Subtidalhabitats and inhabitants of the Tamar Estuary
Presentation by Mr David Maynard
QVMAG – Inveresk
Sunday, 23rd June 2013 Commencing 2.00 pm until
This lecture is presented with the generous support of QVMAG
About the Speaker
David Maynard has been Curator of Natural Sciences at the Queen Victoria Museum & Art Gallery since 2012. His research interest is temperate marine biodiversity. Prior to this he lectured for 13 years on fisheries and marine environment related topics at the Australian Maritime College. David has a passion for cataloguing fish and marine invertebrates and does so through underwater photography. In 2010 David co-authored an exhibition and book Beneath the Tamar More Than Silt with AMC colleague Dr Troy Gaston.
Brief Abstract of the Talk
The Tamar River estuary is unique in many ways. It is Australia’s longest navigable waterway, receiving freshwater from nearly 1/5th of Tasmania’s landmass. This freshwater meets an estimated 300,000,000 cubic metres of salt water entering the system twice a day on the incoming tides. The estuary, Tamar Valley and the broader catchment supports diverse activities including heavy industry, shipping, agriculture and forestry, wineries, aquaculture, tourism, and population centres and includes significant protected areas, reserves and wetlands. All these contribute significant economic and social benefits to our region. However the Tamar River estuary has some image problems. Many in the community only recognise the estuary for the unsightly mud flats exposed in the upper reaches which impact on the aesthetics and amenity of the river. Below the surface of the Tamar is another world. This lecture presents a visual snapshot of the habitats and inhabitants that reside just below the Tamar’s surface waters that remain invisible to the broader community.
