As we surveyed the rainforest on Lot 213 Teak Road in Cow Bay a nearby property owner was hard at work with a chainsaw. As they persisted so did we, however, the excitement we felt as we identified threatened and locally endemic species of plants was disturbed by the sound of enormous trees crashing to the ground only a few hundred meters away.

Lot 213 Teak Road in the Daintree Lowland Rainforest

These freehold properties in the Daintree should not be left in the ownership of people who would destroy the rainforest. The rainforest on these freehold properties is of equal value to the nearby Daintree National Park and World Heritage Area. 

Please, make a donation now and we will purchase and project Lot 213 Teak Road in Cow Bay. 

I urgently need your help. We simply must purchase all of the undeveloped freehold properties in Cow Bay to prevent them from being cleared for housing. Lot 213 Teak Road at Cow Bay is a freehold property and can be cleared and developed as other Cow Bay properties have been in the past. A nearby property, only 500 meters from Lot 213 Teak Road, was cleared for housing development in June 2021.

Please, make your tax-deductible donation now to help purchase and protect Lot 213 Teak Road in the Daintree Lowland Rainforest.

When Lot 213 Teak Road was listed for sale and I negotiated a price of $100,000 and secured an option to purchase the property. The legal option means the property can't be sold to anyone else. However, that option expires on the 30th of October. If the funds are not raised by that time it may be sold to someone intent on developing the property for housing.

This property provides a habitat for the endangered Cassowary and two threatened species of plants. We must act now to remove the threat of development. 

Please, make your tax-deductible donation now to help purchase and protect Lot 213 Teak Road in the Daintree Lowland Rainforest.

Clearing in Cow Bay in the Daintree Lowland Rainforest 

Before we make a decision to purchase a Daintree Rainforest property, we thoroughly assess its value to conservation. Our vegetation survey of Lot 213 Teak Road, Cow Bay was undertaken on the 27th of July 2021. The survey identified the presence of 128 native plant species. 

Of particular importance is the Daintree Gardenia (Randia audasii). This small tree is endemic to Far North Queensland and is restricted to the area between Cooktown, Cairns, and Atherton. It produces white perfumed flowers and fruit that are orange when ripe. It is listed as Near Threatened under the Queensland Nature Conservation Act 1992.

Please, join me and make a donation to purchase and protect Lot 213 Teak Road in the Daintree Lowland Rainforest.

Flowers of the Daintree Gardenia (Randia audasii)

During the survey, we also identified Noah's Walnut (Endiandra microneura). This tree produces large yellow oblong-shaped fruits that are dispersed by the Southern Cassowary. The species is only found naturally within the Daintree rainforest predominately north of the Daintree River and south of Cape Tribulation. This tree is noticeable in the forest as it produces a vibrant display of limp red new leaves. It is listed as Near Threatened under the Queensland Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1992.

Please, join me and make a donation to purchase and protect Lot 213 Teak Road in the Daintree Lowland Rainforest.

Another feature of the property is the local endemic Daintree Foambark tree (Jagera madida). This species only occurs in the lowland rainforests between Julatten – Bloomfield. It is noticeable by the pinkish ferny new growth and often single straight stem seldom branching. Its trunk is often completely covered in lichen of various shades of grey.

Please, join me and make a donation to purchase and protect Lot 213 Teak Road in the Daintree Lowland Rainforest.

Daintree Foambark (Jagera madida)

We also identified the Daintree Satinash (Syzygium monospermum). This species is only found in lowland rainforests between Cape Tribulation and Julatten. The tree provides food for the Endangered Southern Cassowary and owing to the size of its large white fruit that it produces straight from the trunk (an adaptation called cauliflory), few other animals other than possibly Fruit bats would disperse it. This tree was only botanically named in 2003. This unique tree species has a symbiotic relationship with Ants that inhabit the trunk of the tree. Little is known of the reason why Ants colonise the trunk of this tree however it is known that the internal structure of the tree is a purpose-built network of tunnels that allow Ants to undertake their entire life cycle, what the tree benefits from this is little known and currently remains unstudied.

Please, join me and make a donation to purchase and protect Lot 213 Teak Road in the Daintree Lowland Rainforest.

Daintree Satinash (Syzygium monospermum).

Lot 213 Teak Road in Cow Bay is at high risk of development. The rainforest on most privately owned freehold properties at Cow Bay occurs on flat land so I knew Lot 213 was a very high risk of being cleared. Further research showed properties in this location are zoned for development by the Douglas Shire Council. That’s why, with your help, I will buy Lot 213 and protect it forever. As soon as I raise $100,000 I will ensure Lot 213 Teak Road is purchased and then managed for conservation in the Daintree National Park estate.

Please, make a donation to help purchase and protect Lot 213 Teak Road in the Daintree Lowland Rainforest.

The vegetation on Lot 213 Teak Road is Regional Ecosystem 7.3.20e which is listed as “Of Concern” under the Queensland Vegetation Management Act 1999. The vegetation on Lot 213 also provides habitat for the Endangered Southern Cassowary. The property has many native plants that produce fruits for rainforest birds including 11 species of native Laurel. These trees produce fleshy fruits favoured by Cassowaries.

Cassowary and chick in the Daintree Rainforest

A subdivision was carved into the Daintree Lowland Rainforest in 1982. This created Teak Road and hundreds of rural residential lots in Cow Bay. Many houses have been built which fragments the rainforest and occupation brings domestic dogs and exotic plants. This has damaged one of the most significant areas of tropical rainforests in Australia.

Together, we can ensure this development won’t go any further. All we need to do is buy this freehold property and add protect it in the Daintree National Park estate.

The current owners have given us an option to purchase this land so we can protect it in the Daintree National Park estate. However, that option expires on the 30th of October so I absolutely must raise the funds by that date. We have purchased eleven Daintree Rainforest properties in the past twenty-four months, we cannot stop there. If we don't keep up the pace, many more properties will be lost to development. 

Please, join me and make a donation to purchase and protect Lot 213 Teak Road in the Daintree Lowland Rainforest.

For the Daintree Rainforest,

Kelvin Davies

Founder

Rainforest 4 Foundation

Phone: 0437 423 119

P.S. You can donate now online or if you want to donate with a cheque/money order or through a direct deposit please see our Ways to Donate page.

P.P.S. If you have any questions about the purchase and protection of Lot 213 Teak Road please email me at [email protected] or call me during business hours at 0437 423 119.

THANK YOU TO OUR PARTNERS

This project to purchase and protect land in the Daintree Lowland Rainforest is a partnership involving the Rainforest 4 Foundation, Jabalbina Yalanji Aboriginal Corporation, and fellow non-profit HalfCut.

HalfCut has started their peer to peer fundraising campaign. If you wish to be brave, courageous, and have fun this August as a #HalfCutter to protect the Daintree rainforest, sign up and find more information here. Did you know over half of the world's forests have been destroyed? That's why they go HalfCut.

Thanks to Jimmy and Jess and all the HalfCut supporters for their important contribution to the purchase and protection of Lot 213 Teak Road.