Research on a remote Pilbara island has shed new light on turtles' treacherous journey from egg to ocean, but some say 'functionally extinct' rookeries further south warn of mismanagement.
New research has found ghost crabs prey on almost 30 per cent of flatback turtle hatchlings on WA's Thevenard Island.
The protected area provides a crucial home for threatened flatback turtles, which exclusively lay their eggs on Australian shores. Dr Fossette said the amount of research on flatback turtles was low compared to the reams of data collected about other turtle species. Paul Richardson, the leaseholder for Gnaraloo Station, helped fund and supply land access to researchers for a decade-long conservation program that monitored endangered loggerhead turtles and undertook feral animal control at Gnaraloo Bay.The Gnaraloo Turtle Conservation Program received more than $1 million in federal funding until 2018, at which point Mr Richardson said DBCA barred volunteers from continuing their work.
"It's so disheartening now, we worked very hard for 10 years to try and protect the natural environment." The pair of nesting grounds accounted for about 30 per cent of loggerhead nests in the south-east Indian Ocean.
Environment Management Hatchling Turtle Sea Shell Egg Ocean Crab Ghost Predator Prey Conservation Biology Ecology DBCA Department Biodiversity Attractions Gnaraloo Land Coast Beach Marine Life
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