Community & Business
14 September, 2026
Bilby Population Boom at Taronga Western Plains Zoo, Dubbo
Taronga Zoo celebrated National Bilby Day (September 13) with encouraging new statistics from its Greater Bilby conservation breeding program, with the free-ranging population at Taronga Western Plains Zoo thriving.
Recent population monitoring inside the Taronga Sanctuary has confirmed an estimated 212 Greater Bilbies now call the 110-hectare feral-predator free area home, representing another significant milestone for the nationally threatened species.
The recent survey recorded 109 bilbies, including 45 newly identified individuals that had never previously been recorded, highlighting the continued success of Taronga's conservation efforts.
Since 18 founder Greater Bilbies were first introduced to the Sanctuary in 2019, annual population surveys have confirmed 241 births (with additional unconfirmed births likely). This successful breeding program has seen 62 Taronga-bred individuals translocated and reintroduced to Wild Deserts in Sturt National Park, NSW, and the Australia Wildlife Conservancy’s ‘Newhaven’ site in the Northern Territory.
Located behind the scenes at Taronga Western Plains Zoo, the Taronga Sanctuary provides a safe haven for bilbies to live and breed free from introduced predators such as foxes and feral cats, which remain among the greatest threats to the species in the wild. Taronga's Conservation team regularly monitors the population to support the long-term management of the sanctuary and inform future conservation translocations.
During the overnight surveys bilbies are carefully trapped, given a brief health assessment, weighed and sexed before being released back into the sprawling Sanctuary at the Zoo. Any new individuals discovered are given a microchip and have genetic samples taken to help keepers and conservation officers keep track of the genetic diversity in the growing population.
Taronga Western Plains Zoo conservation keeper, Leonie Pascua, said the results were an encouraging sign for the future of the species.
"National Bilby Day is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate a uniquely Australian species and the positive impact conservation programs can have."
"To see the bilby breeding population and program continue to grow inside the Taronga Sanctuary is incredibly rewarding for our team. Every new bilby recorded represents another step forward in securing the future of this species."
"The bilbies living in the sanctuary are not only contributing to a healthy and sustainable breeding population, but they also play an important role in supporting recovery efforts for the species more broadly."
Greater Bilbies once occupied around 70 per cent of mainland Australia but were heavily reduced to only 10 per cent of their former range. Today, conservation breeding, habitat protection and feral predator control remain critical to the species' survival.
Taronga’s work is part of a larger effort to restore balance to Australia’s arid ecosystems. Through breeding, rewilding, research and community partnerships, Taronga supports the recovery of bilbies as part of a broader effort to restore native species to desert landscapes and reduce extinction risk across NSW.
As a not-for-profit conservation organisation, any visit, stay or donation is helping to conserve this iconic Australia species. This National Bilby Day, Taronga invites Australians to learn more about Greater Bilbies, their key role in the ecosystem and support efforts to protect one of Australia's most iconic marsupials.
