Dugong Sanctuary seagrass survey

Principal Investigator

The Dugong Sanctuary in Western Torres Strait contains critical seagrass habitat and food for green turtle and dugong. Dramatic seagrass declines were recorded by Western Cluster Rangers in subtidal seagrass monitoring sites in this region in 2019-2020, which triggered an extensive survey of the northern Dugong Sanctuary in December 2020 and southern Dugong Sanctuary in 2021. Both surveys confirmed widespread loss of seagrass since the first comprehensive survey of the Dugong Sanctuary in 2009. The meadow contained large patches of bare sediment, and the loss of high biomass and relatively stable species, indicating a large-scale disturbance. Ranger-led monitoring since then has demonstrated some recovery of subtidal seagrass at Orman Reefs, but seagrass condition in the Dugong Sanctuary remains very poor. This project will survey the Dugong Sanctuary in 2025 to evaluate seagrass condition, and identify potential additional locations for establishing additional Ranger-led monitoring in the Sanctuary.

19 Jun 2025 - 31 May 2027

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