The Precinct is home to numerous birds, reptiles and insects.
Surveys since 1990 have reported:
- 67 species of birds, including some that simply fly over
- 1 amphibian, the Western Banjo Frog
- 16 reptiles
- 3 introduced mammals, the common house mouse, feral cats and more recently rabbits. No foxes have been seen for some years.
The first recorded sighting of the red-tailed black cockatoo in the Bushland is by local resident Robin Roe on 23 September 2007 although reports indicate they had extended to Kensington by the early 2000s mainly in search of cape lilacs.
Research led by Dr Juliana Pille Arnold for BioLogic and the Town of Victoria Park in 2019-2020 identified 38 native bee species in the Precinct.
Although no native mammals are found in the area now, early newspaper reports demonstrate that they once lived in the Bushland.
| Letter to the West Australian Denizens of the Bush on 9 May 1925 (p13): |
Bandicoots as Pets. Mrs. Gladys MacKay writes from Como: — ‘The first evening we arrived here we noticed what I thought was a large rat. .. it was shaped differently and moved with a sort of hopping movement, and sat on its hind legs when eating, some what like an English squirrel … It was more grey in colour, with a sharp nose and ears, and very tame. A neighbour said it must be a bandicoot…’. Mrs. MacKay need have no fears. The bandicoot is a friendly fellow without vice and makes an amusing pet; and I hope that the children will make a pet of this one. I should say it is the western striped bandicoot …
