Walking Country together: Two days strengthening knowledge for Glossy Black-Cockatoo recovery
When Traditional Owner knowledge is incorporated into environmental science studies, powerful things happen. In late November 2025, the Quandamooka Land and Sea Rangers joined fire ecologists and researchers on Minjerribah for two days of learning, mapping, and protecting the vulnerable south-eastern Glossy Black-Cockatoo. By blending cultural knowledge and scientific expertise, the workshop revealed how fire shapes critical habitat and how collaboration in on-ground management as well as research can secure the future of threatened species across South East Queensland.
On Minjerribah, Traditional Owners from the Quandamooka Yoolooburrabee Aboriginal Corporation (QYAC), including Quandamooka Land and Sea Rangers, community rangers, and the newly established female ranger team, joined Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander rangers from Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service & Partnerships (QPWS&P), fire ecologists and researchers for a two‑day workshop dedicated to better understanding and protecting the vulnerable south-eastern Glossy Black‑Cockatoo (glossies) (Calyptorhynchus lathami lathami). Delivered in partnership with Griffith University, the University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland University of Technology and Healthy Land & Water, the workshop explored how cultural and scientific knowledge inform fire regimes and influence the glossies' habitat.
The workshop held in November 2025 was a component of the project “Assessing risks of fire to the Glossy Black-Cockatoo and its habitats to identify critical areas for conservation.” It was primarily funded by the Queensland Government’s Threatened Species Research Grant – Round 2 (Department of Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation). Healthy Land & Water staff were able to attend and co-facilitate this workshop through the Queensland Government’s Natural Resources Recovery Program funding. This allowed the team to share information on the impact various fire regimes can have on Glossy Black-Cockatoos and their habitat, as well as opportunities to highlight how QYAC can integrate project findings into their fire management strategy and on-ground management of Country.
Figure 1 Images taken by W. Taylor and G. Castley; left image shows a female Glossy Black-Cockatoo on the left, juvenile male on the right.
Day one of the workshop opened with a Welcome to Country by Darren Burns, a Quandamooka Elder and Joint Management Coordinator with QYAC. Darren has dedicated his life to caring for Country and advancing cultural fire management. Presentations followed from Griffith University’s Associate Professor Guy Castley, who outlined glossies' unique behaviours, resource requirements and threats. Dr Diana Virkki from Healthy Land & Water presented on the role of fire in the landscape, explaining the difference between beneficial and harmful fire in shaping this species’ critical habitat.
Traditional Owners took part in activities led by Guy and Diana to explore their knowledge, perceptions, ideas and training on strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats affecting fire regimes, threatened species management, and how wildlife and habitats respond to fire on Minjerribah.
The day concluded with the rangers sharing their deep knowledge of Minjerribah’s fire history and the behaviour of glossies witnessed on the island. Together, the group mapped critical stands of Black She-oak (Allocasuarina littoralis) and Forest She-oak (Allocasuarina torulosa), the preferred feed tree species of the glossies , as well as noting areas where the glossies had been seen previously.
As dusk settled, a small group were rewarded with a rare and memorable sight: three separate groups totalling eight glossies, including breeding pairs with juveniles, quietly feeding among the trees after a rainstorm earlier in the afternoon.
Figure 2. Day one activities led by Prof Castley and Dr Virkki.
Healthy Land & Water’s Environmental Scientist Wayne Taylor reflected:
“This is the first time I have observed glossies in their natural habitat, and it is certainly a memorable moment. Their red tail feathers are spectacular when in flight, and they are so quiet whilst feeding, that you would likely walk straight past them if you didn’t know they were there”.
Day two centred on field visits to sites identified during the previous day’s co-facilitated workshop that had been shaped by different fire regimes, including bushfires, cultural burning, and planned burns. Associate Professor Castley led a demonstration and training session on monitoring techniques and tools, including vegetation and habitat assessment, as well as the use of acoustic recorders that the research team have been utilising to assess habitat occupancy of glossies across South East Queensland. Dr Virkki further explained that this monitoring data can be integrated into QYAC’s current cultural fire management strategy, as well as the opportunities to utilise similar monitoring methods to capture data for other threatened and endangered species and incorporate that as well. This was followed by facilitated breakout group discussions, led by Healthy Land & Water staff and Professor Castley, on other opportunities for broader landscape management and threatened species protection.
Figure 2 Image taken by W. Taylor on 24/11/2025; glossy black-cockatoo flying on Minjerribah.
During the field trip, ecologists and rangers located evidence of the glossies feeding or “orts” (chewed up She-oak cones) beneath mature female She-oaks at several locations, confirming the glossies’ extensive use of resources across the island. Areas of Allocasuarina impacted by different fire regimes were visited, with high‑severity bushfire sites showing dense whipstick regrowth, whereas culturally burned areas supported healthier open stands, which are anecdotally preferred by glossies. Rangers highlighted how mechanical thinning, mulching, and appropriate fire regimes can restore ecological function on Country.
Why this story matters
Despite their national threatened status, little is known about the south-eastern Glossy Black-Cockatoo's spatio-temporal habitat uses or population trends. Researchers still lack clarity on how glossies move across the landscape, which trees they consistently select for feeding and nesting, and how fire, drought and habitat change influence their survival. The insights shared and gathered across these two days form an important contribution to the growing knowledge base required to guide fire management strategies and protect critical habitat on Minjerribah and across Quandamooka Country.
The workshop also strengthened partnerships between Traditional Owners, Natural Resource Management (NRM) organisations and research institutes, laying the groundwork for long-term monitoring and future research ideas to better understand habitat use, occupancy and population trends. These foundations will support future on-ground works and may contribute to threatened species recovery programs across South East Queensland. Discussions on holistic and integrated landscape management approaches were made possible through the various funding arrangements.
Funding Acknowledgement
The research led by Griffith University in collaboration with the University of the Sunshine Coast and the Queensland University of Technology is proudly supported by the Queensland Government’s Threatened Species Research Grant – Round 2 (Department of Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation), while Healthy Land & Water are also supported by the Queensland Government’s Natural Resources Recovery Program in partnership.
