Northern Quolls & A Tropical Wetlands Shared Earth Reserve
Northern Quolls (Dasyurus hallucatus) were once widespread across northern Australia. Today, they’re listed as Endangered, with many populations declining due to cane toads, invasive grasses, altered fire regimes and feral predators.
At Forever Wild’s Tropical Wetlands Shared Earth Reserve near Mareeba, the Northern Quoll population is performing strongly compared to many other parts of its range — showing what’s possible when habitat, connectivity and management align.
Why the Mareeba Wetlands matter
The Tropical Wetlands Shared Earth Reserve forms part of a large, connected landscape. As Forever Wild’s first Shared Earth Reserve, the wetlands are a Public-Private Partnership between the Forever Wild Initiative and the Queensland Government.
The reserve protects a mosaic of old-growth savanna woodland, wetlands and permanent water, sits alongside the Hann Tableland National Park, and links into extensive surrounding cattle country.
For Northern Quolls, this kind of connected and structurally intact habitat provides shelter, food resources and refuge from intense fire. The landscape also holds deep cultural significance for the Muluridji people, with whom Forever Wild is working to reconnect people and Country.
The Challenge
Despite strong local performance, Northern Quolls remain vulnerable to a familiar set of pressures:
- Invasive grasses, particularly Gamba grass, which increase fuel loads and fire intensity
- Feral predators, especially cats
- Feral pigs, which disturb habitat and wetlands
- Legacy impacts from changed fire regimes
Without active management, these pressures can quickly erode habitat quality and population resilience.
On-ground action
Forever Wild, in partnership with Gulf Savannah NRM, is implementing targeted, practical actions to support Northern Quoll recovery:
- Gamba grass control, supported by appropriate fire regimes
- Feral cat management, including AI-powered Felixer® traps
- Pig control using remotely operated traps
- Strategic burning to reduce fuel loads and maintain habitat structure
Monitoring
Monitoring by Australian Wildlife Conservancy is providing a clear and encouraging picture.
Camera surveys conducted in November 2024 and May 2025 detected an increase of North Quolls across in 2025, compared to the previous year. Quoll activity was also higher in 2025, with occupancy and activity levels high relative to similar surveys elsewhere in northern Australia, including known quoll strongholds impacted by cane toads.
Management Results
The monitoring also shows reductions in key threats, such as Feral pigs, Feral cats and Gamba grass presence.
In addition recently burned areas showed reduced dominance of Giant Rat’s Tail Grass, reinforcing the role of well-planned fire in weed control.
Why this matters
Northern Quolls are doing well at the Tropical Wetlands because the landscape still functions — and because active management is reinforcing that function.
The reserve shows how connected habitat, targeted weed and feral control, and good fire management can support threatened species at scale. These lessons are directly relevant to landholders and land managers working across northern Australia.
Forever Wild - Tropical Wetlands Shared Earth Reserve
iNaturalist - Mareeba Wetlands Project
This work is funded by the Australian Government’s Natural Heritage Trust through the Saving Native Species Program, delivered by Gulf Savannah NRM in partnership with Forever Wild.