AUSTRALIA

Birth of new Gilbert's potoroos on Middle Island celebrated by researchers

By Byron Queale and Peter Barr
ABC Esperance


Two new Gilbert's potoroos were spotted by researchers in August. (Supplied: DBCA)

In short:

Two new Gilbert's potoroos have been born in a protected population on Middle Island, off WA's southern coast.

The marsupial is one of Australia's rarest and most endangered, with as few as 120 remaining in the wild.

What's next?

Efforts are underway to see if the island can play host to other threatened native species.
abc.net.au/news/gilberts-potoroo-population-recovering-middle-island-southern-wa

A population of one of Australia's rarest and most endangered marsupials is slowly recovering off Australia's southern coast.

Middle Island, 820 kilometres south-east of Perth in the Recherche Archipelago, is home to a population of tiny Gilbert's potoroos.

Originally thought to be extinct, the animals were rediscovered at Two People's Bay, near Albany, in 1994.

A Gilbert's potoroo in its native habitat near Albany. (Supplied: Dick Walker/file photo)

With the estimated global population as low as 120, conservation and relocation efforts have been stepped up in recent years.

10 potoroos were relocated to the island in a bid to preserve the population in 2018, three years after a bushfire ripped through the local habitat at Two People's Bay.


There are only about 120 Gilbert's potoroo left in the wild. (Supplied: DBCA)
Monitoring trip sparks good news

During a recent monitoring trip, researchers spotted something positive on their camera traps — two new potoroos.

"It's exciting … they were really healthy animals," Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA) ecologist Sarah Comer said.

"And the female that we caught actually had a little pouch young.


"There's plenty of reasons to be optimistic about their future"


Middle Island is located on the South Coast of Western Australia. (Supplied: DBCA)

In early August, teams from DBCA, Esperance Tjaltjraak Native Title Aboriginal Corporation, and the Odonata Foundation spent five days on Middle Island to monitor the health of the potoroo population.

"We were over there trying to trap animals to see whether we had new recruits [and] what sort of health they were in," Ms Comer said.


Researchers examine one of the potoroos. (Supplied: DBCA/Sarah Comer)
Perfect home after long battle

She said Middle Island was the perfect place for the potoroo to thrive.

"Its size … made it quite attractive," Ms Comer said.


"The other really attractive thing about the island is there's no feral cats or foxes there, and so we can actually put animals out there without the invasive predators impacting them."

Jackie Courtenay has been working with the marsupials for nearly three decades.

"There was the work that was done initially, just trying to find more animals," she said.

"Seeing if they occurred anywhere else other than Two People's Bay, where they were originally rediscovered."


A Gilbert's potoroo with a baby. (Supplied: DPAW/file photo)

While the 2015 bushfire at Two People's Bay was a setback, there's now hope the island can play host to other endangered species.

Ms Comer said surveys were underway on Middle Island's suitability to host a population of noisy scrub birds.

Thirteen camera traps and continued monitoring will now help determine the location's role in future conservation efforts.