Back in June, a two year old Tasmanian devil named Mary became national news after making an unexpected escape from Paradise Country on the Gold Coast.
The young devil had somehow managed to clear the barrier of her quarantine enclosure before disappearing from the park. What followed was an extensive search involving wildlife teams, detection dogs, thermal imaging drones and humane traps, along with plenty of Australians wondering whether an unusually stocky looking “cat” might suddenly appear in their backyard.
Mary remained missing for more than two weeks before she was eventually found alive in bushland less than two kilometres from Paradise Country. It was the outcome everyone had been hoping for, but her ordeal was far from over.
Mary was in an unstable condition when she was recaptured and was rushed to a specialist animal hospital, where veterinarians later determined she was suffering from inflammation of the brain. After five days of specialist treatment she was well enough to return to Paradise Country, beginning a much longer period of supportive care, rehabilitation and physiotherapy.
More than three months have now passed since Mary disappeared from her enclosure. The search is long over, her time in hospital is behind her, and the uncertainty that surrounded her condition has gradually given way to much better news.
Now, finally, we have the update everyone wanted.
Mary is back.
Mary Returns to Public Display
On 18 September, Mary stepped back into the public eye, exploring her outdoor enclosure at Paradise Country for the first time since her ordeal began in June. Visitors can once again see the young devil whose disappearance and eventual recovery captured attention across Australia.
It is quite a different picture from the one we were following in June, when we first wrote about The Curious Case of Mary the Missing Tasmanian Devil. At the time, Mary was somewhere in the bushland surrounding Paradise Country and an increasingly elaborate search was underway to find her.
Wildlife curator Lauren Mousley told ABC News that getting Mary to this point had taken considerable dedication and hard work, with both happy and sad tears along the way. Her return outdoors follows a significant improvement in her condition after she became seriously unwell following her recapture.
Paradise Country says Mary has now “graduated to the outdoor habitat”, a fitting description after the long road she has taken to get there. For the wildlife team that cared for her through the worst of her illness and recovery, seeing her exploring outside again is a very different sight from the Mary who returned to the park in June.
No More Great Escapes
Following Mary’s disappearance in June, Queensland’s Department of Primary Industries inspected the enclosure she escaped from, along with other facilities at Paradise Country. The department found that the enclosures complied with legislative requirements, although the park has since introduced some additional precautions before allowing its most accomplished escape artist back outside.
Some of the changes are quite practical. Ledges have been fitted with domed surfaces to make it harder for an animal to gain a foothold, while trees have been moved further towards the centre of the habitat. Additional non climbable guards have also been installed around the enclosure.
As for how Mary managed it, Paradise Country says the two year old devil performed an “abnormally large leap” from a ledge in her quarantine enclosure, clearing the barrier and disappearing into the surrounding bushland.
Quite the leap, as it turned out.
Paradise Country is understandably keen to make sure Mary’s great escape remains a one off.
Probably a wise move.
What’s Next for Mary?
Mary won’t be on her own for long. Paradise Country plans to gradually reintroduce her to Mavka, her fellow Tasmanian devil, over the coming weeks.
The pair arrived at the Gold Coast wildlife park earlier this year. Paradise Country has supported the Save the Tasmanian Devil Program since 2019, and Mary’s escape and subsequent recovery kept the two devils apart. With Mary now back outdoors, the wildlife team can begin gradually bringing them together again while continuing to monitor her progress.
Mary and Mavka are also part of a much bigger story. Tasmanian devils remain endangered in the wild, with Devil Facial Tumour Disease driving severe population declines since it emerged in the 1990s. Conservation programs, ongoing research and managed populations continue to play an important role in efforts to protect the species.
Mary may have become famous for escaping, but there is considerably more to the Tasmanian devil story than one particularly adventurous individual. The challenges facing the species, including the impact of Devil Facial Tumour Disease and the conservation work underway to protect them, are explored in more detail in our Tasmanian Devil species guide.
Three months ago, when we first wrote about Mary, we didn’t know how her story would end.
She was somewhere in the bushland surrounding Paradise Country, wildlife teams were searching for her, and Australians had turned her disappearance into an unlikely mixture of genuine concern and jokes about unusually large neighbourhood cats.
A lot has happened since then.
Mary was found. She came home. She became seriously ill. And slowly, with specialist veterinary treatment and months of care, she recovered.
There were several points along the way when the ending to Mary’s story was anything but certain.
Now we finally have one.
Mary is back.
