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A mystery disease sweeping through ringtail possums in the South West is leaving the critically endangered species blind and paralysed, with carers concerned that things will only get worse in summer. So far, 85 cases have been identified by the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA), but vets believe many more are going unreported. Suspicions proven correct Busselton's Heritage Vet's Dr Natalie Bowskill first noticed something suspicious about the possums coming into the clinic in January 2024. "By the time we got to the fifth or sixth possum with unusual symptoms, I started to get a bit suspicious," she said. Dr Bowskill said it was hard trying to treat sick possums without knowing what was wrong. "Initially I felt like we had nowhere to send them, nowhere to continue their care, and we were euthanising them — and that's where you're left," she said. "We've even had some blind babies, but we're keeping them going. Dr Bowskill said she was worried about how many were being missed as the sick possums become more vulnerable to attacks from other animals or being hit by cars. She said it would be difficult for a vet to detect the syndrome if they were already injured. Alarm bells ringing Dr Bowskill sounded the alarm with DBCA in September last year. Lead DBCA investigator Anna Le Souef said testing was underway to identify a common link or underlying cause. "We're looking at lots of different factors, including infection potential, infectious causes, environmental and nutritious factors," Dr Le Souef said. "We're making a big effort to find out the cause of this syndrome, but we don't know how long it will take." Dr Le Souef said spreading awareness across the region was vital. "They've presented to various rehabilitation groups and it's about coordinating that response, making sure that everyone has the information." Concerns for the summer Suzie Strapp, who owns the South West-based wildlife organisation FAWNA, said the emergence of the mystery syndrome showed endangered species were not getting the attention they deserved. "The situation for endangered species in the South West is pretty dire, and we don't know what we don't know because no one is looking," she said. "The last thing they need is another threatening process on top of the ones that, unfortunately, cause them to be a critically endangered species." The 2023/24 summer saw the South West without rain for six months, the driest six-month spell on record in 150 years. Ms Strapp said she was concerned about the prospect of another hot summer with the added stress of disease after FAWNA reached capacity in 2024. "We don't have the facilities to cater for the huge number of animals coming in," she said. "We've actually had to euthanise animals instead of keeping them because we don't have the facilities." Ms Strapp said she was concerned about what this disease meant for other South West fauna. "It's a canary in a coal mine for other endangered species," she said.
