Karen Player, Author at Australian Environmental Education

September 12, 2020June 11, 2023

Ages of Fishes Museum

I finally made it to the Age of Fishes Museum at Canowindra to see the 360 million year old Devonian Fish fossils. Visiting this site has been on my bucket list for years and I was very excited to explore the museum and visit the fossil site.

The story of the discovery of the 360 million year old Canowindra fish fossils has been with me since my first day as an Australian Museum volunteer over 20 years ago. I remember seeing this slab of rock mounted on the wall and being told an amazing story of how it was found. I have been fascinated ever since and used to touch the slab every time I walked pass and tell the story to visitors. 20 years on I still tell the story to students during my fossil programs.

Original 1956 Slab with colour coding indicating the fish species

It all began with the chance discovery in 1955 when a Fred Fewings a bulldozer driver turns over a rock. Fred thought it looked interesting and instead of letting it be ground up into road base, he pushed it to the side of the road. This is lucky for us because local Bill Simpson recognised the slabs significance and informs the Australian Museum.

360 million years ago in the Devonian fish fossil deposit contains thousands of freshwater fish

Step back in time and imagine what it was like 360 million years ago. In the Devonian the inland rivers and lakes of Australia were full of fish, but they were not like fish of today.

Life in the Devonian 360 million years ago *Image ©* Aunt Spray

The fossils at Canowindra were formed when a pond on the supercontinent of Gondwana dried up and thousands of fish died in a single place. They were covered with silt and buried for millions of years, waiting to be discovered by Fred the bulldozer driver.

In 1993 Dr Alex Ritchie from the Australian Museum organised a rediscovery of this incredible the site and found 4,000 fish specimens across eight fish species.

Watch the video below of Sir David Attenborough’s visit to the Museum.

NSW State fossil

Mandageria fairfaxi was a large, air-breathing lobe-finned fish that grew up to 1.7 metres long. It had powerful jaws lined with many large fangs, making it the top predator among the eight genera of fish known from the Devonian fauna at the Canowindra site. In 2015 Mandageria fairfaxi became the NSW state fossil.

Find out more at the Ages of Fish Museum, the Australian Museum and Paleo Zoo.

September 9, 2020June 11, 2023

Journey beneath the Waves: The Haven

Best laid plans and all that. My sister and I have been planning this dive for weeks at the Haven in the Central Coast of NSW, Australia. The weather leading up to our dive has been stunning; sunny and warm. Unfortunately the predicted rain arrived and it was cold and drizzly. We don’t give up easily and thankfully it was well worth the effort.

My sister Michelle is in the front and I’m in the back.

We started the dive with really poor visibility, I could barely see my sisters blue fins 1 metre in front of me. Luckily visibility improved as we descended beneath the waves. One of the first things we saw were lots of lobster skins, it was a strange sight. I then wondered if they were shed skins of growing lobsters. Have a look at this amazing video of a captive lobster shedding it’s skin (not my video).

Thankfully as we continued the visibility also improved. I found the first of many Port Jackson shark eggs, then realised I was close to an amazingly well camouflaged stonefish. As I was focused on that, I almost missed the Morey Eel hiding in the rocks.

Moray eel — Stonefish copyright @ Andrea Izzotti

After finding more Port Jackson shark eggs wedged in rock crevices, we saw finally saw our first Port Jackson shark. I hadn’t seen a PJ in ages and it was wonderful to see one again. It was the first of many, we ended up seeing over 10 varying in colours and sizes. This video (not my own) shows Port Jackson sharks in Sydney.

The many Port Jackson sharks, multiple moreys, octopus, little cuttlefish and shrimp were amazing, but the highlight was the Havens huge stingray. The Smooth Stingray Bathytoshia brevicaudatais is the largest stingray in the world. Check out the video below (not my video). This was not my first interaction with the Haven’s resident stingray, but that’s another story!

After a rough start it was a great dive with an incredible diversity of marine life. Hopefully my next dive will a be night dive at Shelley Beach. I’ll keep you posted on my next Journey beneath the Waves.

Discover more dive stories

Sydney’s hidden garden

My dive the with Sharks

September 7, 2020September 7, 2020

Launch: one year on

A lot has changed since I launched Sydney Science Education one year ago. Other than the challenges of bushfires, drought, flood and COVID, there has been a name change to Australian Environmental Education.

There were several factors that led to the name change. Firstly due to the COVID-19 pandemic I had to rapidly change from delivering onsite programs across Sydney to online delivery. Virtual Excursions means that I am able to deliver programs across Australia and even to overseas audiences. My goal of staying local to be more sustainable shifted due to the increased demand of online learning.

Secondly, when I started developing more programs and writing more content for the website it became clear that my passion continues to be environmental education programs. To provide a true representation of what I was creating and delivering I decided to change the name to Australian Environmental Education.

What have I been up to over the last 12 months?

I started focusing on developing water and sustainability resources for the website due to the continued drought and bushfires. I also started writing resources for the Junior Landcare Learning Centre and my first program relates to being waterwise; Every Drop Counts. From there I started My Year of Sustainability focusing on what I could do to make a difference. I developed an incursion program, What’s in my backyard videos and education resources.

Over the last year I have been creating a multitude of education resources to help teachers and students learn more about the natural world. The main topic areas include:

It is a work in progress and I am enjoying researching and writing every page.

I recently created a set of fun and educational activities to supplement the educational resources section on this website.

I have also compiled a range of image galleries including some new macro images. The following images provide a snapshot from the galleries.

These are the range of programs now available as onsite incursion across Sydney or Virtual Excursions across Australia and the World.

September 7, 2020September 7, 2020

Threatened Species Day

Every year on September 7 we commemorate National Threatened Species Day to raise awareness of plants and animals at risk of extinction. Threatened Species Day acknowledges the death of the last remaining Thylacine, Tasmanian tiger at Hobart Zoo in 1936. It is a day to reflect on what you can do to make a difference.

Thylacine photographed in cage with chicken by Henry Burrell 1921.

Australia is home to more than 500,000 animal and plant species, many of which are found nowhere else in the world. Over the last 200 years, more than 100 animal and plant species have become extinct. In NSW there are almost 1000 animal and plant species at risk of extinction.

Threatened Species Day is a time to focus on or native plants, animals, and ecosystems and look at how we can protect them into the future.

Foundation for National Parks & Wildlife

What can you do to help?

Volunteers some of your time to help save Australian Species for the next generation. You can volunteers for National Parks or join a Citizen Science program.

Create a animal friendly backyard

You can create a native haven in your garden that will encourage wildlife to come and share your backyard.

Attract birds to your garden: use plants that will provide food, shelter and nesting sites. Local flowering plants and fruit trees provide birds with nectar and seeds. Use mulch to encourage worms, insects and grubs to thrive. Plant dense prickly native shrubs create shelter, hang up nesting boxes and install a bird bath.

Encourage frogs to your backyard: create a small shallow pond in an area that is partly shaded. Include thick ground hugging plants around part of the pond to provide areas of warmer and cooler water. Your pond will need some sunlight to encourage algae and other plants that provide food for tadpoles. Make sure the banks slope gently so that the frogs can get out. Add some rocks and logs to provide shelter for adult frogs. Put up some Frog Tubes to provide shelter for tree frogs

Make a home for invertebrates too: remember not are insects are pests. Good insects pollinate plants, break down dead flora and fauna, aerate the soil and are a food source for other wildlife. They can even help keep harmful pests away. Create an inviting environment for insects and spiders by planting plenty of native plants.

Make sure you use chemical-free pest control to maintain your animal friendly backyard.

September 4, 2020September 7, 2020

Magpie swooping season, are you ready?

Magpie chicks are starting to hatch out and 10% percentage of males will swoop people to protect their young. Peak breeding season is August through to November, and therefore Magpie swooping season has begun. Watch the video to find out about why Magpies swoop.

The Australian Magpie Gymnorhina tibicen habitat is closely linked to our recreational spaces. Magpies are found wherever there is a combination of trees and adjacent open areas, including parks and playing fields. They are absent only from the densest forests and arid deserts. This is why Magpie swooping season impacts on these recreational spaces. Find out more about these amazing birds through the Birdlife Australia or Australian Museum websites

Beautiful call of the Australian Magpie Gymnorhina tibicen

You can report swooping Magpies on this link https://www.magpiealert.com/

https://www.facebook.com/australianenvironmentaleducation/posts/352181029483206

The Magpie Whisperer wants to show the world how friendly magpies can be. Remember only 10% of magpies swoop, the rest are singing and having fun.

Find more videos of Magpies having fun and singing on the Magpie Whisperers YouTube channel.

August 13, 2020June 11, 2023

Isopod Discoveries

I love a good Isopod discovery and thought I would share this new species along with one of my favourite ones. This giant isopod was discovered in the deep ocean. My favourite is found somewhere very different!

A close-up of Bathynomus raksasa, a new species of "supergiant" isopod — A close-up of *Bathynomus raksasa*, a new species of “supergiant” isopod
©SJADE 2018

The discovery was made during the South Java Deep Sea Biodiversity Expedition 2018. The specimens were discoivered at depths between 950 and 1,260 metres. They found two specimens of this giant isopods; a male measuring 36.3 cm and a female measuring 29.8 cm. These sizes make this discovery one of the largest giant isopods ever found. Scientists have determined that they belong to a new species.

Scientist say that the size of the isopods is an example of deep-sea gigantism. This is an observation that some animals that live in the deep sea are bigger than their relatives in shallower waters or on land. Most isopods measure less than 10 mm, but the 20 species in the Bathynomus genus grow to be more than 30 times larger.

There are over 10,000 species of isopod worldwide, with around 4,500 species found in marine environments, mostly on the seabed, 500 species in fresh water, and another 5,000 species on land. But I am going to share with you my favourite; the tongue-eating isopod Cymothoa exigua.

Fish Tongue parasite — The tongue-eating isopod *Cymothoa exigua* ©University of Salford

The isopod enters fish through the gills, at this stage they are all males. One changes into a female and attaches to the tongue, sucking the blood until the tongue falls off. Being a good parasite and not wanting to kill it’s host the isopod now becomes the fishes tongue. The male attaches on the gill arches beneath and behind the female.

Find out more about these weird crustaceans in this video. If you dare!

June 10, 2020June 11, 2023

School Holiday Programs Online

Australian Environmental Education has range of new Online programs for the upcoming school holidays. 29 June – 17 July.

Virtual Excursions create unique learning experiences for students of all ages. Sydney Science Education offers a range of video conferences called Science Made Easy. Specialising in Earth and Environmental Science, Science Made Easy are hands on, interactive workshops designed to inspire your students about the natural world.

Dangerous Australian Animals

Discover some weird, wonderful and dangerous animals that live in Australia. We will explore the deserts to the sea, forests to your backyard to find out more about some of Australia’s most dangerous animals.

Time: 16 July at 1pm

Time: 17 July at 2pm

Book Now

Mysteries of the Deep

Explore the weird and wonderful marine animals with the Mysteries of the Deep workshop. Take a journey beneath the waves to uncover some of the strange animals that live in this underwater world. Learn about some of these incredible animals, their adaptions and habitats.

Time: 2pm-3pm

Date: 6 & 7 July

Book Now

Online Interactive Environmental Science activities direct to your home through Virtual Excursions.

May 28, 2020June 11, 2023

World Oceans Day

World Oceans Day is celebrated on 8 June. The theme for World Oceans Day 2020 is “Innovation for a Sustainable Ocean.” The Marine Environments is divided up into three main ecosystems; Oceans, Coral Reefs and Estuaries.

There are the five major oceans that cover the world including the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic, and Southern Oceans. Coral reefs are small in size when compared to the oceans, but around 25% of marine species live in the coral reefs ecosystems. Estuaries are areas where rivers and streams flow into the ocean. This area where freshwater and saltwater meets, creates an ecosystem diverse plant and animal life often called the ‘nurseries of the sea”.

Our oceans make up 71% of the earth’s surface and they contain the greatest diversity of life on Earth. Habitats range from the freezing polar regions to the warm waters of the coral reefs, deep sea hydrothermal vents to shallow seagrass beds and beautiful sponge gardens to giant kelp forests, marine organisms are found everywhere.

Find out ways to take action on World Ocean day

World Oceans Day 2020 VIRTUAL EVENT Innovation for a Sustainable Ocean.

There are also some great video and resources on Science Club Live.

Together We Can Protect Our Home.

Find out more with Sydney Science Education

May 25, 2020May 5, 2021

World Environment Day

World Environment Day is celebrated every 5th of June and the theme for 2020 is Celebrating Biodiversity. Biodiversity is the variety of life on Earth. It encompasses the 8 million species on the planet including plants, animals, fungi and bacteria. Biodiversity is also the diversity ecosystems across the globe, oceans, forests, alpine regions and coral reefs.

Biodiversity is at risk, we are losing species at a rate 1,000 times greater than at any other time in recorded human history. Over one million species face extinction.

Species diversity is the variety of species within an ecosystem or a region. In Australia, more than 80% of plant and animal species are endemic, which means that they only occur naturally in Australia. We usually notice mammals, birds, fish, reptiles and frogs, but they actually make up less than 1% of all animal species.

Find online programs for students and kids at home for World Environment Day.

What can you do to help Biodiversity in your Backyard?

Attracting birds to your backyard

Attract birds to your backyard by creating a garden that will provide food, shelter and nesting materials and sites. Local flowering plants and fruit trees provide birds with nectar and seeds. To provide birds with some protein rich food, use mulch to encourage worms, insects and grubs to thrive. Plant dense prickly native shrubs for shelter, hang up nesting boxes and install a bird bath.

Create a frogs friendly backyard

Encourage frogs to come to live and breed in your backyard. Create a small shallow pond in an area that is partly shaded. Include thick ground hugging plants around part of the pond to provide areas of warmer and cooler water. Your pond will need some sunlight to encourage algae and other plants that provide food for tadpoles. Make sure the banks slope gently so that the frogs can get out. Add some rocks and logs to provide shelter for adult frogs.

Minibeasts in your backyard

Not all bugs are pests. Good bugs pollinate plants, break down dead flora and fauna, aerate the soil and provide for other wildlife. They can even help keep harmful pests away. Create an inviting environment for good bugs by planting plenty of native plants, wildflowers and herbs and use chemical-free pest control when the pests do creep in.

May 20, 2020May 3, 2023

World Bee Day

World Bee Day was created to spread awareness of the significance of bees and other pollinators for our survival.

World Bee Day is celebrated on 20 May: Helping Protect our Bees

Australia has more than 1600 native bee species. There could be as many as 2000 to 3000 still to be identified. Australian native bees are wonderful pollinators, especially for our native plants.

Most Australian bees are solitary bees which raise their young in burrows in the ground or in tiny hollows in timber. Australia also has 11 species of social native bees which do not sting.

What can you to to help native Bees?

There are a lot of ways that you can create a safe habitat for your local bee. Make sure you are Bee aware and don’t use pesticides in your garden and use the information below to create bee homes.

Find out more about the importance of Native Bees

We’re Buzzing about World Bee Day!