Environmental Conservation Efforts: Rescue Mission for Endangered Snails in Australia

On a grey day in early June, a commercial plane landed at Norfolk Island Airport in the South Pacific, carrying precious cargo: four blue crates of live animals, specifically hundreds of thumbnail-sized Campbells keeled glass-snails.

This remarkable rescue mission marked the culmination of a five-year effort to revive a species once thought extinct, as it had been listed on the IUCN red list as extinct in 1996. The journey began after Dr.

Isabel Hyman from the Australian Museum was alerted by citizen scientist Mark Scott about the rediscovery of these snails in 2020. Following their capture, 46 snails were moved to a captive breeding facility at Taronga Zoo, where despite early challenges, including high mortality rates and sensitivity to stress, the population grew to over 800 snails by June 2023.

The snails were then translocated back to their natural habitat on Norfolk Island, where they were released into a carefully selected valley that matched their original environment, following a period of acclimatization.

Unfortunately, a mould outbreak claimed 260 of the original 600 snails during the acclimatization phase, but 340 surviving snails were released. Ongoing monitoring has revealed that while the snails became difficult to locate shortly after their release, evidence of their survival, including the discovery of baby snails, has led to high hopes for the future.

The team is planning a second round of reintroductions in 2026 and is even working to update the IUCN listing to reflect that the Campbells keeled glass-snail may no longer be extinct.