Image credit: Darren Jew

QMTN Online Forum shares turtle conservation results and priorities

Around 50 participants joined the Queensland Marine Turtle Network’s Online Forum on 27 August 2026 to share nesting-season results, hear from member organisations and discuss opportunities to work together. The forum featured six presentations and updates spanning government monitoring, community conservation, student involvement and QMTN activities.

Nesting season highlights

Dr Kimberly Finlayson from the Queensland Government’s Threatened Species Operations team presented the 2025/26 nesting-season debrief. Preliminary results were presented with 421 nesting loggerheads were recorded at Mon Repos and the Woongarra Coast, , including 122 first-time recorded breeders, approximately 29% of the total. Flatback nesting numbers were the highest reported there since the 1970s.

The monitoring programme relied on substantial community effort, with 198 volunteers contributing more than 11,000 hours. Participants included members of 11 community groups and five land and sea ranger groups.

Discussion also highlighted questions that need further research, including why loggerheads nesting at Wreck Island have not shown the recovery seen on the mainland.

Member organisations share local experience

Four member spotlights illustrated the breadth of turtle conservation work across Queensland:

  • Team Turtle CQ reported 494 nests across 37 monitored beaches, supported by 68 volunteers. Priorities included volunteer training, succession planning and understanding light impacts on hatchlings.
  • Turtle Watch Gold Coast shared its work with Palm Beach Surf Club to replace floodlights with more wildlife-sensitive lighting, alongside the challenges of storm damage and city light pollution.
  • Bribie Island National Park Turtle Conservation Team described nest protection through caging and fencing, and community education to help beach users reduce their impacts.
  • James Cook University’s Sea Turtle Network introduced its growing student-led community, which had reached 156 members, and shared updates from field monitoring, workshops and research activities.

Working together across the network

QMTN Coordinator Dr Sean Williamson reported that the network had grown to 40 member organisations and introduced the new nine-member management committee, co-chaired by Prof Mark Hamann and Kate Hofmeister.

Discussions highlighted shared needs for training, consistent data collection and coordinated responses to threats. A proposed nesting-beach temperature monitoring project attracted interest, with initial work focused on mapping existing data, identifying gaps and connecting interested groups. A dedicated follow-up webinar was proposed to explore the project further.

Thank you to all presenters and participants for sharing their knowledge and experience. QMTN acknowledges Traditional Owners and their continuing care for land and sea Country, and thanks the volunteers, researchers and partner organisations who support turtle conservation across Queensland.

Download the attached QMTN 2026 Online Forum Summary for further details on the presentations, discussions and next steps.

QMTN activities are supported by the partnership between the Australian Government’s Reef Trust and the Great Barrier Reef Foundation.

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