Greater Bilby Appeal

Bring Bilbies Back to the Wild

Right now, the Greater Bilby needs all the support they can get. 

It’s been a century since these bilbies have been seen in the wild in New South Wales.

Once abundant, sadly, this iconic marsupial is a threatened species and now extinct in the wild in NSW.

Their habitat has been heavily disrupted and fragmented, rabbits and sheep has created food shortages, and they are being hunted down and killed by foxes and other introduced predators.

Your urgent gift today can help the Greater Bilby and bring this iconic marsupial back from extinction in NSW.

All donations of $2 or more are fully tax-deductible for Australian residents.

$25
could fund trackers for monitoring bilbies in the Sanctuary.
Your on-going support is extremely helpful for our conservation, breeding & research programs.
$50
can go towards microchips needed for the bilbies at the Sanctuary.
Your on-going support is extremely helpful for our conservation, breeding & research programs.
$75
can contribute to the annual health checks of semi-wild Bilbies in the Sanctuary.
Your on-going support is extremely helpful for our conservation, breeding & research programs.
$100
supports the ongoing Bilby Recovery program giving the Bilby a future and bringing them back from extinction in NSW.
Your on-going support is extremely helpful for our conservation, breeding & research programs.
Other
Your on-going support is extremely helpful for our conservation, breeding & research programs.

Once widespread throughout Australia, this iconic marsupial has been extinct in NSW for more than a century.  

These little ‘ecological engineers’ play a vital role in turning over soil, helping the spread of vegetation, and keeping their eco-systems healthy with their complex digging skills.

But their habitats have been heavily disrupted and fragmented, rabbits and sheep have created food shortages and foxes and other introduced predators have hunted them down.

Your kind gift today can bring this iconic marsupial back from extinction and back to wilds of NSW and Australia.

 

 

Photo Credit - Lorinda Taylor 

Why they need you now more than ever.

The Greater Bilby is an interesting little creature. It’s a famously efficient digger, and helps other native species by softening soil and shifting seeds around. When it carries its young, they’re protected from all that digging and soil in a comfortable backward-facing pouch!

These fascinating, long-eared marsupials are sometimes described as ‘ecological engineers’ because they help keep ecosystems healthy by turning over the soil which helps spread vegetation.

But vast habitat loss, food shortages and introduced predators have seen their numbers dwindle to extinction in NSW.

Taronga Zoo’s Australian Nightlife Precinct is one of the few places left in the state where you can see them.

 

Photo Credit - Chris Wheeler

How you can help bring them back. 

The Greater Bilby may be extinct but there is still hope. Together with Taronga you can play a vital role in returning them to the wilds of NSW.

With an exciting conservation plan for Greater Bilbies, Taronga, with your help, aim to bring bilbies back to NSW.

Over the past 2 years we’ve been able to create a 110ha breeding sanctuary for the Greater Bilby just behind Taronga Western Plains Zoo.

The area has been cleared of feral predators, and we’re incredibly close to releasing up to ten captive-bred bilbies into their new sanctuary. This is an incredibly exciting project for Taronga that will support some of the nation’s most important rewilding projects.

But the work isn’t done yet and that’s where you can help

We’ll need to monitor the new residents carefully, and keep them protected. And if this work is successful it will give new hope to a vulnerable species.

It will take work, time, and the continuing support of conservation-minded people in the community to bring bilby populations back to health around Australia.

By donating today you can make a huge impact on the future of the Bilby and bring them back from extinction.