Australian Geographic — May-June 2017

I

T’S MORE THAN 80

years since the last

known Tasmanian

tiger died in Hobart

Zoo in September

1936, but the mystique

surrounding this

officially extinct and peculiar Australian

animal only grows. We all love a mystery

and this one is as shrouded in mist as is

its last-known stronghold, deep in the

forests of the Tassie wilderness. Sight-

ings of Tassie tigers, or thylacines, are

fairly commonly reported but conclu-

sive evidence is harder to come by,

which only seems to fan the ardour of

dedicated tiger seekers. In this issue we

meet the passionate people who refuse

to believe in the permanent demise of

this sad emblem of European colonisa-

tion’s destructive impact on Australia’s

native biodiversity.

That the Hobart Zoo couldn’t save

the hapless creature says more about a

Beyond the myster y

fate already sealed than any shortcom-

ings of the institution, but zoos have

come a long way and today are bastions

of animal conservation. They run

ambitious breeding programs and play

an essential role in educating the

public. Zoos cooperate globally to assist

species under threat and provide an

important connection to nature in our

increasingly urbanised society. Sydney’s

Taronga Zoo is a world leader in this

area and its Taronga Conservation

Society allows you to adopt a bilby

or Tasmanian devil, which raises vital

funds for breeding and research

projects for these unique animals. We

are excited to bring our readers an

opportunity to participate in this

program and receive a free gift from

us as part of the adoption package.

Taronga’s ethos is about bringing the

wild and people together for the

common good and we share those

values. See page 31 for details.

As we go to press, northern

Queensland is reeling from the impact

of Cyclone Debbie and northern

New South Wales is still suffering

severe flooding. Our cover story is

about the delights of visiting far north

Queensland in the rainy season. We

encourage you to keep these destina-

tions on your ‘must-see’ lists. Once the

clean-up is done, they will need your

support in so many ways and tourism

is the lifeblood of many communities

affected by this year’s wild weather.

Follow me on Twitter at:

twitter.com/chrissigoldrick

Specialist Magazine Brand of the Year

From the Editor-in-chief

Cont ributors

More contributors: Steve Axford, Simon Bischoff , Brian Cassey, Sofi a Charalambous, Professor Les Christidis, James Dorey, Don Fuchs, Doug Gimesy, Ken Griffi ths,

Dan Haley, Luke Hanson, Heath Holden, Mark Iommi, Darren Jew, Bob Kayganich, Dr Karl Kruszelnicki, Tim Laman, Jiri Lochman, Marie Lochman, Tim Low,

Peter Meredith, Matthew Newton, Brad Norman, Olivia Page, Will Pringle, Samantha Reynolds, Mike Rossi, Ellen Rykers, Josephine Sargent, Ben Saunders,

Roger Smith, Peter Soltys, Andy Szollosi, Luke Tscharke, Dr Nathan Waltham, Fred Watson, Steve K. Wilson.

Jeremy Bourke

is a career journalist who’s

written news, motoring,

travel and even showbiz

articles for newspapers

and magazines. Now, as

a freelance writer and editor, he seeks out

less-travelled roads and trails, particularly in

mountainous regions. For his feature based

in far north Queensland (see page 54), he

sampled the rainforests south and west of

Cairns during the Wet, when the power of

the region’s natural forces is at its greatest.

Ed Scholes

brings us insight on

Australia’s stunning rifl ebirds

(see page 38) as no-one else

can. This scientist, explorer

and author is co-founder and

leader of the Birds-of-Paradise Project at the

Cornell Lab of Ornithology. He’s been travelling

to Australasia to locate, document and study

these birds for nearly two decades. Along with

photographer Tim Laman, he is the author

of the book Birds of Paradise: Revealing the

World’s Most Extraordinary Birds.

Peta Burton

writes and photographs

stories as she travels

between Australia and India.

In this issue she explores

Darwin’s famed Beer Can

Regatta (page 120). Peta has walked much of

Australia for her 1000km/30-Day Trek Series;

her book The Ochre Cloak was recently

launched in the USA; and her documentary on

the 40th anniversary of Cyclone Tracy, which

devastated Darwin in 1974, was nominated for

an Australian Commercial Radio Award.

May. June 13

PHOTO CREDITS, FROM LEFT: COURTESY JEREMY BOURKE; TIM LAMAN; COURTESY PETA BURTON