Help defend Australia’s wildlife from new invasive threats
Fewer than 100 orange-bellied parrots remain in the wild. Every one of them is flying toward threats it has no way to fight.
Australia’s wildlife evolved in isolation for millions of years. Many of our native animals have little natural defence against invasive species and diseases from overseas, and for species already surviving in tiny numbers, a single new disease could be catastrophic.
Right now, two threats are converging on our wildlife.
The Australian Government is considering allowing parrot imports from beyond New Zealand for the first time in decades. The last time this was permitted, two serious parrot diseases entered the country. For a bird as rare as the orange-bellied parrot, with low natural immunity and nowhere to hide, a single infected import could be the difference between survival and extinction. And it’s completely avoidable. The decision hasn’t been made yet, and the government could still reverse it.
At the same time, highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu has killed more than 650,000 wild birds and 30,000 sea lions overseas, and it has now reached Australian territory. Our black swans, sea lions, Tasmanian devils and threatened birds have never encountered this virus before.
These are the moments when prevention matters most. Once a new invasive species or wildlife disease takes hold, the damage can be incredibly difficult, and sometimes impossible, to undo. Prevention is our best and cheapest defence.
Your donation will support our work pushing governments for stronger biosecurity, better wildlife preparedness and faster action, including a $200 million national wildlife resilience package to help native species grow stronger before the next outbreak hits.
Please give today to help protect Australia’s wildlife while there is still time.
Donate to protect Australia's wildlife from emerging threats.
Your generous tax-deductible gift helps fund our fight to protect Australia’s native species.
We need to act now.
Australia has a rare opportunity to stop new environmental disasters before they happen.
Once invasive species establish in the wild, eradication becomes enormously difficult and expensive. With wildlife diseases, it can be almost impossible.
We are already seeing the consequences when biosecurity fails.
The tiny polyphagous shot-hole borer arrived hidden in imported material and remained undetected for years. Eradication in Western Australia has now failed.
H5N1 bird flu has devastated wildlife overseas, killing hundreds of thousands of wild birds and tens of thousands of marine mammals.
And fewer than 100 orange-bellied parrots remain in the wild, while Australia considers allowing live parrot imports from countries beyond New Zealand. The last time widespread parrot imports were permitted, two serious parrot diseases entered Australia through quarantine failures.
But these outcomes are not inevitable.
The Invasive Species Council is campaigning against risky imports, pushing for a $200 million wildlife resilience package for bird flu, demanding stronger surveillance and rapid response to emerging pests, and making sure nature has a voice when biosecurity decisions are made.
Prevention is our best defence. Your donation helps us act while there is still time.
With your support, we win!
Protect one of our rarest birds
Fewer than 100 orange-bellied parrots remain in the wild. They need us to speak up and take action. Your support helps us fight risky import decisions that could expose vulnerable native birds to new diseases.
Prepare our animals for the next outbreak
H5N1 has devastated wildlife overseas. Your support helps us push for stronger wildlife preparedness to protect species like the Australian sea lion before future outbreaks reach our shores.
Defend Australia's iconic native trees
Shot-hole borer is already killing trees in Western Australia, and Moreton Bay figs and other native trees are at risk. Your support helps us push for stronger surveillance and faster action.