Tasmanian Devil

The Tasmanian devil is the largest surviving carnivorous marsupial in the world. Indigenous to the island of Tasmania, there is a "lack of genetic diversity among the devil population that lives in the wild only in Tasmania" and as a result, the small population is vulnerable to communicable diseases.BBC News: Tasmanian Devils Now Endangered (May 22, 2009)

The wild population of Tasmanian devils has reportedly been decreased by 70% since the mid-1990s, primarily due to a fatal cancer that manifests as facial tumors on the devils. In response to the ever-shrinking number of wild Tasmanian devils, the Australian government increased the protection level of the animals from vulnerable to endangered in late May 2009.BBC News: Tasmanian Devils Now Endangered (May 22, 2009)

Tasmania devils are part of an intensive conservation program in Australian because of an infectious cancer that causes facial tumors on the animal. As the tumors grow, the infected face of the infected devil is so disfigured it is unable to eat and dies within months. The cancer has been spread through the wild population through the animals biting each other.

To ensure the continuation of a species that is rapidly decreasing in the wild, several Australian zoos are trying to breed an "insurance population" of 160 animals who are untouched by the cancer. Taronga Zoo curator Paul Andrew says, "There's a realistic possibility that the devil could go extinct in the wild in 30, 35 years so our program has to address that time frame."The Australian: Tasmanian Devils' Endangered Status Threatens Road (May 23, 2009)