Media Releases
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Key scientists to establish KI wildlife recovery plan
Thu, 22 Oct 2020Some of Australia’s leading ecologists will gather with government representatives, conservation groups and landholders on Kangaroo Island to further develop a recovery plan for bushfire-affected wildlife and threatened species.
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Over 100 eucalypt tree species newly recommended for threatened listing
Thu, 22 Oct 2020The Threatened Species Recovery Hub has undertaken a conservation assessment of every Australian eucalypt tree species and found that over 190 species meet internationally recognised criteria for listing as threatened: most of these are not currently listed as threatened.
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Solutions to northern Australia’s mammal decline crisis
Thu, 22 Oct 2020Northern Australia’s mammals have suffered catastrophic declines over the last 30 years. A major new study has found that protecting and recovering habitat by improving fire management and reducing feral cattle, horses and buffaloes is the best approach to address the crisis.
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Researchers help endangered birds to ‘self-fumigate’ their nests
Thu, 22 Oct 2020Parasites are taking a heavy toll on the chicks of Tasmania’s endangered forty-spotted pardalote, but with a helping hand from science these tiny birds can ‘fumigate’ their own nests.
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Cat diseases have $6 billion impact on human health in Australia
Thu, 15 Oct 2020Some cat-dependent diseases can infect humans, with sometimes severe and tragic health consequences. A new study, published in Wildlife Research, has quantified the human health impacts and costs of cat-dependent diseases in Australia for the first time.
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22 Australian freshwater fish at risk of extinction
Tue, 29 Sep 2020Twenty-two native freshwater fish have been identified as likely to become extinct within the next twenty years, unless there is new conservation action, according to new research.
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Aussie icons at risk: Scientists name 20 snakes and lizards on path to extinction
Tue, 29 Sep 2020Australia has more reptile species than any other country; we are home to about 10% of the world’s species. Research published today in Pacific Conservation Biology has highlighted that many of these uniquely Australian species are under threat.
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Cat science finalist for Eureka Prize
Mon, 28 Sep 2020Saving Australian wildlife from an invasive introduced predator was the motivation behind a research program which was named as a finalist for a Eureka Prize today.
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Each roaming pet cat kills 110 native animals per year on average
Fri, 15 May 2020New research has quantified the impact of Australia’s pet cat population on wildlife at a national scale for the first time. The study found that collectively pet cats kill 390 million animals per year across Australia.
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Native guava first Australian casualty of global plant disease
Wed, 13 May 2020The native guava is one of the first Australian plants to be pushed to the brink of extinction by a fungal plant disease which has spread rapidly across the globe, according to a new study by scientists from the Australian Government’s National Environmental Science Program.
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Major declines in threatened mammal populations over last 20 years, but news not all bad
Wed, 22 Apr 2020Populations of Australia’s threatened mammals have declined by over one third (38%) in twenty years (1995-2016), according to new research, but the news isn’t all bad because among the losses there have been some significant recoveries.
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Banning savannah cats in Australia was good science
Tue, 22 Oct 2019In 2008, the Australian Government banned the importation of savannah cats to Australia, and that was a very good thing, according to a new scientific study by the Threatened Species Recovery Hub.
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Indigenous action vital for Australia’s threatened species
Wed, 04 Sep 2019It is Threatened Species Day on 7 September. If you are a threatened species in Australia, chances are you are on Indigenous-managed land, as it is the last stronghold for many species which have been lost from the wider landscape .
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Native birds in South-eastern Australia worst affected by habitat loss
Tue, 03 Sep 2019New research has found that habitat loss is a major concern for hundreds of Australian bird species, and south-eastern Australia has been the worst affected. The Threatened Species Recovery Hub study found that half of all native bird species have each lost almost two-thirds of their natural habitat across Victoria, parts of South Australia and New South Wales.
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Got a possum in your backyard? We’d love to know
Wed, 17 Jul 2019Researchers from the Threatened Species Recovery Hub are calling on citizen scientists to help them learn more about Australia’s possums and gliders by recording sightings in a new, free app. Dr Rochelle Steven from the University of Queensland is passionate about Australia’s possums and gliders and believes people in the community can do a lot to help support conservation, especially in urban areas.
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Our cute killers: Cats kill more than 1.5 billion native animals per year in Australia
Tue, 09 Jul 2019Pet and feral cats together are killing over two billion reptiles, birds and mammals per year in Australia, and most of these animals are natives, according to a new book written by three of Australia’s leading environmental scientists. The book, "Cats in Australia: Companion and killer", compiles key findings from hundreds of studies and management experience about cats across Australia.
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New research a game changer for fox control
Tue, 02 Apr 2019Red foxes are one of the greatest threats to Australia’s native mammals and pose a major risk to livestock. To combat this, Australia spends more than $16 million per year on red fox control, with much of that money directed to poison baiting.
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Mass amphibian extinctions globally caused by fungal disease
Mon, 01 Apr 2019An international study led by The Australian National University has found a fungal disease has caused dramatic population declines in more than 500 amphibian species, including 90 extinctions, over the past 50 years.
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Culling noisy miners fails in NSW trial, study
Mon, 04 Mar 2019The noisy miner is a threat to many other bird species, but culling them is no solution, according to new research by the Threatened Species Recovery Hub of the National Environmental Science Program.
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Thirteen mammal extinctions prevented by havens, study
Mon, 04 Mar 2019‘Havens’ free of feral cats and foxes have already prevented 13 mammal extinctions in Australia, and supported improved conservation for many other species. Havens are cat and fox free islands and fenced areas.
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Australia’s 10 worst invasive species, study
Mon, 18 Feb 2019New research by the Threatened Species Recovery Hub has shown that invasive or pest species are a problem for 1,257 threatened species in Australia, or about four out of five species.
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New Research: The Aussie plants facing extinction
Wed, 30 Jan 2019New research by the Threatened Species Recovery Hub has identified the top 100 Australian plant species at risk of extinction. Dr Jennifer Silcock from the University of Queensland said three quarters of Australia’s threatened species are plants.
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Small and isolated habitat patches crucial to species survival
Mon, 10 Dec 2018Your small local patch of bushland could be playing a much bigger role in conserving biodiversity than you think. A global study just published in PNAS looked at the conservation values of vegetation patches in 27 countries on four continents including Australia, and considered their size and distance to other habitat.
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Our mammals at greatest risk from cats and foxes
Tue, 20 Nov 2018New research led by the Threatened Species Recovery Hub has revealed which mammals are most vulnerable to cats and foxes, and many much-loved potoroos, bandicoots and bettongs, as well as native rodents, are at the top of the list.
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A breakthrough for Australia’s fish
Mon, 03 Sep 2018A research team from the Threatened Species Recovery Hub has made a breakthrough that could help dwindling numbers of Australian freshwater fish species. Dr Jabin Watson from the University of Queensland says the innovation will allow small and young fish to get past barriers like culverts.
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Feral Cat Exclosures Boost Reptile Populations
Tue, 21 Aug 2018A collaborative research project between the Northern Territory Government and Parks Australia has found that feral cat exclosures have a positive impact on local reptile populations.
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We need to know – the critical role of monitoring in Australia’s fight against extinctions
Thu, 03 May 2018Given the vital importance of monitoring in the fight against extinctions, the Threatened Species Recovery Hub has released a national assessment of Australia's monitoring. The assessment has found that overall, over a third of Australia's threatened animals received no monitoring at all, and where monitoring does exist, it is often inadequate, putting many species at risk.
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Top 20 Australian mammals and birds at risk of extinction
Tue, 17 Apr 2018Ten Australian birds and seven mammals are likely to become extinct over the next twenty years, if we continue with current management, according to new research. The new research has also identified the top 20 Australian mammals and 20 Australian birds at greatest risk of extinction over the next 20 years.
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No species too ugly to save
Sun, 11 Mar 2018No species is too small, too ugly or too remote to be beyond saving, according to a national compilation and review of almost 50 successful examples of threatened species recovery in Australia. The review has just been published...
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New territory for threatened frog
Mon, 19 Feb 2018Australia’s threatened Northern Corroboree Frog is set to benefit from new breeding techniques and a new approach to identifying wild reintroduction sites. The ACT Government leads Australia’s main captive breeding program for the tiny black and yellow frogs at Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve, accounting for 90% of the captive population.
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Scientists fighting to stop endangered parrot massacre
Mon, 16 Oct 2017Critically endangered Swift Parrots are headed for a massacre by Sugar Gliders in Tasmania, but ANU scientists have developed new technology that can stop it. They are racing against the clock to raise funds to roll out the new technology to nest boxes in the breeding area.
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New research: Cats kill more than one million Australian birds per day
Mon, 02 Oct 2017Feral cats kill 316 million birds and pet cats kill 61 million birds in Australia every year. This equates to cats killing more than 1 million Australian birds every day. More than 99% of these casualties are native birds.
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Threatened species returning to Booderee National Park
Tue, 05 Sep 2017Booderee National Park is welcoming the return of locally extinct mammals. Long-nosed potoroos and southern brown bandicoots have already been reintroduced to Booderee after being locally extinct for up to a century, and now preparations are underway to welcome a third threatened species, the eastern quoll, back to the park.
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Rangers fight loss of wildlife with fire
Sun, 05 Mar 2017Native animals are declining on Australia’s second largest island with brush-tailed rabbit-rats, black-footed tree-rats and northern brown bandicoots the worst hit. This is one of the findings of a recent Health Check of native animals on Melville Island, 80km north of Darwin, which undertook surveys at almost 100 sites and compared them to survey results from 15 years ago.
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Leadbeater's Possum faces extinction if logging continues
Wed, 01 Feb 2017Victoria’s faunal emblem the Leadbeater’s Possum and other species will become extinct within about 30 years unless clear-fell logging stops in Victoria’s Mountain Ash forests, new research based on 30 years of monitoring the forests has found.