{"id":517111,"date":"2026-03-04T01:36:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-04T01:36:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/517111\/"},"modified":"2026-03-04T01:36:09","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T01:36:09","slug":"incredible-change-as-11-hectare-aussie-paddock-fenced-off-after-being-smashed-by-invasive-species","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/517111\/","title":{"rendered":"Incredible change as 11-hectare Aussie paddock fenced off after being ‘smashed’ by invasive species"},"content":{"rendered":"

Photos taken one year apart of the same hillside highlight the extraordinary power of the Australian landscape to recover<\/a> after invasive species are eradicated. There was no need for seed, only rain, sunlight and a fence to keep rabbits<\/a> out, and the 11-hectare paddock west of Melbourne sprang back to life.<\/p>\n

Taken at the Mount Rothwell sanctuary<\/a> in January 2025, the first image shows a network of warrens pockmarking the ground, which has been grazed bare by the hungry herbivores.<\/p>\n

The second, taken in 2026, shows flourishing native grasses now dominating the same spot.<\/p>\n

Odonata Foundation added the parcel of land to a 170-hectare invasive-species-proof reserve in the town of Little River, which was set up to allow rare and endangered native marsupials to flourish.<\/p>\n

Its chief operating officer, Matt Singleton, said the rapid change achieved at the site provides \u201cencouragement to keep going\u201d in their mission to revitalise the site.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/p>\n

This aerial photo taken in western NSW highlights the impact that rabbit warrens have on Australia’s fragile landscape. Source: Getty<\/p>\n

(Universal Images Group via Getty)Native marsupials ‘smashed’ by invasive species<\/p>\n

Unlike native marsupials, rabbits have been largely resilient to attacks from cats and foxes because they burrow deep underground, and so a concerted effort is needed to eradicate them.<\/p>\n

But native marsupials didn\u2019t evolve alongside these invasive predators and are essentially sitting ducks.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe eastern barred bandicoot and eastern bettong<\/a> nest in grass, so they\u2019re very easy for cats and foxes find,\u201d he told Yahoo News.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re getting outcompeted by the herbivore pressures that rabbits provide, and they\u2019re also getting smashed by feral predators.\u201d<\/p>\n

Once rabbits, foxes and cats are fenced out, then native marsupials can thrive.<\/p>\n

Rather than denuding paddocks of native plants, their digging helps aerate the soil<\/a> and germinate native seeds.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are repairing the landscape alongside our teams, who are controlling weeds,\u201d Singleton said.<\/p>\n

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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