A Protector 310 Chase named Southern Defender is playing a central role in one of Australia's most urgent marine conservation efforts, helping Sea Shepherd Australia reach endangered Australian sea lion colonies across a remote and unforgiving stretch of southern coastline.
The Australian sea lion population has declined by 60% over the past four decades. In 2021 the species was classified as endangered under Australian environmental law, threatened by climate change, fishing bycatch, prey depletion, pollutants, and habitat destruction. Without intervention, the species could disappear entirely within decades.
Sea Shepherd Australia are working alongside their government partner, the National Parks and Wildlife Service, to try to reverse that decline. The challenge is considerable. The Great Australian Bight spans 1,160 kilometres and includes more than 40 offshore island colonies that the NPWS had been unable to reach for years for want of a capable vessel.
Southern Defender changed that. The Protector 310 Chase, brought into the programme a year ago, gave the team the range, reliability, and sea-keeping ability to operate across the full extent of the Bight. Leading the campaign is marine scientist Dirk Holman, who heads Sea Shepherd Australia's Australian Sea Lion Defence Campaign.
Kristie Newton, Major Gifts and Grants Manager at Sea Shepherd Australia, described what Dirk accomplished in that first year. "Dirk has spent the last 12 months monitoring over 40 island colonies and even discovering 8 previously unknown colonies along the Bunda Cliffs."
The work goes well beyond surveying. The team has built and installed shelters to protect pups from heat stress and aggressive males, used advanced UAV photogrammetry to monitor body condition, taken biological samples for disease and DNA analysis, and restored habitats. As Newton noted, the shelters have delivered an unexpected bonus: "Apparently the shelters also make a good refuge during a downpour."
In 105 operational hours and 60 engine hours, the team has covered more than 2,050 kilometres aboard Southern Defender. Newton said that time has also extended to wildlife rescue. "With the Southern Defender, Dirk has been able to support important research into hookworm treatment and foraging behaviour and respond to entangled marine wildlife including two sea lions, a dolphin and a young whale."
The boat's ability to launch from and access remote beaches and rocky offshore islands has been central to the programme's reach. "The Southern Defender is such an important part of this work, and we are so grateful to Rayglass for helping make it possible," Newton said.
