First Tasmanian devils born in the wild of mainland Australia in 3000 years.
The birth of the joeys is an important step towards growing a self-sustaining wild population.
Tasmanian devils
For the first time in 3000 years, Tasmanian devils have been born in the wild on mainland Australia. Last year, conservationists from Aussie Ark released 26 Tasmanian devils in a 400-hectare wild sanctuary in New South Wales. This year and next year, they plan to add 20 devils each year. The birth of the pups, or ‘joeys,’ is an important step towards growing a self-sustaining wild population.
Their reintroduction on mainland Australia will also contribute to rewilding Australia. Tasmanian devils are the world’s largest carnivorous marsupials, and the expectation is that they will help control feral cats and foxes that threaten other endangered and endemic species. If you are looking for a good project to support, you can donate to them here. (And no, I have no connections with them). Have a look at this video, especially the amazing sight of the tiny baby devils.
When they are born after just three weeks, they are smaller than a peanut. Then they disappear for another hundred days in mommy’s pouch, where they remain for the next 100 days. Once the young have made contact with the nipple, it expands. The oversized nipple is firmly clamped inside the newborn to ensure that it doesn’t fall out of the pouch.
The Tasmanian devils used to live widespread across Australia, but their number had declined significantly about 3,000 years ago. Rising sea levels in the early Holocene period had cut off the population from Tasmania.
It is not clear what caused their disappearance from the mainland. It seems to coincide with climate change and expansion across the mainland of indigenous Australians and dingoes. All these factors could have played a role, but from what I read, the main suspect is the dingoes, even though devils and dingoes had already shared the continent for 3000 years.
The dingoes never made it to Tasmania, and there the devils survived. But their numbers suffered another blow from a contagious, painful, and fatal form of cancer known as Devil Facial Tumor Disease (DFTD); it decimated up to 90% of the wild population in Tasmania since it was discovered in 1996.
It makes the Aussie Ark project all the more important.
For the first time, I offer a 30 day free trial, valid for this Memorial Day weekend.
Bees in Australia bounce back
More on Australia in this article in The Guardian: Bees bounce back after Australia’s black summer: ‘Any life is good life.’
My Koala
That black summer in the article above refers, of course, to the horrible bushfires of the summer of 2019-2020. Around that time, I had just started my one year of daily digital sketches; I called these, by lack of a better idea, my daily alexnotes.
This is one of those 366 notes, a sweet memory of more than half a century ago. I published it on 11 January 2020.
Photography
For those who missed my recent article about the photography contest, this weekend is a good moment to catch up; you find it here.
There are 11 days left, so if you have pictures of wildlife, or your dog or cat, you may want to join the 'Capture the Wild' photo challenge sponsored by Untamed Photographer. It is fun to participate in, and your photo and story could win 2,500 dollars or one of the other prizes.
Many of you reacted via Twitter comments and DMs on my picture by sending your own pictures. Thanks, I liked them all. I know some of you are participating; I look forward to your stories and pictures.
This is Luna, a picture I might send in. I don’t think I ever captured her so ‘wild.’
That’s it for today. I wish you all a wonderful weekend. Thank you for subscribing to my newsletter.
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Notes:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/endangered-tasmanian-devils-born-wild-australia-mainland/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tasmanian_devil
https://www.aussieark.org.au/devilcomeback/
https://vocal.media/challenges/capture-the-wild
Australia map photo: Joey Csunyo on Unsplash
Good morning Alexander
I am glad that the peoples are getting over the bad rap they gave to the Tasmanian devil. Extinction would have been next. Thank you for the example here of how much influence peoples have over their environs. Lets' not destroy, but give it the biggest embrace we can muster up, with courage and foresight.
What a nice video of the Tasmanian devil release.
The Koala Alexnote is the darling of AlexNotes. The Koala must be guarded from extinction also .
. .
About 'Capture the Wild' photo challenge, I'm on high alert for a Bear photo. Early this morning the Bear knocked down the neighbor's garbage cans in the alley. Yesterday morning a friend send me photos of a Bear in his yard from quite deep into town. Many roads(and properties) to cross to get to that yard from the Mountains. Wondering what the Bear is looking for at this time, because food is abundant now. Mars Chocolate bar rappers?
Thank you and have a pleasant weekend (-:
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３０００年なんて、凄い昔から、野生のタスマニアの悪魔がいなかったこと初めて知りました。野生のタスマニアの悪魔の喜びの誕生は、とても、喜ばしい出来事ですね。
私の苗字は、宇熊で、「宇宙」の宇・クマの「熊」が苗字に入ってます。よろしくお願いします。