Devil Ark

Hunter United is proud to be associated with Devil Ark.

Devil Ark is the largest conservation breeding program for the Tasmanian devil on mainland Australia. The iconic Tasmanian marsupial is at serious risk of extinction from the highly contagious devil facial tumour disease (DFTD). Devil Ark’s ambitious breeding program might be the key to its survival.

Located at an altitude of 1,350 metres in the Barrington Tops, Devil Ark provides the perfect breeding environment for devils. The Tasmanian-like vegetation and cool, wet and snowy conditions means the devils feel right at home! In January 2011, Devil Ark was launched with 43 Tasmanian devils.

By the end of the year - thanks to a very successful breeding year and importing additional devils - this number will have doubled. It is expected this number will double again by the end of 2012. The goal is to have 360 devils at Devil Ark by 2016 and after a successful first year breeding, they’re well on the way to achieving this goal!

Devil Ark is very different to a zoo where small enclosures mean loss of natural behaviour. Devils at Devil Ark are kept in a natural environment to maintain their wild behaviour and our keepers intervene as little as possible. This means a cost-effective and devil-friendly approach.

Devil Ark relies on community support and donations to give hope to the Tasmanian devil. Right now, Devil Ark urgently needs to build Fences for Devils to house its next generation of babies. Another 10 devil enclosures need to be built for their rapidly expanding population of devils. This means building over 6.5 km of special devil-proof fences and digging 80 devil dens.