The state of Victoria has two faunal emblems: a small bird, the helmeted honeyeater, and a tiny marsupial, the Leadbeater's possum.
Both are strikingly beautiful. And sadly, both are critically endangered.
There are just 200 helmeted honeyeaters and 40 known lowland Leadbeater's possums still in existence.
But their chances of survival have just improved thanks to an unlikely conservationist.
Special habitat
Bruce Logan, who raises cattle at Yellingbo, about an hour north-east of Melbourne, has sold 40 hectares of remnant bushland on his property to the Trust for Nature.
"My son and family, they're not interested in it. Why not give it to somebody who'll appreciate it and the land? And I think that Trust For Nature will enjoy it," said Mr Logan, 77.
The new land adjoins the Yellingbo Nature Reserve, which is less than 6 square kilometres in size.
Ben Cullen from Trust for Nature is ecstatic.
"It's kind of a sedgy woodland is probably the best way to describe it," Mr Cullen said.
"We've got a sparse sort of eucalypt canopy around us, but there are tall sedges, and they help form like a mid-storey that's really good habitat for the species."
The very same land, fertile river flats, is also the best farmland. Since European settlement, clearing for agriculture has removed more than 95 per cent of the original vegetation.
And it has almost obliterated both the helmeted honeyeater and the lowland Leadbeater's possum.
A new seven-wire fence will keep Mr Logan's cattle from straying into the new reserve, which will hopefully entice the Leadbeater, honeyeaters and other creatures to expand their range.
A fighting chance
The highland Leadbeater's possum, believed extinct for decades, was rediscovered in 1961. Its lowland relation, a separate sub-species, wasn't even known of until the mid-80s.
She's involved in releasing captive-bred Leadbeater's possums into suitable bushland, and habitat for the lowland Leadbeater isn't easy to find.
Its range once extended southwards to Westernport Bay, through Koo Wee Rup, now prime horticultural land. It's why the Yellingbo Reserve is paramount.
"It's essential because it's got the right trees. Swamp gum and mountain swamp gum for lowland Leadbeater's and particularly it's got this dense swamp forest. So it's that ti-tree, that paperbark that Leadbeater's can run through and forage at night," Ms Eyre said.
With fewer than 50 of the possums in existence, the species' future still hangs in the balance.
The outlook for the helmeted honeyeater is slightly better. The wild population, all of the birds within a small area at Yellingbo, is gradually rising.
Bruce Quin of the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning has spent 29 years devotedly tending to them, including putting out nutrient-rich nectar in special feed cages to ensure the birds' optimal health.
"It has helped to increase survivorship of fledglings and also just maintain the health of the population where the habitat is not optimal for whatever reason," Mr Quin said.
"Now we've got over 200 individuals, so it's looking much, much brighter, but there's still a lot of work to do."
Inbreeding and bushfires represent major threats to both species.
Hope for the future
The 1983 Ash Wednesday bushfires wiped out two of the three helmeted honeyeater colonies.
The 2009 Black Saturday bushfires killed half the population of the alpine Leadbeater's possum.
Even a good season, when the bush is abundant with flowers and fruit, is no guarantee of better survival rates. There are also more predators such as currawongs, kookaburras and owls.
Bruce Logan's precious bush also survived by chance. Years ago, his father lacked the funds to clear it.
"You could only spend so much on clearing and putting it into production and he believed that if you cleared land you had to do it properly. If you didn't do it properly you may as well leave it as it is," Mr Logan said.
Ben Cullen broke into a wide smile as he walked through the Trust for Nature's new land and saw the flash of a yellow and black helmeted honeyeater as it flitted through the bush.
It's confirmation the conservation work of so many is paying off.
Watch this story on ABC TV's Landline at 12:30pm on Sunday, or on ABC iview.
