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Building Stewardship for K’gari through Citizen Science
The Australian Citizen Science Association defines citizen science as ‘public participation and collaboration in scientific research to increase scientific knowledge.’
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Sea Cucumber Research Update
As we wrote in the last newsletter, PhD student Alison Hammond from the University of the Sunshine Coast is currently undertaking a research project on the sea cucumber (bêche-de-mer) fishery in Hervey Bay, the Great Sandy Strait and Tin Can Bay in the 1980s and 1990s. Project results will be used to map the historical and current distribution of sea cucumbers.
In late 2025, the project received Human Research Ethics approvals. So, Alison has been able to interview some local retired commercial fishers and long-term residents/naturalists about the history of the sea cucumber/beche-de-mer industry in Great Sandy.
“A million thanks to those who have generously given their time for an interview. These insights are absolutely invaluable to reconstructing some semblance of a pre-fishing baseline, especially in the absence of any catch monitoring prior to 1995,” said Alison.
Permits are now in place for the in-water survey and eDNA component, so the team can begin searching in earnest for sandfish in the Great Sandy Marine Park. In-water surveys in Moreton Bay Marine Park are planned for February to assess the current status of sandfish stocks there for comparison with the 2018 and 2001 surveys.
Finally, Alison was excited to announce that they recently found a small, lone sandfish at Tinnanbar.
“Not quite the hundreds of thousands that once roamed the seagrass beds, but at least one is a start! The finder called me, and I was able to race down and grab a skin sample from it for genetic testing.
Alison is specifically seeking sightings of the sandfish Holothuria scabra (see photo) anywhere within the Great Sandy Marine Park. If anyone finds one, it would be great if they could take a photo and, if possible, a GPS location (or a screenshot of their location on Google Maps would be good), and text it to Alison on 0419 740 994 or email alison.hammond@research.usc.edu.au.
Article contributed by Alison Hammond, University of the Sunshine Coast
K’gari Conference 2025
The University of the Sunshine Coast’s 2025 conference celebrated the theme Voices of K’gari: Research, Respect and Responsibility, bringing together K’gari’s Traditional Owners, the Butchulla people, leading researchers, conservationists and artists who together explored the cultural, ecological and geological stories of K’gari and the surrounding Great Sandy region.
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Will killing dingoes on K’gari make it safer? We think it’s unlikely.
After the tragic death of Canadian backpacker Piper James on K’gari (Fraser Island) on January 19, a coroner found the 19–year–old had been bitten by dingoes while she was still alive, but the most likely cause of death was drowning. Days later, the Queensland government announced it would cull the entire pack of ten dingoes seen near where Piper’s body was found. Most of those animals have now been killed.
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Dingoes are not domestic dogs
For decades, scientists, policymakers, graziers and land managers have been locked in a surprisingly high stakes debate over what defines a dingo. Are these wild canids their own species? Or are they simply feral dogs?
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K’gari Tops the Island Charts for Frog and Freshwater Fish Biodiversity
Researchers have completed the first comprehensive database of freshwater species on Australian islands. The results of the research have been published in Diversity and Distributions journal.
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IUCN Conservation Outlook Report Released for K’gari
Every three years, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) undertakes an independent evaluation of the conservation outlook for all natural World Heritage properties. Given COVID-19, there was a slight delay in the latest round, with the latest reports released in October 2025.
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Restoring the Great Sandy’s Ecological Health
This short item isn’t directly about K’gari., it is more about Korrawinga (what we call the Great Sandy Strait). I know little of Butchulla lore, but I think Korrawinga was formed by Yindingie with the assistance of the spirit K’gari.
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Sea Cucumber Stories Wanted
The University of the Sunshine Coast is undertaking a research project on the sea cucumber (bêche-de-mer) fishery in Hervey Bay; the Great Sandy Strait (Korrawinga), and Tin Can Bay in the 1980s and 1990s.
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K’gari Research Conference 2025 – Call for Abstracts
The University of the Sunshine Coast, along with partners the Butchulla Aboriginal Corporation (BAC), the Butchulla Native Title Aboriginal Corporation (BNTAC), the Fraser Island Defenders Organisation (FIDO) and FINIA – the Natural Integrity Alliance for K’gari, is excited to announce the biennial K’gari Research Conference Voices of K’gari: Research, Respect and Responsibility on Monday and Tuesday, 10-11 November 2025.
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FINIA 