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· collected 2026-08-20 · by TOI World Desk
Australian farmer Fred Perry spent nearly three decades restoring his land on King Island in Tasmania, which he had previously cleared for farmland. Perry's efforts have led to the return of 24 bird species to his property, Millwood Station, a working farm that also uses cattle and tourism as income streams. The project has also improved water quality and provided shelter for animals, with Perry using birds as an indicator of the land's ecological health. According to researchers, less than 30% of King Island is now covered by native vegetation due to widespread clearing after European settlement in the early 1800s.
Written by the local model on 2026-08-20,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
King Island in Tasmania, Australia is known for its green farmland, cattle and tourism.
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Island → know → farmland
But beneath that landscape is a much older story of forests and native vegetation that once covered large parts of the island.
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that → cover → island
Over about two centuries, large areas of that vegetation were cleared to create farmland, ABC news Australia reported.
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Australia → clear → farmland
The changes affected the island's wildlife, with several native species disappearing and others being pushed towards extinction.
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others → affect → extinction
Raised in a farming culture where native vegetation was removed to make space for agriculture, he spent years doing what many farmers before him had done.
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farmers → raise → him
“I bashed the trees down and burnt everything.
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“I → bash → everything
I was a bash and burner,” Perry says.
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Perry → say → ?
Things changed when their children came home from school and told their father that he needed to do more to protect the environment.
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he → change → environment
For almost three decades now, Perry and his wife, Shona Perry, have been fencing off parts of their property and replanting areas with endemic and native plants.
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Perry → fence → plants
The change was also driven by something Perry noticed on his own land- there were not many birds.
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Perry → drive → land-
“If we didn't get and do something, we would have nothing left on our native vegetation,” he recalls.
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he → get → vegetation
Farmer who changed course
Perry's property, Millwood Station, is still a working farm, and cattle remain part of the operation.
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cattle → change → operation
But parts of the land have been set aside for native vegetation.
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parts → set → vegetation
The Perrys used their own money as well as government grants to fence off areas and, in some places, plant native and endemic species.
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Perrys → use → species
The work has taken most of three decades.
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work → take → decades
Over that period, the changes have gone beyond simply bringing more plants back to the property.
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changes → go → property
“There are multiple things that have accumulated to the positive from that event,” Perry says.
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Perry → be → event
He points to better water quality in creeks and shelter for animals as some of the benefits.
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He → point → benefits
But the change that makes him most proud is the return of birds.
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him → make → birds
“The big thing that we are proud of is the colonies of birds that use the property these days,” he says.
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he → use → property
Perry now uses birds as a way of observing what is happening across his farm.
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what → use → farm
He believes their presence can provide a useful indication of how the ecology of the property is doing.
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ecology → believe → property
“I class the birds as a monitoring part of the property, because birds are smarter than us.
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birds → class → us
While ever I've got these colonies of birds around, I'm doing something right to the ecology of the farm.
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I → get → farm
The birds know what's going on,” he says.
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he → know → ?
European settlement in the early 1800s led to sealing and widespread removal of native vegetation.
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settlement → lead → vegetation
The Island's crisis
Perry's conservation work is taking place against the much larger history of King Island's environmental change.
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work → take → change
The island covers about 1,000 square kilometres, but researchers estimate that fewer than 30 per cent of the island is now covered by native vegetation.
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cent → cover → vegetation
The clearing began after European arrival in the early 1800s.
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clearing → begin → 1800s
Sealing was followed by the removal of vegetation, including efforts to make navigation easier.
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navigation → follow → efforts
The pressure on the island's natural resources continued for generations.
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pressure → continue → generations
Historical records show that several species were lost after European settlement.
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species → show → settlement
The local elephant seal population disappeared soon after European sealers arrived.
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sealers → disappear → ?
The King Island emu, tiger quolls, wombats and various bird and plant species were also lost.
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emu → lose → ?
More extensive land clearing took place in the mid-20th century.
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clearing → take → century
Soldier settlers used modern machinery and tractors to clear and prepare land for agriculture.
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settlers → use → agriculture
By then, the island had already experienced decades of pressure, including fires.
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island → experience → fires
Long way to go
Although Perry's farm has changed, much of King Island's native vegetation remains under pressure.
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much → go → pressure
The remaining scrub provides habitat for the King Island brown thornbill, the orange-bellied parrot and the King Island scrubtit.
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scrub → remain → thornbill
That makes remaining native vegetation important for wildlife on the island.
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vegetation → make → island
…and 3 more, not listed.
