Crying out to be made into a major documentary is the involvement of dedicated women who over the years have fought to save the wildlife of North Queensland and its wetlands .
Of particular note is the current situation on Magnetic Island , off Townsville, where a Curlew named Motley , because she had been knocked about before being rescued by a wildlife carer , has mothered scores of orphan birds over years.
Right now Motley , who had been so traumatised she at first took refuge in a wardrobe for many months, is mothering two orphan baby birds.
The dedicated women involved in wildlife caring on the island have many great stories to tell ; one deals with snakes .
One was involved with acclaimed naturalist , conservationist and environmental activist the late Margaret Thorsborne AO counting and campaigning to protect the Torres Strait Pigeons on the Brook Islands, ,near Hinchinbrook Island .
To this end , experiments were carried out by ornithologists on pigeon nesting in an aviary on Magnetic Island ,resulting in new information .
A devoted carer oft turns up at political meetings with a young animal or bird requiring feeding in a cage or pouch .
A Townsville woman connected with Special Collections at James Cook University was also involved in the Hinchinbrook campaign.
LIttle Darwin has seen two archival containers full of documents , letters, newspaper cuttings . photos and books relating to the fight to protect wildlife . The late poet Judith Wright , concerned about saving the Great Barrier Reef , was involved with some of the wildlife carers .
A presentation copy of a Margaret Thorsborne book strongly praises the contribution by a Magnetic Island carer .
