Biosphere Expeditions 1-week projects Western Australia - turtles

Beach combing for conservation: monitoring flatback turtles along the stunning coastline of Western Australia. Price/dates/status This voluntourism project will take you to the strikingly beautiful coastline of Western Australia to conduct a survey of iconic Australian flatback turtles. You will measure and tag turtles, as well as observe and record data about their nesting behaviour. You will also help to collect DNA samples. This is a very hands-on project working from a remote but very comfortable and modern beach resort with the aim of determining flatback turtle nesting numbers and how far dispersed this genetic population is along the seashore of Western Australia. With Australian flatbacks still listed as ‘Data Deficient” internationally by the IUCN Red List, the actions of this project will go a long way in assisting to fill in the information gaps for this species.    PRICE = Expedition contribution (land only per slot) £1180 (approx. €1560 | US$1790 | AU$1860). Please note: expedition contributions are quoted in British pound sterling and the approximate Euro and US Dollar equivalent. Try the XE currency converter for other currencies and an up to date Euro and US Dollar exchange rate. Where does my money go and other money questions.  Dates 2011: 7 - 14 November | 14 - 21 November (7 nights). 2012: dates TBA Team members can join for multiple slots (within the periods specified). How long can I join for? Status Red: Expeditions of status red have no spaces available (or have already been to the field). If an expedition is full already, you have the option of going on a waiting list. Terrain Western Australian beaches, one of the most strikingly beautiful coastlines in the world. Weather expected during expedition Warm to hot with 95% chance of blue skies and sunshine. Expedition base Eco Beach Wilderness Retreat, a remote beach resort with spacious safari-style tents featuring a private verandah, mattress bed, en suite bathroom & showers. The resort also has a pool, gym, yoga room & classes, bar, etc. Accommodation is on a twin share basis, but upgrades to singles are available on request. Team size Up to 12 team members + 2 local scientist + 1 expedition leader. Skills & prerequisites required None. You don't need to be a scientist or have any special qualifications - everyone can take part. There is no upper age limit, but there is a lower age limit of 15 provided that children come with a supervising adult. Can laypeople really be of help to serious research & conservation projects? Fitness level required Moderate. Research work takes place in the evenings and at night and expedition team members need to be able to walk for up to three hours a night (with breaks) in soft sand wearing footwear. Patrol lengths vary with the maximum distance per night at 10 km. Will it be for me or am I too old/young/unfit? Team assembly point Broome, a major and easily accessible coastal town in Western Australia. What about carbon neutrality and other environmental and social impact? Who books my flights? And finally Our expeditions are not about playing the primitive, neither are we a military style 'boot-camp'. Our expedition leader and the local scientist will be by your side and we believe strongly that we get the best out of our expedition teams by making them comfortable, safe and well fed. You won’t be living in the lap of luxury, but we will do our best to make you feel comfortable and at home in your working environment, as this is the key to a well-balanced and successful expedition. Details Aims & objectives To conduct consecutive nights of monitoring for nesting turtles to determine species and populations, monitor nest predation, beach dynamics and hatchling success rates. This project as a whole also meets objectives outlined in Australian state and federal management and recovery plans for Australian sea turtles. Background No known annual or consecutive recording of nesting turtles has occurred in the study site until now. Anecdotal evidence together with some past track counts by the Department of Environment and Conservation of Western Australia provided the basis for the establishment of this new annual monitoring programme.   While the flatback turtle (Natator depressus) is the prime nesting species, green turtles (Chelonia mydas) are quite likely to nest in the study site too. Other species such as hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata), loggerhead (Caretta caretta) and Olive Ridley turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea) are also known to inhabit the waters of the study site. Extensive satellite transmitter tracking of nesting flatbacks further south along the coast of Western Australia shows migratory paths past the study site to northern foraging grounds off the coastline of Broome. Where the project’s flatbacks fit in to this overall picture is of prime interest for future conservation measures. Satellite tagging is also planned for the future. Study species Australian flatback turtle (Natator depressus). Other landmark species present: Green turtle, hawksbill turtle, loggerhead turtle, olive Ridley turtle. Terrestrial species include large sand goannas, wallabies and dingoes. Typical day Turtle monitoring takes place during the evening and night and sometimes early mornings before the heat of the day increases. When not undertaking conservation activities, team members have the opportunity to relax at the Eco Beach resort base, where you can have a drink at the bar, use the pool, or take part in resort activities such as yoga classes, bushwalking, fishing or kayaking. There will also be some turtle talks and presentations for you to attend during the day. An opportunity to visit a local Aboriginal Art Centre also exists if there is enough interest. Beach patrols will be either on foot or in a vehicle driving along the beach and everyone will be rotated between foot and vehicle patrol. Under normal circumstances there will be three patrol teams each day/night. If you are on vehicle patrol, the high tide time will determine when your patrol sets off to its survey location. Once there, you will sleep in tents or under the stars on the beach until it’s time to patrol the beach for up to three hours and then sleep again until sunrise. You will then rise with the sun and conduct a morning survey of any nests missed overnight before you return back to base for breakfast. If you are on foot patrol, you will be leaving from base and returning there afterwards to sleep. After returning from patrol and breakfast, you will then have free time to rest & relax until a late lunch around 14:30. After lunch there is more free time until your patrol leaves again for its turtle survey with a night camping in tents on the beach if you are on vehicle patrol. Dinner will be fruit and snacks, which you can take with you on your patrol. Expedition base The expedition will be based in a remote region along Western Australian coastline. Eco Beach Wilderness Retreat is the accommodation base for this project. Accommodation is in spacious and luxurious safari-style tents featuring a private bathroom & verandah, mattress bed, linen and pillow. Tents are (same sex) twin share. Note that Eco Beach Wilderness Retreat is a swish resort with lots of facilities available to its guests and day visitors, such as for example a pool & bar, massages, yoga classes, canoeing & kayaking, guided bushwalks, etc. Eco Beach also gives you the option to upgrade to single tents and/or to even more luxurious air-conditioned “villa” accommodation. Research area Australia is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising of the mainland, which is the world's smallest continent (also largest island), the major island of Tasmania, and numerous other islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Although most of Australia is semi-arid or desert, it includes a diverse range of habitats from alpine heaths to tropical rainforests, and is recognised as a megadiverse country. Because of the continent's great age, its extremely variable weather patterns, and its long-term geographic isolation, much of Australia's biota is unique and diverse. The project’s study site, Eco Beach, is located approximately 130 km south of Broome in a remote part of one of the world’s most strikingly beautiful stretches of coastline. The study area is located at the bottom of Roebuck Bay, a large area of extensive white and red sandy beaches and intertidal mudflats, which is rich in invertebrate fauna and fed by Roebuck Plain. Roebuck Bay is also of international importance for the millions of migratory waders or shorebirds that use it seasonally on migration through the East Asian - Australasian Flyway from their breeding grounds in northern Asia. Partners Our main partner on this project is Conservation Volunteers Australia (CVA), a leading Australian non-profit and non-political, practical conservation organisation operating in all States and Territories of Australia as well as New Zealand. Other partners are the Cable Beach community-based monitoring programme in Broome, the Western Australian Department of Environment and Conservation, the Chelonia Wildlife & Rehabilitation Centre, Environs Kimberley and Seagrass Watch. Our Eco Beach resort base also has a relationship with the traditional aboriginal owners of the land, the Yawuru Native Holders Aboriginal Corporation. Corporate support comes from Land Rover, Swarovski Optik and Snowgum, an Australian outdoor equipment retailer. Maps Map of the region and study site. Map of the Eco Beach study site. Google map of all Biosphere Expeditions study sites, expedition bases, assembly points, office locations, etc.   Pictures Australian flatback turtle. Picture courtesy of Glenn McFarlane. Coming out of the ocean to nest. Nesting. Picture courtesy of Glenn McFarlane. Going back to the ocean after nesting. Picture courtesy of Glenn McFarlane.   Going back to the ocean after nesting. Picture courtesy of Glenn McFarlane. Hatchling on its way to the ocean. Sand goanna. Picture courtesy of Glenn McFarlane. Sand goanna going for a walk Picture courtesy of Glenn McFarlane.   Wallaby hanging round the study site. Turtle tracks. Picture courtesy of Glenn McFarlane. Eco Beach study site. . Eco Beach study site. Eco Beach study site. Eco Beach study site. Eco Beach study site. Eco Beach study site.  Eco Beach study site. Eco Beach study site.   Sunset over the study site. Picture courtesy of Glenn McFarlane. Sunset over the study site. Picture courtesy of Glenn McFarlane. Expedition base. Expedition base safari-style tent. Safari-style tents with private verandah & en suite bathroom & shower (in attachment to tent on the left). View from inside a safari-style tent. It's the hard life of an expeditioner  - pool at base Pool at base. Decking, pool, ocean. Not that we are obsessed by the pool at base or anything Expedition base - central communal area. Turtle with tag. Picture courtesy of Glenn McFarlane. Measuring a turtle. On turtle partol. Counting eggs as they are being laid. Triangulating a nest site. Measuring a turtle track. Hosing down the car after a beach patrol. Relaxing before going out on patrol. More images on Biosphere Expeditions'    Video An Australian flatback turtle coming ashore to excavate a nest, lay her eggs, cover them and then return to the ocean. On turtle patrol. Impressions from participants. Watch more Western Australia expedition clips on YouTube.   Press   Hands-on with turtle research on a remote West Australian beach in English  View article 315.13 Kb A touch of shell shock in English  View article 628.51 Kb Discovering Australia's own sea turtle in English  View article 2.46 Mb A beach break with a difference in English  View article 3.97 Mb Saving the flatback turtle in English  View article 836.55 Kb Holidays that help in English  View article 3.49 Mb Leben auf Tauchstation & Baywatch in Australien in German  View article 889.72 Kb Helfer für Schilkröten-Projekt in German  View article 315.13 Kb       Feedback "Almost every sea turtle monitoring programme around the world relies on volunteers to walk the many miles on nesting beaches at night with researchers gathering valuable scientific data. We welcome Biosphere Expeditions and the support they can bring to our flatback sea turtle monitoring program here in Western Australia. This type of research is all about education, active involvement and understanding that sea turtle species can move through the waters of many countries from feeding to mating to nesting areas such as this one." Glenn McFarlane, Marine Species Manager, Eco Beach programme, Australia. "I had so much fun on the patrols. Seeing and interacting with the turtles is just an unbelievable experience and I do believe I will continue to participate in similar expeditions in the future." Hoon Teo, 29. "We had the best time! Everything was perfect! Beautiful weather, the team members were so nice. We saw heaps of turtles, but the highlight of the expedition was when out of nowhere this beautiful 90 kg turtle decided she wanted to nest in the middle of the day! So the four of us got to assist the scientists, I got to count her eggs and then I had got to hold her while the scientists tagged her and took a DNA sample. Not to sound corny, but it was quite a magical experience!" Rasha Skybey, 30. "A week on the paradise beach under the Australian sun, we reached 45 degrees C on the second day of the expedition, so be prepared for the heat and enjoy. You can try to turtle talk to calm down these magnificent creatures - Finnish lullabies seemed to work fine." Ritva Honkannen, 43. "It's only just sinking in what unique moments we were privileged to experience with the turtles. Thank you for this and keep up the good work. After the Azores, Western Australia was my second expedition and I am certain it wasn't the last. You really do what you do brilliantly. You’re part of a conservation project and you're having fun and a great time, all in one - we all certainly did!" Petra Schneider, 34. "Thank you again for an awesome experience in Australia, which I will never forget, both because of the work & direct contact with the turtles and the people I was privileged to meet on the project." Jürgen Hatzenbichler, 41.   Feedback from team members about their experiences and reasons for coming (on/from various expeditions).   Briefing The briefing contains very detailed information on this project, including instructions on how to get to the assembly point, what you will be doing whilst on the project and who your expedition leader and scientists will be. Briefings are provided as pdf documents and you must provide a name, country of residence and valid e-mail address to be able to download one. You can access briefings via the Download Centre. Join Go on, you know you want to