The discovery of endangered quolls, bilbies, and rock wallabies on islands of habitat in the Great Sandy Desert offers a rare glimmer of hope for wildlife managers.

They collect vital climate information, but weather balloons are also a daily contributor to plastic pollution levels it's a dilemma the Bureau of Meteorology is struggling to solve.

A social media video of a tourist hanging off a notorious WA cliff on Easter Sunday has prompted a furious response from a sea rescue group.

Lou Brown used meditation and shear effort to clip about one sheep a minute for eight hours and claim the new world record.

Australia was built on gold rushes a century ago, but there is a warning it could slip from second to fourth on a list of the world's biggest gold producing nations by 2024.

Researchers are scouring the planet for drought and heat resistant crops as many Australian grain farmers face another failed winter season.

DAILY BRIEFING: Police allege a motorcyclist was doing more than 200km/h, and Tasmania's Basslink interconnector will be back up and running by Monday.

DAILY BRIEFING: A promised lost-cost abortion service for southern Tasmania is on hold indefinitely, and the union says more immediate solutions are needed to address prison overcrowding.

DAILY BRIEFING: An elderly female driver has a fright after her car swerves off a road and over a cliff, and the Tasmanian Government holds off formally asking the Commonwealth to help pay for firefighting in the Wilderness World Heritage Area last summer.

The death of 17-year-old Maggie Lore at the Blackmans Bay blowhole in 2017 prompts a southern Tasmanian council to conduct a risk assessment of several areas in its municipality.

Australian wool totals are forecast to be down by 12.7 per cent on last year a drop of 43 million kilograms, and the lowest yield since 1924, when the industry was much smaller.

A series of killings that happened 170 years ago have created deep rifts in South Australias Waterloo Bay and a new cliffside monument is at the centre of the debate.

Ghost netting in South Australia's pristine waters is causing a headache for the local council and the fishing, tourism, and recycling industries.

A judge indicates a woman who pleaded guilty to dangerous driving over the death of cyclist Jason Lowndes, who was killed when he was struck from behind while on a training run in 2017, is unlikely to go to jail.

A proposal to build a lead battery smelter in the Latrobe Valley has sparked health concerns among the local community. The nearest house is little more than a kilometre from the site, as is a school.

A draft Victorian Government policy rocks the boat, by banning any new private jetties along the Victorian coast.

Open Bionics announced on Thursday that it has partnered with Hanger Clinic to bring the first-ever medically-certified 3D-printed bionic arm to the United States.

A pair of Australian families have bought the world's second-biggest farm, at more than 16,500 square kilometres in size and home to 18,000 cattle.

An rain gauge that uploads real-time climate data to the internet from remote locations could save farmers time, money and help them keep better records.

Billionaire Clive Palmer is accused of faking entries in a green notebook in a bid to justify draining Queensland Nickel of millions of dollars for anything he wanted before it collapsed in 2016, a court is told.

Clive Palmer's multi-million-dollar payments to his father-in-law and a mysterious woman in Kyrgyzstan are among the funds he misused from Queensland Nickel coffers before its collapse, a court is told.

A judge gives Clive Palmer a dressing-down for his absence during the Queensland Nickel trial, saying other people who represent themselves in court could not afford to hire lawyers and still show up every day.

Clive Palmer is admonished by Justice Debra Mullins over another delay in the Queensland Nickel trial, this time because his expert witness is in Brazil.

Clive Palmer paid just $1 for his Queensland Nickel business seven years before it collapsed over fatal cashflow problems, a liquidator tells a court in Brisbane.

In a breakthrough during week three of a nine week trial over Clive Palmer's ill-fated Queensland Nickel venture, a "resolution" is reached on Aurizon's $90 million claim, as talks continue with liquidators trying to claw back money owed to other creditors.

Resources magnate Clive Palmer settles the majority of the $200 million lawsuit over the collapse of Queensland Nickel, including striking a deal with government-funded liquidators chasing millions in unpaid entitlements for refinery workers.

After denying responsibility for years, billionaire Clive Palmer has agreed to repay millions of dollars over the Queensland Nickel collapse, but he still faces a civil trial that may see him take the witness stand.

No charges will be laid against the organisers of a car festival that left Chaise Bouchere with horrific burns to his face and limbs, after the Northern Territory safety watchdog decided that funding future safety initiatives would be more beneficial.

Questions are being asked about what will be done to keep visitor numbers up once the option of ascending the ancient monolith is axed.

A road transport group says it will be difficult for truck drivers to give cyclists a wider berth, as required by new rules coming to the Territory.

Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park's overflow campground, nearby roadhouses, and the resort at Yulara are at capacity as tourists flood the area to climb the rock before its permanent closure in October, reportedly forcing tourists to camp illegally on the side of the road.

Closing the climb at Uluru won't have a dramatic effect on tourist numbers, according to Parks Australia, who say visitor figures have been steadily increasing over the last six years.

People criticising the decision to close the Uluru climb need to understand how the traditional owners, the Anangu, relate to the site, a senior custodian of Uluru says.

Australians suffering acute mental health episodes in rural and remote areas are increasingly having to travel far from family and friends for life-saving treatment, leading to calls for more specialist clinicians in the country.

A veteran helicopter pilot recalls the rescues from Uluru he took part in and says he is surprised the climb has not been closed sooner.

It will take up to four hours for critically injured patients from these remote communities to reach emergency medical treatment if the NT Government pushes ahead with plans to close clinics.

As people flock to Uluru in their thousands to make the ascent while they still can, tour operators are finding new ways for people to enjoy the area after the climb is closed for good next weekend.

The climb closure at Uluru could motivate other traditional owner groups around the country to limit access to their cultural and sacred sites.

Strong winds have delayed the final day of climbing Uluru, with hundreds of people waiting to climb the monolith.

Visitors rush to ascend Uluru hours before the climb's permanent closure.

Tourists wait to ascend Uluru as high winds temporarily close the climb, while Anangu ranger Thiangu Thomas aims to educate those who don't understand the monolith's cultural significance.