Reptile GPS Tracking

A project by: Ashleigh Wolfe

Successful

WE RAISED $10

from 1 donor

This project received pledges on Tue 10 Nov 2015
Ever wondered where our scaled friends roam?

Have you ever seen Curtin’s reptile neighbours?  You may not realise but we share our Curtin campus with a large population of Bobtails!!  And we are as curious as you, on where these creatures come from and where they go!


Human disturbance from urbanisation is an important factor in reptile behaviour.  In Western Australia, there are two reptile species that have been significantly affected by urbanisation; Dugites and Bobtails.  We are trying to investigate the impacts of urbanisation through ecological and behavioural observations of reptiles by tracking Dugites and Bobtails with GPS devices.

Dugites and Bobtails play an important role in maintaining our natural vegetation. However, with very little research conducted into the behaviours of urban native reptiles, it is important to monitor Dugites and Bobtails to identify the impact urbanisation has on reptiles.  We are eager to learn more about the Dugites and Bobtails at Curtin and around the Perth region. 

We aim to track up to 100 Dugites and Bobtails around Curtin and the Perth region.  This will enable us to discover the movement patterns of Dugites and Bobtails to provide vital information that will help save our reptile friends from human interference. We are trying to raise funds for as many GPS tracking devices as possible and we need your help! 

Want to get involved?

To discover more about Bobtails on campus at Curtin, we have introduced an interactive new way that you can monitor Bobtails at Curtin!  If you see a Bobtail on campus, simply take a photo and use the hashtag #CurtinBobtails on your preferred social media platform (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) and you can track the movements of our campus neighbours! All photos can be tracked using the link: https://tagboard.com/CurtinBobtails/196986


What can your money do? 

One GPS device to track a Dugite costs $1000.

One GPS device to track a Bobtail costs $800.

Every dollar earned towards this project will go towards purchasing these important GPS trackers! Right now, we need the money quickly as the tracking season is just around the corner! Tracking will begin in September, and $10,000 will help us track at least 10 reptiles this season. More money means more trackers!

With your support, we can learn more about Dugites and Bobtails.  Your donation will help us purchase GPS tracking devices that will enable researchers to closely monitor the movements of Dugites and Bobtails to help identify how we can save our campus neighbours from urbanisation.

Did you say Supporter Rewards? 

To recognise your support, we want to offer you some rewards for your assistance!

  • Donate $50 or more and you will receive 4 postcards (1 each season for 1 year) with a glossy photograph of one of our GPS-tracked reptiles on the front and its story on the back. An example is available below.
  • Donate $200 or more and you will receive a custom poster (42.6 x 60.1cm) with our best photos (as well as the postcards!) and a huge thank you that you can show off proudly to all your family and friends. An example is available below.

All donors will also receive project updates via email to let you know where these reptiles are going!

Spread the word!

Help us learn more about our Dugite and Bobtail population.  Please share this project with your friends and family on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter #curtintogether.

You can also find more about the project via Facebook.com/UrbanReptileEcologyPerth or Twitter.com/ReptileEcology