C4 Talks: Steve McAlpin, “The Great Desert Skink at Uluru (and beyond!)”

Join us for our first General Meeting of the year, open to all C4 Members and the wider Mission Beach community.

We’re thrilled to welcome Steve McAlpin, renowned herpetologist and desert ecologist, as our special guest speaker. Steve will be sharing insights from his incredible work with Tjakura – the Great Desert Skink, a species of deep ecological and cultural significance across Australia’s western deserts.

Tjakura are more than just skinks – they’re landscape architects, building expansive, multi-generational burrow systems that support an entire web of desert life. These underground homes become critical habitat for hundreds of species and even help shape vegetation by harvesting rainwater.

Despite their wide range across WA, SA, and the NT, Great Desert Skinks are now a threatened species, with feral cats posing a major threat to their survival. Steve will speak to the urgent conservation efforts underway to monitor and protect these remarkable reptiles and the fragile ecosystems they sustain.

All welcome – free entry.
The General Meeting starts at 5pm, Steve will begin his talk at 5.30pm.