Almost 3,000 years ago, the Tasmanian Devils found on the mainland of Australia died out. Now, centuries later, they're back, eleven of them to be exact. The once critically endangered marsupials have been released into a wildlife sanctuary spanning 988 acres. Found just north of Sydney, New South Wales, the sanctuary is meant to be a safe space for these carnivorous animals to get their groove back and restore the ecology of the area.
"Not only is this the reintroduction of one of Australia's beloved animals, but of an animal that will engineer the entire environment around it," said the president of Aussie Ark, Tim Faulkner, "Restoring and rebalancing our forest ecology after centuries of devastation from introduced foxes and cats and other invasive predators."
After the dingo arrived on Aussie land, the marsupials were moved to Tasmania, where 90% of them died out in 1996.
As of today, there are only 25,000 wild devils still alive in Tasmania. For the past decade, Aussie Ark has worked to increase those numbers. This is an important move for the nation, as Tim Faulker puts it, "In 100 years, we are going to be looking back at this day as the day that set in motion the ecological restoration of an entire country."