Three bilbies have been born at the Alice Springs Desert Park as a result of a conservation program for one of Australia’s most iconic threatened species, the Finocchiaro Government has said.

Parks and Wildlife and Tourism Minister Marie-Clare Boothby and Environment Minister and MLA for the Alice Springs seat of Braitling Joshua Burgoyne both put their names to a press release about the birth, excluding Alice Springs Desert Park representatives from the release.

Ms Boothby said the young bilbies, which are now on display in the Nocturnal House, are attracting interest from local families and visitors, underscoring the region’s dedication to protecting the vulnerable greater bilby species.

“Earlier this year, we heard that greater bilby numbers were recovering, with some areas recording a 400 per cent increase increase,” Ms Boothby said.

“This is just so adorable and so exciting. Coming face-to-face with our native wildlife like this is really special, and I have to say: if the Top End is croc territory, then I think in some ways, Central Australia is bilby country.”

The minister said the Desert Park also focuses on conserving the mala, Slater’s skink and the Central rock-rat, as well as arid-zone birds, and helps preserve native plants through the Millennium Seed Bank Project, particularly protecting endangered species such as Waddywood, which is found in only three locations in Australia.

The Desert Park’s website says that until the turn of the century the bilby was one of Australia’s most widespread marsupials, living across 70 per cent of mainland Australia. But now it is mostly restricted to scattered colonies in the desert country north-west of Alice Springs, with an isolated colony near Boulia in Queensland.

For more information, visit the Alice Springs Desert Park website.