Dirk Hartog Island a global hub for nesting loggerhead turtles, data from 30 years of research finds

One of WA’s longest running animal tagging programs has shown Dirk Hartog Island is a global hotspot for loggerhead turtles, according to the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA). After around 30 years of tagging and tracking the turtles in Shark Bay, new data analysis shows five per cent of the global loggerhead turtle population nest at the island. Of the loggerhead turtles which come to WA shores for nesting, 86 per cent go to Dirk Hartog Island. Female turtles emerge from the water, crawl across the beach towards the foot of the island’s cliffs, where they dig pits and lay their eggs, before making their way back to the ocean. DBCA Shark Bay Marine Park co-ordinator Abby Leyendekkers said the rush of the turtles across the island’s beaches was quite the sight to see “The beach looks like a highway, so there’s tracks crossing tracks and it’s just mayhem,” she said. Volunteers with DBCA come to Dirk Hartog Island where they monitor its beach and tag the turtles as they crawl across the sand. Ms Leyendekkers said watching loggerhead turtles lay their eggs from a close distance is a very rare and special opportunity. “It’s absolutely magical being able to watch these turtles lay their eggs,” she said. “On Dirk Hartog you’re on a really remote beach, the stars are shining, the bioluminescence is shining from the sea. It’s just a magical experience for our volunteers to be able to watch these eggs that will eventually turn into hatchlings.” Loggerhead turtles can be found throughout much of the world, in the Indian, Pacific and Atlantic Oceans as well as the Mediterranean Sea. The species is considered vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, with fishing gear such as nets, longline hooks and gillnets their biggest threats.