Jennifer Marohasy

Some readers of this blog may recall that Louis Hissink sometimes brings up the subject of at least some oil being ‘abiogenic’ or ‘abiotic’ rather than fossil in origin. Most of us remain sceptical of such claims, which seem to be backed by anecdotal evidence at best.
However, an article published in Science on 1st February [...]

It is not often I read a book that summarizes a lot of issues that I have really wanted summarized. In fact, I think ‘Science and Public Policy – The Virtuous Corruption of Virtual Environmental Science’ by Professor Aynsley Kellow is the first.
I particularly appreciated and enjoyed chapter 2 – the political ecology of [...]

Plants that flower and fruit from their main stems or woody trunks rather than from new growth and shoots, are described as cauliflorous or cormiflorous; those that flower from the branches are ramiflorous. The Scarlet Bean (Archidendron ramiflorum ssp. Cooper Creek) is a spectacular example of both which is currently in bloom.
The buds appear [...]

Last month I suggested about 1,000 dugongs are killed each year in northern Australian waters and that this is too many. Today, ABC Online is quoting fisherman Peter Manning suggesting a figure of 1,600 dugongs. Mr Manning says all Australians should be concerned about the impact of Indigenous hunting on dugong stocks.
Read more [...]