What you may not know about Moreton Island

Last updated 24 March 2020

Moreton Island in south east Queensland is unique for many reasons. But this one is pretty special. It’s 170 square kilometre expanse is one of the very few places in Queensland that can declare itself completely free of that noxious invasive pest – the cane toad.

If you’d like to know more about this phenomenon, read my feature story originally called “Island unto itself” published in the July 15-16 edition of the Courier Mail’s Qweekend.

Here’s the link to the story published on Courier Mail’s online site as Detection dogs keeping Moreton Island free of cane toads

There are a few stars in the story – among them are a trio of impressive dogs, whose job on Moreton Island is to seek out any rogue cane toads. Owned by Sydney based canine handler and trainer Steve Austin, these dogs are trained to detect many feral creatures including fox and cat, but are on Moreton as “cane toad detection dogs.”

In researching the story, I was fortunate enough to visit the stunning Moreton Island and spend some time with Steve Austin and his incredible dogs.

And I also met a passionate conservationist, Christine Sanders – a long time visitor to Moreton Island and member of the Moreton Island Protection Committee.

I feel very fortunate as a writer, when the opportunity presents itself to learn more about your environment and the amazing work people are doing to maintain it. This was one of those stories.