For the first time in more than 100 years, the Red-tailed Phascogale, a tiny, tree-dwelling carnivorous marsupial, is once again roaming the woodlands of far south-west New South Wales, thanks to a partnership between Zoos South Australia and Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC).
Ninety-three Red-tailed Phascogales (56 females and 37 males), bred as part of a conservation breeding program at Adelaide Zoo, have been successfully reintroduced to Scotia Wildlife Sanctuary on Barkindji Country. This historic release marks a significant step in the recovery of a species once declared extinct in NSW.
“Seeing this pint-sized native species return to the wild is incredibly rewarding,” said Mark Smith, Conservation Manager at Zoos SA. “This moment is the result of years of dedication by our keeping and veterinary teams. Breeding a species like the Red-tailed Phascogale — with its intense and unusual life cycle — is no small feat, and we’re thrilled to contribute to their recovery in the wild.”
Zoos SA has been working with AWC since 2021 to support the long-term conservation of this remarkable species. The captive breeding program at Adelaide Zoo was initiated using individuals from remnant populations in south-west Western Australia and has now delivered more than 147 animals.
For this most recent release, the phascogales underwent health checks, morphometric measurements and fitting of lightweight radio-transmitter collars, with teams from both AWC and Adelaide Zoo working side-by-side. After a 530-kilometre road trip from Adelaide across the lower Murray-Darling basin, the phascogales arrived at Scotia Wildlife Sanctuary, where a smoking ceremony was held by representatives of the Barkindji People to welcome them back to Country.
Shortly after sundown, the animals were released into Scotia’s 8,000-hectare feral predator-free area, one of the largest of its kind on mainland Australia.
“This release helps give the Red-tailed Phascogale a fighting chance,” said Dr Rachel Ladd, AWC Wildlife Ecologist. “Adelaide Zoo’s breeding program has played a key role in restoring this species to its former range and building genetic diversity in the population.”
The release was carefully timed ahead of the species’ natural breeding season in July. Like many in the Dasyuridae family, male phascogales die shortly after mating due to the physiological stress of the breeding period. It’s hoped this new population will produce offspring by late 2025.
Twenty-six individuals were fitted with tiny (<2 g) radio transmitters so AWC ecologists can monitor their initial survival and dispersal over the first six to eight weeks. If successful, the population could grow to more than 1,000 individuals within a decade.
The Red-tailed Phascogale, known as Bulku in the local Barkindji language, once ranged across much of central and southern Australia but suffered catastrophic decline due to introduced predators such as cats and foxes. The species was last seen in the wild in NSW in 1866, and formally declared extinct in the state in 2016.
This latest reintroduction follows the species’ return to NSW in 2021, when individuals from both Adelaide Zoo and Alice Springs Desert Park were released into nearby Mallee Cliffs National Park.
At Scotia, the Red-tailed Phascogale now joins four other reintroduced threatened species; the Greater Bilby, Numbat, Burrowing Bettong, and Bridled Nailtail Wallaby, in a broader effort to restore Australia’s unique but imperilled wildlife.
This project is supported by the NSW Government through its Environmental Trust.
