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Factors affecting fertilizer decisions made by grain growers are changing in the context of changing climatic conditions and growing volatility in global fertilizer and grain markets. To ensure sustainable development of grain industries in light of this uncertainty, research, development, extension, and adoption activities associated with growers' fertilizer decisions need to be focused on factors to which they are most sensitive. The aim of this paper is to understand the factors that have the greatest influence on grain producer's fertilizer strategies, how these factors have changed over recent years, and what is the relative importance of agronomic, socioeconomic, and logistical factors affecting these strategies. A telephone survey of 425 grain-growing businesses in Western Australia was conducted, and survey results were analyzed statistically. We show for the first time that grain growers' fertilizer decisions are most sensitive to agronomic factors (especially the amount and distribution of rainfall). Logistic factors (such as difficulties fertilizing increasing areas in short periods of time) are growing in influence as farm size, cropping areas, and the number of fertilizer applications within seasons increase. Fertilizer decisions have become less sensitive to socioeconomic factors over the last 10 to 15 years. To ensure sustainable development of grain production, research through to adoption activities should focus on agronomic issues (such as seasonal forecasting) and logistic issues (such as improving planning, organizational, and technical capacity for developing and implementing fertilizer strategies). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drought is a significant natural hazard in Australia, associated with financial hardship and damage to soils and vegetation. With droughts expected to become more frequent and more severe as climate change progresses, it is increasingly important to identify drought risk and assess community-level drought resilience at the appropriate spatial, temporal and administrative scale for decision-making. Here, we have used spatial multi-criteria analysis (MCA) to identify regional priority areas for the implementation of drought resilience interventions or investment in southwest Western Australia (WA). The MCA method involves the systematic integration of spatial data of different magnitudes and units through standardisation and weighting, and the visualisation of aggregated data to a single parameter output map. The study region is home to the WA grains industry, the largest agricultural contributor to the economy and one of the regions most impacted by climate change in Australia to date, experiencing consistent reduction in rainfall and recurrent drought over the last several decades. We modelled drought exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity for the region, incorporating spatially explicit climate, environmental, social and economic data, and produced a suite of priority areas maps that were sense-checked against a participatory mapping process. The maps highlight the northern and eastern Wheatbelt of WA as areas at high risk from drought and have the potential to serve as a powerful tool for local-level drought resilience decision-making. Most of the data we used are publicly available, and the vulnerability framework applied allows for wide replication within and beyond southwest WA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Third-party rainfall observations could provide an improvement of the current official observation network for rainfall monitoring. Although third-party weather stations can provide large quantities of near-real-time rainfall observations at fine temporal and spatial resolutions, the quality of these data is susceptible due to variations in quality control applied and there is a need to provide greater confidence in them. In this study, we develop an automatic quality evaluation procedure for daily rainfall observations collected from third-party stations in near real time. Australian Gridded Climate Data (AGCD) and radar Rainfields data have been identified as two reliable data sources that can be used for assessing third-party observations in Australia. To achieve better model interpretability and scalability, these reference data sources are used to provide separate tests rather than a complex single test on a third-party data point. Based on the assumption that the error of a data source follows a Gaussian distribution after a log-sinh transformation, each test issues a p-value-based confidence score as a measure of quality and the confidence of the third-party data observation. The maximum of confidence scores from individual tests is used to merge these tests into a single result which provides overall assessment. We validate our method with synthetic datasets based on high-quality rainfall observations from 100 Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) of Australia stations across Australia and apply it to evaluate real third-party rainfall observations owned by the Department of Primary Industries and regional development (DPIRD) of Western Australia. Our method works well with the synthetic datasets and can detect 76.7% erroneous data while keeping the false alarm rate as low as 1.7%. We also discuss the possibility of using other reference datasets, such as numerical weather prediction data and satellite rainfall data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The importance of recognising, valuing and respecting a child's family, culture, language and values is increasingly articulated in educational policy. Diversity and inclusion are central themes of the guiding principles of early childhood education and care in Australia. Children's literature can be a powerful tool for extending children's knowledge and understandings of themselves and others who may be different culturally, socially or historically. However, evidence suggests many settings provide monocultural book collections which are counterproductive to principles of diversity. This paper reports on a larger study investigating factors and relationships influencing the use of children's literature to support principles of cultural diversity in the kindergarten rooms of long day care centres. The study was conducted within an ontological perspective of constructivism and an epistemological perspective of interpretivism informed by sociocultural theory. A mixed methods approach was adopted and convergent design was employed to interpret significant relationships and their meanings. Twenty-four educators and 110 children from four long day care centres in Western Australia participated. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, video-based observations, field notes, document analysis and a book audit. This study identified that current book collections in these four kindergarten rooms of long day care centres promote monocultural viewpoints and 'othering' of minority groups through limited access to books portraying inclusive and authentic cultural diversity. These findings have important social justice implications. The outcomes of this study have implications for educators, policy makers, early childhood organisations and those providing higher education and training for early childhood educators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on teacher formation emphasises the need for teachers in Catholic schools to be involved in ongoing, purposeful, professional and spiritual formation (Franchi and Rymarz 2017). Contextually, Catholic Education Western Australia (CEWA) requires teachers of Religious Education (RE) in Catholic schools to participate in ongoing professional development, including opportunities for spiritual and faith formation. This paper presents initial findings from a project that engaged twelve Catholic early childhood RE teachers from one Western Australian school in a series of formative sessions. The project was named The T.I.T.U.S. (Testament In Teachers Using Scripture) Project and comprised four sessions that offered teachers opportunities for spiritual and faith formation through the use of Scripture. A qualitative approach to the research design was employed and data gathered included survey, journaling and semi-structured interviews. Data were analysed through a process of thematic coding. The initial findings provide insight into early childhood RE teachers' perspectives of their own spiritual and faith formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Australian government funding for Residential Medication Management Reviews and Home Medicines Reviews commenced in 1997 and 2001 respectively. Limited data are available on their provision in Australia. Objective To investigate the extent and characteristics of Home Medicines Review and Residential Medication Management Review services provided by accredited pharmacists practising in Western Australia. Setting Pharmacists in Western Australia accredited by the Australian Association of Consultant Pharmacy or Society of Hospital Pharmacists of Australia. Method A paper questionnaire was developed and sent to 198 accredited pharmacists in Western Australia in June 2017. Simple descriptive statistics summarised demographic information and other responses. Logistic regression evaluated factors associated with the frequency of provision of Home Medicines Reviews. Main outcome measure Frequency and factors influencing services provided. Results Of 102 (51.5%) questionnaires returned, 67 (65.7%) respondents were female. Many were aged between 31 and 40 years (53; 52.0%). Most were accredited by the Australian Association of Consultant Pharmacy (101; 99.0%) and mainly offered Home Medicines Reviews (70; 68.6%). Home Medicines Reviews provided over the previous 12 months were limited in frequency with one quarter providing either 1-10 (27; 26.5%) or 21-50 (28; 27.5%) reviews. The median "average" preparation, interview and report writing times, plus communication with other health professionals aggregated to 175.0 min (interquartile range: 140.0-235.0 min) for Home Medicine Reviews and 110.0 min (90.0-140.0) for Residential Medication Management Reviews. Pharmacists born overseas and those who were accredited for a longer time were associated with performing 51 or more Home Medicines Reviews annually. Only one-third (36/101; 35.6%) agreed the current payment was appropriate. Most agreed their Home Medicines Reviews (92/96; 95.8%) and Residential Medication Management Reviews (26/28; 92.9%) provided improved patient outcomes. Over 97% of accredited pharmacists intended to continue to remain accredited. Conclusions Wide variations were evident in the times taken for tasks associated with performing reviews. Most respondents considered their medication reviews contributed to improved patient outcomes. The wide variation in times taken for the reviews suggests a tiered structure for service provision, with appropriate payment within each tier, since most consider current remuneration inadequate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anticyclones are one of the main synoptic features of the global midlatitudes, where they are associated with dry, settled conditions. Previous studies have identified southern Australia as a region where significant long-term changes have occurred in recent decades, including a decline in cool season rainfall and an increase in the frequency of anticyclones. This paper uses several reanalyses to assess the climatology, variability, trends and impacts of anticyclones in southern Australia and several subregions. A robust increase in the frequency of anticyclones in southern Australia is demonstrated between 1960–1979 and 1997–2014, particularly in southeast Australia and the Tasman Sea during the cool months of the year. At least 30% of the recent cool season rainfall decline in southeast Australia can be associated with an increased frequency of anticyclones in this region. However, there are no clear trends in anticyclone frequency near southwestern Western Australia, where long-term rainfall declines are due to changes in other weather systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the experiences of students from refugee backgrounds (SfRBs) as they transitioned from Intensive English Centres (IECs) based at metropolitan high schools in Western Australia (WA) into higher education. Focus group discussions revealed that SfRBs were highly motivated and held aspirations for completion of tertiary study. Enabling factors included a supportive IEC environment, social and family support and tailored university enabling courses. However, students also faced barriers such as competing priorities, learning difficulties remaining undiagnosed and standardised testing. Individual in-depth interviews with key informants provided context and policy perspectives, such as the impact of settlement service policy changes on the provision of adequate services. There is limited literature on the experiences of students transitioning from IECs through the Australian education system. The findings of this study help to critically understand the unique experiences of young people from refugee backgrounds navigating the WA education system and reiterate the need for inclusive and supportive policies. Recommendations for universities and future research include the development of culturally appropriate tools to identify learning difficulties in SfRBs, and capturing the knowledge and capacity of IEC educators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traditional burning regimes have long been employed to enhance biodiversity and mitigate high-intensity wildfires. The link between changes in the distribution, success, and timing of breeding in seabirds and climatic and oceanographic variation in the marine environment has been established, with migratory seabirds less able to respond to climate variability than resident species. While climate-driven changes can also occur on seabird breeding islands, few data are available regarding potential impacts. Here we investigate the frequency and severity of bushfires on seabird breeding islands in Western Australia, regarding the 2020 fire on Figure of Eight Island in the Recherche Archipelago. A lack of quantitative, historical surveys limited our ability to quantify the number of shearwaters lost in this event. However, a review of available data suggests thousands of birds die due to burning every one or two years across the Archipelago. On Figure of Eight, shearwater burrow occupancy and density were low 12 months post-burn (0.25 and 0.02 ± 0.03, respectively), with minimal evidence of recovery (very few burrows detected) 23 months post-burn. We discuss opportunities to develop an adaptive, community-based program for reinstating collaborative, cultural methods of fire management and monitoring regimes on seabird breeding islands in Australia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multi-decadal ocean time-series are fundamental baselines for assessing the impacts of environmental change, however, compiling and quality controlling historic data from multiple sources remains challenging. Here we aggregate, document, and release a number of long time-series temperature products and climatologies compiled from data obtained at 4 monitoring sites around Australia where sub-surface ocean temperature has been recorded nominally weekly to monthly since the 1940s/50s. In recent years, the sampling was augmented with data obtained from moored sensors, vertical profiles and satellite-derived data. The temperature data have been quality controlled, and combined using a rigorously tested methodology. We have packaged the multi-decadal, multi-depth, multi-platform temperature time-series at each site and produced a range of daily temperature climatologies from different data combinations and time periods. The 17 data products are provided as CF-compliant NetCDF files and will be updated periodically. The long-term temperature time-series will be useful for studies of ocean temperature variability, trends, anomalies and change. The data collection is supported by Australia's Integrated Marine Observing System and data are open-access. Measurement(s) temperature of water • temperature of sea surface Technology Type(s) ocean time series station • satellite • ship-based water sampling • ship-based CTD profiles Sample Characteristic - Environment coastal sea water • sea water environment • continental shelf Sample Characteristic - Location Australia • Tasman Sea coastal waters of continental Australia • Western Australia [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Significant growth in the size of gold Resources on many mines of the Yilgarn Craton has occurred well after the deposit was discovered and after mining had commenced. Examples include the Kalgoorlie and Norseman goldfields found more than a century ago and the Jundee and Sunrise goldfields discovered in the 1990s. The initial discovery event is referred to as greenfields exploration, and the later additions as brownfields exploration. For the Yilgarn Craton, annual Resource additions have significantly exceeded mine depletion since 1980. Brownfields exploration enjoys economic benefits not available to greenfields exploration such as reduced infrastructure and regulatory costs. In Australia, criticism of the exploration and mining industry for failing to find deposits is misplaced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Vegetation patterns in hummock grasslands of Australia's arid interior can be very complex. Additionally, the grasslands are interspersed with variable amounts of trees and shrubs. Objectives: To better understand the spatial arrangement of this vegetation structure, and in particular the unvegetated bare-soil gaps, we analyzed the scale-dependent patterns of gaps, trees, and shrubs. Methods: We focused on two size categories of grassland gaps, large gaps ≥ 4 m2 known as fairy circles (FCs) and small gaps 1 to < 4 m2, and on trees and shrubs. We mapped four 200 m × 200 m study plots located east of the town of Newman in Western Australia, using drone-based aerial images and LiDAR. The RGB images were converted into binary images and the gaps and woody plants were automatically segmented. The spatial patterns of the four vegetation components were analyzed, as well as the shape properties of the vegetation gaps. Results: The most striking result was that small gaps appeared consistently at about 5 m distance away from the FCs, which are known as the most water-depleted locations in the grassland. The FCs were also rounder than the small gaps and this symmetry underlines their function as an extra source of water for the surrounding matrix vegetation. Trees and shrubs had spatial patterns that were unrelated to FCs, which likely results from their water uptake in deeper sub-soil layers. Conclusions: The consistent distance of small gaps to FCs is further support that the Australian fairy circles are a self-organized vegetation pattern that results from ecohydrological feedbacks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Participatory scenario planning (PSP) has mainly concerned scenario development and outreach, with less emphasis on scenario assessment. However, eliciting stakeholder responses to scenarios, focusing on subjective wellbeing, can increase the legitimacy, relevance, and applicability of PSP. We developed a PSP exercise with a multi-stakeholder, cross-cultural group in the Fitzroy River (Martuwarra) basin in Western Australia. Four scenarios were developed collaboratively, each describing alternative development pathways in the basin by 2050. We held two scenario assessment workshops: a multi-stakeholder workshop and a workshop with Traditional Owners (Aboriginal Australians) only. We first asked participants to consider and discuss the current situation in the basin regarding how well nine categories of wellbeing were satisfied. Then, for each scenario, participants assessed and scored the change in each wellbeing category relative to the current situation. Participants' ratings followed a similar pattern in both workshops, except for the scenario with strong policy and increased large-scale irrigation, which was scored mostly positively by the multi-stakeholder group, and mostly negatively by Traditional Owners. We identified different discourses that help to explain these results: (a) scenarios with large-scale agriculture, or with poorly regulated development, would increase the money circulating in the region, and benefits would trickle down to local communities through employment, enhancing most wellbeing categories; and (b) such modes of development might create jobs but could negatively impact other areas of wellbeing, potentially affecting culturally or environmentally significant places and increasing social inequities. We discuss how these results can support planning in the region, and how trade-offs were approached. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reducing the damage caused by feral cats (Felis catus) to wildlife, livestock and human health is a key objective for many land managers and human health agencies globally. The lack of safe and efficacious lethal control tools in many regions, however, makes the control of feral cats and their impacts challenging. We performed a baiting trial in central Queensland to measure the efficacy and safety of Eradicat®, a feral cat bait currently approved for use only in the state of Western Australia, as a potential tool for the broadscale control of feral cats in eastern Australian environments. We used camera traps, cat-borne GPS collars and chemical residue analysis to monitor mortality and changes in feral cat populations following baiting. We also used camera traps and bird count surveys to monitor the response of key at-risk non-target species, specifically wild dogs (Canis familiaris), common brush-tailed possums (Trichosurus vulpecula) and 10 bird species at risk of consuming baits. Feral cat abundance reduced significantly (29–40%) following baiting, with reductions observed across 83% of the site. There were no significant changes in wild dog, possum or potentially bait-consuming bird populations following baiting. Our findings suggest that Eradicat® could potentially be a safe and efficacious tool for the landscape control of feral cats at some sites in eastern Australia. Future research is required to test the safety and efficacy of Eradicat® at other sites in eastern Australia, as suites of non-target species will vary among sites in different environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Interdecadal changes, over the last seventy years, in winter synoptic weather systems that grow and decay in the extratropical storm tracks of the Southern Hemisphere are investigated. The statistics of the intensity of growing and decaying eddies, and their preferred structures and growth rates, are determined from 6-hourly lower-tropospheric reanalysis data for high-pass filtered (period less than 4 days) and band-pass filtered (period between 4 and 8 days) disturbances. A new data-driven methodology is used in which the perturbations are spectrally analysed in both space and time, their growth rates are calculated and statistics are accumulated for growing and decaying instabilities. Rainfall variability in Southern Australia is found to be closely related to the changing statistics of weather system intensity and to interannual and decadal variability in indices or predictors that characterize local, hemispheric or global aspects of the atmospheric circulation. In investigations into the mid-1970s drying of southwestern Western Australia, the Australian Millennium Drought and Southern Australian rainfall anomalies of the early twenty-first century it is found that decadal changes in rainfall are most related to the intensity of the fast growing weather systems. Two new indices, the Subtropical Atmospheric Jet (SAJ) index and the Southern Ocean Regional Dipole (SORD) index, are introduced and shown to have some skill in characterizing aspects of Southern Australian winter rainfall variability particularly on decadal timescales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eucalyptus polybractea has been planted as a short-rotation coppice crop for bioenergy in Western Australia. Historical breeding selections were based on sapling biomass and despite a long history as a coppice crop, the genetic parameters of coppicing are unknown. Here, we assessed sapling biomass at ages 3 and 6 from three progeny trials across southern Australia. After the second sapling assessment, all trees were harvested. Coppice biomass was assessed 3.5 years later. Mortality following harvest was between 1 and 2%. Additive genetic variance for the 6-sapling estimate at one site was not significant. Sapling heritabilities were between 0.06 and 0.36 at 3 years, and 0.18 and 0.20 at 6 years. The heritability for the coppice biomass was between 0.07 and 0.17. Within-site genetic and phenotypic correlations were strong between all biomass assessments. Cross-site correlations were not different from unity. Selections based on net breeding values revealed positive gains in sapling and coppice biomass. Lower or negative gains were estimated if 3-year sapling selections were applied to the coppice assessments (−7.1% to 3.4%) with useful families culled. Positive gains were obtained if 6-year sapling selections were applied to the coppice assessment (6.4% to 9.3%) but these were lower than those obtained by applying coppice selections to the coppice assessment (8.4% to 14.8%). Removal of poor performing families and families that displayed fast sapling growth rates but under-performed as coppice will benefit potential coppice production. These results indicate that selections should be made using coppice data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Nematodes were found in the digestive tracts of 15 short-beaked echidnas Tachyglossus aculeatus (Shaw, 1792) collected from southwestern Australia between August 1964 and March 2020. Methods: Specimens were prepared for microscopic examination as temporary wet mounts, measurements were made, figures prepared using a drawing tube and light micrographs taken. All nematodes were identified to at least genus level and a bootstrap analysis of the helminth community was carried out. Results: Two previously described species, one species identified to genus and one new nematode species were recovered, including Nicollina ridei (Nicollinidae), Parapharyngodon anomalus (Pharyngodonidae), Parastrongyloides sp. (Strongyloididae) and Echidnonema coronorum n. g., n. sp. (Subuluridae, Echidnonematinae n. sf.). Echidnonema coronorum n. sp. can be distinguished from all other subulurids in having a mouth encircled by six leaf-like elements separated by six small pointed elements. The buccal complex is also unique to this species and is composed of three parts, including an anterior buccal capsule and a posterior pharyngeal portion divided into two; the proximal part contains lobes which are ornamented with numerous irregular teeth. A bootstrap estimate of species richness of 99.9% indicated that there were few, if any, additional species to be discovered in the southwestern Australian population of short-beaked echidnas. Conclusion: Morphological analysis supports the status of E. coronorum as a new species and the erection of the Echidnonematinae as a new subfamily to accommodate it. The helminth community of the population of short-beaked echidnas studied appears to be depauperate and contains species unique to the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Water Alternating Gas (WAG) process is a cyclic process of injecting alternating water followed by gas. The main purpose of WAG injection is to improve both macroscopic and microscopic sweep efficiency, maintaining nearly initial high pressure, slow down the gas breakthrough and reduced oil viscosity. WAG injection also decreases the residual oil saturation resulted from the flow of three phases and effects associated with relative permeability hysteresis. The study area is in the Cornea Field located in Browse Basin, Western Australia. This study is conducted because there is no investigation on WAG injection feasibility in this field. In this study, two-phase bounding imbibition and drainage relative permeability model (Stone 1 and Stone 2) along with two-phase hysteresis model (Land, Carlson or Killough) were used. From the result, Carlson two-phase hysteresis model with Stone 1 correlation shows more oil was recovered. Therefore, it is a feasible model to be used compared with other models. From sensitivity analysis, it shows that highest oil was recovered at WAG ratio 1:1. Since it is a miscible reservoir, 1:1 ratio is more efficient and it is insensitive to trapping. Also, oil production increased with the shortest WAG cycle time at 180 days due to minimum miscibility pressure reached. In addition, it is best to inject water as the first phase to be injected into the reservoir compared to CO 2 because water has high mobility ratio while CO 2 can result in early breakthrough in the reservoir. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is the first in a pair investigating potential mechanisms for ecological regime change in salinising wetlands. In this first paper, we investigated some of the factors responsible for the formation and maintenance of a macrophyte-dominated ecological regime by studying the germination and flowering of four submerged macrophyte species common in saline Western Australian wetlands; Ruppia polycarpa R. Mason, Ruppia megacarpa R. Mason, Lamprothamnium macropogon (A. Braun) Ophel and L. cf. succinctum (A. Braun in Ascherson) Wood, and by following the survival of adult R. polycarpa as salinities were increased to a range of endpoints (6, 15, 45, 70 and 100 ppt). Increased salinity led to a decrease in the number of germinating plants, an increase in the time to emergence of germinating plants and a decrease in the number of inflorescences (or fertile plants) produced by R. polycarpa, L. macropogon and L. cf. succinctum. Germination of R. megacarpa was low, providing limited information with regard to salinity response. The survival of adult plants also decreased as salinity increased and was negatively affected by faster rates of salinity increase. The upper salinity limits for germination, within the 70 day experiment, were 40–50 ppt for R. polycarpa and L. cf. succinctum, and 30–40 ppt for L. macropogon. Survival of adult R. polycarpa also declined markedly at above 45 ppt. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is a study of ethical and moral behavior, or perhaps unethical behavior, in two different societies. One society, contemporary Australia and in particular the state of Western Australia, is currently undergoing an exhaustive Royal Commission into the shenanigans of a number of well-known business men and former leading politicians who seem to have been playing fast and loose with large amounts of other peoples' money. While this was initially the major focus of the paper, a secondary focus developed based on the interest shown in acquiring an historical background by a group of business policy students. The opportunity to acquire an appreciation of historical events and in particular, the development of a sense of history seems to be lacking in the curricula of modern day business students. The secondary focus of the paper therefore illustrated that malfeasance, misfeasance and other forms of malpractice in business and administration were just as common in Greco-Roman times as today. In this context, reference has been made to a selection of the writings of some of the more well-known writers of this period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The central Australian Musgrave Province at the junction of the South, North and West Australian cratons has undergone and continues to retain evidence of significant whole-of-crust, and most likely 'whole-of-lithosphere' tectono-magmatic processes. The area is known for some of the largest geophysical anomalies related to significant Moho offsets of up to 15 km, which resulted from repeated intracratonic reworking since the Neoproterozoic. New magnetotelluric (MT) data have been collected across the Musgrave Province in Western Australia and South Australia as part of the Australian Lithospheric Architecture Magnetotelluric Project (AusLAMP). Station spacing was ∼ 50 km between 96 sites over an area of 500 × 700 km. Long-period MT impedance and tipper data over a bandwidth of 8 s to 10,000 s period have been inverted using a smooth 3D inverse algorithm. The 3D model shows two predominant resistivity trends. There are deep ( > 65 km ) north–south mantle conductors that we infer to be related to the Palaeo- to Mesoproterozoic north-trending arc-related rocks that experienced ultra-high temperature metamorphism and widespread magmatism during the Mesoproterozoic Musgravian Orogeny. These conductors are preserved in the crust south of the Musgrave Province. The upper mantle also contains a localised resistive zone that possibly represents generation of mafic- to ultramafic magmas during the c. 1090–1040 Ma Giles Event. The crust ( < 65 km depth) contains strong east–west crustal conductors interpreted to reflect the east–west structural grain that initiated during the c. 1090–1040 Ma Giles Event and overprinted the older N–S-oriented mantle anomalies. These E–W crustal conductors coincide with magnetic anomalies that represent crustal-scale structures, and high gravity anomalies associated with significant Moho offsets resulting from further reactivation during the c. 630–520 Ma Petermann and c. 450–300 Ma Alice Springs orogenies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The focused area in this study is in the Cornea Field located in the Yampi Shelf, north-eastern Browse Basin, Australia. The field was stated to be an elongated unfaulted drape anticline over highly eroded basement. From the literature and seismic data, faults die at the basement in the Cornea Field. Therefore, no faults were considered previously. The tectonic activity was not apparent in the area with only deformation by gravitational movements and compaction in the basement zone. However, fault might present in the reservoir and seal depth as time passed. Therefore, the aim of this study is to simulate the Cornea field with faults, to determine the effect of fault transmissibility on oil production. The study shows that the fault permeability and fault displacement thickness ratio have a close relationship with fault transmissibility. The fault transmissibility increases when fault permeability and fault displacement thickness ratio increase. Transmissibility multiplier was also considered in this study. The fault transmissibility increases with the increase in transmissibility multiplier, thus the oil production. This study contributes to the gap present in the research of the Cornea Field with fault structure, where it is important to consider fault existence during exploration and production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metasedimentary rock-hosted heavy rare earth element (HREE) mineralization occurs as numerous orebodies distributed across a large district of the Tanami region of central Australia, close to a regional unconformity between Archean metasedimentary rocks of the Browns Range Metamorphics (BRM) and overlying Proterozoic Birrindudu Group sandstones. The orebodies consist predominantly of quartz, xenotime, and minor florencite and occur along steeply dipping structures within a stockwork of hydrothermal veins and breccias. Paragenetic stages of the mineralization include (1) a pre-ore stage of a greenschist-facies overprint of detrital minerals including quartz, alkali feldspar, plagioclase, and muscovite aligned in the premineralization foliation; (2) syn-ore quartz and white mica alteration associated with a multistage mineralization of the ore minerals, primarily in breccias and veins; and (3) a post-ore stage of veining and brecciation forming several generations of quartz, plus hematite, barite, anhydrite, and pyrite. In situ U–Pb dating of xenotime from several deposits/prospects yielded an age range for mineralization of 1.65 to 1.60 Ga; this timeframe lacks local magmatism or orogeny and is significantly younger than the ca. 1.72 Ga 40Ar/39Ar age of the pre-ore muscovite. Far-field stresses associated with the distal Isan and Liebig Orogenies are invoked as drivers of large-scale fluid flow and fault (re)activation in the region. We propose that ore formation was achieved via fluid leaching of REE from the BRM, followed by fluid mixing in fault zones, especially in the vicinity of the unconformity between the BRM and overlying Birrindudu Group sandstones. This mineralization style shares many features with unconformity-related U deposits, and there is significant potential for discovery of further REE orebodies of this style, especially in the vicinity of regional unconformities, in intercontinental sedimentary basins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The chemical and anti-nutritional, antioxidative and anti-microbial properties of seeds from Acacia cyclops, Acacia microbotrya and Acacia victoriae(which are legumes) traditionally consumed by indigenous Western Australians were studied for the first time for their potential as commercial food components. A. microbotrya (2.7 CIU/g) (α < 0.05) had the highest α-chymotrypsin inhibitor activity, while A. victoriae (0.3 ± 0.03) had the highest trypsin inhibitor activity. Both A. microbotrya (0.2 ± 0.02) and A. victoriae (0.2 ± 0.08) had significantly higher oxalate content than A. cyclops. The anti-microbial properties of wattle seed extracts against the foodborne pathogens Bacillus cereus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella Typhimurium and Staphylococcus aureus were determined. A. cyclops demonstrated the greatest anti-microbial activity against all the microorganisms studied. A. microbotrya had significantly higher amounts of protein (27.2%), fat (3.4%), fibre (49.2 mg/100 g), iron (5.2 mg/100 g), potassium (1275.5 mg/100 g) and zinc (3.8 mg/100 g) than the other two Acacia species. A. victoriae had the highest DPPH equivalent antioxidant activity (37.1%). The wattle seeds studied are higher in protein, dietary fiber, zinc and potassium compared to some commonly consumed legumes such as lentils and chickpeas. Incorporation of wattle seed in to food may provide additional health benefits to consumers. Their ability to inhibit foodborne bacteria means they may have potential as a natural food additive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Persistent shifts in mean rainfall have wide-ranging impacts to hydrology and water availability, and a reliable set of climate projections of change to mean rainfall is a useful tool for future planning. Most climate models project a decrease in winter rainfall in southern Australia, however there is a wide model range and there is not yet a robust assessment of underlying physical processes that can inform and constrain projections. Here, a multiple linear regression model between indices of atmospheric circulation and gridded rainfall in observations and in CMIP5 climate models is developed for July, representing the peak of winter. The regression is used as an evaluation tool for models and a basis to select models. Spatial distributions of the coefficients from the regression illustrate the relative important of different circulation features for rainfall across the region, and illustrate where climate models have deficiencies. As an additional check of projections, historical years that are an analogue for the projected future mean state of the atmospheric circulation are identified and the rainfall anomaly during those years is examined. Both approaches broadly agree and support previous work in suggesting a constraint on rainfall change to a decrease only. The regression analysis also suggests that the median projection for southwest Western Australia should be revised lower than the median of all climate models. The results demonstrate value in applying statistical techniques to understand relationships of rainfall to circulation and to refine confidence in regional climate projections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the paragenesis and ore mineral composition of xenotime [(Y,HREE)PO4] and florencite [LREEAl3(PO4)2(OH)6] from heavy rare earth element (HREE) deposits/prospects of the Tanami and Hall Creek regions of Western Australia. Two stages of xenotime-(Y) formation are recognized: (1) early xenotime-(Y) in breccias (breccia-hosted) and in quartz-xenotime-(Y) veins (vein-type); and (2) late xenotime-(Y) that occurs largely as dipyramidal-shaped overgrowths on the pre-existing early xenotime-(Y). Similarly, florencite-(Ce) formed in two stages including: (1) early florencite-(Ce) that coexists with and is enclosed by early xenotime-(Y) within mineralized veins; and (2) late florencite-(Ce) that replaces early xenotime-(Y), or appears as narrow rims on early florencite-(Ce). All xenotime-(Y) types from a number of examined HREE deposits/prospects are characterized by elevated U contents and marked negative Eu anomalies that we interpret to be inherited from the metasedimentary rocks from which REE and P required for the phosphate ore mineralization, were sourced. Compared to the early xenotime-(Y), the late xenotime-(Y) is richer in HREE and depleted in P, owing to the formation of the coexisting late florencite-(Ce). Moreover, early florencite-(Ce) has a near end-member florencite (s.s.) composition similar to those associated with unconformity-related U deposits, whereas late florencite-(Ce) sits on the florencite-svanbergite compositional spectrum. The high U content of xenotime-(Y) and composition of early florencite-(Ce) potentially support a genetic association between the HREE mineralization and the coeval unconformity-related U deposits of northern Australia. Nevertheless, we also urge for caution in using xenotime-(Y) composition in isolation as an indicator of geological setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Australian population data regarding the number and sociodemographic characteristics of children affected by a parent's cancer are not currently available. Moreover, predictions that this population is increasing have not been tested. This study provides data on the number and sociodemographic characteristics of parents with cancer and their young children (aged 0-11 years) in the state of Western Australia, and investigates whether long-term trends in this population have increased over time.Methods: Linked administrative data were used to describe parents with malignant cancer and their children aged 0-11 years at the time of diagnosis between 1982 and 2015 in Western Australia. Parents and children were described overall and by year of diagnosis and sociodemographic characteristics. A Poisson regression was used to investigate trends in the number of children affected, accounting for population growth. Incidence counts of parental cancer characteristics were included.Results: Between 1982 and 2015, 15,938 parents were diagnosed with a malignant cancer, affecting 25,901 children. In 2015, 0.28% of children in Western Australia experienced a parent's diagnosis. The number of children affected increased over time; however, this was accounted for by population growth. The majority of families lived in regional areas and were of high socioeconomic status. Older children and older parents most frequently experienced parental cancer. Skin and breast cancer were the most common diagnoses.Conclusions: A substantial number of families are affected by parental cancer. Results can guide intervention development and delivery to children of different developmental stages, and inform decisions regarding resource allocation and health service accessibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The environment of Lake Carey, a large salt lake in the goldfields of Western Australia, has been subjected to mining for the past 100 years. The effect of discharge of hypersaline water to the playa as a result of pit dewatering has been a grave concern. The aim of this paper was to investigate the influences of seasonal parameters and mining activity on the physico-chemical and biological attributes of Lake Carey. Assessment of water and sediment chemistry and benthic microbial communities (BMCs) has been carried out opportunistically since 1999, with particular emphasis on the differences between sites receiving dewatering discharge currently or in the past (Impacted Sites), and those which have never received dewatering discharge (Control Sites). Results of water and sediment analyses indicated that the impacts of dewatering discharge on Lake Carey were localised and evident in the vicinity of the discharge sites. However, large rainfall events, such as the cyclonic rainfall in 2004, could result in flushing and amelioration of sediments. This was also reflected in the sites which were historically impacted by dewatering discharge. The sites directly impacted by dewatering discharge displayed poor abundance and species richness of diatoms compared to the sites unaffected by dewatering discharge. However, recovery of these sites in terms of species richness and abundance is also initiated by large rainfall events, as shown by data collected from the historical dewatering discharge sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years the institutionalisation of ethics as a means of enhancing the ethical nature of business operations has received widespread empirical coverage. To date, however, few studies have been conducted in the Australian business context. This paper examines the institutionalisation of ethics by a sample of companies based in Perth, Western Australia. In particular, company representatives were asked if their company was institutionalising ethics, why this initiative was undertaken, how this was taking place and what specific issues were being addressed in the institutionalisation process. The results suggest that perceptions of external parties were the primary motivation for ethics institutionalisation efforts although there was also considerable focus on trying to internalise ethical values. In terms of how ethics were being institutionalised the responding companies were more likely to have conducted ethics training programs than to have written Codes of Conduct and in general it appears that few companies were developing comprehensive formal ethics programs. The primary issue covered by these institutionalisation efforts was the observance of laws. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines Australian and West Australian trends in robbery, assault, and burglary. Police figures are contrasted with the results of Australian victimization surveys. The limitations of Australian victimization surveys are discussed. The results of Australian victimization surveys are contrasted with the results of the National Crime Survey in the United States and the International Crime Victim Survey. When all the qualifications are considered, it is concluded that there has been a trend upward in burglary and robbery prevalence and that this upward trend occurred mainly in the 1980s. However, because there is little evidence of a concomitant rise in the assault rate, the increasing prevalence of robbery and burglary is interpreted as reflecting social phenomena that are associated with "acquisitiveness" rather than "aggressiveness." Other evidence pertaining to the level of violence in Australia is considered and it is concluded that this is insufficient to allow a conclusion that we are, as a nation, becoming more violent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coastal areas, and thus coastal species, are at increasing risk from human activities. Sections of the coastline of Western Australia are undergoing intense coastal development to fulfil commercial, industrial, and recreational requirements. Multiple populations of bottlenose dolphins ( Tursiops aduncus) occur around this coastline; however, small community sizes and limited genetic exchange rates make them susceptible to anthropogenic pressure. This study investigated the occupancy of dolphins within the Swan-Canning Rivers, an urbanised estuary, with regard to (1) presence/absence, (2) abundance, and (3) duration in terms of time spent in the area. These response variables were related back to environmental conditions (tidal state, tidal height, salinity, temperature), vessel traffic, and dredging activities using generalised additive modelling. Theodolite tracking data revealed high levels of boat traffic at the two sites considered; however, dolphin occurrence was only negatively affected by vessel density at one of these sites. Dolphin occupancy was also significantly influenced by temperature, with possible seasonal effects. No dolphins were sighted on days when backhoe dredging was present; however, low sample sizes limited statistical interpretation. These results highlight the need to consider context in behavioural response studies, in terms of habitat type studied, explanatory variables considered, and response variables selected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influence of different nutrient sources on the seasonal variation of nutrients and phytoplankton was assessed in the northern area of the Perth coastal margin, south-western Australia. This nearshore area is shallow, semi-enclosed by submerged reefs, oligotrophic, nitrogen-limited and receives sewage effluent via submerged outfalls. Analysis of 14 year of field observations showed seasonal variability in the concentration of dissolved inorganic nitrogen and phytoplankton biomass, measured as chlorophyll-a. For 2007-2008, we quantified dissolved inorganic nitrogen inputs from the main nutrient sources: superficial runoff, groundwater, wastewater treatment plant effluent, atmospheric deposition and exchange with surrounding coastal waters. We validated a three-dimensional hydrodynamic-ecological model and then used it to assess nutrient-phytoplankton dynamics. The model reproduced the temporal and spatial variations of nitrate and chlorophyll-a satisfactorily. Such variations were highly influenced by exchange through the open boundaries driven by the wind field. An alongshore (south-north) flow dominated the flux through the domain, with dissolved inorganic nitrogen annual mean net-exportation. Further, when compared with the input of runoff, the contributions from atmospheric-deposition, groundwater and wastewater effluent to the domain's inorganic nitrogen annual balance were one, two and three orders of magnitude higher, respectively. Inputs through exchange with offshore waters were considerably larger than previous estimates. When the offshore boundary was forced with remote-sensed derived data, the simulated chlorophyll-a results were closer to the field measurements. Our comprehensive analysis demonstrates the strong influence that the atmosphere-water surface interactions and the offshore dynamics have on the nearshore ecosystem. The results suggest that any additional nutrient removal at the local wastewater treatment plant is not likely to extensively affect the seasonal variations of nutrients and chlorophyll-a. The approach used proved useful for improving the understanding of the coastal ecosystem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peers may influence the body image concerns and disordered eating behaviours of adolescent girls through the creation of appearance cultures within friendship cliques. The present study investigates the role of friendship cliques and school gender composition in impacting upon adolescent girls' body image concern and disordered eating behaviours, using hierarchical linear modelling (HLM), a statistical procedure employed in the analysis of nested data. A sample of 156 girls was drawn from four private schools located in the capital city of Western Australia (one single-sex school and three mixed-sex schools). Eighty students from the single-sex school and 76 female students from the mixed-sex schools, comprising 35 friendship cliques, completed questionnaires assessing body image, disordered eating, and a range of variables that have previously been associated with body image concern and disordered eating, including appearance-based social comparison, frequency of appearance-based conversation, appearance-based criticism, friends' concern with thinness, media influence and media pressure. Hierarchical linear modelling analyses found that friendship cliques in all-girls schools exhibited similar levels of body image concern and dieting behaviours, with various peer and other media influence variables accounting for these similarities. Friendship cliques in mixed-sex schools were not found to be similar with regard to body image concern or disordered eating. These findings support the notion that friendship groups can be an important source of influence on the body image concerns of adolescent girls in single-sex schools, and show that both individual and friendship clique level measures of attitudes and behaviours make independent contributions to the prediction of these body image concerns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Yalgorup lakes, a groundwater-fed system in south-western Australia recognized as a Ramsar wetland, hold significant scientific and conservation value due to the presence of a unique range of lake systems, resident waterfowl and, on the eastern shore of Lake Clifton, the presence of the only thrombolite reef in the southern hemisphere. Recent concern over changing physico-chemical conditions in the lakes, particularly an increase in salinity, prompted this study: the current status of the inherent thrombolite community is unknown. Salinity, total phosphorous (TP), phosphate, total nitrogen (TN), nitrate, chlorophyll- a and relative abundance of the thrombolite microflora were measured in Lake Clifton to analyse changing conditions in this lake and to determine the effect of these water parameters on the thrombolite community. Comparisons with historical data revealed a significant increase in salinity since 1985 and a possible increase in phosphorus concentrations in the lake in the recent decade, although historical nutrient data are rather sparse. The increased salinity may be due to concentration of lake water through a combination of high evaporation, long-term reduction in rainfall and increased groundwater abstraction. Comparison of the composition of the thrombolite community with historical data indicates a large reduction in relative abundance of Scytonema sp. and other filamentous cyanobacterial species, which are believed to be fundamental for the thrombolite structure. It is concluded the changing physico-chemical environment of the Yalgorup Lakes may have led to the decline in important genera in the thrombolite community; however, the mechanisms underlying this change remain unknown. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The association of diatom assemblages to salinity was studied in 95 lakes and streams ranging from freshwater to hypersaline in the south-west of Western Australia. The relationship between environmental variables and species composition was explored using canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) and partial CCA. Salinity was shown to account for a significant and independent amount of variation in the diatom data, enabling a transfer function to be developed based on the final dataset, which consisted of 89 sites and 150 diatom taxa. The most successful model was derived using tolerance-downweighted weighted averaging. Summary statistics showed that the transfer function performed very well with a high coefficient of determination and low prediction errors that remained high after the cross-validation method of jackknifing ( r = 0.97 and r = 0.89). This suggests that salinity can be accurately predicted using relative abundances of diatoms, and the model can now be applied to paleolimnological reconstructions. However, the transfer function also provides the basis for use in future biomonitoring studies to detect increases in salinity for lakes and streams most at risk, as well as to evaluate the success of remediation measures implemented to secondary salinised systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study centred on students enrolled in Work Studies, a vocational education course offered to post-compulsory (Years 11–12) students in Western Australian high schools. Because of the strong emphasis on the teacher providing pastoral care in Work Studies classes, the Questionnaire on Teacher Interaction (QTI), which assesses students’ perceptions of their teacher’s interpersonal behaviour, was seen as the most appropriate learning environment instrument to use in this study. Following a description of the purpose of this research study during a professional development day, Work Studies teachers were invited to participate in the study. A total of 157 students in nine Work Studies classes completed the QTI and two attitude scales. Work Studies students in the sample had quite favourable views of their course and there were strong associations between certain aspects of teacher interpersonal behaviour and student attitudinal outcomes. Results indicated the pivotal role that teacher interpersonal behaviour can play in such a vocational education course. Gender-related differences between perceptions of students were found to be minimal, but there were differences in the perceptions of university-bound students and other students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A survey of 11 sites covering three large (>10 km long, 6 sites) playa lakes and four pans (<1 km2, 5 sites) of the Yarra Yarra salt lake system in the Northern Agricultural Region of Western Australia commenced in 2001. These salt lakes are shallow and ephemeral, with inundation being more regular following winter rainfall, but summer inundation also occurred in 2001. Salinity was generally higher in playas (156–368 g l−1) than pans (30–284 g l−1), but salinity responded noticeably to heavy rainfall events, especially in pans. pH values in the playa lakes (6.68–7.82) were less variable than in the pans (6.81–8.08). The range of dissolved oxygen concentrations was greater in pans (3.7–14.4 mg l−1) than in playas (3.9–8.2 mg l−1). Cationic concentrations generally followed the pattern of sea water cation dominance. Benthic microbial communities comprised either cohesive to loosely mucilaginous mats, or thin films of diatoms. Five genera of diatom and two species of filamentous cyanobacteria were recorded. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Western Australia, populations of Artemia parthenogenetica in coastal salt lakes at Rottnest Island and Lake Hayward, and in salterns at Port Hedland and Shark Bay, are widely accepted to have been introduced by humans. Further, within the past 10 years, populations of A. parthenogenetica have been found in inland playa salt lakes in the wheatbelt of south-west Western Australia, where none had been recorded in previous salt lake studies. Here we hypothesise that birds act as transport vectors for Artemia cysts both within Australia and between the Asian and Australian continents. Allozyme analysis was used to identify clonal types (multi-locus genotypes), clonal frequencies, genotypic diversities and genotypic identity of six populations (three coastal, three inland). Overall, the inland populations displayed almost identical genotypic structure to the coastal population from Lake Hayward, indicating that Lake Hayward could be the major source for dispersal and colonisation of inland populations. Results support the hypothesis of dispersal inland by nomadic bird species. Furthermore, evidence suggests that the inland and Lake Hayward populations may be an example of a metapopulation. The greater variety of genotypes present in the Rottnest population indicates that this population has received a large number of small immigrations, or that it received one large introduction. The former may indicate a long period of suitable salinities, providing a greater time-span over which migration and succession of clonal types could occur in comparison to other populations. While we cannot rule out the possibility of human introduction of A. parthenogenetica to Rottnest, the hypothesis of cyst dispersal along the Austral-Asian flyway remains possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on a study of the short-term movements and behavior of the whale sharks at Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia. Information on whale sharks; Materials and methods; Results of the study.

The article discusses the trace fossils discovered from the Lower Triassic Kockatea Shale Formation of the Blue Hill and Mount Minchin sections of the northern Perth Basin in Western Australia. Information on the paleogeographic location of the Perth Basin is provided. There are 16 ichnogenera in the Kockatea Shale ichnoassemblage. An ammonoid fauna was also found in association with these trace fossils. It notes that repichnia, pasichnia and agrichnia dominated the trace-fossil assemblage.