Zoo-bred Bellinger River snapping turtles released to counter virus wipe-out
By Kate Aubrey, ABC Coffs Coast
NEARLY A DECADE after a virus nearly wiped out a population of turtles unique to northern New South Wales, researchers say its origins remain a mystery as a project to repopulate the species hits a major milestone. −
Now identified as the Bellinger River Virus, it triggered a mass mortality event in 2015 that decimated 90 percent of the river’s snapping turtle population within six weeks.
At the time, the state government placed 16 healthy turtles into a zoo-based breeding program led by Taronga Zoo as part of the NSW Government’s Saving our Species program.
Some 179 Bellinger River snapping turtles (Myuchelys georgesi ) have since been released after the program started in 2018, with 97 turtles reintroduced into the river during December marking the largest group yet.
Taronga Zoo senior reptile keeper Adam Skidmore said while the released turtles were doing well in the wild, there remained no cure for the virus that nearly saw the species go extinct.
“Our goal is to ensure we have a backup population in case there is more devastation in the river, “ Mr Skidmore said.
“If we get another catastrophe, we could lose what is remaining.”
While little is known about the origins of the virus, ongoing research by the NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) and partners like the Australian Registry of Wildlife at Taronga Zoo aim to prevent its resurgence through regular monitoring.
Turtles swabbed for virus
DPI said the turtles were regularly captured from the river and swabbed for the virus, with the samples tested and analysed.
Mr Skidmore said the virus seemed to have “plateaued”, but the population remained critically endangered due to persistently low adult numbers.
Before the disease outbreak, there were estimated to be up to 4,500 of the freshwater turtles living in Bellinger catchment and today about 200 remain — largely as a result of release efforts.
“The whole idea is to ensure the wild population is self sustaining and that the numbers are increasing naturally,” Mr Skidmore said.
A long way to go
The Bellinger River snapping turtle is found exclusively along a 60km stretch of the river, making it one of the country’s most unique species, according to Saving our Species threatened species officer Chris Ormond.
“It’s one of the rarest freshwater turtle species in Australia,” Mr Ormond said.
“Turtles have a really important role in our ecosystem as food scavengers.”
The captive breeding program has since been expanded to include a second population at Symbio Wildlife Park.
The NSW Government has invested more than $850,000 to support the recovery of the Bellinger River snapping turtle, including projects like captive breeding programs and monitoring by citizen scientists.
Environmental group Ozgreen has been monitoring the health of the river for the past seven years, marking the largest water quality monitoring program in NSW.
The program sees 40 volunteers, four schools and 14 steering committee partners work together to test and interpret water quality data for the Bellinger and Kalang catchments at 25 sites monthly.
Ozgreen Bellingen River Watch Amy program manager Amy Denshire said volunteers were out on the river “rain, hail or shine” every month to test the river’s health.
“It's really important we collect this data to track the health going forward and help educate the community about how important these rivers are,” she said.
She stated that by having the baseline data, they were able to monitor for any potential recurrence of events in the future.
FURTHER INFORMATION
The original ABC News story can be found at:
More information can be found at: www.taronga.org.au | www.ozgreen.org | www.symbiozoo.com.au | www.environment.nsw.gov.au
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