from the desk of catherine, south coast enviro-experiences.

We can say for sure that Albany residents love their treasured turtles! The Saving our Snake-Neck Turtle information session held recently at the City of Albany was a brilliant community event and a resounding success for organisers. 

Anthony Santoro from the Saving our Snake-Neck Turtle (SOSNT) project presented some amazing facts from his Perth Metropolitan-based research on the southwestern snake-necked turtle (Chelodina oblonga). The turtles are vulnerable to predation by animals like foxes and ravens but the decline is also due to many other factors such as climate change and loss of habitat. There is a potential threat of extinction unless the community get involved to contribute towards turtle conservation. 

The SOSNT project is a citizen science and community engagement program to help conserve the southwestern snake-necked turtle. As testament to the project’s success, there is a huge amount of community interest in turtle activity in Albany and an increase in identification of turtle sightings around the South Coast region. This has motivated a partnership between SOSNT and the City of Albany, with support from the South Coast Enviro- Experiences project, to seek a Turtle Tracker Volunteer Manager that will manage a dedicated team of volunteer Turtle Trackers around the Lake Seppings area.

To become a Turtle Tracker, head to the South Coast Enviro-Experiences volunteer web platform to register your interest. Not only will you find out more about the Turtle Tracker role and upcoming Turtle Tracker workshops, but you will have access to a whole suite of other exciting environmental events in your area. 

To find out more about the volunteer web platform, join the South Coast Enviro-Experiences team for an information session at the Albany Public Library on Wednesday 6th September. You’ll learn how to sign up to the web platform and get a glimpse of the activities you can get involved in. Head to our event page for details. If you’d like to learn more about the southwestern snake-neck turtle, the SOSNT project has recently launched their new website. It’s full of interesting and useful information on turtles and the SOSNT project plus our Turtle Tracker volunteer communities can use the site to find out about upcoming info and training sessions, how they can help our turtles, and discover the latest SOSNT news.

For more information about becoming a Turtle Tracker or for assistance with the volunteer web platform, contact Catherine (m) 0421 437 525 (e) catherinej@southcoastnrm.com.au 

The South Coast Enviro-Experiences project is supported by Lotterywest.