This project will deliver urgent recovery actions required to reduce the Maugean Skate (Zearaja maugeana) extinction risk. The Healthy Harbour project team will continue to collaborate with the Strahan and West Coast communities to improve public understanding and support for the species and to decrease concern about the impacts of proposed recovery actions.
Urgent Recovery Actions for Maugean Skate
Urgent recovery actions are being implemented to reduce the species’ imminent risk of extinction, guided by the National Recovery Team for the Maugean Skate chaired by the Department of Natural Resources and Environment, Tasmania (NRE Tas).
Cradle Coast NRM’s current Maugean Skate project builds on our Maugean Skate Awareness Project, which ended in March 2023. It is funded by the Australian Government. The $2.15 million funding for this emergency intervention was announced by the Australian Government Minister for Environment and Water, Tanya Plibersek MP, on Threatened Species Day, 7 September 2023.
Two urgent recovery actions are being delivered by Cradle Coast NRM in partnership with the University of Tasmania’s Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS) and SeaLife Aquariums, and with support from NRE Tas, West Coast Council, the Australian Government Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment, and Water (DCCEEW), and other Recovery Team stakeholders.
These recovery actions aim to:
- Establish and maintain an emergency insurance population of Maugean skates outside Macquarie Harbour by developing a captive breeding program. This element will be delivered by IMAS and SeaLife Sydney, initially at the IMAS Taroona facility.
- Build on community support for conserving the Maugean Skate by engaging with the Strahan and West Coast communities, and the Tasmanian Aboriginal community to collaboratively design and implement key recovery actions.
The community engagement element will be delivered by Cradle Coast NRM via the Our Healthy Harbour Project (2024-2025), building partnerships and effective communication with Strahan and West Coast residents, including the Tasmanian Aboriginal community. A range of consultation and engagement activities are planned to improve the health of Macquarie Harbour, and connect people with their local environment through art, natural history and citizen science.
Funding provider: Australian Government
Duration: 2023 – 2028
Contact: Jason Cullen, Project Officer (West Coast), 0432 833 197, [email protected]
