Aussie Ark plays key role in the release of endangered Eastern Quolls

May 14, 2019

Environment / Parks /

Wildlife conservation organisation Aussie Ark has played a key role in releasing endangered Eastern Quolls into Booderee National Park, located at Jervis Bay, on the south coast of New South Wales.

There were 40 quolls released last week, including 17 bred by Aussie Ark in its wildlife sanctuaries at the Barrington Tops.

The release was a partnership between Aussie Ark, Rewilding Australia, Parks Australia, Australian National University and Booderee National Park.

This is the second release of quolls in the area, with hopes for more joeys to be bred in the wild.

Quolls have been extinct on the mainland since the 1960s due to predators such as foxes and cats, culling by humans and disease.

Aussie Ark has been breeding quolls in its fenced sanctuaries at the Barrington Tops with 57 joeys born since 2017.

“As a conservationist you spend your life working towards a moment like this, seeing an endangered species back in the wild with great hopes for the future,” Aussie Ark Curator Hayley Shute said.

“The second release of quolls into Booderee National Park is a sign of hope for the species that, one day, we will bring the bush alive again with our native species.”

The quolls will be monitored by Rewilding Australia and it is hoped the newly released mammals will breed and grow the wild population.

Eastern quolls are mainly solitary and nocturnal animals. While the main component of their diet is spiders, cockroaches and grasshoppers, these small mammals are also impressive hunters. Their appetite for rabbits, mice and rats helps keep the populations of these pests under control.

Aussie Ark will continue to breed the quolls, with support from its partners Australian Geographic and Global Wildlife Conservation, to grow an insurance population. Some quolls will be released into the Ark’s new 400ha wildlife sanctuary later this year.

To find out more about Aussie Ark visit aussieark.org.au

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24th March 2017 - Cairns Jurassica Project aims to conserve and preserve some of Australia’s most endangered species

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24th November 2016 - Perth Zoo to release numbats into predator-free wild

3rd March 2016 - United Nations marks World Wildlife Day with a global call to save endangered species

13th October 2018 - Tasmanian devil joeys unveiled at Monarto Zoo

7th May 2018 - NSW Government announces koala reserves in attempt to reverse declining populations

17th April 2018 - Bilbies return to NSW National Parks after near 100-year extinction

1st September 2016 - Healthy Tasmanian devils released to test contagious cancer vaccine

21st March 2016 - Tasmanian Devils to aid sustainability of mainland Australian ecosystems?

7th March 2016 - Eastern quolls return to Australian mainland after more than 50 years

19th November 2015 - Fence to protect newly released Tasmanian Devils

11th January 2015 - NSW Government funding to protect threatened native species

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