Time Travelling Island
1,551 views · Published 25 October 2018 · 3:29 · Indexed 26 October 2026
Channel: Behind the News · 2018 · Education
How do you return an area of land to what it would've been like more than 400 years ago before Europeans arrived? It's something scientists have been trying to do on an island off the coast of WA. It's hard to imagine what Australia would have looked like before cars, buildings and goats. Yes goats. But if you travel to an island just off the coast of Western Australia, you'll be transported 400 years back in time before European contact and before goats. Bear with me, the goat thing will make sense a bit later on. Dirk Hartog Island is located about 850 kilometres north of Perth. The island was named after a Dutch sea captain who got a bit lost on his way to South East Asia and accidently stumbled upon the island way back in 1616 (hundreds of years before Captain Cook arrived). He spent about 3 days exploring, left a plaque and quickly set off for South East Asia again. In the early 1900's Dirk Hartog Island became home to a sheep station complete with about 19,000 sheep. Then in 2009 it was declared a national park and listed as a world heritage site. Now it's home to something else: one of the world's largest restoration projects. The aim is to try to recreate the ecosystem that would have existed on the island before Mr Hartog arrived. JOHN ASHER, PROJECT MANAGER: When Dirk Hartog arrived on Dirk Hartog Island back in 1616, there was 13 species of ground-dwelling animals on the island, and since 150 years of pastoralism and the feral introduction of cats on the island there's only three left. The first step was to rid the island of thousands of feral pests including some goats. After 4 years of effort, experts on the ground have finally declared the island goat, sheep and cat free. MARGARET BYRNE, DEPARTMENT OF BIODIVERSITY: Removing the cats was the big outcome that we were seeking in the first stage of the project because that then paves the way of being able to return the animals that were once there. Now that the island is free of pests it's time to start re-introducing some of the native species that once lived here. Last year, 12 Rufous and 12 Banded Hare-Wallabies were taken from the nearby Bernier and Dorre Islands and placed onto Dirk Hartog. They’re both threatened species but scientists on the island say they're doing really well in their new home. And there's a good chance their numbers will start to increase. In the coming years other animals will be brought back onto the island including Eastern Barred Bandicoots, Shark Bay Mice, Woylies, Dibblers and Chuditchs. And soon it will be really close to what it once was. _ For the past 50 years, Behind the News has been helping to break down current issues and events for young people all around the world. The program is a high-energy, fun way for people to learn about the stories we see in the news, while providing background information that isn’t usually given by other news bulletins. We have over 1000 stories on all sorts of topics - everything from politics & volcanoes, to online security & fortnite. If you're looking for help to understand something, you'll probably find it on BTN. Make sure to like & subscribe our videos if you want to stay in the know! Visit our website: http://www.abc.net.au/btn/ Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/abcbtn Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/behindthenews/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/behindthenews
