Dr Scott Whiting - Principal Research Scientist
Scott is a Principal Research Scientist with the Western Australian Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions. He coordinates the long-term North West Shelf Flatback Turtle Conservation Program and the Kimberley Turtle Project (Western Australia Marine Science Institution). Scott has worked for university, non-government and government sectors across Queensland, Northern Territory, Western Australian and Australian Indian Ocean Territories (Ashmore Reef and Cocos Keeling Islands). Research and management roles have included marine turtles, sea snakes, birds, dugongs and marine debris. He is currently focused on delivering marine conservation outcomes through good science, knowledge uptake to decision makers, partnerships, capacity building and Indigenous collaborations. Scott is a member of the IUCN Marine Turtle Specialist Group and has been involved in the Australian marine turtle recovery process since the early 2000s.
Dr Tony Tucker - Senior Research Scientist
Tony developed research affiliations from 1979 to present with sea turtle projects of Australia, USA, Puerto Rico, French Guiana, Costa Rica, India, Malaysia, Oman and Cuba. He has worked with all seven species of sea turtles and serves in the IUCN Marine Turtle Specialist Group, including the IUCN Red List for loggerhead turtles. He regularly contributes in the Australian and International Marine Turtle Symposia. He currently works with WA turtle projects involving satellite tracking, stable isotopes, genetics and distributions in marine protected areas.
Dr Sabrina Fossette-Halot - Research Scientist
Sabrina started working for the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions in November 2015. Her career as a sea turtle biologist gave her the opportunity to work and live in several different countries. She completed her PhD in Behavioural Ecology and Marine Biology at the University of Strasbourg, France in 2008. She was then awarded a research fellowship to work at Swansea University in the UK. In 2012, she moved to California, USA to work as a National Research Council postdoctoral fellow at NOAA before moving to Perth, Australia in 2015 as the recipient of an Endeavour postdoctoral fellowship. She has published more than 45 peer-reviewed papers on sea turtles but also marine mammals and jellyfish in the field of movement ecology, eco-physiology and conservation biology. Her main research interest is to investigate the impact of environmental conditions and human activities on marine species movements and behaviour.
Tristan Simpson - Senior Environmental Officer
Tristan has over 15 years’ experience working in Natural Resource Management, primarily within the marine environment. Throughout his career Tristan has worked across Australia for various Governments and NGOs and had the benefit and privilege to live and work internationally in several countries completing and managing marine conservation projects. Tristan has extensive experience with marine turtles that started back in 2006 with the Ningaloo Turtle Program, to more recently leading marine turtle monitoring and research projects in the Torres Straits. Tristan started working for the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions in August 2020. He is undertaking the management of the conservation, mitigation, communication and education facets of North West Shelf Flatbacks. A large component of his work includes stakeholder collaborations to achieve conservation outcomes.
Natasha Samuelraj - Administrational Officer
Natasha began working with the North West Shelf Flatbacks in 2016. She has worked for the DBCA since 2004. Natasha is interested in finance and reporting and enjoys going to the beach. Working with the turtle team has been the perfect opportunity to combine some of her favourite things and learn many interesting facts about marine turtles. Natasha has been instrumental in developing and managing the underlying administrational systems for the program.
