All articles tagged with #western australia
Rio Tinto and partners will invest A$28 million over five years to create a 7,500-square-kilometer containment zone in Western Australia, aiming to stop poisonous cane toads from reaching the iron ore-rich Pilbara region by cutting off their access to artificial water sources.
A new review in the journal Alcheringa highlights that microbialites, Earth’s oldest visible evidence of life, are critically vulnerable. While Western Australia preserves records spanning 3.5 billion years, living and fossil sites face damage from tourism, climate change, and poor geoheritage protection.
Unusually heavy winter rains in Western Australia triggered a massive wildflower bloom in the Murchison region, transforming the arid landscape into a vibrant green and colorful expanse. NASA Landsat 8 satellite imagery from August 2025 and 2026 highlights this dramatic shift, which local experts describe as the most significant floral event in nearly two decades. The bloom, driven by dormant seeds germinating after months of above-average rainfall, even extended into the grounds of the CSIRO Murchison Radio-astronomy Observatory, where several threatened plant species were observed. While the region is known for its radio quiet zone supporting deep-space research, the 2026 event showcased a rare terrestrial spectacle alongside Australia's ongoing contributions to NASA missions like Artemis II.
The Jack Hills in Western Australia contain zircon grains dating to 4.4 billion years ago, making them the oldest known rocks on Earth. These minerals, found in 3-billion-year-old sandstone, provide direct evidence of the planet's first crust and indicate the presence of surface water shortly after Earth formed, suggesting early conditions were cooler and potentially habitable.
A decomposing 13-metre whale carcass has forced the closure of City Beach in Perth, Western Australia, after attracting multiple sharks to the shoreline. Authorities are preparing to remove the 31-tonne carcass using heavy machinery, while fisheries officers attempt to tag sharks lured by the decomposing remains. The incident has drawn large crowds of onlookers, prompting officials to urge the public to stay away and stop flying drones near the site.
Greg O'Neill, 63, died after a suspected great white shark attack at Sorrento Beach in Perth on Friday. The incident triggered a rare catch-and-kill order for the protected species, with authorities closing local beaches to search for the animal and the victim's remains.
Greg O'Neill, 63, died after a great white shark attack at Sorrento Beach in Perth, Western Australia, on Friday. Authorities have closed local beaches and issued a rare catch-and-kill order for the suspected shark, which is a protected species. O'Neill's body has not yet been recovered, and police are patrolling the coastline with boats and helicopters. The incident is the third fatal shark attack in the state this year and the fifth in Australia overall.
A 63-year-old man was killed by a great white shark at Sorrento Beach in Western Australia, prompting authorities to issue a rare catch-and-kill order. The victim, identified as Greg O'Neill, was attacked in front of witnesses, and beaches remain closed as police search for the shark and the body.
A 63-year-old man died after being attacked by a shark at Sorrento Beach in Perth, Western Australia, on Friday. The Western Australian government has authorized the destruction of the specific shark if it is captured, citing an ongoing threat. Emergency services conducted extensive searches, but the victim's body has not yet been recovered. This incident adds to a series of fatal shark attacks in Australia this year.
A man in his 60s died after being attacked by a shark while swimming off Sorrento Beach in Perth, Western Australia, on September 18, 2026. Authorities confirmed the death and launched a search operation involving police boats and a helicopter. The incident adds to a series of fatal shark attacks in Australia this year, prompting renewed concerns about ocean safety.
A new study from Edith Cowan University confirms that natural hydrogen can be generated when hot water reacts with magnetite in Western Australia's iron ore deposits. Lab experiments showed that fractured magnetite powder produces five times more hydrogen than solid slabs, highlighting the importance of rock permeability. While the findings suggest a massive potential energy reserve, significant challenges remain in extraction and scaling.
A tiger shark successfully hunted a sea turtle off the coast of Western Australia, an event captured from both aerial and boat perspectives by Ningaloo Marine Interactions. The rare footage highlights the shark's cautious approach and the turtle's defensive maneuvers, underscoring the need for respect toward apex predators.
Scientists tracking Carnaby’s black cockatoos in Western Australia’s Wheatbelt over three breeding seasons found pesticides in about 80% of seed samples from feeding sites near grain silos, with some samples hundreds of times above legal limits and 26 pesticides detected including neurotoxic chemicals. GPS data showed birds repeatedly visiting contaminated feeding areas, linking exposure to CHiPS (Carnaby’s Hindlimb Paralysis Syndrome). The study calls for a review of Australian pesticide regulations and suggests simple industry changes, like better grain handling and spill cleanup at silos, to reduce wildlife exposure.
Western Australia has ordered a lockdown of poultry farms after the mainland emergence of H5N1 bird flu, confirmed in wild birds near Esperance (a brown skua and a giant petrel). Ingham’s Group halted access to operations and pushed for indoor housing of free-range stock, while authorities say there is no current evidence of spread to poultry; the outbreak has sparked widespread wildlife reports, government preparedness efforts, and market attention to the affected company.
Two sick brown skua and giant petrel found on Western Australia’s southern coast tested positive for H5N1 avian influenza and died, marking Australia’s first detections and prompting heightened surveillance amid fears of a broader wildlife outbreak. Experts say there’s no confirmed spread yet, but seabirds could transport the virus as they forage offshore. People should avoid handling dead or sick birds and report sightings via the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline.