In 2017, the Eastern Barred Bandicoot (EBB) Recovery Team released a total of 44 individuals onto the Summerland Peninsula, located at the western tip of Phillip Island. Since their initial reintroduction in 2015 to Churchill Island, where population growth has been successful, the species has spread across the Summerland Peninsula, with sightings as far as Wimbledon Heights, Pyramid Rock, and Surf Beach.

The EBB Recovery Team was formed in 1988 to coordinate a collaborative recovery effort for the mainland EBB. Currently, the EBB Recovery Team has members from Conservation Volunteers Australia, Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP), National Trust of Australia (Victoria), Parks Victoria, Phillip Island Nature Parks, the University of Melbourne, Tiverton Rothwell Partnering and Zoos Victoria.

To celebrate this remarkable achievement and to secure a brighter future for these critically endangered marsupials by supporting population recovery efforts, you can adopt your own Eastern Barred Bandicoot on The Penguin Foundation website.

To learn more about the island haven and the introduction of Eastern Barred Bandicoots to Churchill Island (Moonah'mia) and Phillip Island (Millowl), please click here.

With sincere thanks to the Helen Macpherson Smith Trust for providing seed funding to the Penguin Foundation to assist with and support the recovery efforts.