Restoring Kyabram’s Wetlands

Kyabram Fauna Park was just a 55-hectare parcel of degraded and flood-prone farmland, until nature-loving locals lobbied in town meetings to make it a wildlife sanctuary in 1976.

“It started out with just a few kangaroos and emus walking around the property,” says Kyabram Fauna Park Director, Lachlan Gordon. “People could come and have a look at them and walk around the grounds.”

Since then, volunteers and staff have planted 7,000 native trees, shrubs and grasses across the Park, and the area that serves as a run-off site for Kyabram’s rainwater has been transformed into 33 hectares of wetlands, with a range of habitats providing food and shelter for free-ranging wildlife. As a result, 35 bird species have returned to the area, including the Threatened Freckled Duck and Magpie Goose – a waterbird more commonly found in Far North Queensland.

“There have been 105 animal species identified in the wetlands and surrounding bushland of the Park – that’s thanks to the restoration and conservation work done by the community and staff over the years,” says Lachlan.

“You could look at the wetlands as community conservation in action, because it’s taking the stormwater from Kyabram and funnelling that through filtration vegetation into our wetlands that ultimately provide water and habitat for the preservation of several threatened species. It’s turned into an important local habitat.”

For the many visiting waterfowl and other animals that spend spring and summer at the Park, the wetlands have become a haven. Staff and volunteers have removed non-native plants and noxious weeds, and stopped the decline of indigenous eucalypts, including scar trees that hold cultural significance for the local Yorta Yorta and Bangarang peoples.

The wetlands mean Kyabram Fauna Park has a unique point of difference among the four Zoos Victoria sites. “We’re hoping to open up additional walking tracks, so visitors can

Perhaps most notably, it helped breed the Eastern Barred Bandicoot (once extinct in the wild on mainland Australia) which was reclassified as endangered in 2021 – the first time there has been such a change in conservation status. “That was quite an achievement,” says Lachlan, “a world first”.

Kyabram Fauna Park was the first Victorian wildlife park to breed Brolgas, and has also bred koalas, Cape Barren Geese, Alpine Dingoes, Eastern Quolls, Spotted-tailed Quolls and Tasmanian Devils. The Park has recently acquired breeding pairs of Bush Stone-curlews and Malleefowls, both endangered in Victoria, with a view to releasing the offspring back into the wild.

According to Lachlan, the Regent Honeyeater and Plains-wanderer are next on the Park’s wish list now that it’s part of Zoos Victoria, which is committed to saving 27 priority threatened species across the state: “Conservation is the heartbeat of zoos and wildlife parks, and is the reason why these places exist – to secure the species that we’re losing in the wild and to provide a future that is rich in wildlife.” experience the wetlands firsthand and be up close to nature,” says Lachlan, adding that 60 per cent of the Park’s wildlife comprises birds. “When our visitors are out walking around the Park, it’s as if they’re walking through the bush in the wild. Kyabram Fauna Park offers the chance to see visiting wildlife as much as you can see our permanent residents. There are species that are at the Park all year round and others that are just here for their respective breeding season. It’s certainly a birdwatcher’s paradise.”

For more than three decades, Kyabram Fauna Park has been involved in threatened species breeding programs.

The goal is to develop Kyabram Fauna Park into an eco-destination for Zoos Victoria Members and visitors wanting a taste of Australian nature – and an education: “I’m passionate about getting eco-tours going throughout our wetlands, so people can learn how birds in the wild nest and how various species that live in our wetlands are linked,” says Lachlan. “We want to teach them about the things we look for when we’re walking through the bush and how the community can help conserve some of these species and their habitats in their own backyards. It’s about giving people an opportunity to observe and appreciate animals, and learn how to contribute to saving them in their natural environments.”

Kyabram Fauna Park is a 2.5-hour drive from Melbourne. Visit the Park’s website before planning your visit: zoo.org.au/kyabram