Extract from ABC News
Eastern quolls, which are related to Tasmanian devils, are critically endangered nationally but the species survives in some parts of Tasmania. (Supplied: Parks Australia)
In short:
Eastern quoll populations have been declining in Tasmania since the turn of the century and the animal was declared extinct on mainland Australia in 1963.
Last month, two dozen captive-bred eastern quolls were released onto a large-scale regeneration property in Tasmania's Midlands as part of a conservation program to help bolster populations.
What's next?
Researchers hope the program will inform scientists on how to best reintroduce the species into the wild in Tasmania and on mainland Australia.
An ambitious conservation effort to boost declining eastern quoll populations in Tasmania is underway.
Researchers from the University of Tasmania along with conservation partners last month released 24 captive-bred eastern quolls onto a private property in the state's Midlands.
They hope the initiative will not only strengthen the local quoll population, but also provide valuable insights for the reintroduction of the species into the wild on mainland Australia, where they have been extinct for more than 50 years.
The Quoin is in Tasmania's Midlands, near Ross. (ABC News: Morgan Timms)
The eastern quoll is a small, carnivorous marsupial about the size of a domestic cat. Despite once being widespread across Tasmania, they have been in decline since a population crash at the turn of the century.
While some parts of the state such as North Bruny Island and the Huon Valley still have healthy populations, other regions such as the Central Highlands, Midlands and East Coast have seen significant decline.
Over the past few years, the University of Tasmania, Tasmanian Land Conservancy, and WWF Australia have partnered to study the drivers behind this decline and help boost the species' long-term prospects, with the support of the Tasmania Quoll Conservation program.
David Hamilton microchips the released quolls to help with further tracking. (Supplied: Cath Dickson)
Conservation ecologist David Hamilton from the Tasmanian Land Conservancy described the trend as "disturbing".
He said it was likely multiple factors were contributing to the species' decline.
"It's not just one thing that has caused declines in some areas. Likely interacting factors of changing climate, plus the habitat changing, plus feral predators all coming together to make this kind of complicated web of things,"Dr Hamilton said.
"We have to try to unpick that web and figure out exactly what it is that's going on in some of these areas where they've declined."
The released quolls were part of a captive-breeding program by four partner wildlife sanctuaries, including Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary, which make up part of the Tasmanian Quoll Conservation Program.
Tasmania is one of the last strongholds for the nationally endangered animal.
Settling in to new home
The Quoin, a 5,000-hectare private conservation property near Ross in the heart of Tasmania's Midlands, was selected as the quolls' new home.
The large-scale regeneration property was purchased in 2021 by Wedgetail, a private company investing in projects around the world that restore ecologically valuable areas.
Behind Wedgetail is Cameron Adams, the billionaire co-founder of Canva, and his wife Lisa Miller.
A native population of eastern quolls already live at the Quoin. (ABC News: Ashleigh Barraclough)
Dr Hamilton said the combination of open grasslands, adjoining areas of closed forest for denning, an abundance of prey, and low numbers of feral cats made the Quoin an ideal habitat for eastern quolls.
"We know that all those things add up to make what we think looks like a very good landscape for eastern quolls, and then we're interested to see what the quolls think as well,"he said.
The captive-bred animals were released into a fence-free haven. (Supplied: Fran Roncolato)
Researchers have been closely tracking the released quolls to monitor how they integrate with the new landscape, what they forage on, and how they integrate with local quoll populations.
So far, the results have been promising.
"Most of them haven't moved particularly far. They're happy in the area that they've been put in in the Quoin, which is fantastic. But we'll be monitoring that further down the track," Dr Hamilton said.
The project hopes to conduct up to five more translocations at different sites across the state.
Quolls play important role in landscape
Lisa Miller and her husband Cameron Adams are the force behind the eco-focused venture fund and loan facility Wedgetail. (ABC News: Ashleigh Barraclough)
Eastern quolls play an important role in maintaining the balance of their ecosystem.
According to Dr Hamilton, as predators, quolls help regulate populations of smaller animals and insects. When they disappear, there is a noticeable impact on different parts of the ecosystem.
"You can get some smaller feral species and things taking off in areas that don't have a predator such as an eastern quoll around," Dr Hamilton said.
"Black rats and house mice can really explode in some areas where eastern quolls disappeared. So they're a great animal to have in the ecosystem."
The quolls are checked prior to their release. (Supplied: Chloe Frick)
For Dr Hamilton, however, their importance to the ecosystem is not the only reason he hopes the project is successful.
"If you go into an open grassland that is just jumping with eastern quolls, it's the most delightful sight in the world," he said.
"They look like they're full of joy every time they move, which is just something that makes my heart sing."
The captive-release program will inform scientist how well captive-bred individuals do in the wild. (Supplied: Annette Ruzicka)
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