Tag: Nature Kids

Save the date

Stand up for nature in March!

• 1 March: Clean Up Australia Day
• 22 March for Forests
• 23 March National Eucalypt Day
• 28 March Earth Hour
• 30 March International Zero Waste Day

Spot the quolls!

Eastern Quolls are endangered and have been extinct on the Australian mainland since 1963 – the only wild population is in Tasmania! Despite the quoll’s camouflage (see Nature Kids Winter 2024), key threats to quolls are predators like feral cats and foxes.

At the end of January 2026, four Eastern Quoll joeys were released at Bannockburn Rewilding Sanctuary on the NSW South Coast. They join 15 other quolls released in 2025 as part of the Invasive Species Council’s Rewilding Australia conservation program.

Researchers are monitoring the newly-released quolls using GPS technology to track their movements, survival and ecological impact. Their findings will guide future rewilding efforts in the hope that Eastern quolls can one day survive in NSW beyond predator-free fenced environments.

Watch a video of the young quolls being released

Wombat poo mysteries revealed

Fact: Wombat poo is square and comes out that way because of the shape and structure of a wombat’s lower intestine.

But did you know that wombats use their poo to communicate with eachother?! This is called “olfactory communication”.

In research recently published in the Journal of Zoology, scientists found that bare nosed wombats have a “vomeronasal organ”, sometimes described as a second (internal) nose, which they use to detect pheromones and other chemicals for social cues, mating, and predator or prey detection. Wombat scats/droppings are individually distinct, and scientists think that’s probably how these short-sighted animals tell each other apart!

Fun fact

Other animals with a second nose include snakes, lizards, rodents, horses, cattle, dogs and cats!
Find out more about wombat snouts

Habitat destruction report card fail

The Australian Conservation Foundation’s Extinction Wrapped 2025 report found that more than 57,000 hectares of threatened species habitat was approved for land clearing by the Australian Government in 2025 – that’s the highest level of destruction in 15 years and10 times the area of Sydney Harbour! According to the report, two-thirds of that area was approved for clearing by the mining industry.

Turn awe into action for our flora & fauna

When is bad news also good news?

In 2024, 21 animals, 20 plants and one ecological community were added to Australia’s list of threatened flora, fauna and ecological communities, which now totals 2,142.

Any listing is bad news, but official recognition of threatened flora and fauna species is hopefully a step towards better looking after them.

Learn about some of the newly listed threatened species like Pugh’s Frog, the New England Leaf-tailed Gecko and migratory birds such as the Black-tailed Godwit.

Ever seen a Kaputar slug?

This dazzling bright pink/red slug can grow up to 20cm long and 6cm wide!

But it is hard to spot because it is only found in one place: Mount Kaputar, an extinct volcano in a national park near Narrabri in northern NSW. Its habitat is listed as a threatened ecological community.

Bushfires in 2019 killed an estimated 90% of the Kaputar slug population. But thankfully numbers are recovering, as evidenced by the Slug Sleuth app where citizen scientists and park visitors can post sightings to help the National Parks and Wildlife Service monitor the slugs.

Check out some photos of the slug and find out more about the NPWS project to care for this unique animal.

Rock-wallabies move home by helicopter

In January 2025, 12 endangered Brush-tailed Rock-wallabies moved by helicopter within Warrumbungle National Park to a newly established feral cat-free and fox-free area. This translocation is part of the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service’s threatened species conservation program and commitment to zero extinctions in NSW national parks.

See pictures of the rock-wallabies translocation and find out more about the NPWS conservation program.

Imagine …

reducing your contribution to landfill, and only putting your red household waste bin out for collection once in a whole year!

That’s what Ernie Harbott, the founder of Singleton Soil Sisters did in 2024. She maximised composting, recycling and reusing, as well as minimising purchase of packaged items. Sounds simple …

Find out more about how this sustainable living educator reduced her household waste and DO try this at home

Birds & Bees vs Rodents

Pollinators are living or non-living things – like animals or wind – that help plants reproduce by transferring pollen within or between flowers.

Most of us know that bees are pollinators, as well as birds such as the Regent Honeyeater. But did you know that rodents can also pollinate plants?

It’s only since 2023 that research has found both native and invasive rodents (rats & mice) can also play a key role in pollinating Banksia species.

Take a look at some pictures of rodent pollinators in action and learn more about ongoing research.