tassie devil

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Tasmanian Devils may be extinct in the wild in less than 20 years due to a devastating, transmissible cancer

Support Taronga's part of the Tasmanian Devil insurance breeding program and the Government of NSW will match your tax-deductible gift by triple the amount

We need your help

While researchers are working hard to find a cure, Taronga is part of the national effort to establish an Insurance Population by breeding Tasmanian Devils in zoos and special reserves on mainland Australia. 

This group is working towards establishing a captive population of 150 breeding animals in the mainland states. Their descendants will be re-introduced to wild habitats in Tasmania when, and if, areas are declared free of disease.

Taronga urgently needs your help to build burrows and enclosures to expand this essential breeding program. 

So far we have 12 breeding devils at Taronga Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo and six at Taronga. We have pledged to manage 30 by the end of the year.

40% of the species has succumbed to disease in the past 10 years. 

The deadly Devil Facial Tumour Disease (DFTD) is ravaging Tasmania's iconic animal. DFTD is one of only two contagious cancers known to science. The disease is spread by biting, which is common behaviour during feeding and mating.

As far as we know, it is always fatal and usually within about six months.

Because of this alarming rate of decline, Tasmanian Devils were recently upgraded from ‘vulnerable' to ‘endangered' under Tasmania's Threatened Species Protection Act 1995. They have also been included by the Federal Government under the Commonwealth's Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.

Please Give Generously

Remember, the NSW Government will match your gift by triple the amount