Positioned near the Bundaberg port, you can visit an incredible and sprawling display of unique animals filled with color that invites you into an underwater world, introducing you to the beautiful hobby of reef keeping on the Australian coast. It’s easy to only think of the Great Barrier Reef when thinking of Australian marine life. Despite this common misconception an abundance of treasures can also be observed in Queensland.
Dan and Brooke Kimberley a husband and wife team invite you to take a look inside their passion project and business Monsoon Aquatics. Initially, Monsoon’s tours started as small walk throughs with families and friends but have quickly grown to be a cornerstone of their daily operations with schools, businesses and tourist stopping by to learn more about corals and aquaculture. Such an endeavor is echoed by their mission statement “We believe in bringing the wonder and beauty of the coral reef to the world so it can be enjoyed, understood, and valued.”
Monsoon Aquatics houses more than 200 species popular in the reef aquarium industry globally. In addition to seeing some eye candy the 1 hour guided tour also has the added benefit of insightful education surrounding the animals and systems required to sustain them. If you have young one’s or are in charge of an educational program this represent a prime opportunity to expose young minds to the wonders of the ocean. Exposure at a young age can act as key inspiration which gets people involved down the line and is vital for conservation and education.
Viewing any large facility is a rarity in the industry – luckily Monsoon is offering such a treat to the public. For anyone who enjoys marine life, is a diver or would like to help facilitate the education of future and current hobbyist Monsoon’s guided tours are a prime opportunity. Such a tour offers a glimpse at animals rarely seen outside of their natural habitats.
Pictured here is Megan, often referred to as the heart and soul of the tour, who brings hundreds of guests on their educational journey through the farm.
Along your tour, you will see them demonstrate how they feed their corals to keep them healthy and happy. They also have a video highlighting their coral spawning program and the research that they, alongside others, are doing to preserve the reefs and continue to promote coral restoration. You will also learn how corals are propagated within the facility so that their beauty can be shared worldwide. Their educational tours also touch on ethical questions such as responsible wild collection, the important ace of aquaculture and ex situ spawning, and practices for reef conservation.
Pictured here is an example of some of the Homophyllia australis they’ve settled (scoly’s)
Here’s a look at adult Homophyllia – in a few short years each of these settled baby corals has the potential to mature into a unique piece with it’s own special blend of colors and patterns.
Pictured below is a glowing example of a frag of Fimbraphyllia paraancora (hammer coral) attached to a frag plug, helping with not only placement within the home aquarium but also a providing a safe way to transport the animal.
The very satisfying growth scale displayed by this urchin species.
It is important to note that Monsoon is an everyday working farm that takes many dedicated people to bring the beauty of some of the ocean’s colorful animals to your home. To accommodate all groups, a tour must be scheduled on their website.
