Aussie Ark facts for kids

Aussie Ark is an animal preservation project in New South Wales, Australia. It is located near the beautiful Barrington Tops. This special place works hard to protect and save many Australian animals.

Aussie Ark helps animals that are in danger. Its main goal is to create safe homes for them. This way, their populations can grow strong. The project hopes to eventually release these animals back into the wild.

Saving the Tasmanian Devil

Aussie Ark was first known as Devil Ark. Its first big mission was to save the Tasmanian devil. These devils were facing a very serious illness. It was called devil facial tumour disease. This disease was deadly and spread easily among them.

The project started by raising healthy Tasmanian devils. These devils were kept safe in captivity. The goal was to breed many healthy offspring. This would create a strong group of devils for the future. Before Aussie Ark, devils rarely had babies in zoos.

Aussie Ark is located high up in the mountains. It is about 1,350 meters above sea level. This area has weather similar to Tasmania. This makes it a perfect home for the devils. The breeding facility covers 500 hectares. It is part of an effort by the Australian Reptile Park.

In 2013, Devil Ark started offering tours. People could visit on the first Saturday of each month. By 2016, the project celebrated a big success. They had welcomed their 200th Tasmanian devil baby.

The idea for Devil Ark began in 2006. It was officially presented in 2008. The first devils arrived at Devil Ark in January 2011. The project became a separate charity in November 2011. It relies completely on donations from people who care.

Expanding to Other Animals

Because of its great success, Aussie Ark grew. It started helping other amazing Australian animals. These include cute koalas and the rare Manning River turtle. They also protect Eastern quolls and the Brush-tailed rock wallaby.

Aussie Ark also creates more wildlife sanctuaries. These are safe places for animals to live and thrive. In 2020, Aussie Ark achieved another huge milestone. They helped bring Tasmanian devils back to mainland Australia. These devils were released into the Barrington Tops area.

Aussie Ark on TV

Aussie Ark and its animals have been on television. They were featured on the wildlife show Bondi Vet. They also appeared on its spin-off show, Outback Adventures with Tim Faulkner.