A couple from Queensland’s Gold Coast first visited Hinchinbrook Island and later settled near Cardwell, where they focused on local wildlife including pied imperial-pigeons breeding on North Brook Island. These birds fly daily to the mainland for rainforest fruit before returning to nest. In 1965 the pair began annual counts that documented a steep drop, reaching a low of 1,451 birds by 1968 amid shooting and forest clearing. Protection laws existed but enforcement was weak until large-scale shooting ended that year. Volunteers and later Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service continued the surveys, which showed recovery to 20,000 birds by the 1980s and 25,000–35,000 until Cyclone Yasi struck in 2011, damaging both island and mainland habitats and causing another sharp fall. The long-term data illustrated how reduced hunting, habitat protection and ongoing monitoring supported the colony’s rebound.
