A conservation program to repopulate the APY Lands with the endangered black-footed rock wallaby, or warru, has received a boost from federal funding.

Key points:

  • APY Rangers are restoring black-footed rock-wallaby (warru) populations
  • Federal funding will boost their conservation program for seven more years
  • Warru are culturally significant and have been hunted by foxes and cats 

The National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA) has provided $8.3 million to a project ensuring that the Warru Kaninytjaku ranger program can continue for at least another seven years.

APY Lands’ manager of land management, Neil Collins, said the conservation program was made up of two parts: the training and employment of local rangers and the ecological work to ensure the marsupials thrive in areas where they should be existing.

According to APY general manager Richard King, there used to be hardly any black-footed rock wallabies in the area because introduced predators — such as foxes and feral cats — preyed on joeys.

Warru Kaninytjaku ranger Cameron Cooper holds a tiny black-footed rock-wallaby joey, a threatened but culturally significant animal on the APY Lands.(

Supplied: APY Land Management

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However, through the program, rangers were able to find a small warru population and build on that.

Rangers work across two teams on the APY Lands, managing warru populations in the Musgrave Ranges and Tomkinson Ranges.

The Warru Kaninytjaku Ranger program will continue for a further seven years thanks to $8.3 million in federal funding.(

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He said the additional funding meant the program could be expanded into the Everard Ranges near Mimili in the central APY Lands.

Mr Collins said that having populations at multiple locations was part of the project’s risk management plan so that, if a warru population was lost, animals could be re-introduced from other areas.

During the day, these tiny nocturnal marsupials — weighing just 3 to 5 kilograms — hide among rocky, craggy outcrops, which keeps them cool in summer and somewhat protected from predators.

At night, they venture out to forage for native figs and the leaves of the native plant used by traditional owners to make spears.

Warru are nocturnal foragers and prefer to hide in rocky outcrops in the day to avoid the summer heat and predators such as foxes and feral cats.(

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“Surprisingly, they’re also eating some of the weeds that have entered the areas, so [they are] a bit of an adaptable animal.”

Culturally significant animal

Mr King said the warru played a major role in Anangu mythology as well as in the native ecosystem.

“The warru generally greet the sun in the mornings and say goodbye to it at night. So ,looking upon the ranges, you often see the rock wallaby standing right up on the rocks,” Mr King said.

“Their food cycle helps to regenerate some of the native vegetation, so it’s a complete ecosystem.

“So, missing a significant animal like that makes a really big difference to the ecology of the lands.”

Warru conservation will not just protect the black-footed rock-wallabies but also provide culturally significant training and employment options for local Anangu people.(

Supplied: APY Land Management

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Mr Collins said the warru were an indicator of a healthy habitat and having them around was critical to the wellbeing of locals.

Local ownership of conservation

Both Mr King and Mr Collins were grateful for the federal funding from the NIAA, which has supported the program for more than 10 years.

APY Rangers work in two teams to protect warru populations in the Musgrave Ranges and Tomkinson Ranges on APY Lands.(

Supplied: APY Land Management

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In a statement, the Federal Minister for Indigenous Australians, Ken Wyatt, said ranger groups held deep knowledge of the lands and their traditional knowledge contributed to improvements in modern science and approaches to landscape management.

Mr Collins said these programs did not work without the support of locals but, in this case, they were the ones who were driving the project.

A Warru Kaninytjaku ranger releases a black-footed rock-wallaby.(

Supplied: APY Land Management

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Mr Collins said the funding would not just recruit younger rangers into the program but would also support training for more locals to take up senior and leadership roles to eventually coordinate the program.