Australian Wildlife Conservancy

Last updated

Australian Wildlife Conservancy
Formation2001;23 years ago (2001)
Founder Martin Copley
Type Nonprofit organisation
Location
  • Australia
Website www.australianwildlife.org

The Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC) is an independent Australian nonprofit organisation, working to conserve threatened wildlife and ecosystems in Australia. AWC is the largest private owner and manager of land for conservation in Australia, currently managing 31 sanctuaries and partnership sites for wildlife conservation that cover over 6.5 million hectares of land across Australia. [1] It partners with governmental agencies, Indigenous groups, and private landholders to manage landscapes for effective conservation. Most funding comes from private support in the form of tax-deductible donations from the public, [1] as well as some government grants for particular purposes, such as from the Australian government's National Reserve System Program.

Contents

As of 2022, AWC's most recent conservation project focuses on the Northern Quoll. AWC partnered with Territory Natural Resource Management (TRM), James Cook University, Gulf Savannah NRM, and Western Yalanji to trial conservation methods, including artificial dens for quolls, genetic research and controlled burn programs. [2] [3]

History

Australian Wildlife Conservancy was founded in response to Australia's mammal extinction crisis. [1] Over a third of the world's extinctions from the last 400 years have been from Australia, and Australia has already lost 31 species of mammal. [4] [5] Many of these extinctions were entirely preventable with effective conservation measures in place. [4] Australian Wildlife Conservancy operates under a unique model for conservation, using science (predominantly biodiversity survey work and targeted research) to inform on-ground land management, such as control of fire, feral animals and weeds. [1] There is a strong focus on wildlife conservation: consequently, about 80% of all staff are based in the field and, as of 2021, 83.5% of AWC's total expenditure is invested into conservation programs. [6]

The origin of the organisation lies in a 1991 land purchase (of what is now Karakamia Sanctuary) by AWC's founder, Martin Copley. He established the sanctuary, constructed a feral-proof fence, cleared the area of feral animals and started re-introducing threatened mammals into this area. Karakamia is still open for public spotlight tours, where you can see small mammals such as the critically endangered woylie or brush-tailed bettong (Bettongia penicillata), tammar wallaby (Macropus eugenii), quenda and common brushtail possum. [7] In 2001, the AWC became a public charitable organization. [8]

In 2002, the AWC agreed to acquire four sanctuaries, Buckaringa, Dakalanta, Scotia and Yookamurra, for A$5.2m from Earth Sanctuaries Ltd (ESL), the company founded by John Wamsley. [9]

In June 2007, AWC announced the establishment of a corporate partnership with Optus. [8]

The 2016 State of the Environment report suggested that, while Australia is incredibly rich in its biodiversity, it continues to suffer from unprecedented decline, despite legislation at all state and federal levels. [10] In response, AWC protect a diverse array of habitats across a large network of sanctuaries, to protect 88% of Australia's bird species, 74% of mammals and 54% of reptile species, and 56% of amphibian species. [1]

In 2019, AWC partnered with Bullo River Station, which covers over 160,000 hectares in the north-west corner of the Northern Territory, near the mouth of the Victoria River. [11] This is a unique partnership between a working pastoral property and a conservation sanctuary to generate outcomes for both wildlife and cattle. [11] The landscape here is typical of the Eastern Kimberley, dominated by Keep River sandstone formations with rocky gorges, lush riverside vegetation and expansive tropical savannah woodland. [11] Inventory biodiversity surveys have already identified several important species of rare and threatened wildlife, including the Gouldian finch (Erythrura gouldiae) and wyulda or scaly-tailed possum (Wyulda squamicaudata). [11]

In 2021, the AWC launched the Western River Refuge initiative, a project delivered in partnership with Kangaroo Island Land for Wildlife and private landholders in response to the destructive bushfires that occurred on Kangaroo Island in 2020. [12] The Western River Refuge includes a 369-hectare feral predator-free fenced safe haven to protect the Kangaroo Island dunnart, as well as several other threatened species.

AWC sanctuaries

As of 2024 AWC sanctuaries exist at the following locations, among others: [13]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greater bilby</span> Species of marsupial

The greater bilby, or simply bilby, is a long-eared, rabbit-like mammal native to Australia. It lives in burrows and is active at night, feeding on insects, fruit, or fungi. The bilby is a marsupial and carries its young in a pouch. Threats include habitat loss, disease, and introduced predators such as foxes. Formerly widespread, bilbies are now restricted to arid parts of northwestern and central Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Numbat</span> Species of Australian marsupial

The numbat, also known as the noombat or walpurti, is an insectivorous marsupial. It is diurnal and its diet consists almost exclusively of termites.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quoll</span> Genus of marsupial mammals

Quolls are carnivorous marsupials native to Australia and New Guinea. They are primarily nocturnal and spend most of the day in a den. Of the six species of quoll, four are found in Australia and two in New Guinea. Another two species are known from fossil remains in Pliocene and Pleistocene deposits in Queensland. Genetic evidence indicates that quolls evolved around 15 million years ago in the Miocene, and that the ancestors of the six species had all diverged by around four million years ago. The six species vary in weight and size, from 300 g (11 oz) to 7 kg (15 lb). They have brown or black fur and pink noses. They are largely solitary, but come together for a few social interactions such as mating which occurs during the winter season. A female gives birth to up to 30 pups, but the number that can be raised to adulthood is limited by the number of teats (6–7). They have a life span of 1–5 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bridled nail-tail wallaby</span> Species of marsupial

The bridled nail-tail wallaby, also known as the bridled nail-tailed wallaby, bridled nailtail wallaby, bridled wallaby, merrin, and flashjack, is a vulnerable species of macropod. It is a small wallaby found in three isolated areas in Queensland, Australia, and whose population is declining. In early 2019 the total population of the species was estimated to be fewer than 500 mature individuals in the wild and 2285 in captivity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern quoll</span> Species of marsupial native to Australia

The northern quoll, also known as the northern native cat, the North Australian native cat or the satanellus is a carnivorous marsupial native to Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woylie</span> Species of marsupial

The woylie or brush-tailed bettong is a small, critically endangered mammal native to forests and shrubland of Australia. A member of the rat-kangaroo family (Potoroidae), it moves by hopping and is active at night, digging for fungi to eat. It is also a marsupial and carries its young in a pouch. Once widespread, the woylie mostly died out from habitat loss and introduced predators such as foxes. It is currently restricted to two small areas in Western Australia. There were two subspecies: B. p. ogilbyi in the west, and the now-extinct B. p. penicillata in the southeast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western quoll</span> Species of marsupial

The western quoll is Western Australia's largest endemic mammalian carnivore. One of the many marsupial mammals native to Australia, it is also known as the chuditch. The species is currently classed as near-threatened.

Wongalara Sanctuary is a nature reserve in the Top End of the Northern Territory of Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western barred bandicoot</span> Species of marsupial

The Western barred bandicoot, also known as the Shark Bay bandicoot or the Marl, is a small species of bandicoot; now extinct across most of its former range, the western barred bandicoot only survives on offshore islands and in fenced sanctuaries on the mainland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rufous hare-wallaby</span> Species of marsupial

The rufous hare-wallaby, also known as the mala, is a small macropod found in Australia. It was formerly widely distributed across the western half of the continent, but naturally occurring populations are now confined to Bernier Island and Dorre Island Islands off Western Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brooklyn Sanctuary</span> Protected area in Queensland, Australia

Brooklyn Sanctuary is a 600 km2 (232 sq mi) nature reserve in north-east Queensland, Australia, less than 100 km (62 mi) north-west of Cairns. It is owned and managed by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy by which it was acquired in 2004. It is located on the boundary of the Wet Tropics bioregion and Einasleigh Uplands bioregion on the Mount Carbine Tableland. The landscape varies widely from rugged, rainforested peaks of up to 1,200 m altitude, with an annual rainfall of 4,000 mm, to drier lowland plains in the upper reaches of the Mitchell River with less than 900 mm. It is important for the conservation of upland endemic species. Part of the property is inscribed on the World Heritage List.

Martin Copley was a British-born Australian conservationist and philanthropist who established the Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC), an organisation which purchases and manages large areas of land, mainly former pastoral properties, as nature reserves for the conservation of biodiversity.

Karakamia Sanctuary is a 2.75 km2 nature reserve in south-west Western Australia, 4 km from Chidlow and 50 km north-east of Perth. It is located within the jarrah forest of the Darling Scarp and is owned and managed by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Gibson Sanctuary</span> Protected area in Western Australia

Mount Gibson Sanctuary is a 1,305-square-kilometre (504 sq mi) nature reserve on the northern edge of the Wheatbelt and the southern margin of uncleared rangeland country, 350 kilometres (220 mi) north-east of Perth in mid-west Western Australia. The nearest large town is Dalwallinu. It is in the Avon-Wheatbelt Bioregion and is owned and managed by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC).

Buckaringa Sanctuary is a 20 km2 nature reserve in the southern Flinders Ranges of South Australia. It is 30 km north of the town of Quorn. It is owned and managed by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC).

Pungalina-Seven Emu Sanctuary is a 3060 km2 private protected area in the Northern Territory of Australia. It is managed by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC) which purchased Pungalina Station in 2009, with some assistance from the Wildlife Australia Fund. It adjoins the Gulf of Carpentaria near the border with Queensland, lying in the Gulf Coastal bioregion. The reserve is bordered by Calvert Hills and Wollogorang Stations to the south and east. The nearest town is Borroloola, 150 km to the west.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bowra Sanctuary</span> Protected area in Queensland, Australia

Bowra Sanctuary is a 140 km2 nature reserve near Cunnamulla in South West Queensland, Australia. It lies in the Mulga Lands bioregion on the Warrego River plains, in the catchment of the Warrego and Paroo Rivers. It is owned and managed by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cats in Australia</span> Overview of the role and status of cats in Australia

Cats are an invasive species in Australia. Because they are not native to Australia and were only introduced by European colonists as pets in the early 1800s, native Australian animals did not co-evolve with them. As of 2016, some 3.8 million domestic cats and up to 6.3 million feral cats continue to live in Australia.

Charnley River–Artesian Range Wildlife Sanctuary is a protected area covering about 3,000 square kilometres (1,200 sq mi) in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. It is situated about 205 kilometres (127 mi) east of Derby and 287 kilometres (178 mi) north west of Halls Creek, and is accessed via the Gibb River Road. It is named after the Charnley River that flows through the property.

Nigel Sharp is an Australian conservationist and biodiversity impact investor known for his work on the continent of Australia with threatened species conservation, new business models of regenerative agriculture and urbanism, nature-based tourism, and indigenous enterprise development.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Home". AWC – Australian Wildlife Conservancy. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  2. "NEW PROJECT TO HELP THE ENDANGERED NORTHERN QUOLL". Terrain. 17 May 2022.
  3. "New project to help Northern Quolls in Far North Queensland". Australian Wildlife Conservancy. 23 May 2022.
  4. 1 2 Cox, Lisa (12 February 2018). "'A national disgrace': Australia's extinction crisis is unfolding in plain sight". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  5. "Australia's worsening animal extinction crisis is 'inevitable'". NewsComAu. 4 April 2019. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  6. "2021 Annual Impact Report". AWC – Australian Wildlife Conservancy. Archived from the original on 6 August 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
  7. "Karakamia". AWC – Australian Wildlife Conservancy. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  8. 1 2 Australian Wildlife Conservancy: About AWC Archived 26 December 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  9. AWC Media Release, 20 April 2002: A Win for Australian Conservation – Australian Wildlife Conservancy to acquire sanctuaries from Earth Sanctuaries Ltd. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 October 2007. Retrieved 8 January 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) PDF downloaded 8 January 2008
  10. Report, Australia State of the Environment (12 June 2019). "Biodiversity". Australia State of the Environment Report. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  11. 1 2 3 4 "Bullo River Station". AWC – Australian Wildlife Conservancy. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
  12. "The Western River Refuge". AWC – Australian Wildlife Conservancy. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
  13. "Locations". Australian Wildlife Conservancy. Retrieved 7 June 2024.
  14. A biological survey of Faure Island, Shark Bay World Heritage property, Western Australia / edited by Jacqueline D. Richards and Barry Wilson. Perth, W.A. : Western Australian Museum, 2008. Records of the Western Australian Museum. Supplement, 0313-122X ; no. 75 "Australian Wildlife Conservancy, in collaboration with the Western Australian Museum, South Australian Museum and Western Australian Department of Environment and Conservation"--on title page