Editing Astrebla Downs National Park (section)

== Animals ==
The park received an award in March 2007 by the [[World Wildlife Fund|WWF]] for being among the top 10 reserves of the decade. Recognition was given for the successful efforts to protect the [[bilby]], an endangered mammal native to Australia.<ref>[http://statements.cabinet.qld.gov.au/MMS/StatementDisplaySingle.aspx?id=51146 Queensland parks recognised as among best in Australia] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120205043719/http://statements.cabinet.qld.gov.au/MMS/StatementDisplaySingle.aspx?id=51146 |date=5 February 2012 }}. 28 March 2007. Retrieved 31 March 2007.</ref> By 2008 it was estimated the park contained a bilby population of around 300.<ref name="pob">{{Cite news |url=http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/story/2008/03/24/plight-bilby/ |title=Plight of the bilby |author=Shirley Sinclair |access-date=15 March 2011 |date=24 March 2008 |newspaper=Sunshine Coast Daily |publisher=Sunshine Coast Newspaper Company }}</ref> In 2009, a plague of [[long-haired rat]]s descended on the park.<ref name="rph">{{Cite news |url=http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/rat-plague-hits-western-queensland/story-e6freoof-1225809537780 |title=Rat plague hits western Queensland |author=Brian Williams |access-date=15 March 2011 |date=12 December 2009 |newspaper=The Courier-Mail |publisher=Queensland Newspapers }}</ref> The large numbers of rats attract [[feral cats in Australia|feral cats]] to the area, which pose a threat to the bilby. Between 2011 and 2021, control measures have got rid of more than 3,000 cats, and
471 bilbies were spotted on a survey in June 2021.<ref name="Grounds 2021"/>

The park is home to the [[kowari]], a tiny carnivorous [[marsupial]] which is a [[vulnerable species]] in Queensland, also threatened by feral cats. The animal had not been photographed anywhere in around ten years before June 2021, when photographs were taken during a survey covering nearly {{cvt|100|km}} of tracks, in which a record number – 14 – were spotted in the park. None have been spotted at the nearby [[Diamantina National Park]] since 2012.<ref name="Grounds 2021">{{cite web | last=Grounds | first=Ellie | title=Rare footage of endangered marsupial kowari captured in outback Queensland | website=ABC News| publisher =Australian Broadcasting Corporation | date=18 June 2021 | url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-06-19/rare-footage-of-endangered-marsupial-kowari/100225508 | access-date=16 July 2021}}</ref>

Astrebla Downs is also home to the [[stripe-faced dunnart]].<ref name="mhe"/>