On the Expedition
Are Melbourne’s Freshwater Turtles at risk?
Very little is known about Melbourne’s treshwater turtles, and particularly the impact that this growing city is having on their health. As one of the top predators in the food chain, a healthy turtle population points to a healthy ecosystem, and globally, freshwater turtles are in decline. With special waterproof clothing, you will wade through the city’s freshwater lakes and creeks to capture turtles, assess their health and review the condition of their habitat. You will help scientists and governments answer the pivotal question of ‘how is urbanisation impacting the survival of Melbourne’s native turtles?’
We have a number of fully funded and paid for placements for students that attend public schools. If you fit this criteria please download the application form under the links header. Applications close July 23, 2012
Meals and Accommodations
As teams will be occurring outside of university school term, participants will have the unique experience of staying at the University of Melbourne in Trinity College. Trinity College was founded by the first Anglican Bishop of Melbourne in 1872, and is modelled after the English colleges of Oxford and Cambridge. Trinity has many distinguished alumni and 36 Rhodes Scholars, including Bishop Peter Hollingsworth, Sir Rupert Hamer and Rob Sitch.
Participants will stay at the Behan building and each will have their own room, but will be expected to share bathrooms. All linen and towels will be provided.
All meals are also included- Breakfast & Dinner will be provided in the Dining Hall with lunch being prepared by the students and taken with them to their work site.
About the Research Area
There are around 20 different sites in the greater Melbourne region where two species of freshwater turtle, as well as macro-invertebrates and tadpoles, will be studied. These sites follow an urban-rural gradient, which allows us to study the health of turtles and their food sources along this gradient. The sites include Wylies Creek Wetlands in Cranbourne, Bonview Wetland in Doncaster and Nillumbik Wetland in Diamond Creek, and are selected at the time of the expedition in response to weather conditions and water levels.
Each team will visit two sites during their expedition.