skate is a unique species of fish found only on Tasmania's west coast, a relic of an ancient lineage. With it's population crashing in recent years, the Federal Government has announced a plan to breed the skate in captivity to save it from extinction.But will that be enough? Research shows that one of the biggest threats to the skate is salmon farming, and the plan says nothing about dealing with that. We speak to Dr Leonardo Guida from the Australian Marine Conservation Society.Image: Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies/University of Tasmania. 

In this episode, Andrew Christie interviews Amber Crittenden of the Marine Mammal Foundation. In all the time that Andrew has been conducting interviews in the studios in 3CR, this is definitely one of the best; Amber got her points across like a seasoned media performer as she delved into the fascinating world of delphinid acoustics and the underwater soundscapes. Enjoy this wonderful episode!

There's lots of news coming from the Great Barrier Reef at the moment, with the UN deciding again not to list the reef as a World Heritage site in danger, and new surveys showing that coral recovery after recent mass bleaching events has stalled. Meanwhile extreme global sea temperatures are causing coral bleaching on reefs.To make sense of all these headlines, we speak to University of Technology Sydney researcher Dr Emma Camp, whose research focuses on helping coral reefs adapt to the changing climate.

Pygmy Right Whales are Australia's smallest baleen whale, the group that includes the well-known Humpbacks and Southern Right Whales. But unlike their famous cousins, they've been seen so few times that essentially nothing is known about them. So how do you study a whale that is as mysterious as a unicorn? Adelaide Dedden at the University of New South Wales has studied baleen from stranded right whales to reveal, for the first time, some of the secrets of these little whales.Image: Pygmy Right Whale by Henry Cordell. 

In this episode, Andrew Christie interviews Kellie Jackson, a member of NatureWest, Marine Care Point Cooke and now also Parks Victoria. We go into a range of topics that concentrate on the local area, and have a chat about some of the experiences and people that have led Kellie to where she is today.

Ocean temperatures are at record highs in many parts of the world and Antarctic sea ice has reached its lowest level ever for winter, when it should be at its maximum extent. Meanwhile a new study warns that hugely important ocean currents in the Atlantic Ocean could collapse in the next couple of years and UN Secretary-General Antonio Gutteres says we've entered the era of "global boiling".To make sense of these oceanic climate extremes, we speak to oceanographer Edward Doddridge from the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies at the University of Tasmania.Image: Sea surface temperature anomalies (difference from average) on July 28 2023. Source: Climate Reanalyzer.

Australia is about to embark on an adventure in offshore wind farms, with the first two offshore wind energy zones declared in Bass Strait. While wind energy will play a huge role in reducing Australia's greenhouse gas emissions and combatting climate change, those giant propellers in the sky also pose their own risks to marine life, particularly birds.Ecologist Keith Reid earlier this year published the first assessment on the risks that offshore wind farms pose Australia's birds. In this episode, we find out what happens when birds and wind farms meet, and how to weigh the risks. Read Keith's research online.Image: David Dixon / Walney Offshore Windfarm

The ocean between Victoria and Tasmania is the latest battleground in the fight to stop new fossil fuel developments. In this episode we chat to to Lisa Deppeler from the Otway Climate Emergency Action Network (OCEAN) about the campaign to stop seismic blasting in the seas off Victoria. Lisa discusses the evidence that blasting harms marine life and the concerning process for granting permission to companies to do blasting. Find out more at ocean.org.au.Image: the proposed location of seismic blasting. From ocean.org.au.

Southern Right Whales have arrived in bays along Victoria's coast to have their calves. After being decimated by whaling, these whales are slowly recovering. This week, we chat to Kasey Stamation from the Victorian Governent's Arthur Rylah institute. You can help researchers untangle the mysteries of these amazing animals by logging any sightings of whales in Victoria at WhaleFace.We need your help to keep bringing you the most important stories about our coasts and oceans. It costs about $50 to make Out of the Blue. Could you support us by making a donation to 3CR's Radiothon? Your donation not only helps Out of the Blue but all the other programs on 3CR. Head to https://www.givenow.com.au/cr/outoftheblue.Image: Southern Right Whale. Gregory Smith.

We need your help to keep bringing you the most important stories about or coasts and oceans. Can you support Out of the Blue by making a donation?In this episode, James shares some of his highlights from the year:activists in Antarctica fighting industrial krill fishingresearchers trying to save Tasmania's unique Maugean Skate, recently recognised as endangeredthe amazing effort the restore Lady Elliot Island on the Great Barrier Reef.Your donation will not only support Out Of The Blue but the incredible work of all the radical radio-makers at 3CR Community Radio. We appreciate every cent. 

If you've been out on Port Phillip Bay and seen a grey dolphin, you might have seen Melbourne's own unique species of dolphin - the Burrunan Dolphin! Only recognised in 2011, Burrunan Dolphins live in Port Phillip Bay, the Gippsland Lakes and waters around Tasmania.To learn more about this wonderful creature, and the efforts to protect them, we speak to Dr Kate Robb from the Marine Mammal Foundation, and Grace Day, a PhD candidate at Deakin University.If you enjoy this show, please consider making a donation to Out Of The Blue and 3CR Community Radio. Head to https://www.givenow.com.au/cr/outoftheblue. We appreciate every cent we receive. 

You've probably noticed krill oil for sale at your local pharmacy. Much of that krill oil, marketed as sustainable, is harvested from Antarctic waters by industrial ships that are increasingly coming into conflict with wildlife. In this episode, we chat to Alistair Allan, a campaigner at the Bob Brown Foundation who has just spent several months in Antarctic waters investigating the impact of krill fishing. Campaigners are calling for increases to krill fishing limits to be haulted at international meetings this year.Image: Antarctic krill, NOAA photo library.

Lady Elliot Island is one of the southernmost islands on the Great Barrier Reef. Once degraded by mining for fertiliser, it has since been restored and breeding seabirds have returned. Now researchers are untangling the relationship between the land and sea, helping scientists understand how this ecosystem works and how it might serve as a climate refuge in a warming world. It's an amazing story featuring thousands of seabirds, giant manta rays, and very cute walking sharks. We speak to Dr Christine Dudgeon from the University of the Sunshine Coast, and a researcher on the Leaf to Reef Project. Image: Epaullette Shark. Richard Ling, Flickr.

New research has revealed over 300 species of Australian marine species are declining at a rate that threatens them with extinction - including the Weedy Seadragon. The research, which draws on Australia-wide data collected by the Reef Life Survey over the past two decades, looked at populations of over 1,000 species of seaweeds, fish, corals and other invertebrates. We speak to Dr John Turnbull from the University of Sydney. Image: John Turnbull, Flickr.