ResourcesGenetic health and status of K’gari wongari (Fraser Island dingoes)
Summary: The conservation and management of K’gari wongari (Fraser Island dingoes) is highly contentious. Many former issues of public concern (e.g. dingo diet, health, movements, abundance etc) have largely been resolved following recent increased effort to systematically address these concerns through independent scientific evaluation and open-access publication of key datasets collected and maintained by DES through its Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service & Partnerships (QPWS&P). However, public and scientific concern remains about the genetic health and status of dingoes on the island, including the ‘number of breeders’ present. Formulating appropriate dingo management policy is more difficult without this information. The overall aim of the project is to provide QPWS&P with robust and policy-ready information on the genetic health and status of dingoes on K’gari (Fraser Island) – information that also meets stakeholder expectations and is widely supported by the scientific community. This will be achieved by following a stakeholder-led, expert-informed, and independent co-innovation approach that includes stakeholder and expert workshops, along with independent scientific analyses of existing DNA data held by QPWS.
Researchers involved: Benjamin Allen, Linda Behrendorff, Susan Miller, Jacqueline Bishop and various collaborators
Links to project: None
Photo credit: Linda Behrendorff
