Friends of Kurrawyba will host a free Grey Nurse Shark information evening at the Central Coast Marine Discovery Centre in Terrigal on Thursday, May 30.
Special guest speaker will be Dr William (Bill) Gladstone, marine biologist and Emeritus Professor in the Faculty of Science at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS).
Gladstone is also an International Fellow of the Explorers Club.
After completing his PhD (involving three years of field research at Lizard Island Research Station, Great Barrier Reef) he worked for government and international marine conservation organisations in Australia, the Coral Triangle (Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines), and the Red Sea.
He used his expertise in the ecology of fish and coral reefs for conservation planning, state-of-the-environment reporting and staff training.
Gladstone has spent extended periods of time at sea and worked in remote and isolated locations as a member and leader of field teams.
As a university academic he studied the conservation biology of fish and sharks (spending more than 4,000 hours underwater), and the social aspects of marine conservation.
He was one of the founding organisers of the Central Coast Marine Discovery Centre.
Friends of Kurrawyba spokesperson Izabela Sajdok said there was a special Grey Nurse population on the Central Coast.
“Referred to as the Labradora of the Sea because of their gentle nature, the Grey Nurse were the first sharks to be protected by an Act of Parliament, right here in NSW,” she said.
“Friends of Kurrawyba are on a mission to make sure the Grey Nurse in local waters continue to get the protection they deserve.”
Gladstone’s presentation will be followed by a brief update on the Friends of Kurrawyba and a question and answer session on Grey Nurse Sharks and marine life generally.
The Free Grey Nurse Shark Information Night starts at 7pm on Thursday, May 30, at 11 Terrigal Dr, Terrigal.