THE owner of this furry face is helping to bring Eastern barred bandicoots back from extinction in the wild on mainland Australia.
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Maremma sheepdogs are being used in research being led by the University of Tasmania in partnership with Zoos Victoria, to see if the guardian dogs can be used to protect threatened or endangered species.
The dogs instinctively bond with livestock as puppies, live and roam with their flocks and protect them from wild predators, such as foxes.
UTAS School of Zoology professor Chris Johnson said the aim of the research project was to see if the protection offered by the dogs could extend to protection over bandicoots also living within that safety zone.
He said Zoos Victoria had purchased Maremma puppies, which were being bonded to sheep, and in this process they were also being exposed to Eastern barred bandicoots.
This was to familiarise the dogs with the small mammals, to teach them that ‘‘bandicoots were
OK’’, and to ensure they would not become aggressive towards the wild creatures. ‘‘Instead of socialising the puppy with people, you make sure it spends most or all of its time with the stock that you want it to look after,’’ Professor Johnson said. ‘‘As they are going about their normal business of looking after sheep, they may be creating an indirect protection for other species, like birds and small wildlife.’’ Professor Johnson said if this was shown to occur, it would be a great outcome for conservation.
‘‘Instead of building a fence to keep foxes out, we could get a few guardian dogs living in conservation areas with a few sheep at low numbers,’’ he said.
The research received $300,000 from the Australian Research Council.