Wildlife camera used to record endangered Southern brown bandicoots has gone missing

Natural Resources Kangaroo Island (NRKI), with funding from the Foundation for National Parks and Wildlife, have been using wildlife cameras to follow up on community sightings of these endangered native marsupials.

NRKI’s Wildlife Program Manager, Dr Robyn Molsher said that confirming these sightings by capturing them on camera would be exciting, bandicoots haven’t been recorded on the Kingscote foreshore before.

“Wildlife cameras help determine if bandicoots are living in the area, said Dr Molsher.

“Cameras are carefully positioned on a star dropper or log to capture clear photographs.”

The Southern brown bandicoot was once widely distributed across the Australian mainland but is now restricted to Kangaroo Island and two areas on the mainland of South Australia.

“Unfortunately, the loss of this camera may mean the end of the survey as we are operating on a small grant and these cameras are very expensive to replace, said Dr Molsher.

“Wildlife cameras are specifically designed to capture images of elusive small mammals by day or by night.

“They are perfect for capturing the extremely shy bandicoots without disturbing them but are not useful for general photography.”

If anyone has seen a camera similar to the one pictured, please contact the Kangaroo Island Natural Resources Centre on 8553 4444 or Robyn Molsher robyn.molsher@sa.gov.au. No questions will be asked.

Threats to the species include habitat loss through fragmentation and degradation, mortality through road kills and predation by cats and dogs.

If you have seen a bandicoot on Kangaroo Island, please continue forwarding the locations to NRKI, you can download a sighting form from the webpage http://www.landscape.sa.gov.au/ki/plants-and-animals/native-animals/southern-brown-bandicoot-project