First birthday for first captive-born Maugean skate
Even some of Tasmania’s most threatened species have a reason to celebrate this Christmas, with scientists providing gifts to this underwater local. Watch the present unwrapping.
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While many Tasmanians were busy wrapping presents on Christmas Eve, scientists were unwrapping some for one endangered local’s birthday.
Researchers from the University of Tasmania’s Institute for Marine and Antarctic (IMAS) on Tuesday celebrated the first birthday of the first captive-born Maugean skate, one of a batch of 50 eggs that hatched last December.
The male skate was the first wild egg to hatch from the batch in IMAS captive breeding facilities and was the first to unwrap his birthday gift – a dog toy stuffed with frozen squid and fish – with the help of IMAS technical officer Charlotte Levi.
“I’m really excited to spend Christmas looking after the skate,” she said.
“It’s the first Christmas that we’ve officially had with all our new hatchlings and our new wild hatchlings.
“We’re having so many hatchlings that there’s a high chance one could be born on Christmas Day.”
Ms Levi said it was a privilege to work and take care of the endemic species, also providing the current captive population with a Christmas Day lunch of “vet-approved squid, prawn, fish and garlic”.
“We’re the only place in the whole world looking after them,” she said.
“They require 24-hour care and there’s a lot of behind-the-scenes work that needs to be done, even on Christmas Day, to ensure they’re happy, healthy and thriving.”
IMAS researcher and Maugean skate captive breeding program leader Professor Jayson Semmens said the work trying to cement the endangered species’ future populations had been “sobering”.
“I would have never dreamt in my career that I would be contributing to helping maintain the existence of a species,” he said.
“It’s sobering when you think about it, especially all that we have achieved in just a year.”
After working around the clock including on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and over New Year’s last year, Professor Semmens said it has taken a village to help the skate thrive.
“There has been a huge amount of preparation that’s gone into this,” he said.
“It’s been a truly collaborative effort – from the team at IMAS to the university vets and the Maugean Skate Recovery Team and associated experts – everyone has been putting so much effort into ensuring the skates’ survival.
“Getting to a year and being as successful as we are, having so many animals that are thriving, I would have never dreamt we’d be at this point in a year.”
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Originally published as First birthday for first captive-born Maugean skate
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