©2007 Friends of Conservation

AUSTRALIA
Leaf through the latest tomes on the status of coral reefs worldwide and a grim picture emerges. Because of over fishing, soil and nutrient runoff from land, and climate change: A fifth of the reefs - among the planet's most productive habitats - have
been destroyed and are not recovering.
Another quarter face the threat of imminent collapse from human activities.
Another quarter are said to face long-term collapse.
- Christian Science Monitor

Partner:	The Australian Museum and the Lizard Island Reef Research Foundation
Initiative:	to purchase equipment to upgrade Lizard Island Research Station's research aquarium, the hub of the laboratory area

A Canary in the Mine Shaft for Global Warming
On the northern Great Barrier Reef, researchers at the Australian Museum's Lizard Island Research Station are looking into the effects of elevated temperatures on corals, the physical framework on which the whole coral reef community depends.

"Corals are able to live only with a very narrow temperature range," explains FOC International Chairman Jorie Butler Kent, "so they have indeed become a canary in the mineshaft for global warming."

Critical to the success of all the projects is an aquarium system that enables researchers to approximate the natural environment and conduct experiments by adjusting parameters such as temperature and light levels. Funding will upgrade the station's research aquarium, the hub of the laboratory area. Initially two new saltwater pumps needed to ensure adequate supply of seawater to the system will be purchased. Further funding will assist the extension to the system planned for 2008.