Tucked away in a corner of the beautiful Barrington Tops is Aussie Ark, a conservation organisation managing insurance populations of some of the world’s most threatened species. Nestled on just over 2000 hectares of land, Aussie Ark has bred hundreds of animals since its inception over a decade ago.

Initially launched as Devil Ark in 2011, the conservation organisation started with 44 “founder” Tasmanian Devils which started the breeding program to create an insurance population of the species free from the Devil Facial Tumour Disease that has decimated the species in Tasmania.

The facility expanded in 2017 and transitioned to what is now known as Aussie Ark.

Operations Manager Dean Reid started as a volunteer at the Australian Reptile Park. In 2013 he became a full-time keeper at Devil Ark, undertook more training and then came back to the Barrington Tops full time in 2021.

He said Aussie Ark has exploded with wildlife the last few years with about 500 animals alone in the Species Recovery Unit.

“We have 20 different species in our care. Eleven are here at Aussie Ark and nine at our Conservation Ark at the Australian Reptile Park.

“Off the back of the success of the Devil breeding program, we started to think about what other animals we could breed that fit into our ethos.

“We started to breed small macropods; the Rufus Bettong, Long-Nosed Potoroo and the Parma Wallaby as their numbers are declining in the wild due to cats and foxes.

“Then we thought we could do more, so we applied for a grant from Australian Geographic to build our Eastern Quoll enclosures.

“We thought, ‘why stop there’ and built enclosures for Brush-Tailed Rock-Wallabies. It was a huge project that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars as we had to bring a lot of big rocks in to create their habitat.”

The team didn’t stop there, enclosing 400 hectares of land for their Barrington Wildlife Sanctuary. All the feral animals were cleared out and 13 kilometres of fencing installed. At their last count there were 150 Bettongs, 50 Parma Wallabies, 150 Potoroos and about 50 Devils out in the sanctuary. Eastern Quolls are also allowed to be released once they are over 3 years old.

“It’s an experiment to get the area back to the ecological function it had pre-settlement and be self-sustaining,” Dean explained.

“We want to be able to trap when we need to and supply to other sanctuaries.”

Fencing and keeping everything up to standard isn’t something the small Aussie Ark team can do on their own, but they have plenty of willing volunteers.

“AGL staff get eight hours each of paid volunteer time and last month we had a bunch come up for two weeks. They had about ten people a day here redoing all our yards, they built nest boxes for the Devils, painted all the railings, and all the stuff we just don’t get a chance to do.

“It’s really important that we have those local interactions with companies like that. Glencore is one of our biggest supporters as well.

“We couldn’t do what we do without their support and the local support from those who live here on the mountain.”

Glencore Coal’s Social Performance Manager Craig Strudwick said they first partnered with Aussie Ark in 2017 and have been continually amazed at the work being done.

“We’ve invested more than $1.45 million to support the cause, including the installation of 400 hectares of predator-proof fencing to create a sanctuary where endangered species can thrive without the constant threat of predation.”

Dean said what they’re doing at Aussie Ark is incredibly important.

“We are breeding animals to boulster populations and genetics with other sanctuaries nation and even worldwide, as well as for wild releases.

“The animals we’re protecting are crucial to the environment, they all have individual roles to play in the ecosystem.

“We have a long way to go to save animals like the Devil from extinction, but what we are doing is having a huge impact, it’s an incredible thing to be a part of.”

Aussie Ark is a not-for-profit charity organization. To continue its incredible work it relies on support they receive from partners, sponsors, donors and supporters, from large companies to community groups. More details and to make a donation: https://www.aussieark.org.au/