After months of watching the population decimated by an unknown fatal infectious disease and with no answers in sight, NSW Government agencies along with wildlife health specialists captured 10 male and seven female turtles from the Bellinger River and placed them in a “biosecurity approved location”.

The Bellinger River Snapping Turtle is unique to the Bellinger Catchment and despite initial hopes the outbreak was contained it appears the disease front is continuing its advance upstream.

It’s a worrying sign for the Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH) regional manager, Don Arnold, who said even those turtles collected still had a question mark over their medical status.

“Surveys indicate that more than 90 per cent of the Bellinger River Snapping Turtle habitat is now affected by the unknown disease,” Mr Arnold said.

“There is still some considerable work to be done to confirm that these apparently healthy turtles we’ve taken for the breeding program are in fact free of the disease”.

Though ostensibly a wise decision, according to Mr Arnold, breeding turtles in captivity may not be the magic bullet as “the areas that are currently free of the disease still hold the best chance for recovery of the population through natural replacement over the coming years”.

At this stage it’s believed only the Bellinger River Snapping Turtles (Myuchelys georgesi) is affected. Though numbers of deaths have been hard to ascertain, the OEH estimates more than 350 have died from severe internal infection including major organ damage. External symptoms include eye and body lesions and lethargy.

Mr Arnold told the Courier-Sun, “pathologists from the nation’s leading animal health laboratories are continuing to work on analysis of the outbreak and have co-opted specialist support from interstate and overseas. No conclusive evidence about the type or nature of the pathogen has yet been identified”.

What you can do:

To help prevent potential spread of whatever may be causing the problem people are advised not to enter the water, handle the turtles or try to capture any turtles in the Bellinger River.

People swimming in the river are asked to swim only in one location to avoid affecting other areas.

If people are using canoes or other watercraft it is recommended that these are washed down with warm soapy water and thoroughly dried for 24-48 hours before reuse. Avoid using in other waterways if at all possible.

If you find a sick or injured turtle in the Bellinger River, please report the details to Environment Line on telephone 131-555. Avoid handling sick turtles.