Rare bird spotted on outback cattle station for first time

Plains-wanderer recorded for first time on outback Queensland cattle stationBy Lachlan FordABC Western QldTopic:Conservation11m ago11 minutes agoTue 17 Feb 2026 at 12:40amThe plains-wanderer is critically endangered, with an estimated number between 250 and 1,000 individuals. (Supplied: Australian Wildlife Conservancy/Jamie Hackeman)In short:Ecologists have seen and heard the critically endangered plains-wanderer on a western Queensland cattle station where it was previously unrecorded.A partnership between Australian Wildlife Conservancy and North Australian Pastoral Company enabled the detection of the bird using dozens of monitoring stations.What's next?The discovery will help aid conservationists and pastoralists in improving land management and preserving habitats.abc.net.au/news/rare-plains-wanderer-bird-recorded-on-cattle-station/106350256Link copiedShareShare articleEcologists say they have confirmed the presence of a critically endangered bird on a western Queensland pastoral lease where it was previously unrecorded.Australian Wildlife Conservancy (AWC) staff photographed the rare plains-wanderer, known for its black and white neck and shy behaviour, on a cattle station near Bedourie while picking up audio recordings as part of a recent monitoring project.Its call was also picked up by 31 bioacoustic recorders across the property.The bird can be difficult to find due to its low population, which is estimated at between 250 and 1,000 individuals.AWC staff sighted the plains-wanderer multiple times over several days on a western Queensland NAPCo property. (Supplied: Australian Wildlife Conservancy/Hayden DeVilliers)Researchers say the extent of the bird's peripheral populations in semi-arid regions of Queensland and South Australia is not well-studied, with the distribution better defined in New South Wales and Victoria.AWC staff member Jamie Hackeson said he was among the first to see the species on the property."Encountering the plains-wanderer on that night felt like finding a needle in a haystack," he said.The bird was spotted as part of a project that aims to track endangered species across 6 million hectares of pastoral land.The cattle station where the bird was spotted has not been publicised by ecologists for fear of habitat disturbance.The plains-wanderer expertly camouflages in low vegetation, making it difficult to find. (Supplied: Australian Wildlife Conservancy/Jamie Hackeson)Spotting rare bird comes down to 'luck'An algorithm developed by researchers at the Queensland University of Technology sorted through thousands of hours of audio recorded across the property, flagging potential plains-wanderer calls.AWC wildlife ecologist Tessa Manning manually checked 3,000 of the recordings and found the algorithm sometimes confused the plains-wanderer's low call with dingoes."Some people compare it to cattle, like a mooing sound," she said.Loading...She verified that 16 monitoring stations captured more than 10 plains-wanderer calls each.Ms Manning said the bird's appearance and tendency to hide under low vegetation can make it even more elusive."They're very small and they're very, very good at camouflaging … you just can't see them until you're on top of them," Ms Manning said."It's just a bit of luck of the draw to actually see the plains-wanderer."Far-flung bird populations come to lightUniversity of Adelaide PhD candidate Saskia Gerhardy is pulling together data to create a species distribution model for the bird."They are a species that we can't really get a good number on at the moment because they're so cryptic, because they're so far-flung across the range," she said.AI technology called in for 'cryptic' bird, and other remote species on the brinkIt's still relatively new technology, but it could help track populations of critically endangered species across Australia's outback.Ms Gerhardy said new technology had improved detection capabilities where populations had previously gone unnoticed."What we found in South Australia, at least, is these birds are living really successfully, they're breeding successfully, they're doing their mating behaviours," she said."So we believe that because they're so well adapted to this habitat and living there so happily, that they are likely to have been using this habitat for a long time."The project to find endangered species is in partnership with the Northern Australian Pastoral Company."To know such a rare and remarkable species is established on one of our properties is a real privilege and responsibility for us as land managers," said the company's CEO Allan Conoey.He said the partnership enabled the management of land in a way that supports both production and conservation outcomes."This discovery demonstrates what can be achieved when industry and science work together with shared purpose," he said.ABC Western Qld — local news in your