John Austin Photography

Roadkill Quokka and living Infant Quokka

Infant quokka Setonix brachyurus found in dead mother's pouch on Graphite Road west of Manjimup adjacent to Lewin State Forest, 29 August 2005.  I saw the roadkill quokka off the edge of the road, my senses are trained for this sort of thing due to my enviro-documentation.  I picked the dead parent up, and noticed movement in the pouch, the dead one was too fresh for this to be belly gasses, and I knew there was the presence of an infant.

Infant Quokka, Setonyx brachyuirus, just removed from pouch of dead mother, August 2005

As the female quokka's body still gave warmth I left the infant there and turned round and drove the mother with the infant quokka inside to CALM Manjimup where a CALM/DEC Wildlife Officer removed the baby quokka from the pouch. It was passed to a qualified animal carer in Northcliffe.  When I finally got to my meeting in Busselton the people understood the stiuation, so that was OK.

The infant Quokka thrived for a while, but when it started to grow hair and become active it died, possbly of a punctured lung from a broken rib.

Western Australian Logging and Wildlife Authorities and Quokkas

The history of CALM/DEC/DPaW, the Forest Products Commission (FPC), logging and quokkas is tragic. Hardly any acknowledgement of the existence of these animals on the mainland was made until the Northcliffe For Future Generations group raised the mainland quokka to government and public attention by protesting the logging of a locally known quokka habitat in Nairn 06 State Forest, near Quinninup, in 2003. Fox and feral pig predation increases following easier access due to habitat destruction

Technotes

Nikon F camera 35mm f2 Nikkorlens, Agfa APX400 film developed in replenished D76d, printed on Agfa MCC fibre based paper to 12 x 18".  Exhibitied as part of John Austin Survey II exhibition, Bunbury Regional Art Gallery 2107, subsequently exhibitied in other galleries in 2018.