With around only 100 of these small, peculiar fish thought to exist in the wild, the decision has been made to take a quarter of those into captivity to safeguard the population — before a worsening marine heatwave wreaks havoc.
The red handfish population has dwindled as its sole habitat — two 50 metre stretches of reef in Tasmania’s south-east — faces ongoing degradation.
In a bid to save the species – and uphold the Albanese government’s pledge of no new extinctions — Ms Plibersek has provided a “national interest exemption” under federal environment law to allow scientists to remove up to 25 handfish from its habitat in the coming weeks.
“The intervention to save the red handfish follows intensive discussions involving the Australian and Tasmanian governments and other key stakeholders including Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS),” the minister said in a press release on Saturday.
“Key biological attributes” for red handfish include that they “move by using their hands-like fins to crawl across the bottom” and the “females remain with eggs until hatching”.
Acting Tasmanian Environment Minister Nic Street said the state government would help facilitate the “short-term intervention” by issuing the appropriate permits and approvals.
The Albanese government said it had committed over $300,000 to improving the handfish’s habitat in Frederick Henry Bay, which has experienced seaweed loss due to overgrazing from sea urchins.
The original article contains 415 words, the summary contains 187 words. Saved 55%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
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The red handfish population has dwindled as its sole habitat — two 50 metre stretches of reef in Tasmania’s south-east — faces ongoing degradation.
In a bid to save the species – and uphold the Albanese government’s pledge of no new extinctions — Ms Plibersek has provided a “national interest exemption” under federal environment law to allow scientists to remove up to 25 handfish from its habitat in the coming weeks.
“The intervention to save the red handfish follows intensive discussions involving the Australian and Tasmanian governments and other key stakeholders including Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS),” the minister said in a press release on Saturday.
“Key biological attributes” for red handfish include that they “move by using their hands-like fins to crawl across the bottom” and the “females remain with eggs until hatching”.
Acting Tasmanian Environment Minister Nic Street said the state government would help facilitate the “short-term intervention” by issuing the appropriate permits and approvals.
The Albanese government said it had committed over $300,000 to improving the handfish’s habitat in Frederick Henry Bay, which has experienced seaweed loss due to overgrazing from sea urchins.
The original article contains 415 words, the summary contains 187 words. Saved 55%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!