It is with heavy hearts and deep sadness that we have learned of the death of Tom Collis after a long battle with cancer. Tom was, for many years, a shining light in the Cairns and surrounds birding community.
In his role as Cairns Area Coordinator for BirdLife Northern Queensland (as Mikey Kudo’s predecessor), he organised many informative and entertaining evenings in which his bird quiz was always a highlight and, frequently, very amusing. I still remember the audience’s surprise on learning via a quiz question that a Bush Thick-knee’s (aka Bush Stone-curlew) “knees” were, in fact, its ankles. He also wrote many interesting articles for Contact Call, BirdLife Northern Queensland’s quarterly newsletter.
Tom and I worked together for many years in the same faculty at TAFE when he ran the Caring for Country Program and me, the Remote Area Teacher Education Program. For a time, we shared the same workspace. He was always measured and calm, a total gentleman in all his endeavours and, despite the stresses and strains of running a complex program, never once did I see him lose his temper or be unpleasant to anyone.
He carried that smiling and pleasant demeanour forward in retirement, as a BirdLife local coordinator, and, for a significant period of time also contributed beautifully-written pieces on native Australian plants to Cairns Birders’ weekly newsletter, “The New Frogmouth.
For the last couple of years, while he was in remission, Tom and Maureen decided to move south to Coffs Harbour to spend time with family and his new grandchild.
He is a great loss to the Far North Queensland community, and our deepest condolences go out to Maureen and their two children in this time of overwhelming grief.
Denis Walls
"The Friends of the Cairns Botanic Gardens are really saddened to hear of the passing of Tom. He was an engaging guide on our free weekly tours and a memorable presenter at our monthly talks where he was informative, entertaining and amusing. It’s such a loss that he is no longer with us. Our deepest condolences go to Maureen and his family.”
Val Schier, President, on behalf of Friends’ members.
Contact Call
Tom Collis – Birds of the Kimberley Coast, and Gabriel Crowley – Golden-shouldered Parrots, Past, Present & Future
By Dominic Chaplin
Contact Call May 2013 (Page 8)
The JAMBA-CAMBA-ROKAMBA afternoon on the Cairns Esplanade.
By Tom Collis
Contact Call November / December 2016 (page 5)
‘Wave the Waders Goodbye’ 2016
By Tom Collis
Contact Call May / June 2016 2016 (page 3)
Tom spent several years working as a guest lecturer on small cruise ships across the top of Australia, the Kimberley, Tasmania, Papua New Guinea and several islands in the South Pacific. His interest in seabirds first started when he worked for several years as a professional fisherman in the Northern Territory in the 1980’s.
In this video produced by Coral Expeditions – a company for which he was a Guest Lecturer – Tom shares with what it's like to spot wildlife in the Kimberley:
