Tiger Creek Wildlife Refuge

Saving Australia's biodiversity

ILLUMINATED BY A RED spotlight, a pair of small eyes peers down at us from 25m above in an aged and stately red box tree. "Surely that's not a greater glider?" exclaims one of our small party. It's a cold, wet winter's night in Woomargama, in southern NSW, and we're looking for squirrel gliders along a 'green road' - a patch of old-growth woodland - on Bruce Lynch's farm. Our group includes Bruce's son Mark, and Nigel Jones, a conservation manager with the Nature Conservation Trust of NSW (NCT). We're excited; greater gliders are normally found in the high country of Woomargama National Park, several kilometres to the south-east - not down here towards the Hume Highway. The excitement doesn't last long, though; a few camera flashes reveal the eyes belong to a common ringtail possum. We see squirrel gliders the next day, but they have been trapped for an RTA-funded project monitoring highway populations and fitting poles to help the marsupials glide the 70 m needed to cross an otherwise insurmountable road barrier. Bruce and Mark share a passion for squirrel gliders that has brought them closer together. It's also revolutionised the way they manage their 356ha pastoral property, located in the foothills of the Great Dividing Range. Twenty-five kilometres north-west of the Murray River, the farm is near Albury, NSW. A key part of their approach has been to plant silver wattles and other trees that provide important habitat for gliders and threatened species such as migratory swift parrots, known to visit a neighbouring property. Mark lived overseas for five years and found his way from London and Paris to the base camp of Mt Everest. "It wasn't always my plan to come back...;but it had a lot to do with these conservation projects," the 26-year-old tells me. "People ask, 'What difference can it make if you turn off a light switch?'" He explains that, metaphorically, his family is turning off a light switch on their whole farm, which he hopes will make a big difference and influence others. Nearly two-thirds (62 per cent) of the Australian landmass is pastoral or agricultural land. Bringing farmers like Bruce and Mark on board for conservation is a key step in halting biodiversity decline and an important way to link fragmented habitats. Such connections are a major focus of some new conservation approaches.

Tiger Creeks receives endorsement from William Shatner

Tiger Creek Wildlife Refuge is proud to have the endorsement and support of many celebrities and influential people that believe in the mission of our organization.

“Today we embrace the continued support from actor William Shatner.  The refuge is excited to know that Mr. Shatner has made this outstanding effort on behalf of our animals.  As a friend of Tiger Creek Mr. Shatner demonstrates leadership as a caring and compassionate man.” says director of operations Terri Werner.

A lifelong animal lover, actor William Shatner became involved with Tiger Creek Wildlife Refuge in 2006 when he started making donations, in 2011 he agreed to serve as Celebrity Spokesperson through our capital campaign by providing a written endorsement.

Bill’s involvement began with a personal telephone call to our executive director Brian Werner.

“Unlike some celebrities, William Shatner does not just “tie his name” to a cause.  He actually has made numerous donations to Tiger Creek Wildlife Refuge, and now Bill has tied his name to a written endorsement urging others to support the construction efforts and the mission of saving these great cats.  It was such an honor to talk with him in-person via telephone and I look forward to being able to show Bill around the refuge in the near future” said executive director Brian Werner

Tiger Missing Link Foundation was organized in 1995 and it’s Tiger Creek Wildlife Refuge was co-founded in 1998 by both Terri Werner and Brian Werner.  Tiger Missing Link Foundation is the parent corporation of the sanctuary.  Together Terri and Brian manage the operations with visionary leadership that has taken the non-profit to a national level.  Aside from rescuing big cats and educating the public the facility serves as a training zone for big cat management through its worldwide recognized internship program.  Many of the graduates of the big cat internship program move on to work at numerous zoos and wildlife parks around the world.  Tiger Creek has been featured on Animal Planet, Discovery Networks and the History Channel along with numerous other media outlets around the world.

To read William Shatner’s letter to Tiger Creek, click here .

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