Final release of captive-bred snails on Norfolk Island

The final release of a species of Norfolk Island snail once thought to be extinct is now complete.

Campbell’s keeled glass-snails (Advena campbellii) are endemic to the island. They had not been seen for nearly a quarter of a century before being rediscovered by a local citizen scientist in 2020.

A small group of the snails were taken to Taronga Zoo Sydney, forming the basis of Australia’s first snail translocation program.

The captive breeding phase of the program is now complete, and the remaining 1000 snails have released into a secluded rainforest valley in Norfolk Island National Park, building on an initial release of 300 snails in July 2025.

The conservation effort brought together Taronga Conservation Society Australia, the Australian Museum, Parks Australia, Western Sydney University, Norfolk Island Regional Council, the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sports and the Arts, and Senversa.

Norfolk Island National Park Ranger Sam Burridge, who leads the on-ground snail conservation program for the park, carries out regular monitoring on the wild snail population.

“Spotting them can be quite challenging because they blend into the forest floor, but we know they like to hide in the bases of niau palms. It’s nice and damp there, and as they’re biofilm feeders, there’s plenty of the organic matter they like to eat,” he said.

“Individual snails generally live for 12-13 months in captivity, so now that it’s been a year since the last release, we can safely assume that most of the snails we found at the release site are a product of natural breeding and births in the wild.

“With the latest releases, we’re really hopeful they will be able to establish a healthy, self-sustaining population in the park.