Comeback for quolls

EXTINCT from mainland Australia for almost 50 years, eastern quolls are making a long-anticipated comeback.

It is the first time an extinct carnivore from mainland Australia has been reintroduced to the wild.

The small, spotted critters vanished from sight in NSW in the 1970s, surviving only in Tasmania – until now.

A group of 20 of the carnivorous marsupials have been released into Booderee National Park, in southern NSW. “It was a long day, but an exciting day,” said Darren Glover of World Wildlife Fund.

He said the eastern quoll was reintroduced to Booderee National Park because the habitat of the region “resembles the habitat of the last known specimens in NSW”.