Turtles struggle to find
as Conservation Program fails to gain
In issue 2 of iHerp Australia (September 2017), we featured an article on the important
sea turtle conservation work being undertaken on West Australia’s Coral Coast by the
Gnaraloo Wilderness Foundation through the Gnaraloo Turtle Conservation Project. The
foundation has implemented an extremely successful campaign to eradicate feral
animals, protected essential nesting beaches and collected baseline data on the turtles.
Gnaraloo’s comprehensive program has also included the provision of scientific intern-
ships, educational presentations and satellite tracking of Loggerhead Turtles, as well as
award-winning ecotourism facilities, and at the same time as fighting to avoid intensive
developments in the area.
Then in issue 8 of the magazine (September 2018), we reported that this innovative
conservation project was in immediate jeopardy due to lack of funding. Amazingly,
Gnaraloo does not receive government assistance, and is totally dependent on the
generosity of the private sector and members of the public.