Bilbies bring new life to desert dunes
Bilbies and bettongs can bring degraded desert landscape back to life, according to new study by UNSW
Published on the 05 Jun 2009
Bilbies and bettongs - the desert forms of bandicoots and rat-kangaroos - can bring degraded desert landscape back to life, according to new study by UNSW PhD student, Ms Alex James.
The two foraging marsupials create nutrient-rich hotspots that can result in whole areas of renewed greenery, Ms James and her colleagues have shown. They have been studying the impact of bilby and bettong reintroductions at a reserve called Arid Recovery about 20 kilometres north of Roxby Downs in northern South Australia. Alex announced her work at Fresh Science, which is a competition for scientists to promote their work using the media.
Read the full story on the Faculty of Science website.
Media contact: Alex James | 0403 952 568Niall Byrne | 0417 131 977