Lost female returned to stud herd 21 months after flooding swept her away
A seedstock producer says she cannot thank the local community enough after she was reunited with a stud female that was lost in floods in 2024.
Birch Talent returned to her home at Bronwyn Betts' and Michael Hawkins' Nindethana Droughtmasters, at Camp Mountain, on Saturday, October 4, almost two years after she had been swept away.
She was found on grazing lands about 30 kilometres from home and identified by Biosecurity Queensland officers days earlier.
Ms Betts said she had almost given up hope of finding more lost cattle after flash flooding on the creek flats on her family's property in the aftermath of tropical cyclone Kirrily during January 2024.
"We had little to no warning from the forecasters when it started raining at 12:30am that day, and it was relentless," Ms Betts said.
"The river that runs along our property swelled to the treetops in all of five hours of rain, a similar height to the 2022 floods when we had 1.3 metres of rain fall over four days.
"By the time we could get into the paddock to search for the cattle, some had been washed downriver and made their way to a nearby road.
"But a handful were nowhere to be seen."
Volunteers from the local community went to great lengths to help the couple find their lost stock in the days and weeks that followed, according to Ms Betts.
"We are so grateful to all the people who reached out to us to offer their support," Ms Betts said.
"A local marketing specialist coordinated all of our research and outreach on social media, for example, and a group of local horse riders rode for days along and out from the river.
"A man who had worked as a tracker spent two days on their trail as well."
She said local cattle were found as far away as the McDonald's at Strathpine, about 20 kilometres from Samford by road, and further still, at Dohles Rocks and Brighton Beach.
"Sadly, there were losses for us, including two calves and three beautiful females that were due to calve in May 2024," Ms Betts said.
"We never gave up searching, however, as time passed, even if we started to lose hope of finding them.
"Then in early October, 2025, we got a phone call from Biosecurity Queensland with news that a Droughtmaster female tagged with our NLIS tag had been located in a paddock almost 30 kilometres away by road."
Birch Talent was in good condition when she was identified and returned to the couple, according to Ms Betts.
"We have done extensive disease testing and made sure she is up to date with her vaccinations, but she has no current health issues," Ms Betts said.
"We plan to put her out with the other stud females in late October, and back into an artificial insemination program.
"In terms of reflections, it was amazing to see the strength and compassion of our local community.
"And it shows the value of NLIS tags: people might think of this value in terms of food safety, but the tags really can help you find your cattle when they get out of the paddock."
The DPI had not responded to Queensland Country Life's questions at the time of publication about its work to help recover Birch Talent and to relocate other lost cattle.
