Women in science driving wildlife recovery on KI
February 11 is the International Women and Girls in Science Day and the Kangaroo Island Landscape Board is celebrating the vital role women play in science, highlighting the work of Hannah Byrne-Willey, a Biodiversity Project Officer whose research is focused on the recovery of our threatened native mammals following the 2019–20 Kangaroo Island bushfires.
Since the 2019/20 bushfires that devasted parts of the Kangaroo Island landscape, Hannah has been at the forefront of monitoring threatened mammals across western KI, using camera traps along drift-fence lines to track population recovery and long-term trends.
“Long-term monitoring after an event like the 2019–20 bushfires is critical,” Hannah said. “It helps us understand which species are recovering, where they’re surviving, and how we can best support them into the future.”
Initially focused on the Kangaroo Island dunnart, Hannah’s work has expanded over the past six years to include southern brown bandicoots, Kangaroo Island echidnas and pygmy possums.
The results have been remarkable. Prior to the bushfires, the KI dunnart had been recorded fewer than 100 times ever. Since the fires, monitoring has recorded more than 4,000 detections across over 100 sites, creating what is now one of the largest longitudinal datasets for this species on Kangaroo Island.
Hannah has also been involved in developing innovative artificial-refuge and trapping techniques that are efficient, low impact and designed to improve animal-welfare outcomes. Her career highlights include helping fit the first radio collar to a KI dunnart post-fire and trapping the only known KI dunnart recorded carrying pouch young.
Despite her impact, Hannah says she didn’t always see herself in science.
“I didn’t even know jobs like this existed,” she said. “I was environmentally conscious growing up, but it wasn’t until I realised I could turn that passion into a career that science really clicked.”
After studying horticulture, Hannah went on to complete a Bachelor of Science in Conservation Biology and now works alongside a strong cohort of women in science-based roles at the Kangaroo Island Landscape Board.
“There are so many science careers out there that people don’t hear about at school,” she said. “My advice to girls is to try it — volunteer, get hands-on experience, and see what excites you.”
On International Women & Girls in Science Day, the Kangaroo Island Landscape Board celebrates women like Hannah whose expertise, dedication and curiosity are helping landscapes and wildlife recover — while inspiring the next generation of girls to see a future for themselves in science.
