The small marsupials chronically suffer from the fatal Facial Tumor Disease, and without a vaccine for the cancer, scientists fear the species could be wiped out in less than 10 years. The last hope for the species lies in the 500 breeding adult devils currently living in 18 different wildlife parks and zoos. The Taronga Zoo and Conservation Society released a plea to the public today for funding to research the disease. They hope to raise at least $250,000 to expedite the development of the vaccine.
The healthy devils in captivity are being held in quarantine in order to prevent the spread of the cancer. Taronga Zoo alone already holds 115 devils, but spokesman Mark Williams said they need to breed more.
“What they know at the moment is because the devils are quite a close genetic line they think the devils system doesn’t recognize the cancer as a disease and that’s why it’s getting a go with them,” Williams said. “They’re trying to crack the code on this cancer so that they can do something scientifically to stop it.”
Marsupials are often plagued with high mortality and disease, causing many species to go extinct. A similar carnivorous marsupial, the Tasmanian Tiger, went extinct in the 1930’s from over-hunting and disease, and now even Kangaroos are facing an extinction threat from global warming.
The zoo has set-up a website where visitors can breed their own virtual Tasmanian Devil, read more about the creature, and donate to the program easily.
Photo Credit: ccdoh1 on Flickr under Creative Commons license.
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