Dugongs – critically endangered in the southern Great Barrier Reef
Dugongs in the southern Great Barrier Reef (south of Cooktown) are critically endangered, with numbers having declined by 50-80% between 1986 and 1994.
Scientists estimated that a 1-2% drop in breeding female populations due to unnatural causes of mortality could lead to the extinction of the dugong in the southern GBR.
Dugong deaths in the southern GBR have been attributed to a variety of causes including:
· gill netting
· habitat loss
· indigenous hunting
· shark nets (for swimmer protection)
· vessel collision
· pollution from land based sources
Gill netting is believed to be the greatest threat as the poorly sighted dugongs become entangled in the nets and then drown within a few minutes.
The Federal Government response to the findings that dugong numbers were in calamitous decline was initially positive with the proposal to create Dugong Protection Areas (DPAs), where no netting would be permitted. However, it caved in to the demands of the commercial fishing industry and produced a greatly compromised plan which involved a 2-tiered system of DPAs with some form of netting still permitted in 15 out of 16 of the DPAs.
Dugongs continue to die from human causes at an unsustainable rate. NQCC is campaigning to persuade the Government that it should implement the original scientific proposal for protection of dugongs.