Alice Springs' usually dry Todd River flowing strong thanks to rain from former tropical cyclone ElliePools of caramel-coloured water, swampy marshes and blankets of dewy grass.Former tropical cyclone Ellie crossed back into the Northern Territory from Western Australia last weekend, bringing heavy rainfall to the desert region.Over the past week, parts of the central-west of the Northern Territory have received between 200 and 300 millimetres of rain, while Alice Springs Airport received 84mm in the 24 hours to 9am Monday.But before that, we had a really long, extended dry period where things were just dry and dusty — dirt everywhere, not much grass.He said conservationists would use this opportunity to try to bring other native species back from extinction."