Top: Aerial view of the prescribed burn in Cape Range National Park.
Above: Burning along the Sandy Bay track. Photos: DBCA

On October 24 2022, the Minister for Environment, Hon. Reece Whitby MLA announced the release of the Nyinggulu (Ningaloo) Coastal Reserves joint management plan (2022). Together, Traditional Owners from the Nganhurra Thanardi Garrbu Aboriginal Corporation and the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions will oversee the management of the area and make joint decisions to deliver positive outcomes.
 
Joint management is about traditional and western cultural working together to look after Country. Applying a joint management framework enhances the protection of culture and heritage, geology and landforms, plants, animals and habitats while allowing culturally appropriate opportunities for recreation and tourism.
 
Covering an area of approximately 70,400ha, the Nyinggulu (Ningaloo) Coastal Reserves includes Nyinggulara National Park, Nyinggulu Coastal Reserve, the terrestrial portion of Ningaloo Marine Park which extends 40m landward of high-water mark north from Amherst Point to Winderabandi Point, and Coral Bay Foreshore Reserve.
 
The planning area is culturally significant to Traditional Owners as it holds many cultural values, including cultural heritage sites and places of ceremonial and mythological significance. The area is also highly valued for recreation, with many visitors seeking the low-key remote recreation experience.
 
Download and read the Nyinggulu (Ningaloo) Coast joint management plan (2022).

Feral cats pose a substantial threat to Australian native fauna species, particularly mice, reptiles, shorebirds and turtles within the Ningaloo Coast World Heritage Area. 
 
Earlier this year, the Parks and Wildlife Service conducted feral cat trapping and nightly track counts, focusing efforts on the southern part of Cape Range National Park and adjacent Learmonth Air Weapons Range.   
 
As a result of this work, the stomach contents of the cats captured were analysed to provide insight into feral cat prey preference along the Ningaloo Coast.  
  
Feral cats are very suspicious of new things in their environment. Several planter sets (see image) have been installed in Cape Range National Park and other key locations where feral cat activity is monitored. By leaving these planter sets in situ in the landscape, feral cats become familiar with the object over time, which in turn, assists the success of the feral cat trapping program.

Parks and Wildlife Service ask if you see a planter set, please don't touch it and avoid spending a lot of time in the area to help minimise human scent at the site.

16 November 2022 marks the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the World Heritage Convention by UNESCO. Over the past five decades, the Convention has protected and promoted humanity’s treasures and transformed how we value heritage. The celebration reflects on these accomplishments and how best to evolve to meet the challenges facing heritage preservation today and in the future.

The theme, "The Next 50: World Heritage as a source of resilience, humanity and innovation" focuses on five key areas: climate change and heritage conservation; balanced representation of the inscribed sites; sustainable tourism; digital transformation; and post-COVID-19 recovery.

The World Heritage Convention is now one of the most ratified international conventions in history. The 1,154 cultural and natural World Heritage properties located in 167 countries across the globe demonstrate the diversity and power of heritage to bring people together around common values and aspirations.

At a global level, we can embark on the next 50 years of protecting and learning about the world’s cultural and natural heritage with a renewed sense of purpose. At a local level, this is an opportunity to continue to recognise the irreplaceable cultural and natural heritage along the Nyinggulu (Ningaloo) Coast, ensuring ongoing protection and conservation for future generations.

The Jurabi Coast is highly valued for it its cultural and natural values. For Traditional Owners of the Nyinggulu (Ningaloo) Coast, majun (turtle) are a significant totemic species; particularly the green turtle.

Baiyungu Traditional Owner Hazel Walgar shares ‘here along the Jurabi Coast, there are many sites that belong to the majun malanmayi (turtle dreaming) and that it is the female majun (turtle) birthing place, a place of women’s business.’

During Nyarlba (spring time) majun mate in the inshore waters of the Ningaloo Marine Park. This can be exhausting for the females; they come ashore during the day to rest and avoid the attention from male turtles. As the seasons change to thubayurri (hot time), more and more majun can be seen balygura (nesting) on the beaches at night time.  

You can help by:

Below: Greens are the predominate turtle species nesting along the Jurabi Coast. Photo: NTP