The University of Queensland's Moreton Bay Research Station (MBRS) will celebrate the "Year of the Turtle" by hosting UQ Turtlefest 2006 this weekend.
The free event will be held on Saturday, November 25, from 10am to 3pm, the same weekend as the Stradbroke Island Oyster Festival and the re-launch of the North Stradbroke Island Historical Museum.
Event coordinator and MBRS Education Officer Dr Kathy Townsend said the day would be a casual, family-orientated affair, with a wide variety of turtle related activities for people of all ages, including a live link to a scuba diver in the turtle aquarium at Reef HQ in Townsville.
"The day will also included talks from leading turtle researchers, tours of the station, hands on experiments, displays and exhibits of freshwater and marine turtles commonly found in and around Moreton Bay," Dr Townsend said.
"While the popular "Marine Mystery Animal Quiz" will test people's turtle knowledge with prize packs for the winners."
Dr Townsend said Turtlefest would give members of the community an opportunity to find out about the biology of these endangered animals as well as informing people about the extensive turtle research and rehabilitation being carried out in the Moreton Bay area from the research station.
"It has been estimated that there are over 20,000 sea turtles in Moreton Bay," said Dr Townsend said.
"A surprisingly large number considering how close we are to one of the fastest growing cities in Australia.
"Events such as this raise public awareness on many of the threats facing sea turtles both locally and internationally."
The event will also highlight the turtle conservation and research work undertaken by the Environmental Protection Agency, Moreton Bay Marine Parks and Underwater World, just to name a few.
Other attractions on the day include: vets from Underwater World and Australia Zoo discussing their turtle rehabilitation work; a live turtle and reptile show from Cool Companions; the CSIRO Helix Club staging hands-on ocean related science experiments for the kids; and The Healthy Waterways turtle Hugo will be here handing out goodies to the kids.
UQ Turtlefest 2006 will be held at Moreton Bay Research Station, located at the corner of Flinders Avenue and Fraser Street, Dunwich, North Stradbroke Island. Entry is free and children must be accompanied by an adult.
For further information, contact Moreton Bay Research Station (telephone 07 3409 9058, email: mbrs@uq.edu.au).
Media enquiries: Dr Kathy Townsend (3409 9058).
