Provide a home for native mammals

Although less famous than kangaroos and quokkas, our region is also home to smaller marsupial species like Mardo, Quenda and Chuditch, all of which are facing an urban housing crisis. You can help if you provide a home for native mammals in your garden.

Habitat Value: Level 3

Dry Shelter

Provide a home for native mammals is a useful ReWild action, as it offers dry shelter specifically designed for our native wildlife.

Including smart water features and native plants in your garden will encourage use of these nesting boxes.

The Level 3 habitat value reflects the importance of reintroducing shelter and refuge to native species. This is central to the ReWild purpose.

Although we can’t really ‘rewild’ the natural home of these animals in our lifetime – some mature trees are more than 100 years old before they develop hollows – most mammals will use a substitute home (called ‘novel habitats’) if they’re available.

Pet Ownership

Novel habitats need to be placed carefully with regard to our pets.

If you think a cat can access a habitat, it can and will.

Consider this carefully before introducing any habitats for ground dwelling marsupials.

Keep my outdoor cat away from wildlife

Keep my dog away from wildlife

Mammal Habitat Templates

As you can see from the designs above, you can make a nesting box that mimics the preferred habitat of specific animals, including marsupials and the various microbats that play an important role in our natural ecosystem.

We have included nesting box designs in the ‘Habitat’ section of our animal resources – check out the Quenda page for an example.

Nesting boxes provide refuge from weather conditions and many predators (including our pets), offering a simple solution to the housing crisis.

Things to Remember

Even though many smaller marsupials are cute, remember they are still wild animals, and will generally not behave like quokkas.

Apart from an annual maintenance check, avoid directly handling or opening nest boxes (you’ll put human scent on them).

The entire purpose of novel habitats is to offer shelter and refuge from the urban environment, and any inhabitants will want to be left alone.

Do not leave out extra food to encourage animals.

Provide water for local wildlife.