Australia completes world’s largest cat-proof fence to protect endangered marsupials

zooophagous:

rjzimmerman:

Cute mammals, protected from cats now. See photos.

A critically endangered mala or rufous hare wallaby in the feral predator-proof fenced area on Newhaven Wildlife Sanctuary. Photograph: Wayne Lawler/Australian Wildlife Conservancy

Excerpt:

The world’s largest cat-proof fence has been completed in central Australia, creating a 94 square kilometre sanctuary for endangered marsupials.

The 44km fence – made of 85,000 pickets, 400km of wire and 130km of netting – surrounds the Newhaven wildlife sanctuary, a former cattle station that has been bought by the Australian Wildlife Conservancy.

Endangered species such as the bilby, the burrowing bettong and the mala (also known as the rufous hare-wallaby) will have a chance to replenish their populations inside the massive sanctuary, safe from Australia’s feral cat epidemic.

Feral cats kill a million native birds every night across Australia and have caused the extinction of 20 native species since they were introduced by the first fleet.

Bilby

Burrowing bettong

And people still doubt that cats are problem animals somehow

Keep your cats inside. Stop adding to the problem.

Australia completes world’s largest cat-proof fence to protect endangered marsupials

noaasanctuaries:

We’re maximizing our baby cephalopod time today with this baby octopus! This larval octopus was caught during ocean monitoring efforts with the Applied California Current Ecosystem Studies program in Cordell Bank and Greater Farallones national marine sanctuaries. Have you ever seen something so adorable?

Look closely and you can see small spots. Those are cells called chromatophores, which will help the octopus change color and camouflage itself as an adult!

[Video description: A small translucent spotted octopus swims in a tray of water.]