Rewilding the Desert: saving threatened species

Although the rain set in early, making it a long cold winter, our volunteers and teams have been as busy as ever.

Over the past few months our volunteers have helped construct another seven trap grids in preparation for the spring trapping program – that’s 70 more buckets and ¼ mile of drift fencing. In total we have now set up 39 monitoring sites, dug in nearly 400 pitfall buckets and erected over 1.25 miles of drift fencing.

With our project partner, FAUNA Research Alliance, we assembled a small group of research scientist to evaluate the progress of the project and start planning for the reintroduction of animals. Everyone was happy with the progress thus far, and excitingly, we have set some dates to reintroduce threatened wildlife into our predator-proof properties!

We are planning to conduct our first experimental release in spring 2018. This reintroduction will involve soil engineers; animals that excavate the soil searching for subterranean food like the Brush-tailed Bettong (pictured below), Western Barred Bandicoot or Burrowing Bettong. Then in spring 2019, we aim to reintroduce some of the native predator species missing from the landscape, like the Western Quoll (pictured) and Red-tailed Phascogale. The aim is to, in time, reintroduce all the native species required to restore a fully functioning ecosystem.

Prior to reintroducing the locally extinct, nationally endangered species, we need to ensure that our predator proof fence is up to standard and will keep the important wildlife in and the invasive, introduced predators out. With the help of over 80 volunteers we have commenced the monumental task of checking, repairing and upgrading the seven miles of predator proof fencing. To date we have checked and repaired ½ a mile.

Although we are making progress, work is slowed by a lack of resources. Before reintroductions begin we must have the facilities and capacity to acquire, house and breed these rare native animals. To achieve this we need to repair and upgrade not only our external predator-proof fences, but our wildlife housing and captive breeding infrastructure as well. To make this happen we need your support to buy rolls of wire, netting, fence pins, posts and screws! Please consider donating again or sharing our story with family and friends to help us secure these resources, and take the next steps to reintroducing our threatened wildlife.

We’d like to say a heartfelt thank you to all our amazing supporters and donors! Without your support we cannot continue this critical project and help conserve Australia’s weird, wonderful and highly threatened native wildlife.