Latest news with #Blackbutt
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Trail cam solves mystery after gruesome find next to Aussie dam: 'Very precise'
A trail camera in a rural Queensland town has captured an incredible act of evolution by an Australian animal. On the edge of a dam, the camera filmed the moment a rakali, a native water rat, takes down its prey – a poisonous cane toad that the rodent has adapted to eat, leaving behind nothing but the skin, bones and toxic glands. Cane toads are the result of one of Australia's worst environment blunders, originally introduced in Queensland in 1935 to help control pest beetles in Queensland. The invasive frogs are now spreading across the north of the country, and towards the southwest, at a rate of up to 50km per year, with experts struggling to stop the march of the toad. While the toads do have predators, there are not many who are able to eat one and live to tell the tale. The poisonous skin glands in its shoulders kill goannas, quolls, snakes and even crocodiles. One native animal who has learned to fight back against the destructive species is the rakali, a large aquatic rat found in all states and territories. The highly intelligent rodents learned to hunt and kill cane toads in less than two years after the toads moved into their habitat, a study from the University of Melbourne found. When Hayley Troupe found a dead cane toad by her dam in Blackbutt, in southeast Queensland, she had an inkling there could be a rakali behind it. 'There was a lot of precision because all of the skin was there, the poisonous glands on the back were still there, and there was bits of bone around,' she told Yahoo News. 'It was obviously something that's been very precise in its eating and obviously skilled at eating it without eating the poisonous bits.' While she'd never seen a rakali on her land before, she had a trail cam that she regularly set up around her five-acre property and decided to move it close to the water's edge to catch the elusive animal in action. Two days later, her camera recorded the moment a rakali attacked a cane toad, showing how it flips the toad on to its back to avoid the poison glands. Rakali commonly target larger toads and will eat their heart and liver. They've been known to move the gall bladder — which contains toxic bile salts — out of the way and also remove the skin off the toad's legs before consuming the muscle. Hayley, 35, said the rat must've had a 'feast' as she'd found about 10 other toad carcasses in the days that followed. 'It's great that they've learned that, but it's a shame that a lot of the other native species haven't yet. There's a lot of species that are suffering because of cane toads, like quolls, for example. They haven't worked out how to eat them safely,' she said. Hayley, who works for Queensland Conservation Council as their Nature Organiser, shared the video on the QCC Facebook page where it quickly garnered more than 1.3 million views. 'It shows you that people love nature and they like learning about it. But I guess it would be nice if we could get that sort of enthusiasm in protecting nature as well, and pushing our governments to protect habitat," she said. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@ You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Yahoo
Tight-knit Aussie town devastated after towering trees mysteriously die: 'Oh my god'
Residents living along a tight-knit Aussie street are "devastated" after a clump of extremely important trees that had towered over their suburb began to die mysteriously. The leaves began to brown and the branches withered just weeks after the elderly couple who had lived at the large Sydney block for decades sold it to developers. 'They were in absolute perfect health. They were beautiful. They weren't dropping leaves or big branches,' local man Daryl told Yahoo News. It was last month, while talking with a neighbour over the fence, that the 59-year-old noticed they were looking sick. 'He looked to me and said, oh my god, what's wrong with those trees?' he said. Since the trees began to die, neighbours, many of them retirees, are battling a daily onslaught of small dead branches and leaves that fall onto their driveways. Some have had to pay for extra gardening services, and one woman reportedly cut her leg open on a fallen stick. Most of the residents know each other, and the dying trees have been the talk of the neighbourhood. 'Everyone is devastated,' Daryl said. Related: 🌳 Charming Aussie town split over future of 80-year-old trees The eucalypts are located in leafy St Ives, on a side street off busy Mona Vale Road, in Sydney's north. The area has been undergoing rapid change, with large blocks along the arterial road worth millions because they can be converted from single to multiple dwellings. Ku-ring-gai Council told Yahoo it became aware of the dying trees after a tip-off from residents on March 12 who documented large holes drilled into their trunks and sawdust on the ground. 'We found five Blackbutt trees that were displaying signs typical of toxic shock (that is likely poisoning),' it told Yahoo News. Council confirmed it had not given permission for the trees to be killed or cut down. And while it's commonplace for councils around Sydney to investigate tree poisonings, in this case, action against the the damage appears to be outside its powers because the trees could be part of a very rare forest. 'Council does not have the power to investigate this matter. This is because the trees are part of a Critically Endangered Ecological Community,' a spokesperson told Yahoo. Council suspects the trees belong to the Sydney Turpentine-Ironbark Forest in the Sydney Basin Bioregion, a type of habitat that's protected under the state's NSW Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016. Less than 0.5 per cent of this landscape remains, and the state government is responsible for protecting it from threats, which it says include clearing for development, inappropriate treatment of weeds, invasive pests, and fire. The NSW Department of Environment (DCCEEW) confirmed it was aware of the reports, but it was unable to provide details of its investigation. 'DCCEEW... has received a report of alleged poisoning of trees at this address but no further comment can be provided as the investigation is ongoing,' it said. 😳 Call for overhaul of Aussie council powers after controversial tree decision 🧑🌾 Aussie farmer sparks debate after boasting of controversial change to 'useless land' 🦜 Fears for rare bird as state reveals details of controversial hunt plan Tree poisonings are a common occurrence across Sydney, but prosecutions are relatively rare as it can be difficult to identify those responsible. But few are investigated at a state government level. Daryl believes penalties need to be increased to stop vandals from destroying trees in future. Because in his view, these trees that were loved by his community were 'murdered'. 'It's not as though these are just small trees. But you know, whoever did it will probably get away with it. The whole thing just frustrates me so much,' he said. 'When we moved here, the guy who lived there used to feed the cockatoos and the tree used to be full of them. They're gone now.' Love Australia's weird and wonderful environment? 🐊🦘😳 Get our new newsletter showcasing the week's best stories.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Yahoo
Aussie residents devastated after 'beautiful' trees mysteriously die after property sale
Residents living along a tight-knit Aussie street are "devastated" after a clump of extremely important trees that had towered over their suburb began to die mysteriously. The leaves began to brown and the branches withered just weeks after the elderly couple who had lived at the large Sydney block for decades sold it to developers. 'They were in absolute perfect health. They were beautiful. They weren't dropping leaves or big branches,' local man Daryl told Yahoo News. It was last month, while talking with a neighbour over the fence, that the 59-year-old noticed they were looking sick. 'He looked to me and said, oh my god, what's wrong with those trees?' he said. Since the trees began to die, neighbours, many of them retirees, are battling a daily onslaught of small dead branches and leaves that fall onto their driveways. Some have had to pay for extra gardening services, and one woman reportedly cut her leg open on a fallen stick. Most of the residents know each other, and the dying trees have been the talk of the neighbourhood. 'Everyone is devastated,' Daryl said. Related: 🌳 Charming Aussie town split over future of 80-year-old trees The eucalypts are located in leafy St Ives, on a side street off busy Mona Vale Road, in Sydney's north. The area has been undergoing rapid change, with large blocks along the arterial road worth millions because they can be converted from single to multiple dwellings. Ku-ring-gai Council told Yahoo it became aware of the dying trees after a tip-off from residents on March 12 who documented large holes drilled into their trunks and sawdust on the ground. 'We found five Blackbutt trees that were displaying signs typical of toxic shock (that is likely poisoning),' it told Yahoo News. Council confirmed it had not given permission for the trees to be killed or cut down. And while it's commonplace for councils around Sydney to investigate tree poisonings, in this case, action against the the damage appears to be outside its powers because the trees could be part of a very rare forest. 'Council does not have the power to investigate this matter. This is because the trees are part of a Critically Endangered Ecological Community,' a spokesperson told Yahoo. Council suspects the trees belong to the Sydney Turpentine-Ironbark Forest in the Sydney Basin Bioregion, a type of habitat that's protected under the state's NSW Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016. Less than 0.5 per cent of this landscape remains, and the state government is responsible for protecting it from threats, which it says include clearing for development, inappropriate treatment of weeds, invasive pests, and fire. The NSW Department of Environment (DCCEEW) confirmed it was aware of the reports, but it was unable to provide details of its investigation. 'DCCEEW... has received a report of alleged poisoning of trees at this address but no further comment can be provided as the investigation is ongoing,' it said. 😳 Call for overhaul of Aussie council powers after controversial tree decision 🧑🌾 Aussie farmer sparks debate after boasting of controversial change to 'useless land' 🦜 Fears for rare bird as state reveals details of controversial hunt plan Tree poisonings are a common occurrence across Sydney, but prosecutions are relatively rare as it can be difficult to identify those responsible. But few are investigated at a state government level. Daryl believes penalties need to be increased to stop vandals from destroying trees in future. Because in his view, these trees that were loved by his community were 'murdered'. 'It's not as though these are just small trees. But you know, whoever did it will probably get away with it. The whole thing just frustrates me so much,' he said. 'When we moved here, the guy who lived there used to feed the cockatoos and the tree used to be full of them. They're gone now.' Love Australia's weird and wonderful environment? 🐊🦘😳 Get our new newsletter showcasing the week's best stories.
