Australian Endangered Species Recovery Fund Awards 10 Grants to Bushfire Recovery Research

In July 2020, WildArk, together with our partners Aussie Ark and Global Wildlife Conservation, launched the Australian Endangered Species Recovery Fund as part of the KoalaComeback Campaign to support the conservation management of species most affected by the bushfires. 

The fund aimed to support organisations carrying out research projects that quantify the impact of the bushfires on Australia’s endangered species and identify urgent needs that exist for wildlife living in fire-affected areas. Species of concern include birds, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians listed on the Australian Government list of priority species requiring urgent management intervention.

Our panel selected ten exceptional projects and awarded grants of up to $16000 for their outcomes-based research that had measurable outcomes in the next 12 months. Much of this research includes species population surveys, protecting unburnt habitat, or implementing other critical interventions identified by species experts.

 

We are proud to announce the following ten recipients of the Australian Endangered Species Recovery Fund: 

 

1. Survey and permanent protection of the Manyana Beach Estate – Manyana Matters Environmental Association

 

2. Post-fire resilience and recovery of the endangered Smoky Mouse in Victoria – Dr. Phoebe Burns, Native Mouse Ecological Consulting

 

3. Measuring the post-fire resilience of the Greater Glider in Far East Gippsland – Dr. Phoebe Burns & Dr. Zak Atkins, Native Mouse Ecological Consulting and Atkins Eco Contracting

 

4. Testing the post-fire resilience of the Yellow-bellied Glider in Far East Gippsland – Dr. Phoebe Burns & Zak Atkins, Native Mouse Ecological Consulting and Atkins Eco Contracting

 

5. The use of artificial habitat to improve the survival of Alpine She-oak Skink in burned landscapes – Dr. Zak Atkins, Atkins Ecological Contracting Pty Ltd

 

6. Surviving the inferno – how threatened parma wallabies persist in the face of unprecedented fires – Matt Hayward, University of Newcastle

 

7. Supplementary feeding techniques and health analyses for the emergency support of the critically endangered Mountain Pygmy-possum – Zoos Victoria

 

8. Population assessment of the Eastern Bristlebird in SE Australia – Rohan Clarke, ‘ResearchEcology’ Lab, School of Biological Science, Monash University

 

9. Survey for the Mainland Ground Parrot in Victoria – Rohan Clarke, ‘ResearchEcology’ Lab, School of Biological Science, Monash University

 

10. Habitat Pods: post-fire refuges from predation for threatened native prey – Dusky Antechinus and Long-nosed Potoroo – Alexandra Carthey, Macquarie University

“This grant has helped fill a massive gap in funding for post-fire data on many species,” said grant recipient Dr. Phoebe Burns of Native Mouse Ecological Consulting. “The data we’ve already collected has helped contribute to state and federal bushfire elicitation and planning, making sure our projects have maximum impact!”

Data collected from these surveys will inform the ongoing recovery efforts for critical species and the ecosystems in which they live.

Thanks to the generous donations received through the #KoalaComeback Campaign, WildArk, and our partners have been able to support organisations working to restore and rebuild in the aftermath of the devastating 2019-2020 Australian bushfires.

Read more about our KoalaComeback Campaign here.