Giant Australian Cuttlefish Disappear from Whyalla

ABC North and West SA

Algal Blooms

Thursday, 18 June 2026, 7:32 am

Giant Australian cuttlefish are usually in the waters of Stoney Point, near Whyalla, South Australia.

In short:

The giant Australian cuttlefish come back to the Upper Spencer Gulf every year for breeding. But this year, very few have arrived.

Tourism operators, environmentalists, and marine experts are worried that the algal bloom has hurt the species.

What's next:

The cause is not known yet. PIRSA and the South Australian Research and Development Institute are investigating. A full population survey will be done next week.

At this time of year, the waters of Whyalla usually have tens of thousands of giant Australian cuttlefish. But this winter, they have not arrived in large numbers.

Marine experts fear the algal bloom has had a bad impact on the species, which breeds in the Upper Spencer Gulf every year.

Manny Katz, owner of the Whyalla Dive Shop, said thousands of cuttlefish should have arrived by now. The waters are now at the right temperature for breeding.

Only a few dozen cuttlefish have been seen so far.

Manny Katz said, 'We've seen maybe a couple dozen spread out across all the sites we go to, across 8 kilometers of coast.'

There are only 25 to 30 cuttlefish that have been spotted. It's not good right now.

Last year, people were worried about the cuttlefish because of the algal bloom. They talked about moving the baby cuttlefish.

The government invested $700,000 to install a 'bubble curtain' to protect the species and its eggs.

The bubble curtain was not needed because the algal bloom did not reach the Upper Spencer Gulf. But the cuttlefish move out of the protected area during warmer seasons.

Two male giant Australian cuttlefish.

Manny Katz said they will not know how the tourism season will go until the temperatures drop. His business has been postponing tours.

If the cuttlefish do not come, there will not be a tourism season.

Different from before

Tony Bramley has been a scuba diver, environmentalist, and tourism operator in the Upper Spencer Gulf for almost 40 years.

He said the species has had big declines in numbers since he arrived in the town in the 1980s.

Long-time tourism operator, diver, and environmentalist Tony Bramley.

Tony Bramley said commercial fishing hurt the species in 1997 and 1998. The numbers recovered after a fishing ban.

The population was 200,000 until 2013, when it dropped to 8,000. The cause was never found. The population recovered later.

But Tony Bramley said this time it's even worse.

Tony Bramley said, 'In 40 years, I've never seen anything like this, even in 2013 or 1997, 1998.'

Tony Bramley is very pessimistic about the results for this year. He thinks the low numbers will continue.

'Jury is out' at this stage

The lack of cuttlefish is clear, but the cause is still unknown.

Manny Katz said it's hard to say what impact the algal bloom had on the cuttlefish population.

Manny Katz said, 'It might be the largest impact on the cuttlefish, but we don't have long-term monitoring, so we don't know.'

Whyalla is celebrating Cuttlefest, its annual winter festival.

Whyalla mayor Phill Stone said it's been a great start to the event, even though the cuttlefish are not there.

Whyalla mayor Phill Stone is concerned but hopeful the cuttlefish are just delayed by higher sea temperatures.

Phill Stone said the algal bloom is not responsible for the lack of cuttlefish.

Phill Stone said, 'The jury is out, there.'

Phill Stone said the seawater temperature is too high for the cuttlefish to move in large numbers.

The South Australian Research and Development Institute will do a full population survey next week.

Professor Mike Steer, executive director of SARDI, said it's too early to assess the situation.

Professor Mike Steer said, 'It's not as simple as looking at numbers here and there.'

Professor Mike Steer said South Australia was impacted by the harmful algal bloom, but cephalopod populations can fluctuate.

Professor Mike Steer said, 'There are many potential environmental factors that could be contributing to the fluctuations.'

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