MY APPLICATION for the Hamilton Island Caretaker Job ;)

SMALL BUT DEADLY

Small but extremely dangerous and intelligent, the Blue-Ringed Octopus - found off the coast of Australia, New Guinea, Indonesia, and the Philippines - is one of the most toxic sea creatures on teh Great Barrier Reef - and in the world. Even though the octopus is only the size of a golf ball, there is no known antidote for its powerful venom. It causes motor paralysis, eventually leading to cardiac arrest.

SMALL BUT DEADLY

I mention the Irukandji Jellyfish in my application video for the BEST JOB IN THE WORLD! According to goaustralia.about.com, the deadly Irukandji jellyfish is a tiny killer and can be unnoticed in the water. With bell and tentacles just 2.5 centimetres across, it is almost impossible to detect and its not confined to coastal waters so even those far from shore are not safe in the jellyfish season.

ooh THE STING~!

The initial sting of the jellyfish is usually not very painful. But about 5-45 (usually 30) minutes after being stung, the person starts to have a severe backache or headache and shooting pains in their muscles, chest and abdomen. They may also feel nauseous, anxious, restless and vomit. In rare cases, the victim suffers pulmonary oedema (fluid on the lungs) which could be fatal if not treated.
Carukia barnesi has a single retractile tentacle, from 50 to 500 mm long, hanging from each of the four corners of its bell.

THE DOC WHO STUNG HIMSELF, HIS SON AND A LIFESAVER
In 1964, a doctor called Jack Barnes spent several hours in a wetsuit lying in the water near Cairns searching for a jellyfish responsible for 'irukandji syndrome' - a set of symptoms suffered after a jellyfish sting that could put the victim in hospital. Irukandji is the name of an aboriginal tribe that once lived in the area around Cairns in north Queensland.To Dr Barnes' delight, a thumbnail-sized jellyfish swam past his mask. He stung himself, his son and a surf life saver to check that the jellyfish he had caught was responsible for 'irukandji syndrome'. All three ended up in hospital. For Dr Barnes' dedication, the tiny jellyfish was later called Carukia barnesi.

WHATS THE POINT OF THE BEST JOB IN THE WORLD?

WHAT IS THE POINT OF THE BEST JOB IN THE WORLD?

Hundreds of people from all over the world are applying for the BEST JOB IN THE WORLD. Watching all the application videos has made me realise that there are probably many people who could do this job well. So I found myself questioning what the real point of this job might be? Is it about an amazing holiday or a brilliant marketing and communications strategy? Or is it about a bigger picture, that transcends any focus on individuals and looks at Australia's world famous Great Barrier Reef, off the state of Queensland - a system of reefs connected so spectacularly as to be visible from outer space!

THE POINT IS THE BIGGER PICTURE

As far back as August 2007 the GLOBAL HERITAGE FUND CONSERVATION NEWS reported the 'Enterprising travellers are racing against the clock to see endangered cities, sites and wildlife before they cease to exist.' If that was the case in 2007, how much greater is this urgency in 2009! In February 2008 it was reported that a pronounced lack of growth rate among some corals in the Great Barrier Reef led scientists to believe this was the first sign of ocean acidification - something scientists world wide are beginning to fear.

"Carbon dioxide (CO2) dissolves in seawater, that increases
acidity, making it more difficult for marine organisms to grow and maintain
their shells. Calcification is the process used by corals to extract calcium
carbonate from seawater to build their shells. Scientists from the
Australian Institute of Marine Sciences studied porites, a common coral species
growing along the northern end of the Great Barrier Reef, and discovered that
calcification had slowed by 21% over the past16 years."

Coral reefs around the world are suffering the effects of climate change. As the climate heats up so do the oceans, causing the organisms that give coral its colour and food to die. At around 2000 kilometres long the Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest reef. But unless projected levels of climate change are slowed, much of the reef will be dead in decades.

The person who gets this job will have the enormous privilege
of reporting on one of the earth's most precious assets. And, doing this job
well will have the ripple effect of increasing awareness in people's minds
across the globe.

Ultimately whether greenhouse gasses are being emitted in South Africa, or the United States of America, or China, the cumulative and global impact is being felt by organisms in every ecologically sensitive place that remains on the planet. The complicated ecosystem that is the Great Barrier Reef is a case in point.

The whole reef system supports

• over 1500 different species of fish
• over 4000 different species of mollusc and shellfish - clams, crabs and lobster
• more than 350 species of hard and soft coral
• nearly 200 species of seabird
• Add to that list nearly 30 different species of marine animals, such as whale and dolphin, marine turtles and also animals such as octopus, sea snakes, jellyfish, starfish, sea sponge, sea cucumber and even saltwater crocodiles

AND THAT IS THE POINT OF THE BEST JOB IN THE WORLD!

RELEVANT FACTS:

• The Great Barrier Reef is home to a few different endangered species that are heavily protected by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority working alongside the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation and World Wildlife Fund and the the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority..


• Six of the world's seven endangered species of sea turtle frequent the waters of the Reef along with the planet's largest sea mammal, the Blue Whale - not only the largest but also one of the least known about whales.


• The dugong - better known as a sea cow (so named because of their feeding habits of grazing the beds of sea grass that are found in certain areas of the Reef) -is another mammal on the list. Dugongs are particularly vulnerable to threats and changes to their environment, because they have a very slow breeding rate - maybe only one calf is born to an adult female dugong every 3 to 7 years, and this is after the 10 to 15 or so years that it takes for a female dugong to reach the reproductive age.

It's THE sign: Johannesburg Skydiving Club 7/2/09

So, just to show the Queensland Tourism Authorities how serious I am about the BEST JOB IN THE WORLD, I decided to hurl myself out of an airplane for the first time in my life. Just to add to the adrenaline rush I decided that I would jump holding onto my HIRE ME sign (reinforced with copious amounts of tape) for dear life. It all happened at the Johannesburg Skydiving Club and. . . Might I say that I took tandem instructor - Chris Grosch - up with me to help me hold my sign at 200km/h? This, while it was all filmed and photographed by Marius Vrey! Both these guys were awesome and IT WAS AN INCREDIBLE EXPERIENCE. Hope that Tourism Queensland gets the message! Look at this photo! I'm the one! It's a sign!