Near-Extinct Rodent Successfully Reintroduced to Victorian Park

Pooklia are small nocturnal rodents which disappeared from Victoria for nearly 50 years, but have been given a fighting chance by Melbourne Zoo

A supplied undated image obtained Thursday, May 9, 2024 shows a Pookila at Melbourne Zoo in Melbourne. A special breeding program is returning an endangered rodent to a botanical garden for the first time in almost half a century. AAP Image/Supplied by Zoos Victoria

As a result of a successful breeding program, an endangered rodent has been returned to Melbourne’s Royal Botanic Gardens Cranbourne for the first time in nearly 50 years.

The Pookila, also known as the New Holland Mouse, is in the Muridae family and native to Australia. Around 3,000 specimens are thought to exist in Eastern Victoria, out of an estimated 8,000 nationwide.