Centrostephanus rodgersii is a native sea urchin to New South Wales, Australia and its diet primarily consists of macroalgae such as kelp. An ‘urchin barren’ which is a rocky seascape dominated by sea urchins, has little to no macroalgae. Urchin barrens are controversial within NSW as some stakeholders, including many Traditional Owners, view the barrens as void of biodiversity, and a result of mismanagement. In contrast, recent studies have discussed certain species depending on the barrens, and they are seen currently as a representative habitats of NSW rocky reefs.
This study centres Traditional Owners perspectives on the barrens through a series of yarning circles. Preliminary findings indicate that overfishing and a loss of cultural species are of key concern to communities. Additionally, Remotely Piloted Aircrafts (RPAs) and underwater cameras are being used to survey chosen sites to assess the kelp and urchin barren dynamics and identify differences in biodiversity between the two habitats. Preliminary findings using RPAs to visualise kelp have demonstrated that multispectral imagery is effective in detecting kelp compared to LiDAR imagery. Bringing together western and Traditional Knowledges is key to this study and has been effective in gaining new understandings of urchin barren dynamics in NSW.