Tributes are flowing for West Australian conservationist Harry Butler, who has died from cancer aged 85.

The 1979 Australian of the Year died of cancer in a Perth hospital on Friday after fighting the illness for two years.

He was known around the country for his ABC TV series In the Wild with Harry Butler, which ran during the 1970s and '80s.

Dr Butler was presented with the Order of Australia in 2012, and was also added to the list of Australia's Living Treasures that year.

Dr Butler's son Trevor said he was still coming to terms with his father's death.

"I'm still in shock even though he's been ill, he's a real fighter and has three times defied the doctors' predictions," Mr Butler said.

"The cancer got him eventually but he told me last week when he was ready to go he was just going to go and that's basically just what he did. So he went peacefully and quickly but had quite a struggle before that.

"He had been ill for nearly two years but amazingly up until three months ago he was still messing around on the farm and driving a tractor and chopping wood.

Mr Butler said his father was a "remarkable man by anyone's standards".

"The fact he was my dad made it special for me but he was a remarkable man in many, many ways," he said.

"Part of us is relieved because he's not in pain any more. Cancer is a shocking way to die and he's going to be with the love of his life again, that's his deceased wife Maggie."

Dr Butler also played a major role in the development of the Barrow Island oil and gas project, working as an environmental consultant to Chevron.

'WA's version of David Attenborough'

Harry Butler presented David Attenborough with a framed photograph of a prethopalpus attenboroughi spider in 2012. ( David Whitely )

West Australian Premier Colin Barnett extended his sympathies to Dr Harry Butler's family on behalf of everyone in the state.

"Harry was an environmental pioneer whose dedication to conservation and nature was tireless," Mr Barnett said.

"There will be many people who'll remember tuning in to his ABC show In the Wild and who will remember him fondly.

"I knew Harry personally. He was a great West Australian and a great educator to many of us about the importance of the environment."

Greens MP Robin Chapple said In the Wild influenced the entire nation.

"In many ways he was almost in the early days, Western Australia's version of David Attenborough," he said.

"I am sure that many people would not have an appreciation for the wild if it hadn't had been for Harry's program."

Australian Wildlife Conservancy chief Atticus Fleming said Dr Butler lead the way for environmental awareness and conservation.

"He raised public awareness about our wildlife so effectively... I think you see his legacy in the work of so many organisations, where we're building on that awareness and translating it into action," he said.

His family is arranging a private funeral.