Travellers booking flights to Australia may be interested to know that a baby dugong found washed up on a beach has been taken to the Sea World in Brisbane.
People booking flights to Sydney and planning to travel up the east coast of Australia may be interested in the latest resident to arrive at the Sea World in Brisbane.
A baby dugong that was found washed up on a beach in Townsville has been transferred to the centre to receive 24-hour care.
The young male is believed to be around a week old. He was suffering from dehydration and a number of injuries when he was found in shallow water last weekend.
A Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service Officer said: “The male dugong had a number of gouge marks from the tusks of other dugongs, which happens when a baby is separated from its mother.”
Staff at Sea World will need to bottle feed the baby every two hours with a special milk formula.
Dugongs, also known as sea cows, are an endangered species of marine mammal. Sea grass is their predominant food source which means they are often found in shallow bays and mangrove channels where the plant is prevalent.
Written by Erin Marshall