Esperance Wildlife Hospital & Sanctuary is the ultimate testament to regional community power. Fully volunteer-run, the facility acts as a critical emergency room and stabilization center for Western Australia’s unique south coast fauna. Recently, the team made headlines after detecting Australia’s first continental case of H5N1 avian influenza, highlighting the crucial link between local wildlife rescue and national environmental safety.
We spoke with Lori-Ann Shibish of the Esperance Wildlife Hospital & Sanctuary about life on the biosecurity frontline, local conservation, and how visitors can travel mindfully along the southern coast.
1. Esperance Wildlife Hospital & Sanctuary is the only purpose-built facility on WA’s vast southern coast. What inspired the founding of this facility, and what unique gaps does it fill in regional Australian conservation?
Three years ago, an unwell New Zealand Tawaki penguin arrived on our doorstep, followed by two more within the same week. As a licensed volunteer wildlife rehabilitator isolated from metro-based, specialised facilities, we had to quickly adapt to care for these wayward penguins. Our house shower was commandeered and during the day, after a swim, the penguins sunned themselves on our deck. What became affectionately known as the “Penguin Day Spa” had a stark reality: smelly penguins were sharing our living quarters.
Recognised an urgent need for a professional, centralised rural wildlife hub—a facility engineered specifically for our unique south coast wildlife. There was a gap in emergency wildlife triage, clinical isolation, and dedicated rehabilitation, especially for seabirds and waterbirds.
The creation of the Esperance Wildlife Hospital fills this massive geographic gap. Our region covers hundreds of kilometres of coastline and vast inland wilderness rich in unique, endemic species. We act as a critical emergency room and stabilisation centre before long-term rehabilitation or release. By working side-by-side with our local vet (Swans Veterinary Services) and state environmental agencies, having a purpose-built facility on the grounds of the Esperance Wildlife Hospital & Sanctuary means faster intervention, higher survival rates, and a centralised data collection point for regional wildlife health.
2. Your volunteer team recently played a historic role in detecting and containing early cases of H5N1 avian influenza. Could you share what that experience was like on the ground, and what it highlights about the vital role regional facilities play in national biosecurity?
Back in November 2024, we undertook the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) Avian Influenza training offered by Murdoch University. This course provided us with the skills to identify and isolate potentially affected birds. Murdoch University also provided our facility with an Avian Influenza Grab Kit of basic PPE, a manual, and signage.
We are also members of WA Seabird Rescue, who have provided us with great resources and information about Avian Influenza protocols.
Over the past year, we have been using the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline for suspected cases from seabirds known to inhabit Avian Influenza hotspots (i.e., Heard Island and other subantarctic islands). The first test of our training and the protocol was in March 2026 with the arrival of a King Penguin on our Esperance shores. While its H5N1 test results were negative, it signalled the very real possibilities of other potentially affected subantarctic birds making landfall and highlighted the vital role that wildlife rescue organisations play in national biosecurity surveillance and identification.
Our situation escalated when a Subantarctic Skua, aka Brown Skua, arrived on Sunday 14 June 2026 and we immediately put it into quarantine and notified the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline. Its H5N1 results were positive, making it officially the first bird to be identified on the Australian continent carrying the virus. Four days later, we took into care a Giant Northern Petrel which also tested positive.
3. From pelagic seabirds to endangered native species, your team handles a diverse range of wildlife. What does a typical day look like when triaging and rehabilitating animals in such a vast and remote region?
In regional wildlife care, no two days are ever the same. Most days start with an early morning check on wildlife patients in our care and their feeding. Getting that done quickly is essential, as any morning can start with picking up a couple of fledgling shearwaters which have crash-landed at the port, taking an injured, endangered Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo to our local veterinary partner Swans Veterinary Services for X-rays. Also, capturing ducklings running down Esperance’s main street (Dempster Street) having just jumped out of their nests in the Norfolk Island Pines, or ushering Cape Barren Geese off the busy Harbour Road.
Because we operate across such a vast, remote region, our day could involve driving long distances for rescue calls, triaging injured animals dropped off to the hospital, preparing food and medications for wildlife in care, and cleaning enclosures. Beyond supportive care, we are also active in environmental work, like propagating native local plants to restore the habitats these animals will return to upon release.
4. Running a specialized facility requires immense dedication and coordination. How does community involvement and your volunteer network power Esperance Wildlife Hospital & Sanctuary day-to-day operations?
We are passionate about nature and conservation. Our organisation is 100% volunteer-run, which means our community is literally the lifeblood of everything we achieve. From the community members who rescue and bring us injured wildlife, to our hands-on carers managing round-the-clock feeds, to the local Esperance businesses that help with infrastructure and provide essential supplies, every aspect of our operation relies on community energy and goodwill.
It’s a deeply collaborative ecosystem. School kids help us raise native seedlings for habitat restoration, Scouts help us plant trees, local businesses sponsor building supplies, and community members act as our eyes and ears on the ground. This network fosters a genuine sense of regional pride and shared stewardship over our native fauna.
5. How can local businesses, corporate partners, industry leaders or following us from across the globe, collaborate with the sanctuary to ensure long-term sustainability for regional conservation work?
Long-term regional conservation relies on building strong partnerships and community relationships. Corporate leaders and local businesses can make a profound impact by teaming up with us through tax-deductible monthly or annual giving, which provides our volunteer-run hospital with the predictable income we need for specialist diets and daily clinical supplies.
Additionally, we welcome in-kind support like building materials, appliances, trade services, fuel vouchers, or freight, which directly helps us maintain our operations and builds our capacity, as well as helping expand our vital biosecurity isolation requirements. Whether it’s a corporate partnership, sponsorship of an animal, an in-kind contribution, cash donation or leaving a legacy gift in a Will, your support ensures we can protect our unique south coast wildlife for generations to come.
6. For travelers visiting Western Australia’s southern coast and residents, what are the most impactful ways they can support your sanctuary and help protect native wildlife?
Whether you’re a local, or visiting our stunning coastline for the first time you can make a tangible difference:
• Be a Mindful Traveller: If you’re visiting WA’s south coast, stick to marked tracks, keep dogs on leads near coastal nesting areas and wildlife, and drive carefully at dawn and dusk when wildlife is active.
• Engage in Citizen Science: Use platforms like iNaturalist or FrogID while exploring. Logging local biodiversity observations gives researchers and regional sanctuaries vital data to help understand our environment and the challenges it may be facing.
• Reduce wildlife injuries and deaths: Contain pet cats to your property and never let them roam.
• Show Compassion: Report sick, injured, or orphaned fauna to the WA Wildcare Helpline on (08) 9474 9055, or your local wildlife network immediately.
• Help with Avian Influenza Surveillance: Keep an eye out for sick birds and marine mammals. Remember to Avoid, Record, and Report to the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline on 1800 675 888.
Ultimately, having a regional wildlife hospital allows our community to express their compassion for native animals by providing a place to take them, giving them an opportunity to be cared for, reducing their suffering, rehabilitating them, and returning them to the wild.
The team at Esperance Wildlife Hospital proves that with passion, training, and collective action, local hands can truly safeguard a nation’s biosecurity and natural heritage.
Learn more about Esperance Wildlife Hospital & Sanctuary here.
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