What’s happening to save SA’s threatened species

The plight of South Australia’s threatened animals has sparked a determined and combined effort from Department for Environment and Water scientists in partnership with state and national conservation bodies and volunteers to give them a brighter future.

Since European colonisation it is estimated that 73 species – 41 plants and 32 animals – have become extinct in SA and National Threatened Species Day on 7 September provides an important opportunity to shine a light on some of the vital projects aimed at saving our plants and animals living on the brink.

Red-tailed phascogale

The Red-tailed phascogale is a feisty and tenacious small predator with a taste for mice, various insects, birds and reptiles and who lives largely in trees, particularly mallee and black oak woodlands. As with many small mammals in open habitats, habitat loss and predation by foxes and cats have brought it to the brink of extinction. Until recently, Red-tailed phascogales only occurred in the wild in the south west woodlands of Western Australia and have not been recorded in the wild in South Australia for many years.

Fortunately, the future for this precious marsupial is looking up thanks to the combined efforts of the Department for Environment and Water (DEW) and the Foundation for Australia’s Most Endangered Species (FAME). In news that has native wildlife lovers abuzz, scientists have reported that a recently reintroduced phascogale population in the Gawler Ranges National Park has bred more than 30 young this July/ August.

The multi-faceted project involves scientific research, captive breeding programs at Cleland Wildlife Park and Alice Springs Desert Park, large-scale feral predator control and radio tracking of the reintroduced phascogales. The small carnivores are having to stand on their own four feet in an unfenced but predator-reduced wilderness and so far, they are faring well.

Cleland’s phascogale captive breeding program has gone from strength to strength, with the successful 2024 breeding season producing 50 young, many of which will have the chance to become “wild savvy” when they are released in the Gawler Ranges in November.

Interesting fact: Phascogales exhibit an annual male die-off where, after the winter mating period, many males will die off, similar to our yellow-footed antechinus in the Adelaide Hills.

Western beautiful firetail

Habitat restoration works as part of the government’s $1 million Targeted Species Recovery election commitment are supporting the recovery of several Mount Lofty Ranges and Fleurieu Peninsula bird species, including the western beautiful firetail, diamond firetail, and the southern emu wren.

The western beautiful firetail is one of the most threatened resident birds in the region and was recently listed as endangered under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. In a collaborative response by the Hills and Fleurieu Landscape Board, DEW and the Bird Recovery Alliance, critical heathy habitat is being reinstated in Deep Creek National Park and surrounding land via large-scale revegetation.

The expanded revegetation project, which builds on earlier planting efforts, is improving the last remaining stronghold for the species in the region. There have been numerous sightings of the firetail in previously revegetated areas which have bolstered the bird’s habitat and food resources.

In addition to $500,000 for heathland restoration, $450,000 is being spent on improving grassy woodland habitat in the eastern Mount Lofty Ranges, with the remaining $50,000 dedicated to monitoring the population status of the beautiful firetail and other threatened bird species.

Southern brown bandicoot

The endangered southern brown bandicoot is the last bandicoot species remaining in the Mount Lofty Ranges. The ground-dwelling marsupial carries babies in a pouch, has rounded ears, a long, pointed nose and a sleek brown/gold coat. A community-led Bandicoot Superhighway Project aims to save the southern brown bandicoot from extinction by providing a ‘highway’ of interconnected habitat throughout the Mount Lofty Ranges.

More than $200,000 in state, commonwealth and private funding has been invested in better understanding the species, restoring habitat, tracking bandicoot populations and fencing remnant vegetation from grazing animals.

Because bandicoots require dense vegetation to shelter from predators like cats and foxes, improving and connecting their habitat is vital. Under the project, more than 220 hectares of priority bandicoot habitat have benefited from on-ground works, including the planting of more than 35,000 seedlings.

Eastern osprey

Six recently installed nesting platforms are giving endangered ospreys a fighting chance of recovery on Yorke Peninsula. Ospreys are a spectacular fish-eating raptor that have declined in numbers in South Australia during past decades due to human disturbance, severe storm events, predation of eggs by foxes, crows and gulls, and loss of habitat from coastal development.

The Recovery Plan for Eastern Osprey and White-bellied Sea-eagles developed by DEW in 2022, along with work done by the Northern and Yorke Landscape Board, laid the foundation for work by National Parks and Wildlife SA, Southern Yorke Peninsula Landcare Group and Friends of Osprey.

Nest platforms are known to be an effective population recovery tool for ospreys. In a bid to turn around a 26% decline in South Australia’s osprey population, 7 nesting platforms have been installed along Yorke Peninsula’s coastline since 2021 with stunning success. The number of breeding pairs on Yorke Peninsula has risen from one pair in 2017 to 5 pairs in 2024, with 4 young successfully fledged at 4 platforms in 2023.

In response to this success, the Friends of Osprey have overseen the construction of a further 7 platforms on the Eyre Peninsula with the help of grants and private donations. Thanks to these efforts, the future of this charismatic species is looking brighter in SA.

Murray crayfish (Euastacus armatus)

An ambitious and stealthy trial to reestablish the highly endangered Murray crayfish in the South Australian portion of the River Murray is underway.

For the past 40 years, the iconic Murray crayfish has been virtually extinct in South Australia as altered flows caused by river regulation reduced the scale of suitable Murray crayfish habitat. Overfishing by commercial and recreational fishers and pollution also resulted in the decline of the species.

Following the 2022-23 flood events, numerous Murray crayfish were rescued from black water affected sites interstate, with about 200 of the spiny creatures retained for release in SA. Males and females of varying size and life stages were released in several secret locations in May last year in the hope they will reproduce and develop a self-sustaining community.

The Murraylands and Riverland Landscape Board and Nature Glenelg Trust are working with partner organisations to monitor the released crayfish to measure their survival rate and learn more about their habits. Around 30 of the released crayfish were fitted with tracking devices to help researchers to monitor their movements.

Monitoring is also being undertaken by rangers from the River Murray & Mallee Aboriginal Corporations (RMMAC) River Ranger team.