Devil Facial Tumour Disease (DFTD) is a fatal condition that is currently affecting most populations of Tassie devils.
The University of Tasmania 's School of Zoology is undertaking several research projects.
Project provides accommodation, food, transport and parks & wildlife passes.
Live trapping involves setting up forty traps in a 25sq km area during ten days. During this time we will undertake a capture-mark-recapture study in which animals will be examined for DFTD symptoms, health condition assessment, and estimation of sex and age. All individuals will be micro chipped and a small biopsy sample will be taken for genetic analysis. In addition, we will take a blood sample from every captured individual. These samples will be processed (extraction of serum) on a daily basis.
Volunteers will be asked to sterilize, bait and set up devil traps, help to assess behavioural parameters and scribe data. During our field work we need to take as much ecological and epidemiological information as possible when examining devils, so you will be asked to fill different field data sheets and assist with related aspects of our research, such as keeping records of blood, faecal and tumour samples, preparing biopsies and microchips and material for other biological samples.
Please note: volunteers are not allowed to handle animals
The length of field trips range from 1 to 2 weeks per trip and volunteers are required to stay for the entire length of each trip.
Fieldwork is undertaken at West Pencil Pine, a devil population in the surrounding areas of Cradle Mountain National Park and at Narawntapu National Park.
To volunteer please contact: Rodrigo Hamede (Postdoctoral Research Fellow)
Wildlife Ecology | School of Zoology | University of Tasmania
Private Bag 5, Hobart | Tasmania 7001 | Australia
Ph: +61 03 62261890 | Fax +61 03 62262745 |mobile: 0428394626
Updated 15/2/13
