Ralph Illidge Sanctuary

21/12/2025

Small but mighty! Click the link in comments to read more about the winning township 👇

19/05/2025

19/05/2025

Silvereye from back when we first started visiting the Royal Botanic Gardens in Cranbourne.

19/05/2025

We had a very quiet trip to the Royal Botanic Gardens in Cranbourne this morning. Even not technically a great shot I loved how it came out. It was in heavy shade and I only got the one shot but like the overall impact. Male Eastern Spinebill.
Cranbourne Friends Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria Inc.

16/05/2025

16/05/2025

The Australian Wildlife Society’s Threatened Wildlife Photographic Competition awards and promotes the conservation of threatened Australian wildlife through the medium of photography.

More information: https://www.aws.org.au/2025-threatened-wildlife-photographic-competition/

Prizes:

An annual judge’s prize of $1,000 will be awarded.

An annual people’s choice prize of $500 will be awarded.

Entries due by: June 30th.

Voting period: 1st-30th July

Image credits:

Quokka by Astrid (Serpentarius via inaturalist)

16/05/2025

Today is Endangered Species Day. The Gang gang Cockatoo was listed as endangered in 2022. 🥲 This is a pair of Gang gang Cockatoos. The male is on the left and the female on the right.

16/05/2025

Congratulations to Adidas for the promise to no longer use kangaroo leather and thank you to the organisations that pushed for this ban.

This celebration should be tinged with sadness though.

Australia has absolutely nothing to be proud of with regards our treatment of these magnificent animals. The fact that people had to push the clothing and footware industry to act ethically while our governments still push kangaroo as a product should be a wake up call to all Australians.

The moral buck stops with us as the sellers.

13/05/2025

13/05/2025

This grey-headed flying fox was found in Bendigo, hanging from a tree by a fishing hook pierced through her mouth and nostril.

Nobody knows how long she was trapped like this. But we do know why.

It’s a miracle she’s even alive.

If it weren’t for the dedicated wildlife carers now tending to her, her fate could have been very different.

Sadly, many animals caught like this aren’t so lucky – their injuries are often so severe that euthanasia is the only humane option.

This is the brutal reality of discarded fishing gear. Carelessly left behind, it becomes a weapon of slow, agonising suffering.
She’s one of the lucky ones. Most are never found in time.

She is not the first animal to be found strung up on a tree in discarded fishing gear.

A corella in Bundoora was left hanging from a branch for days before anyone noticed.

A tawny frogmouth was discovered in Tuerong, hanging by a wing.

A juvenile kookaburra was found with a large fishing lure pierced through their mouth.

Pelicans, turtles, dolphins – even beloved companion animals – have all fallen victim to carelessly discarded fishing gear.

It’s a widespread, preventable crisis. And it's costing countless lives.

Wildlife carers have reported a troubling rise in native animals becoming entangled in fishing gear – a spike that directly correlates with the Allan Government’s children’s fishing initiative.

Promoted as a way to get more kids into recreational fishing (as if duck shooting wasn’t already enough sanctioned cruelty), the government is distributing 95,000 fishing kits to nearly 2,000 schools across Victoria.

Originally announced by Jacinta Allan in 2022, the $1.5 million ‘Little Anglers’ program includes a rod and reel, tackle box, and an eight-page ‘Kids’ Guide to Fishing’.

It’s run by the Victorian Fisheries Authority, aka, the same government agency now facing criticism for staff cuts and weakened enforcement, leading to increased illegal fishing activities directly impacting both wildlife and their habitats.

Because what could possibly go wrong handing out thousands of fishing rods to children with little oversight?

Plenty. Just ask the wildlife rescuers dealing with the fallout.

While we can’t trace whether a child was responsible for these animals caught in fishing gear – we do know that if adults are already setting poor examples and failing to teach safe fishing practices, it’s no surprise the same harmful habits are passed down.

When a snagged fishing line is simply cut and left behind, it poses a serious threat to native wildlife. Birds, bats, and other animals can easily become entangled, often with fatal consequences.

That’s why wildlife shelters and advocates are calling for a matching $1.5 million investment – this time in education, not equipment.

Thankfully, this grey-headed flying fox is on track to make a full recovery.

She’s finished her triage and stabilisation and will now join other bats in care to heal and socialise.

Her release will have to wait until her mouth has fully healed – but she’s hanging in there in the meantime.

13/05/2025

Gang finds unusually spotted creatures in a nest – takes a closer look and jaws drop when they realize what kind of animals... Check comments 😲👇🏻

13/05/2025

🐞