Turtles

At the Dolphin Discovery Centre we have established the only Marine Turtle Rescue & Rehabilitation Facility in the Southwest of Western Australia which is licensed by the Parks & Wildlife DBCA. Since the inception of this program in the mid-1990s, our team of Aquarists and Volunteers have successfully rehabilitated and released approximately 200 marine turtles. As all marine species are classified as endangered, it is imperative that we do everything we possibly can to save them and get them back into the oceans where they belong. Turtles rescued along our coastline are predominantly baby Loggerhead Turtles which would have hatched just a few months earlier, but we have also cared for Hawksbill, Flatback and Green Sea Turtles. All marine turtles in Australian waters are protected species at both State and Commonwealth Government levels.

Equally important to the conservation of these species is ongoing research into their long-term survival. Throughout their rehabilitation, the collaboration between the Dolphin Discovery Centre team, Government Departments, Perth Zoo vets, other rehabilitators and turtle researchers results in datasets being compiled on their health, pathology, weekly growth rates and much more. Their recovery process often takes more than six months and this data provides researchers and rehabilitators with vital information on their recovery and development.

When they are ready to be released back into the warm tropical waters of North-Western Australia all turtles are fitted with microchips and tags and many are fitted with satellite tracking devices. Little is known about the first 16 years of a Loggerhead Turtle’s life and, until recently, little has been known about the viability of rescue and rehabilitation. Data provided by the satellite tracking devices has already taught us that most of our rescue turtles do in fact survive and the ocean currents they use to travel. This data and information from turtle tagging has the potential to provide scientists with critical information about their migration patterns, geographical ranges, nesting and breeding periods, clutch sizes, nesting site fidelity and changes in nesting population numbers, while also educating the general public about these endangered reptiles and the ways we can minimise our impact on both them and their environment.