In 1997, conservationists introduced captive-bred greater bilbies to Thistle Island in South Australia, a place the species had never historically inhabited. The release was part of a wider national effort to protect the vulnerable marsupial from introduced predators such as foxes and feral cats. According to the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, Government of Australia’s Recovery Plan for the Greater Bilby, surveys carried out roughly a decade later found the population had grown and spread across the entire island. Here's what the plan reveals about this and related reintroduction efforts, along with where things stand today. The plan also stresses that island populations are only a safeguard, and lasting recovery on the mainland still depends on keeping foxes and feral cats under control.
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