Leadbeater’s Possum.
Source: Dan Harley
Photo: Dan Harley
Celebrate the tiny Leadbeater's Possum and learn about efforts to ensure its survival.
The Leadbeater's Possum is unique to Victoria and lives mainly in the Central Highlands. It was discovered in 1867 and by the early 1900s was thought to be extinct. But in 1961 it was miraculously rediscovered near Marysville and became the state's faunal emblem 10 years later.
The plight of the species is inextricably linked to its environment. It needs specific conditions to survive, but lives in an area where logging and fires continually threaten its existence.
Almost half of the existing habitat was destroyed on Black Saturday. This display, which includes the burnt remains of a nest box collected after the fires, will reveal the efforts before and after Black Saturday to secure this significant animal.