Platypus population expands to 20 in Royal National Park: latest survey

Three years after their historic reintroduction to Royal National Park, platypuses are now breeding, dispersing and being spotted by visitors along the Hacking River, say UNSW scientists.

Scientists from UNSW Sydney have confirmed a reintroduced platypus population in Royal National Park has now grown to 20 known individuals, following the release of four additional animals and a new round of surveys across the park in May 2026.

Lead researcher Associate Professor Gilad Bino, from UNSW’s Centre for Ecosystem Science and co-founder of the Platypus Conservation Initiative, says reaching 20 known platypuses is a defining moment for the program.

“It is a privilege to be part of bringing platypuses back to a part of their former range where they had been missing for generations,” A/Prof. Bino says.

A/Prof. Bino is part of a team of researchers from the Platypus Conservation Initiative, who have just completed a third translocation event for the project, releasing four platypuses into the Hacking River – males Absinthe and Duckie, and females Hydra and Dawn.

The release coincided with comprehensive surveys, during which the team re-encountered two males from the founding 2023 cohort. They are Prometheus – confirmed last year as the father of Gili, the first juvenile born in the park – and Noris.

The team also captured a new subadult male hatched in the park during the most recent breeding season, providing further evidence that the reintroduced population is reproducing and recruiting young animals into the wild.

“To capture males from the original release still in great condition, alongside a young male hatched here in the park, tells us this is no longer just a reintroduction – it is a recovering population,” says A/Prof. Bino.

“Adding Absinthe, Duckie, Hydra and Dawn will strengthen both the numbers and the genetic diversity underpinning its long-term resilience.”

With this latest cohort, 17 platypuses have now been translocated to Royal National Park since the program began. There were 10 founders in May 2023, three additional animals in May 2025 – and now, four more in May 2026.