As celebrations to commemorate 400 years since Dirk Hartog landed in Australia get underway this weekend in Shark Bay, plans are afoot to return Dirk Hartog Island’s ecosystem back to the state it was in when the explorer first set foot on it. Feral animals are being eliminated and more than ten locally extinct species will be re-introduced.
At 62,000 hectares, Dirk Hartog Island is the largest island in Western Australia. It was initially used as a pastoral property but in 2009, the WA Department of Parks and Wildlife (DPAW) acquired the island as a national park.
According to the ABC, Environment Minister Albert Jacob said after successfully eradicating all feral pests from the southern part of the island – mostly cats and goats – the rufous and banded hare-wallabies would be the first species to be reintroduced.
The Government approved $22.5 million from the Gorgon LNG project conservation fund for stage two of the project.
Other species to be returned to the island include the chuditch, mulgara, greater stick-nest rat, desert mouse, Shark Bay mouse, heath mouse, western barred bandicoot, woylie, dibbler and boodie.
DPAW staff conducted aerial goat culls and feral cats were eradicated using a combination of baiting and trapping.
Mr Jacob described the venture as Australia’s most ambitious animal reconstruction project.
“The long-term goal is to return the Dirk Hartog ecosystem back to the ecosystem that Dirk Hartog himself would have found when he first hit the Australian mainland, 400 years ago this month,” Mr Jacob said.
Most of the sheep on the island were removed once pastoral operations finished, but 7,500 feral goats and cats have been trickier to eradicate.
“The main reason that we have lost the species has been the feral cats, and we’ve been progressively removing all of the feral cats from the island. I think that is the single largest area of Australia that will be cat-free when we have succeeded.”
Mr Jacob said there is one family who live permanently on the island, as well as several holiday residences.
He hoped the project would lead to increased tourism for the Shark Bay area.
