A total of 69 dibblers have been reintroduced into bushland on the State’s south coast as part of efforts to strengthen populations to assist with the long-term recovery of the endangered species.
Successful release of the small carnivorous marsupials was due to a partnership between the Perth Zoo and the Parks and Wildlife team under the new Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions.
The department bred the dibblers before releasing them into an area that borders Peniup Creek near Jerramungup.
Before the release, fox baiting was carried out at the site and this will continue in addition to feral cat trapping, under the department’s Western Shield wildlife conservation program, to give the species a greater chance of survival against two of their biggest threats.
Since 2001, nearly 250 captive bred dibblers have been released at various sites throughout the south coast.
Earlier this year, six zoo-bred dibblers and their pouch young were released onto Gunton Island near Esperance to expand the small population established there, and ongoing camera monitoring has provided encouraging results with the marsupial continuing to persist on the island.
The species was believed to be extinct until it was rediscovered at Cheynes Beach, east of Albany, in 1967, and today there are just five established populations of dibblers in Western Australia.