Coral Reef Studies - Turtle, dugongs 'at risk under climate change'

9:35 PM Tue 12 Oct 2010 GMT

'Turtle and Dugong at risk' ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies &copy

The 'turtle and dugong capital of the world', the northern Great Barrier Reef (GBR) and Torres Strait region, faces increased pressure under climate change from human actions such as fishing, hunting, onshore development and pollution. 'Depletion of turtle and dugong numbers increases their vulnerability to other threats and lowers their ability to cope with climate change,' Dr Mariana Fuentes of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies and James Cook University will tell the Coral Reef Symposium in Canberra today. Dr Fuentes says that turtles in particular are vulnerable to the effects of climate change, which include decreases ...

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by ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies