Features in this issue

Looking for Tjakura

How the Wiluna Martu Rangers discovered a rare skink

Someone walking off into the Australian bush

During a national survey of desert wildlife, the Wiluna Martu Rangers searched Matuwa Kurrara Kurrara National Park for animal tracks and discovered tracks from a surprising species.

Indigenous rangers are well known for their incredible tracking skills – reading the sand for the tiny signs that animals leave behind. During a national survey of desert wildlife, the Wiluna Martu Rangers searched Matuwa for animal tracks and recorded what they found. Their results were added to a national database that helps to map where desert animals live across Australia.

But one finding stood out: the rangers discovered tracks belonging to the great desert skink (Liopholis kintorei); known to Wiluna Martu as Tjakura — a species that had not been previously recorded in the area. This discovery suggests that the skink’s range may be wider than scientists once thought.

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Other features in this issue

Saving orchids one species at a time

Western Australia is home to an extraordinary diversity of terrestrial orchids. But with many species under threat, one Kings Park Research Scientist has devoted her career to conserving these native beauties.

6 minute read

Blazing a trail

Managing large, intense and complex bushfires that threaten lives and homes is all in a day’s work for Allison Donovan – Western Australia’s first and only female Level 3 incident controller.

6 minute read

Listening to Lake Goollelal 

It’s now easier than ever to immerse yourself in Yellagonga Regional Park’s natural beauty with new accessible facilities, designed in partnership with Traditional Owners to minimise disturbance to these wonderful wetlands.

5 minute read

Understanding a monster

Despite being a large and formidable predator, the Pilbara olive python rather prefers a quiet life. So quiet that before the advent of modern radio transmitters, it had been challenging to track its ecology. Dr David Pearson shares how modern technology has unlocked some of its secrets.

4 minute read

Spotlight on seagrass in the Swan-Canning Estuary

If you’ve ever basked in the warm Perth summer sun, enjoying the beauty of the Swan-Canning Estuary, you may not have realised that just beneath the surface lie vast stretches of thriving seagrass meadows. These meadows are the most valuable habitats in the waterway, teeming with life and performing key functions to maintain the health of the estuary.   

6 minute read

Recent issues

Acknowledgement of Country

The Government of Western Australia acknowledges the Traditional Owners throughout Western Australia and their continuing connection to the land, waters and community. We pay our respects to all members of the Aboriginal communities and their cultures; and to Elders both past and present.