Reintroduction of the Mala to Aboriginal land in the Tanami Desert, Northern Territory: A case study of the reintroduction process as a research and management tool

Abstract

The Rufous Hare-wallaby or mala 'Lagorchestes hirsutus' is one of a suite of Australia's arid zone species which have suffered badly in the 200 years since European settlement. Within the Northern Territory alone at least 15 species of arid zone vascular plants and vertebrate animals have become extinct since settlement, and a further 75 species are classified as either endangered or vulnerable. From being one of the most abundant and widespread macropods of central Australia, the mala has declined to the point where it is now one of the rarest and most limited in its distribution. Wild populations of mala are currently known only from Bernier and Dorre Islands off the Western Australian coast. Reintroduction is therefore seen as one of the key elements of the recovery plan which has been prepared for the species.