CSIRO research vessel Investigator will arrive at Montague Island on Sunday, September 17, returning after mapping the region this time last year.
The crew will conduct daytime surveys in the area, repeating the shore-parallel transects north and south of the island that were carried out during the voyage in 2016.
Surveys will use a combination of trawls and net tows, as well as CTD (conductivity, temperature, depth) deployments.
They should finish by 3pm on Sunday (and then set sail for Sydney).
A spokesperson for the vessel said all surveys were “planned following consultation with the local fishers and fisheries managers to make sure that research activities are harmonious with commercial fishing activities in the area”.
Last September, the Marine National Facility research vessel’s swath mapper revealed coastal reefs and submarine mountains in unprecedented detail.
This year they intend to quantify the entire pelagic ecosystem from bacteria to fish and seabirds.
