Case Studies in Native Fish Recovery

Urban Rehabilitation

Location: TBC

The infrastructure around Canberra’s CBD and suburban areas is extremely hostile for fish. Through the use of mapping, urban rehab and planning of fish-friendly developments were planned. Policy instruments such as Urban Catchment Plans, BSUD, WSUD, and e-flows are a critical tool in urban rehabilitation. Monitoring is an ongoing action of this project, informing policy for improved future management.

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
3. Continue rehabilitation of fish habitat
4. Install fish friendly infrastructure
5. Improve connectivity and remove barriers
10. Mapping and status of fish refugia
11. Understand and adapt to climate change impacts

Partners:

Urban Ecology Office of Nature Conservation | Environment, Planning and Sustainable Development Directorate

Stocking Urban Lakes

Location: TBC

To support the self-sustaining populations of fish in the ACT, plans are underway to stock urban lakes popular recreational species. This initiative seeks to take the pressure of recreational fishing off the natural waterways.

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
4. Install fish friendly infrastructure
8. Community capacity building
10. Mapping and status of fish refugia

Fisheries Monitoring

Location: TBC

The monitoring of fisheries taking place in the ACT has led to the implementation of policy changes to recreational fishing that has been informed by continual monitoring. There is now a no-take zone for Murray cod below Uriarra Crossing, reduced bag limits for Murray cod and Golden perch, closure of Gigerline gorge, and a slot limit for Murray cod of 55-75cm. This is an effort to support the self-sustaining populations of fish in the ACT.

Investment Areas:

3. Continue rehabilitation of fish habitat
4. Install fish friendly infrastructure
5. Improve connectivity and remove barriers
10. Mapping and status of fish refugia

NSW Native Fish Drought Response 2019/2020

Location: NSW-wide

NSW DPI have undertaken a variety of actions to support the recovery of native fish populations post drought and mass fish death events. Early signs of recovery were detected through monitoring in early 2021 following the return of flows to the Lower Darling-Baaka River between 2020 and 2021. Continued monitoring will be important to track the effectiveness of future management interventions.

Activities include: watering strategies, a range of technological interventions to improve water quality through targeted and strategic procurement and deployment, compliance actions and management, fish rescues and relocations, including threatened species management, monitoring activities, including water quality and fish communities, and responsive clean-up operations as required.

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
2. Be event ready for emerging issues
4. Install fish friendly infrastructure
5. Improve connectivity and remove barriers
9. Address knowledge gaps related to flow

Macquarie Screening Program

Location: NSW-wide

NSW DPI Fisheries sought Expressions of Interest (EOIs) from water users who wanted to access financial and logistic assistance to upgrade their water diversion (pump or gravity-fed channel) with a modern fish-protection screen. 24 pumps at 7 sites along the Macquarie River between Narromine and Warren. 2,811 ML/day has been screened and 885,465 native fish are protected per season. Screens installed at one site. All remaining sites have screens manufactured and will be installed at the end of the 23/24 irrigation season (There have been significant delays due to flooding).

The program is having a positive impact, achieving more wide-spread acceptance of screening on both private and public levels. Sites where pumps have been installed are showing on farm benefits, saving water and electricity through a reduced need to backflush.

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
4. Install fish friendly infrastructure
9. Address knowledge gaps related to flow

Protecting flows after drought to help native fish recovery – importance of protection of first flush rules for Golden Perch

Location: Northern Basin

In order to meet critical environmental needs throughout the northern Basin, steps were taken to protect the drought-breaking flows by placing temporary restriction orders on river pumping in late January 2020 “Northern Basin First Flush Event”. The study site at Walgett received both a ‘small fresh’ and a ‘large fresh’. The results of the study suggested that most spawning occurred during the connected flow event and that multiple golden perch spawning events occurred within a subset of tributaries. Essentially, protecting the natural duration of flow events is vital for both spawning and for early-recruit drift of golden perch.

The temporary water restriction applied to regulated and unregulated rivers of the Border Rivers, Intersecting Streams, Gwydir, Namoi, Peel, Macquarie–Bogan, and Castlereagh catchments, as well as the Barwon–Darling River. Floodplain harvesting was also restricted. The 2020 Northern Basin First Flush met the requirements of a ‘small fresh’ at Walgett (47 days, 14 days), Bourke (83 days) and Wilcannia (83 days) and a ‘large fresh’ at Walgett (26 days). An extension that applied only to the Barwon–Darling River and floodplain ensured that flows from upstream catchments could move along the Barwon–Darling and reach the Menindee Lakes. Prior to the rainfall events, critical environmental needs were determined that should be targeted in the northern valleys under various first-flush scenarios.

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
10. Mapping and status of fish refugia

Habitat Action Grants

Location: NSW-wide

Funding from the Recreational Fishing Trusts (generated by the NSW Recreational Fishing Fee) was utilised to improve fish habitat and recreational fishing in NSW. The Habitat Action Grants targeted the removal or modification of barriers to fish passage, rehabilitation of riparian lands (riverbanks, wetlands, mangrove forests, saltmarsh), re-snagging waterways with timber structure, removal of exotic vegetation from waterways and replace with native species bank stabilisation works.

The Molong Fishing Club were keen to see more native fish within the Molong Creek system and were aware that by providing habitat such as snags, fish would have a better opportunity to breed and survive. This collaborative project made possible by Habitat Action Grants resulted in the introduction of 15 large, hollow-bearing logs into an 800-metre reach of Molong Creek the provision of complex instream habitat for native fish and other aquatic species.

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
3. Continue rehabilitation of fish habitat
4. Install fish friendly infrastructure
8. Community capacity building
10. Mapping and status of fish refugia

Partners:

NSW Recreational Fishing Trusts

Fencing Northern Basin Riverbanks Project

Location: QLD-wide

From over 115 applications, 66 land managers have signed contracts to install some 538 km of fencing and off-stream watering points across five catchments within the northern Murray-Darling Basin region, which is an area spanning some 314,398 km2. These works will help protect more than 50 native fish species by improving water quality and managing weed spread along waterways. The Australian Government funded $7.5 million to support works to benefit farmers and fish. Southern Queensland Landscapes, with support from the Queensland Government, worked with local communities, Aboriginal organisations and land managers to finish the project in 2023.

Situated north west of Cooladdi in south west Queensland, the family run a cattle trading operation, ‘Boothulla’, are creating multiple benefits having fenced off about seven kilometres of river frontage as well as installing multiple alternate watering points. The fence is a simple but effective barrier to cattle but not wildlife; four strands of barbed wire with steel posts every 10 metres. The restoration created stability of riverbanks, and an improvement in water quality has benefits for land managers, stock and over 50 species of native fish found in the catchments.

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
4. Install fish friendly infrastructure
8. Community capacity building
10. Mapping and status of fish refugia

Tilapia Fact Sheet

Location: QLD-wide

The Queensland Government has developed an informational guide to help ‘Stop the Spread’ of Tilapia into the Murray-Darling Basin. Tilapia are an invasive species, commonly compared to cane toads, they present a great risk to the overall health of the Basin. All Tilapia sightings must be reported (in Queensland call 13 25 23, or in New South Wales call (02) 4916 3877).

Tilapia have been identified in catchments bordering the MDB. They are highly adaptable and can rapidly outnumber native fish and dominate aquatic communities. Most new infestations are caused by human-assisted translocation (movement of live fish). This includes private dam stocking and moving tilapia between catchments to use as bait, or to create new ‘fisheries’. Biosecurity Queensland maintains a strict ‘no-take’ approach to manage tilapia and reduce the spread of this noxious fish. If you catch tilapia in the wild, humanely kill them and do not return them to the water. If you see or catch tilapia outside of their known distribution, take a photo and report it online or phone Biosecurity Queensland on 13 25 23.

Investment Areas:

2. Be event ready for emerging issues
6. Promote management of introduced fish
8. Community capacity building

Waterhole hypoxia research and modelling

Location: QLD-wide

“Between a hot place and hypoxia: Modelling fish-kill risk in Queensland waterholes”

This report by the Queensland Water Modelling Network (QWMN) aims to act as the first step towards building a reliable tool that managers can use for assessment of waterhole hypoxia and fish-kill risks. Additionally, the report makes recommendations of how to use the model to inform future water management decisions and climate adaptation strategies are provided.

In this study, focus model development around six waterholes in the northern MDB were used where data was available. The six sites, Kooroon, Kurmala, Brenda Weirpool, Weribone, Reilly’s Weir and Trafalgar, are located approximately between 300 km to 500 km inland from Brisbane, Queensland.

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
2. Be event ready for emerging issues
9. Address knowledge gaps related to flow
11. Understand and adapt to climate change impacts

Coorong, Lower Lakes and Murray Mouth Recovery Project

Location: Lower Murray / Murray Mouth region

This project has a long-term outlook and a variety of individual projects, beginning in 2010 and expected to run to 2030. This plan is developed on the basis of keeping adequate freshwater in the CLLMM system to restore the ecosystem. The plan specifically outlines targets fish through the flow management at fishways, the protection of fish species (involving off-site conservation) and adaptive management strategies.

Key objectives of the project include:

• improving the ecological features of the CLLMM region in order to deliver a healthy and resilient wetland
• enabling the CLLMM ecosystem to adapt to a variable climate and variable water levels
• ensuring the environmental values that give the Coorong, Lower Lakes and Murray Mouth wetland its international significance are protected
• maintaining salinity levels close to historic trends in the CLLMM region, and an open Murray Mouth
• preserving and promoting the culture of the region’s traditional owners, the Ngarrindjeri, through partnership and involvement in projects
• supporting local communities that depend on the health of the region
• increasing capacity, knowledge, and understanding across communities.

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
2. Be event ready for emerging issues
4. Install fish friendly infrastructure
5. Improve connectivity and remove barriers
8. Community capacity building
9. Address knowledge gaps related to flow
10. Mapping and status of fish refugia
11. Understand and adapt to climate change impacts

Partners:

Ngarrindjeri Traditional Owners

Riverine Recovery Project

Location: Murray River between Wellington and the South Australian border

The Riverine Recovery Project focuses on adaptive management and engineering solutions to restore flows that existed before the installation of barriers. Work has been conducted at Pike Floodplain, Katfish Reach Floodplain, and Yatco Lagoon. Additionally, the program invests in weir pool manipulation and wetland management. The project mainly targets fish through the development of fish friendly infrastructure.

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
2. Be event ready for emerging issues
4. Install fish friendly infrastructure
5. Improve connectivity and remove barriers
9. Address knowledge gaps related to flow

Partners:

SA Government, Australian Government and Ngarrindjeri Traditional Owners.

Re-snagging the Murray River

Location: Murray River

The re-snagging efforts on the Murray River seek to restore habitats for native species that were removed prior to 1990s. This project has introduced 47 snags along the River Murray. In 2020, 23 new snags were added including: 13 snags downstream of Lock 3 near Overland Corner and 10 snags downstream of Lock 4 near Bookpurnong. Monitoring conducted at Banrock Station, has found a range of different native species using new snags in the same way as natural snags.

Rebuilding this important habitat was a complex process requiring the careful selection of tree type, size, shape, position and river location to maximise ecological benefits.

Sourcing the right type of wood can be a barrier to re-snagging efforts. The tree must have been recently felled so that the snag will sink, rather than float away. Identifying approved and necessary tree removals is key to re-snagging efforts.

Snag materials were sourced through the Katarapko Floodplain project which was completed in June 2020. Trees removed for construction works were re-introduced back into the environment in the form of snags for in-stream habitat. All 47 re-established snags were sourced in this manner.

Investment Areas:

2. Be event ready for emerging issues
10. Mapping and status of fish refugia

Partners:

Murray–Darling Basin Authority, Department for Environment and Water, and SA Water.

The Magnificent Six (tri-state alliance)

Location: SA, VIC, NSW

The Tri-State Murray NRM Regional Alliance is an effort between Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia to support fish recovery. The Magnificent Six are a group of small bodied floodplain specialist fish who are in need of help. The conservation efforts have secured native fish populations, using habitat protection, breeding and translocation. For the reintroduction of Murray hardyhead, subpopulations in Disher Creek SA have provided a secure source of fish for translocations across the three states.

Targeted Species:

• Murray hardyhead
• Olive perchlet
• Flat-headed galaxias
• Yarra pygmy perch
• Southern pygmy perch

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
2. Be event ready for emerging issues
3. Continue rehabilitation of fish habitat
8. Community capacity building
11. Understand and adapt to climate change impacts

Partners:

Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia, with government and non government organisations.

10 in Ten Program

Location: Victoria-wide

A new initiative to restock and recover 10 threatened species in ten years across Victoria. Captive breeding (and subsequent translocation and monitoring) is becoming crucial to protecting the future of native fish. The program is establishing a captive breeding program at a new conservation hatchery at the Snobs Creek Hatchery, near Eildon.

The 10 species featured in this ten-year program include:

• McDowall’s Galaxias (Galaxias mcdowalli)
• Macquarie Perch (Macquaria australasica)
• Freshwater Catfish (Tandanus tandanus)
• South Gippsland Spiny Crayfish (Euastacus neodiversus)
• Southern Purple Spotted Gudgeon (Mogurnda adspersa)
• Murray Hardyhead (Craterocephalus fluviatilis)
• Yalmy Galaxias (Galaxias sp. nov. ‘Yalmy’)
• West Gippsland Galaxias (Galaxias longifundus)
• Avon Galaxias (Galaxias sp. nov. ‘Avon’)
• Moroka Galaxias (Galaxias sp. nov. ‘Moroka’)
• Glenelg Freshwater Mussel (Hyridella glenelgensis)
• Trout Cod (Maccullochella macquariensis)
• South-western Victorian Blackfish (Gadopsis sp. nov. ‘Western Victoria’)

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
2. Be event ready for emerging issues
3. Continue rehabilitation of fish habitat
4. Install fish friendly infrastructure
10. Mapping and status of fish refugia
11. Understand and adapt to climate change impacts

Partners:

Victorian and Commonwealth government, including the Victorian Fisheries Authority and the Victorian Environmental Water Holder.

Rivers and Riparian Action Plan (2021)

Location: Victoria-wide

The Rivers and Riparian Action Plan mainly targets fish recovery through the use of infrastructure and flow management. Additionally, the program has a variety of other initiatives which have cross-benefits to native fish. The project is currently in progress and aims to achieve a variety of actions before 2024.

The Initiatives include:

• • • Flagship Waterway projects
    • Gippsland Lakes
    • Ramsar wetlands
    • Major environmental water works in northern Victoria
    • Iconic urban waterways
    • Bushfire Recovery
    • Water for the environment
    • Catchment management authority water statutory functions
    • Citizen science

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
2. Be event ready for emerging issues
4. Install fish friendly infrastructure
5. Improve connectivity and remove barriers
9. Address knowledge gaps related to flow
10. Mapping and status of fish refugia
11. Understand and adapt to climate change impacts

Partners:

Waterwatch, EstuaryWatch, Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action, Victorian Environmental Water Holder, Parks Victoria, CMAs, Melbourne Water, land managers, Traditional Owners and interstate agencies including the Commonwealth Environmental Water Holder and the Murray Darling Basin Authority.

Wimmera CMA Fish Management Plan (2022)

Location: Wimmera region

The Wimmera CMA has developed a plan which aims to guide fish management for 5-10 years in the Wimmera catchment bioregions. The Plan has a variety of priorities such as; translocation, stocking, recreational fish communications, habitat, flows, monitoring and introduced species management.

Priority 1 (Time Frame: 5-10 years)

• Re-establish River Blackfish populations, via translocation, in the MacKenzie River between Dad and Dave Weir and Distribution heads.
• Investigate stocking of GP into Lake Lonsdale during wet year scenarios, especially where there is high primary productivity and link with experimental efforts to cue spawning/recruitment in the mid-lower Wimmera River.
• Promote Wimmera as a peak fishing destination and managing potential impacts through improved access and responsible behaviour.
• Enhance woody habitat in priority areas (e.g. refuge pools, de-snagged stretches devoid of future natural supply of woody habitat due to a lack of riparian vegetation).

Priority 2 (Time frame: 10-15 years)

• Re-establish River Blackfish populations, via translocation, in Mt Cole Creek downstream of Warrak, and Re-establish Southern Pygmy Perch populations, via translocation, in Mt William Creek (including Roses Gap Road).
• Investigate riparian habitat improvements (including riparian fencing) and vegetation control in Glenlofty Creek in preparation for future River Blackfish reintroduction.
• Investigate Golden and Silver Perch spawning and recruitment ecology and links to managed flows, movement and habitat in the mid/lower Wimmera River (Horsham to Dimboola). Investigate optimising Wimmera River (and tributaries) hydrographs for the maintenance and improvement of the entire fish community (including naturally spawned (i.e. Freshwater Catfish and River Blackfish) and stocked fish (i.e. Golden Perch).
• Conduct fish surveys in the mid to upper Wimmera River (i.e. upstream and downstream of Glenorchy) to assess potential and appropriateness of future fish translocations.

Priority 3 (Time frame: 15-20 years)

• Re-establish River Blackfish populations, via translocation, in Burnt Creek and lower MacKenzie River (downstream of Distribution Heads). Ranch Billabong- investigate with Barengi Gadjin Land Council, a collaborative reintroduction of small-bodied fish species including Southern Pygmy Perch or angling species such as Golden Perch.
• Investigate optimal management of invasive Carp from Jeparit Weir to Lake Hindmarsh.
• Implement priority habitat (Grove et al 2019), Carp (Iervasi and Pickett 2020) and blackwater (Baldwin 2021) management recommendations.

Priority 4 (Time frame: 15-20 years)

• Establish populations of native, small-bodied fish, including Southern Pygmy Perch, into six securely watered refuge pools.
• Investigate River Blackfish and Obscure Galaxias reintroduction into the Glenorchy Weir Pool area.
• Investigate constraints to Murray Cod spawning and recruitment and survival in mid/lower Wimmera River (in area around Horsham).

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
2. Be event ready for emerging issues
3. Continue rehabilitation of fish habitat
4. Install fish friendly infrastructure
5. Improve connectivity and remove barriers
6. Promote management of introduced fish
9. Address knowledge gaps related to flow
10. Mapping and status of fish refugia
11. Understand and adapt to climate change impacts

Partners:

Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action, Victorian Fisheries Authority, Victorian Environmental Water Holder and Traditional Owners

Macquarie perch recovery – let’s get serious about the recovery of Maccas

Location: North-East Victoria

This project has been active since 2020 and focuses on iconic Basin species the Macquarie perch. The initiative was born out of the need for bushfire recovery of streamside and instream fish habitat across the south-eastern reach of the Murray-Darling Basin including the Mitta-Mitta, Upper Murray, Ovens, Goulburn-Broken, Kiewa, and Murrumbidgee. Direct recovery actions include boulder seeding, hardwood timber structure installation, fencing and revegetation.

Scientific evidence:

Fisheries independent surveys has confirmed that survival of stocked Macquarie perch and the re-establishment of populations where they were previously locally extinct. The community has had an incredible response to the engagement through the project with over 500,000 views online and 100’s of people getting hands on involved in habitat restoration and release of Macquarie perch. The love for Macquarie perch is strong and the appetite for native fish recovery is very encouraging!

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
2. Be event ready for emerging issues
8. Community capacity building
11. Understand and adapt to climate change impacts

Partners:

SEA LIFE Melbourne Aquarium and Traditional Owners

Northern Basin Toolkit Projects

In March 2021 the Australian Government announced the environmental projects that will be funded through the Northern Basin Toolkit. The 10 successful projects were assessed by an independent expert panel and designed to protect water for the environment, improve compliance with water laws, and create opportunities for local communities and First Nations. Basin governments will work with local communities to ensure local knowledge and needs are considered in project design and delivery. These measures are scheduled to be in operation by 30 June 2024.

The commitments package will assist to: Strengthening the protection of environmental flows. Strengthen compliance with Basin water laws. Improve outcomes for First Nations people. Address the social and economic impacts of the Basin Plan. Improve confidence in the Northern Basin Review data. Establish a Northern Basin Commissioner (replaced by Inspector-General of Water Compliance). The Projects: Three Gwydir constraints measures projects NSW fish for the future: reconnecting the Northern Basin project NSW fish for the future: fish-friendly water extraction project NSW scoping initiative: Macquarie Marshes enhanced watering project Enhance the flexibility and capacity for distributing and managing low flows through the Lower Balonne River system and bifurcation weirs project QLD fish-friendly water extraction: Condamine-Balonne and Boarder rivers project QLD reconnecting catchments: Condamine-Balonne project QLD: improving catchment fish resilience: Culgoa River project.

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
2. Be event ready for emerging issues
5. Improve connectivity and remove barriers
9. Address knowledge gaps related to flow
10. Mapping and status of fish refugia

CEWH Framework and Actions

Environmental water is used to help rivers flow, keep native plants healthy, and support the survival, feeding and breeding of native animals, birds, fish and frogs. The CEWH manages water for supporting fish through activities such as the Northern Rivers Refresh Flow (autumn 2023) and providing refuge from declines in water quality in the Edward/Kolety-Wakool system. These are just two current examples of actions taking place at a Commonwealth level.

See ‘Commonwealth Environmental Activities Framework’

Examples of common environmental use actions for fish: Spring pulse/stimulus flow maintaining river flows/levels during spawning season dispersal flows post spawning working with river operators – piggy-backing/underwriting losses refresh flows/habitat maintenance Hypoxic threat reduction/refugia flows.

Investment Areas:

1. Threatened species actions and research
2. Be event ready for emerging issues
3. Continue rehabilitation of fish habitat
9. Address knowledge gaps related to flow
10. Mapping and status of fish refugia