As part of the Lowbidgee floodplain, the Nari Nari Tribal Council owned conservation property, Gayini Nimmie-Caira is an area of national conservation significance and the largest remaining wetland area in the Murrumbidgee. Gayini provides habitat for a variety of wildlife including nationally listed threatened species such as the Southern Bell frog, the Australasian Bittern, Australian Painted-snipe and the critically endangered Plains wanderer. The Murrumbidgee Flow-MER team have been monitoring wetlands on Country at Gayini Nimmie-Caira since 2008, building opportunities and initiatives with the Nari Nari Tribal Council, particularly through the ranger program.

Gayini Nimmie-Caira River Rangers Cody Cosson and Kai Hearne (both proud Wiradjuri men) moved from Griffith for ranger jobs on the property which they have both held for the last two years. Cody was motivated by the opportunity to connect and work on Country and learn new skills relating to Landcare and managing land, and Kai “loves working and being out bush, looking after animals – always had a love for animals”.

The rangers’ work on Country is diverse and varies with the season, and involves collecting seed, spotlighting, surveying fish with the Flow-MER team (a favourite of Kai’s as “something new and different”), undertaking cultural surveys and participating in Triple C programs (designed to foster positive change). Cody recommends young people attend Triple C camps, where they can learn things like the Cod dance as a way of learning to connect to Country. Kai mentions their recent involvement in Triple C focused on helping year 7 and 8 boys connect to Country. Other work involves creating firebreaks, spraying and slashing weeds, maintaining fences and baiting foxes.

Of all the work, Cody’s favourite is baiting foxes because of the outcomes relating to wildlife gains, but also because this work enables him to get out on Country and see the wildlife. Cody has been saving swan eggs and duck eggs and says that “after a year and a half I got to see a Plains wanderer, which was exciting – a full circle!” As an endangered species, the return of the Plains wanderer to Gayini in recent years is indeed cause for excitement and celebration.

Both Kai and Cody have learnt many new skills as part of their ranger roles. They credit Ian Woods, Jamie Woods and ‘Dicko’ Jermaine Dixon with being most influential in teaching them skills for working on Country, including learning to drive manual utes, tractors and trucks. They have acquired cultural knowledge (relating to the 50 000 year old rich cultural history of the area), and have learned skills in navigating Country and identifying plants. In addition to learning on the job from more experienced rangers, Kai appreciates the formal training in chain-sawing, chemical application and side by side training. The Gayini workplace on Country not only offers much in the way of learning and connecting opportunities – it is light-hearted, with Kai commenting about “Ian cracking jokes 24/7!”

Cody relates a memorable moment about observing nature that will stay with him forever. He was out on Country with Ian Woods and Ritchie Dixon and spotted a joey which popped its head out of the bush, before being scattered by an overhead wedge-tailed eagle flying above. Another wedge-tailed eagle then ambushed and caught the joey in the hunt!

Having danced for ten years before his work as a ranger, Cody would like to branch out from working on Country after his ranger position finishes, into the area of language “to complete the circle and pass on that knowledge”. Cody has a message for young people wanting to work on Country: “work on your own Country first, so you know where you come from and empower yourself in your knowledge to build connections elsewhere”.

Kai is keen to stay in the field and is “willing to take on anything they have to offer, maybe become a team leader in the future, or help set up and manage a new ranger”. He enthuses about being a ranger on Country and would advise a young person to “go for it 100%, you wouldn’t look back once you get out here, it’s just amazing…the stuff you see day to day, love it!”

We thank Kai and Cody for their efforts as rangers and for sharing their stories for NAIDOC week. We look forward to continuing to work with Kai and Cody and all the First Nations staff involved in managing the lands on which we work.