Turtles arrive for nesting ritual

11th November 2009

QUEENSLAND’S turtle nesting season has begun, with the first marine turtles already laying on Bundaberg’s beaches and on several Great Barrier Reef islands after being spotted in the Gladstone harbour.

Climate change and sustainability minister Kate Jones said the annual turtle pilgrimage had started with the flatback turtles, a vulnerable species in Queensland, often the first to arrive on nesting beaches.

“Already a flatback turtle has nested at the ‘turtle capital’ on Mon Repos Beach near Bundaberg, marking the start of the season for the Woongarra Coast,” Ms Jones said.

“We have also had reports of flatbacks mating in Gladstone Harbour and nesting on nearby Curtis Island. They have also arrived at Heron and Wilson Islands.”

Ms Jones said loggerhead turtles started nesting a little later in the season, and it was not unusual for flatbacks to show up first.

“The Woongarra coastline, near Bundaberg, supports over 50 percent, or about 300, of the South Pacific region’s nesting loggerhead turtle population,” she said.