An Australian woman bought cleared sugarcane land and planted trees; 10 years later, 119,000 trees transformed it into a rainforest home to flying-foxes

Annie Schoenberger bought cleared land near Wonga Beach in Queensland with a simple goal: bring rainforest back to a former sugarcane property. Over the following decade, her NightWings Rainforest Centre became the focus of a major restoration effort, supported by Rainforest Rescue, volunteers and local supporters. More than 119,000 native trees have been planted across 18 hectares, creating young rainforest habitat while restoring wetlands and improving water quality. Wildlife has begun returning to the recovering landscape. In May 2026, the Queensland Government recognised the site as having high nature conservation value, granting its vegetation Category A protection under Queensland’s vegetation management framework.

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