For environmental science student Rose, joining Arid Recovery’s annual cage and kowari trapping surveys was a chance to turn theory into practice. Over two weeks, she experienced early morning starts, hands-on wildlife monitoring, and the challenge of working in a remote arid landscape. From the wide red dunes to the frantic scurry of a kowari, Rose shares how her two-week placement deepened her understanding of ecology, fieldwork, and the species she’d only read about in textbooks.

She’s survived droughts, overpopulation, and relocation; and might be the great-great-grandmother of nearly 400 burrowing bettongs. Meet Nana Tong, the 9-year-old bettong matriarch quietly shaping a marsupial dynasty at Arid Recovery.

What happens when you turn 27 years of conservation science into wearable art? In her powerful series Extinction Intervention, artist Katherine Grocott transforms track count data from Arid Recovery into sculptural jewellery that tells the story of extinction, survival, and recovery.

As climate change drives more intense and frequent heatwaves, how will desert wildlife cope? Bilbies and rabbits both retreat underground, but will that be enough in a hotter, drier future?  UNSW researcher Jack Bilby explores how these two burrowing species are responding to rising temperatures  and what that means for conservation in a rapidly changing climate. 

For 27 years, Arid Recovery’s annual pitfall trapping has helped track the environment. While our reintroduced animals often steal the show, it’s the small, lesser-known species that quietly tell the deeper story of ecosystem health.