NQ Dry Tropics NRM

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NQ Dry Tropics NRM NQ Dry Tropics is the Burdekin Dry Tropics leading Natural Resource Management (NRM) group.

Watch your step! That pretty little red plant is a fierce hunter with jaws that snap shut on its prey as quickly as a sn...
20/10/2026

Watch your step! That pretty little red plant is a fierce hunter with jaws that snap shut on its prey as quickly as a snap of the fingers.
Photographed by NQ Dry Tropics Senior Biodiversity Project Officer Jaymie Rains near Alligator Creek south of Townsville, the Tropical sundew (Dosera burmannii) is thriving on a bit of mossy rock.
This one is red, but they can be pretty much any colour from bright green to this beautiful red.
It preys on small, soft-bodied insects including ants snapping shut on them but also trapping them with the sticky gelatinous dew on its tentacles.
Isn't nature wonderful?

Earlier this month, our Monitoring and Evaluation Coordinator, Dr Jules Funnell, joined more than 40 people in Townsvill...
19/10/2026

Earlier this month, our Monitoring and Evaluation Coordinator, Dr Jules Funnell, joined more than 40 people in Townsville for the North Queensland Indigenous Ranger Dingo Workshop.

The workshop brought together Traditional Owners, Indigenous Rangers, researchers and experts working in dingo management to share their knowledge and experiences. Topics included the cultural importance of dingoes, how Rangers monitor and manage them on Country, dingo genetics and the use of livestock guardian animals to help protect stock.

There was plenty of time to learn from each other, catch up with familiar faces and make new connections. The discussions focused on how we can care for dingoes and their important role in culture and the environment, while also protecting livestock and livelihoods.

NQ Dry Tropics was proud to sponsor the workshop.

Coming up this Thursday - THE Spyglass Virtual Fencing Field Day...Have you booked your spot?Curious about virtual fenci...
18/10/2026

Coming up this Thursday - THE Spyglass Virtual Fencing Field Day...Have you booked your spot?

Curious about virtual fencing for your property? Join us at the Spyglass Virtual Fencing Field Day to hear from producers about their experiences, challenges and lessons learned.

Explore trial results, learn how cattle adapt to virtual fencing and hear what the technology could mean for grazing management, land condition and cattle production.

📅 Thursday 22 October
📍 Spyglass Beef Research Facility
👉 There’s still time to join us - Book your spot now: https://ap1.hubs.ly/H01rt760

Thursday 22 October
8:30am - 1:00pm
Spyglass Beef Research Facility, New Moon Road, Basalt

The Einasleigh Uplands might look like rugged grazing country, but look a little closer and you’ll find a landscape with...
16/10/2026

The Einasleigh Uplands might look like rugged grazing country, but look a little closer and you’ll find a landscape with an incredible ecological story.

Ancient lava flows and basalt plains have shaped a patchwork of habitats, from open eucalypt woodlands and native grasslands to rocky outcrops, wetlands and rare pockets of dry rainforest and softwood scrub.

And the wildlife is just as remarkable.

The region is home to:
- More than 70 reptile species, including species found nowhere else.
- Rock-wallabies bounding across rocky outcrops.
- Rare and threatened birds, including the golden-shouldered parrot.
- Unique plant communities tucked into remnant dry rainforest and vine thickets.
- Wetlands and spring systems supporting aquatic life and migratory waterbirds.

These different habitats create a mosaic of natural assets across the grazing landscape—many of which are easily overlooked.

That’s why biodiversity monitoring being undertaken through the Climate-Resilient Rangelands project is so important. By identifying and monitoring the plants, animals and habitats on participating properties, graziers can build a better understanding of what makes their country unique, and make informed decisions about managing and protecting it.

The Einasleigh Uplands aren’t just a place to graze. They’re a landscape shaped by ancient geology and rich in biodiversity.

To learn more, read our fact sheet: https://ap1.hubs.ly/H01jyvg0

One week to go! Have you booked your spot?Join us at the Spyglass Virtual Fencing Field Day to hear from producers and e...
15/10/2026

One week to go! Have you booked your spot?

Join us at the Spyglass Virtual Fencing Field Day to hear from producers and experts about virtual fencing and precision livestock technology.

Explore trial results, cattle behaviour and practical lessons, and find out how these technologies could help improve grazing management, land condition and cattle production in northern Australia.

Thursday 22 October
8:30am - 1:00pm
Spyglass Beef Research Facility, New Moon Road, Basalt

Book your spot now: https://ap1.hubs.ly/H01rt6B0

Women’s knowledge and leadership are essential to healthy landscapes, productive agriculture and resilient rural communi...
15/10/2026

Women’s knowledge and leadership are essential to healthy landscapes, productive agriculture and resilient rural communities.

On International Day of Rural Women, 15 October, NQ Dry Tropics recognises the contributions of women across the Burdekin Dry Tropics, including graziers, growers, Traditional Owners, researchers and community leaders.

Through our partnerships, we value the expertise women bring to improving grazing and farming practices, restoring landscapes, protecting biodiversity and caring for Country. Their ideas and experience help shape practical solutions for our region.

In 2026, the UN-declared International Year of the Woman Farmer gives this recognition added significance. It also highlights the importance of access to training, resources and opportunities to participate in decisions that affect rural livelihoods.

To the women managing properties, leading projects, sharing knowledge and building connections across our region: thank you for the work you do and the leadership you bring.

NQ Dry Tropics Sustainable Agriculture Facilitator (SAF) Peter Arthofer is a member of a network of peers covering almos...
14/10/2026

NQ Dry Tropics Sustainable Agriculture Facilitator (SAF) Peter Arthofer is a member of a network of peers covering almost every corner of the continent.

Pete's role is to engage farmers, landholder, community groups and agriculture industries about sustainable climate-smart practices.

Working with Traditional Owners is a part of his remit and he will deliver a presentation about that part of his work to the National Sustainable Agriculture Facilitator Conference in Canberra next week.

Titled "First Nations-led approaches into sustainable agriculture in the Burdekin Dry Tropics (Caring for Country)", Pete will talk about the wealth of knowledge held by First Nations Traditional Owners of Country.

To further Pete's understanding and knowledge, Gudjala Elder Reg Kerr took Pete, On Country Project Officer Heath Fraser and Cultural Fire Management Project Officer Trinity Georgetown to walk and listen to Country, they visited some sites of significance on the Burdekin River near Charters Towers.

They visited scar trees where bark for shields was taken and one that furnished the material for a canoe.

Demonstrating the importance of caring for Country, Reg said the scar trees really only came to light once a heavy rubber vine infestation had been cleared and emphasised the importance of partnering with Traditional Owners in Caring for Country together.

The SAF network is funded by the Australian government through the Climate-Smart Agriculture Program, funded by the Natural Heritage Trust.

Pete will present to his peers on Wednesday next week in Canberra.

Forage budgeting is a big part of grazing land management, particularly in the north where seasons vary from one extreme...
13/10/2026

Forage budgeting is a big part of grazing land management, particularly in the north where seasons vary from one extreme to the other.

As each growing season comes to an end, graziers look to the dry months ahead.

Knowing how much feed is in the paddock and planning grazing strategies around that information is important to ensure the soils and pastures are in the best condition to respond when the next wet season arrives.

The STAC method (Sole, Toe, Ankle, Calf), is a forage estimation method from Dick Richardson at Natures Equity and is used to quickly measure pasture by comparing the height of pasture against your leg, then calculating quantities across a paddock.

This helps the landholder come up with a figure representing Stock Days or the number of days of feed in a paddock.

That quantity will give them the information to arrive at an appropriate stocking rate for the feed available until the date when rain can reasonably be expected.

It’s a quick and easy process that landholders can repeat throughout the season, to make early stocking rate adjustments making their business more profitable and resilient and ensuring there is good end-of-season ground cover.

Download the STAC booklet from the NQ Dry Tropics Resource Library here: https://ap1.hubs.ly/H01mDWW0

What can a bird list tell us about a grazing property? Quite a lot.Grazing project officer Eleanor Haig is using eBird ...
12/10/2026

What can a bird list tell us about a grazing property? Quite a lot.

Grazing project officer Eleanor Haig is using eBird as part of biodiversity monitoring on grazing properties in the Einasleigh Uplands, and helping interested landholders learn how they can contribute to the science themselves.

eBird is a global platform developed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology where people record bird sightings using standardised checklists. Those observations contribute to one of the world’s largest biodiversity datasets, supporting research and conservation round the globe.

But it’s not just for serious birdwatchers. During biodiversity monitoring, Eleanor has recorded bird species and numbers using eBird, creating a consistent record that can be revisited and compared over time.

And that’s where it gets really interesting. For graziers keen to learn more about the biodiversity on their properties, eBird provides a simple way to observe, record and contribute to a growing body of scientific information about the birds using their landscape.

In the Einasleigh Uplands, with its diverse woodlands, wetlands and remnant softwood scrub, these observations help build a better picture of how birds use different habitats.

And you don’t have to be on a grazing property to contribute. Whether you’re at home, out walking, visiting a wetland or exploring somewhere new, recording the birds you see can add to our understanding of birdlife.

Next time you spot a bird, you could be doing more than ticking it off your list. You could be adding to the science.

The endangered Southern cassowary has a lot of friends, particularly in North Queensland.Almost 50 people helped celebra...
09/10/2026

The endangered Southern cassowary has a lot of friends, particularly in North Queensland.

Almost 50 people helped celebrate World Cassowary Day at Outer Limits' Mutarnee base on the weekend.

The southern extent of the threatened bird's range is believed to be in the lowland rainforests at the base of the Paluma Range. Their number and extent is the subject of the Paluma Range Cassowary research project led by ecologist Wren McLean of Superb Wren Ecological Services.

It is supported as part of the NQ Dry Tropics project: Conserving Threatened Wet Tropics Vegetation.

That project aims to improve the condition of endangered ecological communities such as broad leaf tea-tree (Melaleuca viridiflora) woodlands, beach scrubs (or littoral rainforest), coastal vine thickets and lowland tropical rainforests in the region.

Improving that habitat will help the Southern cassowary as well as the other endangered species in the area, the Mahogany glider.

World Cassowary Day at Mutarnee featured several presentations, beginning with Wren McLean giving an overview of the project aiming to enumerate and monitor the cassowaries living in, or passing through, that neck of the woods.

Townsville City Council Biosecurity Technical Officer Pierson Tonner spoke about the need to control feral pests, particularly pigs to maintain a healthy ecosystem.

NQ Dry Tropics Project Officer Hayley Cook outlined the project she's leading aiming to improve the condition of two Threatened Ecological Communities that provide habitat for cassowaries and an other endangered species, the Mahogany glider.

JCU ecologist Brandon Espe and birder Wal Threlfall from Birdlife Townsville led a walk through the rainforest identifying plants and birds as they went.

The NQ Dry Tropics extended their thanks to the Outer Limits team of Aline and Sam Stedman who went to a lot of trouble to host the event.

The Conserving Threatened Wet Tropics Vegetation project is funded through the Australian Government’s Natural Heritage Trust and delivered by NQ Dry Tropics, a member of the Commonwealth Regional Delivery Partners panel.

Address

63 Bamford Lane, Kirwan
Townsville, QLD
4814

Opening Hours

Monday 8:30am - 5pm
Tuesday 8:30am - 5pm
Wednesday 8:30am - 5pm
Thursday 8:30am - 5pm
Friday 8:30am - 5pm

Telephone

+61747993500

Website

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