26 Mar Halo and Aussie Ark Team Up to Save Endangered Animals in Australia
To save endangered animals in Australia and conserve their natural habitat, Halo has teamed up with Aussie Ark.
We are excited to announce that Aussie Ark is an official Halo Charity Partner. Aussie Ark is an organisation dedicated to conserving Australia’s native wildlife through a range of different initiatives. Aussie Ark is currently working to protect a number of endangered animals in Australia, including the Tasmanian devil, Eastern quoll, long-nosed potoroo and the brush-tailed rock wallaby.
What is Aussie Ark?
In 2011, John Weigel, the Director of Australian Reptile Park, started Devil Ark in the hopes of saving the Tasmanian devil from extinction. Devil Ark initiated their conservation program with 44 founder devils by creating spacious enclosed areas that allowed them to exhibit their natural behaviours, breed naturally, and optimise genetic diversity.
Devil Ark achieved remarkable success in just two years, accommodating more than 150 Tasmanian devils. This led to the organisation’s name transitioning to Aussie Ark and their facility expanding to include 6 additional threatened species.
Aussie Ark’s wildlife sanctuary is located in the scenic heritage-listed Barrington Tops in NSW, which also serves as the natural habitat for many of the animals in their care. Aussie Ark welcomes visitors to their sanctuary, providing them with the opportunity to witness the incredible efforts that take place behind the scenes and, of course, interact with the animals residing there.
How You can Help Aussie Ark
Want to help Aussie Ark’s mission to protect Australia’s threatened species? Donate to Aussie Ark’s fundraisers on the Halo app. From just $1, you can donate directly to the charity or browse through their different fundraisers.
Did you know there are 1597 threatened mammals, reptiles, amphibians and birds in Australia? One of Aussie Ark’s ongoing fundraisers is their ‘1597 Threatened Species’ fundraiser, which aims to raise funds to conserve Australia’s unique flora and fauna with its critical insurance population programs. Your donation could help protect these endangered animals in Australia, end breed up insurance programs, manage threats and more.
The Halo app makes it easy to follow up on the status of the fundraiser and keep up-to-date to see how your donations are making a difference. Follow Halo on Instagram and Facebook, or read our blog to learn more.
If you’re looking for more of an immersive experience whilst supporting the conservation and preservation efforts, you can stay a night or two at Quoll’s Cottage or Devil’s Retreat. You’ll experience a once-in-a-lifetime stay surrounded by mountains and wildlife and leave feeling rejuvenated.
Q&A with Aussie Ark Ranger, Rory Francis
Q: How did you hear about Aussie Ark, and what led you to become an Aussie Ark Ranger?
A: I heard about Aussie Ark whilst working for one of Aussie Ark’s partners WildArk. We were conducting baseline surveys on the Mongo Valley reserve, to gain an understanding of what plants and animals resided on the reserve prior to any conservation work being done on the property. After meeting the Aussie Ark team, a group of like-minded individuals, I was offered a job on our Barrington Tops reserve/breeding facility and jumped at the opportunity.
Q: What’s your favourite part about being an Aussie Ark ranger?
A: My favourite part of being an Aussie Ark ranger is the ability to make real changes to the beautiful surrounding environment. Be that re-introducing locally extinct species or restoring a lost ecological niche.
Q: Do you have a favourite animal that you work with?
A: I really love all the individual animals we breed and work with hands-on day to day. However, rather than a favourite individual animal, I really love how they interact on a broader plain. Employing management strategies that are self-perpetuating is my favourite, as these strategies have been going on in nature long before we were on the scene and will last long after we are gone.
Q: What’s a fun fact that a lot of people may not know about the Tasmanian Devil?
A:Tasmanian Devils can eat 40% of their body weight in under a minute. It literally looks like they’ve swallowed a basketball after they gorge.
Q: How can Australians help with Aussie Ark’s vision to create a long-term future for Australia’s threatened wildlife?
A: Australians can help Aussie Ark’s vision to create a long-term future for Australia’s threatened wildlife in several ways. We love having guests visit us for the day or stay at our accommodation and do tours of our facility, this is crucial as it gives us a chance to show our guests what we are fighting so hard to protect. As we are a non-profit conservation organisation donating to our website, goes a long way as we put every cent towards furthering the long-term future of the wildlife we care so much about.
