{"version":"1.0","type":"rich","provider_name":"Acast","provider_url":"https://acast.com","height":250,"width":700,"html":"<iframe src=\"https://embed.acast.com/$/69dec55b8424efe84cf55a1e/6a546e32d2dde6b09acaecf6?\" frameBorder=\"0\" width=\"700\" height=\"250\"></iframe>","title":"The Great Southern Reef: Australia's hidden rival to the Great Barrier Reef","description":"<p>The Great Southern Reef wraps around most of southern Australia and rivals the Great Barrier Reef in size and biodiversity — yet most Australians have never heard of it.</p><p>David Bolderman speaks with marine ecologist Scott Bennett in this episode of <em>It Starts With…</em> to understand the hidden world of the Great Southern Reef.</p><p><br></p><p>Scott is Chair of the <a href=\"https://greatsouthernreef.com/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Great Southern Reef Foundation</a> which aims to promote understanding and protection of this marine environment.</p><p><br></p><p>The Great Southern Reef itself was only identified by science in 2015. It’s not an interconnected coral reef like the tropical Great Barrier Reef, but a temperate collection of rocky reefs. It is home to a stunning array of biodiversity, including the vulnerable <a href=\"https://connectsci.au/news/news-parent/5204/Forecast-for-sea-off-south-east-Australia-spells\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">kelp forests</a> off Tasmania’s coast.</p>","author_name":"ConnectSci"}