Flaviemys purvisi
Very Well-Known Member
NOVEMBER 21 2018
Cody Tsaousis
THE Upper Hunter is facing the possibility of losing a “living dinosaur” as the short-neck turtle population comes under severe attack from local foxes.
The rare sub-species may have as few as a couple hundred of their kind left, following the complete destruction of their eggs this year.
Native to the Hunter River and mostly to a short stretch at Moonan Flat, the amazing creatures have existed for millions of years, which makes the possibility of them going extinct an extremely worrying one.
They’ve long survived predators such as water dragons, goannas and carp, but have proven to be no match for the wild dogs, which are digging up their eggs and killing off the next generation before they’ve even been born.
However, The Australian Reptile Park (TARP) and Aussie Ark are working together to help curb the trend and ensure the continuation of the short-neck turtle’s existence.
Victoria Hotel Moonan Flat owner Neil Bailey owns the stretch of riverbank the species lay their eggs on, and is keen to take action in order to prevent further damage from foxes.
Tim Faulkner and Dan Rumsey from TARP were down at the property on Tuesday to discuss further possibilities to protect the turtles and praised Mr Bailey’s support.
The duo said they’re keen to incorporate Victoria Hotel into the reptile’s redevelopment program.
“What we’ll look at is a community project where the pub can have input and influence into the recruitment of young turtles and the protection of a nest site,” Mr Faulkner said.
“So by having that community engagement we can get people involved and when people care about something it tends to get a bit more attention.”
They have also spoken about getting a fence installed next year to assure the foxes can’t access the riverbank, and creating a feeding program for the remaining adults.
However, Mr Faulkner said the difficult part will be obtaining permission to create an external breeding program that would spawn an insurance population, which could then be released into the wild.
He said that while that sounds extreme, it could prove crucial as other sub-species in the area have fallen victim to unforeseen and devastating circumstances.
“At the Bellinger River a disease just went through and wiped out every single adult turtle in the region, and that’s a risk for here, too,” Mr Faulkner said.
They intend to have a conservation program up and going as quickly as possible, and are focused on making sure the Hunter doesn’t lose what may be its longest-standing inhabitant.
