Flaviemys purvisi
Very Well-Known Member
MAY 9 2018
By Sophie Boyd
A rare broad shell turtle found in the Wonga Wetlands.
The future of one of Wonga Wetlands’ most iconic inhabitants is bleak, with road deaths, habitat destruction and foxes killing much of the turtle population.
Numbers of the Murray short-neck and eastern long-neck turtles in the mid to lower Murray have declined by up to 91 per cent.
Scientists say young turtles so rarely enter the population, that old turtles are not replaced when they die.
Albury City has called for the community to attend a meeting at the wetlands on Friday night at 6.30pm.
Council says freshwater turtles are on the brink of extinction because foxes are thought to eat more than 95 per cent of eggs in turtle nests, with evidence one fox alone can destroy more than 15 nests in an average night.
At the information evening scientists will propose a regional hatchery program, with young turtles then being stocked into waterways.
