After being extinct in NSW for more than a century, the greater bilby is making a comeback.

Bilbies were once found across 70 per cent of Australia, but until recently the marsupials were missing from the state’s wilds.

Yet NSW is now seeing a resurgence of these nocturnal desert dwellers with long ears and silky, blue-grey fur thanks to Taronga Western Plains Zoo‘s greater bilby conservation breeding program in Dubbo.

Zookeepers and conservation officers last week ventured into Taronga’s 110-hectare sanctuary in Dubbo to check on the breeding program.

The population is usually left to breed naturally so the creatures can become genetically and behaviourally robust before being released.

But every night last week, conservation officers assessed the population’s health and selected which bilbies were ready to make the leap into the wild.

Greater bilby keeper Steve Kleinig said more than 70 traps were set to entice the bilbies to a safely contained area for weighing and health checks.

What they found was great news for the recovery of the native species.

“Almost all the females checked had joeys in their pouches and all individuals that we health-checked were in great body condition,” he said.

Taronga Conservation Society Australia CEO Cameron Kerr said the species was “flourishing in this very special environment”.

In the coming weeks more than 30 bilbies from the sanctuary will be released into the Newhaven Wildlife Sanctuary in Central Australia.

Within the safety of the 9450-hectare area free of feral predators, the bilbies will be able to re-establish their presence in the semi-arid region and help secure the future of their species.

It’s the second release of bilbies from the Taronga sanctuary, with 10 bilbies released into Sturt National Park in September.

The first release came 11 months after the founding bilby population arrived in the Taronga sanctuary.

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