The vast, windy plains of Neville Oddie’s property in Chepstowe offer a lesson in biodiversity. One by one, the fourth-generation Pyrenees farmer lifts the rippled roofing tiles scattered across the grasslands, revealing little whip snakes and lizards. But the jewel in the crown of this privately owned farmland is a population of brolgas.
The tall waterbirds are listed as a threatened species in Victoria. According to Birdlife Australia, the 2024 flock count sat at just over 800. Numbers in northern Australia are significantly higher.
