For the first time in more than a century the greater bilby is burrowing in the red clay of the Mallee Cliffs National Park in south-west New South Wales.
The marsupial was eliminated from the the area by foxes and wild cats, but six months ago 50 adults were reintroduced as part of a conservation program.
Since then they have produced a second generation, sparking hopes the species will become a permanent fixture in the area once again.
The reintroduction is part of a program by Australian Wildlife Conservancy, which plans to release the bilbies into a 9,750-hectare, predator-free section of the park.
"The park is in good health and is providing really abundant resources for them," ecologist Laurence Berry said.
"So that breeding is a sign that the national park has been managed well for the past 20 years, so it's been a good decision to reintroduce them back there."
He expects the population of bilbies in Mallee Cliffs to grow to at least 1,000.
Predator-proofing key to comeback
Feral predator fencing is part of the solution to increasing the population of endangered and threatened species.
The two-metre fences have skirting to prevent wild cats and foxes from digging under them, and a floppy canopy top that stops animals from climbing over them.
They are also rigged with electric wire for added security.
"That's really essential for being able to reintroduce bilbies to an area," Mr Berry said.
"Bilbies do not have any predator avoidance behaviour, and what we find is that areas that have an abundance of wild cats and foxes do not have bilbies in them anymore.
"That is the same for a whole suite of Australian mammals."
Mr Berry says the bilbies have settled well into their new environment and will be closely monitored every three months until he's certain they will be able to make it on their own in their new home.
Mass extinction event
Bilbies were once found across 90 percent of mainland Australia, from Perth to Sydney, and occupied a range of different habitats.
Mr Berry says Australia is in what's called a six mass extinction event driven by human-induced changes, including land use and feral predators.
"The only place you find bilbies now is very isolated parts of Queensland, the Simpson Desert, or the Tanami Desert, because [they are] outside the climatic threshold that cats can handle," he said.
"Without programs like [the Mallee Cliffs program], it wouldn't be possible to bring these species back."
In 2016, the Queensland Government reported what was believed to be the first recorded mammal species loss because of human-induced climate change.
A report into the Bramble Cay melomys said the "root cause" of the extinction was sea-level rise, which was a consequence of global warming.
