September 2024
Milestone success for native mouse matchmakers
Precious Pookila pups have been spotted in Wilsons Promontory National Park, signalling an early success for a genetic rescue mission.
In September 2023, six female Pookilas were released to the Prom in the hopes that they would couple up with local males. This flagship cohort were bred as part of a conservation breeding program at Melbourne Zoo and Moonlit Sanctuary.
Now, a year later, six pups have been seen frequenting burrows near the release sites.
The small burrowing mouse is native to south-eastern Australia and inhabits open heathland and coastal areas. Habitat destruction and predation by cats and foxes has caused the species to become extinct in seven of its known 12 Victorian locations. The remaining wild populations are fragmented and susceptible to inbreeding and further decline with the effects of climate change.
Small tissue samples taken from the wild-born pups will help researchers monitor the genetic health of the remaining wild populations, with the hopes of documenting an increase in diversity with each new generation.
This month, a further four female Pookilas have been released to the Prom to continue the mouse matchmaking initiative.
Shy and nocturnal, Pookilas are soil engineers who build complex multi-generational burrow systems, which aerates the soil and contribute to the spread of seeds and fungal spores. They can be distinguished from the house mouse by their bicoloured tail, large eyes, soft, thick fur, and a lack of ‘mousey’ odour.
The five remaining Victorian sites, believed to contain fewer than 3000 Pookilas, are in Gippsland – including at Wilsons Promontory and Loch Sport. An additional population was established in Royal Botanic Gardens Cranbourne in May.
The Victorian Pookila Conservation Breeding and Reintroduction Program is a joint project between the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action, Gippsland Water, Moonlit Sanctuary Wildlife Conservation Park, Parks Victoria, Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria, Zoos Victoria, and partners in Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation and Bunurong Land Council Aboriginal Corporation.
The Victorian Government has committed $690,000 to the protection of Pookila through its Nature Fund, along with Zoos Victoria’s Bushfire Emergency Wildlife Fund donations and generous philanthropic contributions.
