The conservation effort has renewed an age-old relationship between the Olkola people in Far North Queensland and the totemic bird.
But feral animals and mining in remote Cape York could now threaten the last 2,000 of the wild birds.
Michael Ross is chairman of the Olkola Land Corporation.
"The Olkola people, we've got to take care of it. That's our responsibility, to look after it. So, that's what we've been doing."
Back 150 years ago, settlers and cattle came to the Cape, destroying the parrot habitat.
An age-old relationship between humans and parrots was broken.
Allana Brown is an ecologist from the environmental charity Bush Heritage, working with the Olkola people to save the declining species.
"The main reason is because, yes, Aboriginal people were dispossessed from their lands, and so that traditional fire management ceased and then grazing, of course, became the dominant land use here."
The turquoise-blue males and olive-green females were once common across the vast expanse of Cape York.
Unusually, the parrot makes its nest in ant hills or termite mounds, safe from fire and most predators.
Now, it exists on only a small patch of land.
Two years ago, Olkola land was finally returned, covering most of the habitat of the Alwal, as the Golden-Shouldered Parrot is known locally.
There is little government funding, so Michael Ross, from the Olkola, and Bush Heritage employed local rangers to help save their totem.
Mr Ross says the cooperation runs deep.
"It's goes deeper than formal reconciliation. Out here, that's the real thing, you know? Our knowledge of country and knowledge of our stories, and their knowledge of scientific, you can't get any better."
Land management with fire has been renewed, essential for releasing seed food for the parrot.
But now Allana Brown from Bush Heritage and the Olkola rangers have identified a new threat.
"Our initial results are concerning. There's a very strong indication that the declining trend in this population is continuing. And there's no doubt that we have a lot of threats that we need to address throughout this project in order to secure the future of this little species."
It is a battle for survival while trying to repair damaged land before a bird has nowhere to go.
And now, the first evidence has arisen that feral cats have reached the remote spot.
Meanwhile, Michael Ross warns another invader is encroaching.
"Mining in this country, that's one of the biggest threats for us. And I'm scared of it. It's coming. It's like a train coming, and I don't know how to stop it."
