Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF – Fri-Yay/Good News

~ John W. Howell
Supplied – Taronga Conservation Society
Today’s good news story comes from the Good News Network.

Ambitious Rewilding Project for Koala and Platypus Undertaken by Sydney’s Taronga Zoo

By Andy Corbley –

An Australian zoo credited with saving 7 native species from extinction aims to continue its vital work by rewilding a 3,050-acre tract of farmland.

The aim was to plant Box-Gum trees across the cleared land to act as a corridor to connect existing wildlife habitats.

The Taronga Zoo Conservation Society (TZCS) then plans to release platypus, koalas, spotted quolls, and the Endangered regent honeyeater.

The farmland can be found on the Nandewar Range, part of the Australian continent’s Great Dividing Range, in New South Wales. It’s about 100 times bigger than the zoo that society maintains in the Sydney Harbor.

The TZCS estimates that around 1 million seedlings will be needed to restore native tree cover, after which they expect some species to return quickly.

CEO Cameron Kerr told ABC News AU that experts would then monitor how these native species recolonize the area and decide how to manage the species, expected to take a decade or more to fully reclaim their ancestral territory.

“What we are going to do is first of all establish the habitat and get the ecosystem looking after itself so that pest management and weed management will decline over time as the habitat becomes healthy,” Mr. Kerr said.

A regent honeyeater – supplied, Taronga Conservation Society

The landscape, in the Nandewar Range – supplied, Taronga Conservation Society

“At the right time we will assess what wildlife is coming in from outside and what wildlife we need to re-introduce.”

TZCS has extensive experience in reintroducing native species. ABC claims that 60,000 animals, from tadpoles to larger mammals like koalas, have been bred, reared, and released through the society’s 16 targeted breeding programs.

At the same time, rewilding landscapes will be a first for the zoo, and the Nandewar Rangeland is the only such project since it transformed 300 acres into the Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo.

Directors of the program are aware that the landscape isn’t free of invasive, predatory animals such as foxes and pigs, so feral animal control will have to be incorporated into plans. Kerr said that Australia can no longer rely on the forest landscapes it has left to protect native, threatened wildlife.

The nation has to actively begin restoring native forests if citizens want the continent’s panoply of curious native animals to survive long into the future.

The good news in this story is that native forests are being reestablished at the direction of zoo personnel with a look to the future. Today’s JohnKu talks about vision. I hope you have a lovely weekend.

Future by John W. Howell © 2025

A plan for today,

Must look into the future . . .

To save our planet.

61 thoughts on “Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF – Fri-Yay/Good News”

  9. A really good news day when we can get reports like this where there really are folks out there who have a long-term vision, and long-term goals, for our environment…and those creatures we share the Earth with. Intervention and coordination are the keys, and it sounds like they are going to get things done, John. Thanks for sharing.

    Liked by 1 person

      1. You’re very sweet to ask. Between trying to settle in and dealing with multiple power outages due to high wind alerts (lasted outage is 27 hours and counting-they’re saying maybe by 6 pm tonight), I couldn’t do a post. I hope to get back online next week but it will depend on if there’s power. I can’t believe how much I depend on electricity. Without it, things are pretty boring. I spend my mornings at a coffee shop recharging my devices, drinking coffee and eating German pastries and absolute essential online work. It’s crazy!

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  19. Your JohnKu is true.

    Man, for all his inventions and smarts, is kind of ignorant.

    I suppose we thought it was okay just to use things up.

    Glad to see we are putting things back, so to speak, but when all succeeds, it will be different. But that’s okay. I’m just happy animals are getting their respects.

    🐨𝓧 🐨𝓧

    Liked by 1 person

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