After Australian farmer George Cullinan spotted a strange-looking bird on his property, he was galvanized to learn more about the creature, which turned out to be an incredibly rare plains-wanderer.
A shy spotted species with a yellow beak and yellow legs, the bird is critically endangered, as detailed by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
"It's an extraordinary long-lived species that we're almost on the brink of losing," Trust for Nature manager David Dore told the ABC.
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Definitely 👍 Unfortunately, Cullinan had found his plains-wanderer dead in a water trough. However, the 98-year-old's curiosity led to collaborations with Trust for Nature and the Birchip Landcare Group to install song meters — and a surprising discovery.
According to the report, the song meters recorded 110 plains-wanderer sounds over three weeks, a shocking number given that there are as few as 250 of the birds left in the wild.
"There'd be more than one bird there for that many calls," Birchip Landcare Group member Brian Lea explained to the ABC.
With habitat degradation one of the key factors contributing to the bird's plight, Cullinan was moved to protect the species from over-farming. In 2024, he established a nearly 225-acre covenant on his property, complete with a 20-acre lake and 500-year-old box trees.
Community-led conservation initiatives and land trusts are among the tools we have to protect crucial water sources and habitats, and Cullinan's covenant operates similarly to the latter. Trust for Nature possesses the covenant's land title to ensure the bird's habitat remains undeveloped.
Sadly, Cullinan died in the fall of 2024. Yet his legacy lives on, and his work was honored at his memorial service at the Birchip Lawn Cemetery in September.
"From what I've heard, he was a great contributor in the district all of his life," Dore told the ABC. "This last gift to the birds is really something that will keep him in many people's memories for a long, long time."
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