Yesterday Environment Minister Matthew Groom announced devil numbers were the highest they had been for a decade, but warned the state had to act now if the species was to survive.

Mr Groom said devil conservation programs would continue statewide with new trap-and-monitor projects soon to begin in the North-East.

‘‘Our best estimates are that the number of devils in the North-East have remained fairly constant over the course of the last decade,’’ he said.

‘‘Securing a future for the devil in the wild requires us to have a much better understanding of what is occurring with the population in this part of the state.’’

Mr Groom said some of the federal government’s $3 million devil research funding injection would be spent on the ongoing project, but did not state how much.

Professor Woods said more funding was needed to ensure the continued success of conservation programs.

‘‘If things go really, really, really well, it’s a couple of years away,’’ he said.

‘‘But if things go badly (for the species), it could take 10 to 20 years to find a vaccination.’’

Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary owner Greg Irons said while devil numbers were on the up at the moment, he wouldn’t be shocked if they dropped again in the coming years.

‘‘Once the numbers get up, you can expect another decrease,’’ he said.

‘‘We’re at a peak at the moment, but I wouldn’t be surprised if that number decreased again. Numbers go up and down, that’s normal.’’

Mr Irons agrees that more funding and better education within the community will be the key to species survival.

He believes the time has come for some of the state’s ‘‘insurance’’ devil population to be strategically released into the wild where the disease does not thrive.

‘‘By no means is it safe,’’ Mr Irons said.

‘‘This is just a little boom. The easiest way for them to survive is to have them fight the disease off naturally, they need time.

‘‘They are still poisoned and shot in traps, even though people don’t like to talk about it. Stopping that is just as important.’’