JCU: TropEco

14/11/2025

Noahdendron nicholasii, an endangered tree known from only a single small population in the Daintree.

The species has pendulous pink flowers, explosive spring loaded pods and rusty brown new leaves which harden to maroon then green.

This is one of several specimen collected by JCU for ongoing conservation, now flowering in our live gardens.

From here additional specimens will be sustainably propagated and shared with other conservation collections, such as botanical gardens.

27/10/2025

Keep an eye out to see if you can spot all 18 insect homes installed across the campus.

These little houses promote small beetles and wasps, who play a vital role in controlling pest insects in our gardens and as pollinators.

08/09/2025

From the field to the JCU Living Collections, in the last 3 years JCU has added over 500 species and subspecies onto the JCU Townsville campus.
Many of these have come from wild collected specimen, and over 100 are recognised threatened species.
During these field trips both valuable conservation data and germplasm has been collected, building our understanding of Australia’s unique flora.

09/05/2025

Earlier this week TropEco presented at a workshop and training session run through NQ Dry Tropics. The session was a great early step in assisting the local community in better understanding endangered ecosystems of the region, focusing on paperbark wetlands. Topics ranged from first nations values and broad ecosystem services, to biodiversity and threatened ecology.

17/01/2025

14/12/2024

Have you noticed the newest team member of the JCU Grounds, our autonomous mower?

They are busy getting the Joe Baker field up to scratch everyday of the week, the only issue is, they have forgotten their name.

Can you help by dropping a recommendation in the comments below, or shooting our team a message.

The top 5 names will then be hosted at the TropEco JCU Market Day stall for students to vote on.

02/12/2024

Dumping some green waste may not seem like a big deal, but it can do catastrophic environmental damage.

We have had dozens of new threats released without care, from rapid spreading Yellow Crazy Ant and Parthenium to durable Yucca and more, all illegally dumped in campus.

This on going issue is extremely costly, and due to the large scale of the campus is often not noticed until out of control, requiring immense resourcing to manage, taking away from other programs.

If you see illegal dumping on campus, please report it to JCU security, in addition, please educate those unaware of the importance of proper disposal for biological waste.

12/11/2024

Canis familiaris, the Dingo, is a key apex predator and plays a vital role in maintaining ecological functions. On campus we have recently had some pups sighted, who are now old enough to go out on their own hunts, and so old enough for us to share them with you.

Below are some images of a young pup, and it’s now more mature and independent teenage self.

While JCU is proud to have our very special wildlife, we must urge people not to approach or feed these dogs, for both your own and their safety.

25/10/2024

Dominic Holzheimer, a current placement student with TropEco spent his placement working on JCU’s translocation plot for the rarest plant in the region.

Backhousia tetraptera (Mt Stuart Myrtle) is a critically endangered tree, known from less than 200 wild individuals, and restricted to two small populations.

The species was recently (2023) confirmed to also be a host for the deadly pathogen myrtle rust.

Here at the JCU plot, Dom has been monitoring previous years specimen, as well as caring for, planting and mapping new clones into the site, to bolster the genetic integrity of the new population.

Each individual is wild collected, grown on and tagged by its unique accession code, denoting the clone origin and mother plant, as well as its precise location in the plot.

JCU: James Cook University, Australia

29/09/2024

As we move back into summer and things heat up, please be vigilant for our wildlife on campus, and maintain a safe speed when driving.

Sadly this time of year and through until the end of exams we see an increase in road kill, in particular birds, wallabies and snakes.

If you see an injured animal on campus, please contact JCU security, to have them organise its safe passage to the vet, they can be reached on 4781 6000

10/09/2024

A great message about the importance of not feeding wildlife.

Not only can you impact their health, but they can also become accustomed to the interaction and dangerous.

Across all JCU campuses, we urge that this be respected and that people refrain from feeding our wildlife.

Well worded from JCU Adjunct Professor, Peter Valentine, emphasising the reality of the situation.

Wildlife rangers are urging visitors not to feed cassowaries after shooting video of a pair of the big and potentially dangerous birds getting too close for comfort.

07/09/2024

The next phase of our on campus living laboratory experience has arrived, with the addition of 100 plaques.

These, and their affiliated plants, will be installed over the coming weeks around campus, and help tell the tale of our nations flora.

The top left shows the project these species fall under, then, working down the centre we have their scientific name, common name and family name.

But the real treasure is the code on the bottom left, this is because each of these plaques are unique to a specific plant, where JCU has retained data on the exact plants field notes.

These notes can include:
1. Locality
2. Size
3. Ecological data and habitat descriptions
4. If there is a wild threat and what this is
5. The exact parent material (separating even siblings)
6. Cultural and traditional use data
7. Any unique clone notes (flower colour, disease resistance)

By collecting and retaining all of this, these plants become more than just a garden feature, but instead a vital tool for teaching, research and conservation.

If you would like more information around these, or any particular plant or animal on campus, please reach out to us at [email protected] or message us here.