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Surface scatters containing Eocene chert artefacts are a widespread cultural site type along the Swan Coastal Plain; however, no source rock for the chert is known to exist locally. In the absence of chert outcrops onshore, archaeologists have argued for an offshore source that was subsequently flooded during post-glacial sea level rise. Support for this theory has been the decline or absence of Eocene chert artefacts in deposits younger than 6000 years BP, and the apparent decrease in chert assemblage inland from the contemporary coastline, which may call into question a distal eastern source. This paper presents an alternative theory whereby chert was sourced from the Nullarbor Plain (~1000 km to the east) and traded east as well as west across southern Australia. Evidence to support this theory includes (1) absence of Eocene age sedimentary strata outcropping on the continental shelf, (2) faunal evidence showing bryozoans imbedded in the Swan Coastal Plain chert, with similar environmental affinities to bryozoans embedded in chert outcropping along the Nullarbor Plain sea cliffs, and (3) geochemical evidence showing a similar geochemical fingerprint between artefacts from the Nullarbor Plain and Swan Coastal Plain. With a peak in fossiliferous chert use around the Last Glacial Maximum, these findings have significant ethnographic implications supporting long distance trade to the east rather than local sourcing of lithic resources by isolated Aboriginal groups. These findings also have chronological implications relating to the use of Eocene fossiliferous chert as a chronological marker for Late Pleistocene to early-Holocene age deposits in southwest Western Australia, albeit with source accessibility following post-glacial sea-level rise still a main factor in the decline in chert use.

Coral reefs of the Kimberley Bioregion are seldom studied due to limited accessibility and extreme water conditions, which make management of these vital ecosystems a challenging task. Managing reef resources requires a considerable amount of credible, consistent and continual information. We identified the geographic information system (GIS) approach to be useful in developing an integrated geodatabase by acquiring information from different sources relating to the Kimberley reefs. Based on this approach, the study aimed to create a foundation for the first comprehensive geodatabase of the Kimberley reefs, called ReefKIM. The work included compiling existing spatial and non-spatial data, as well as collecting new data to complete information gaps. The study demonstrates how new technologies can be harnessed to crowdsource data from a wide range of people though a web-based platform. ReefKIM will provide a practical tool for scientists and managers to facilitate better monitoring and sustainable management of these vital natural resources. Moreover, it will support further studies in various disciplines leading to a more detailed understanding of the Kimberley Bioregion reefs.

Coral reefs are a major coastal feature of the Kimberley bioregion in north-western Australia; however, very little is known about the habitats and substrates of the reefs in this coast. Previous studies have been conducted on a broad scale, but no geomorphological, surface substrate and habitat maps of the reefs have been produced. Such maps would provide researchers and coastal zone managers with significant information and estimations of reef growth and productivity. The primary aim of this study was to obtain detailed information on reefs in the Kimberley bioregion. This study used remote sensing and Geographic Information Systems (GIS), as well as multiple other data sources, to map reef geomorphic zones and the associated key habitats and substrate types of shallow nearshore reefs. Despite the macrotidal regimes and the turbid waters of the study area, remote sensing was effectively used to identify the dominant habitats and substrate types of eight reef platforms. This study provides long-term quantitative assessments of the main habitats and substrates of these reefs and offers a better understanding of reefs in the Kimberly bioregion. It is also a source of valuable information for the marine park and coastal managers investigating the coral reefs that have been targeted for conservation, but have not yet been the subject of regional analysis.

In order to establish the ‘fingerprint’ of past sea level changes, many field measurements of paleo sea level from globally distributed locations are needed. It is because this problem requires a geographically expansive database that it becomes an ideal candidate for crowdsourcing techniques. In order to crowdsource sea level data from the Mid-Pliocene Warm Period, we developed three tools: PlioWiki, RSLcalc and RSLmap. PlioWiki is a web portal, open to contributions, where investigators can share knowledge on Pliocene to Quaternary relative sea levels. RSLcalc is a standardized, ready-to-use tool for field geologists to log their own sea level field observations and, if they desire, submit new data to an open access database of relative sea level markers. RSLmap allows one to visualize and query the database built with RSLcalc on a Google Map interface. Here we describe these tools and discuss the advantages of crowdsourcing, relative to traditional approaches, for the creation of sea level databases for any time period. Highlights: ► The creation of databases of relative sea level (RSL) markers can be crowd-sourced. ► To achieve this goal, PLIOMAX has created three tools: PlioWiki, RSLcalc and RSLmap. ► The tools can be used to build RSL datasets. ► They will therefore help scientists in creating past sea level ‘fingerprints’.