“Extinct” snail returns—1,000 reintroduced to Norfolk Island after 30 years

Photo by: Taronga Conservation Society Australia A tiny snail once feared lost forever has just reached a major conservation milestone. More than 1,000 critically endangered Campbell’s keeled glass snails (Advena campbellii) have now been released onto Norfolk Island, marking the latest phase of a recovery program that has turned a presumed extinction story into one of Australia’s most remarkable conservation comebacks.The release is the final planned step in a collaborative breeding and reintroduction effort involving Taronga Conservation Society Australia, the Australian Museum, Parks Australia, Western Sydney University and the Norfolk Island Regional Council. What makes the story especially striking is how quickly the turnaround happened: the species had gone unrecorded for more than 30 years before being rediscovered in 2020.A species thought to be goneFor decades, Campbell’s keeled glass snail was considered extinct in the wild. That changed in 2020 when Norfolk Islander Mark Scott rediscovered fewer than 50 surviving individuals hidden in crevices in Norfolk Island National Park.With the species suddenly back on the radar but still hanging by a thread, Australia’s first cons...