Standardised observer aerial surveys have provided data on the distribution and abundance of dugongs in various parts of its range in Australia since the mid-1980s. Analysis of the time series of surveys conducted across the Great Barrier Reef indicate that the dugong population in the southern section of the Reef is declining and a resurvey of the area was overdue. Moreover, there were concerns about the impact of the repetitive floods that occurred in Hervey Bay and Moreton Bay in early 2022 on seagrass habitats, dugongs and sea turtles. We conducted the survey of the southern Reef (Mission Beach to Bundaberg), Hervey Bay and Moreton Bay in late 2022 using a dual platform observers-cameras to contribute to the transition to imagery surveys. In this talk we will report on (1) the latest estimates of dugong abundance and population trends in the sGBR-Hervey Bay-Moreton Bay region and assessment of impacts from the floods in the southern regions, (2) the use of dugongs as indicator of seagrass health, (3) advances in the use of aerial images and Artificial intelligence in a large-scale marine wildlife survey, and (4) engagement with indigenous groups and members of the community in the surveyed area.