From Abc · · 1m 50s
Ten years of wildlife rescue filmed for global audience
A documentary about restoring threatened species at a Western Australian sanctuary has premiered at an international film festival.
In brief
A documentary about restoring threatened species at a Western Australian sanctuary has premiered at an international film festival. Australian Wildlife Conservancy's decade-long project to rehabilitate ten threatened species at Mt Gibson Wildlife Sanctuary has been captured in a film selected for the Wildlife…
A decade captured on film
Australian Wildlife Conservancy photographer Brad Leue has recorded hundreds of hours of footage at Mt Gibson Wildlife Sanctuary, 360 kilometres north-east of Perth.
Ten species brought back from extinction
The 21-minute film captures a ten-year effort to restore ten threatened species by establishing a predator-free fence. Brad Leue said it was incredible to share Australia's biggest reintroduction project to a global audience.
“From a storytelling perspective, it's pretty special in itself.”
Burrowing animals transform the landscape
Released animals like quolls are ecosystem engineers that transformed the sanctuary over the decade. Leue said the landscape now looks thriving, with burrows everywhere, resembling how Australia looked before feral predators became an issue.
“It's a taste of Australia before feral predators kind of started to be an issue for all our native wildlife.”
Filming nocturnal creatures proved challenging
Recording small, nocturnal animals required creative techniques. Leue used unmanned video camera traps and night-time stake-outs to capture natural behaviours, thinking like the animals to film cryptic species.
“You do really have to be quite creative, almost thinking like the animal to work out how to get footage of some of these more cryptic species.”
Ecologist sees long-term conservation success
AWC senior wildlife ecologist Bryony Palmer, involved from the beginning, said eight of the ten species are now present on the sanctuary with populations thriving.She described seeing the tangible conservation benefits as surreal and rewarding.
“Most of them have populations that are really thriving now.”
Landscape restored to its natural state
Palmer said the surrounding landscape changed dramatically, with signs of animals everywhere through diggings and footprints. The bush and landscape are going back to the way they should be.
“It's really a feeling of the bush and the landscape going back to the way it should be.”
Next phase: species beyond the fence
The AWC's next step is to establish some species outside the predator-free boundary. Palmer said the work never stops in conservation efforts.
“The work never stops.”
In short
Australian Wildlife Conservancy's decade-long project to rehabilitate ten threatened species at Mt Gibson Wildlife Sanctuary has been captured in a film selected for the Wildlife Conservation Film Festival.
