Fish Habitats

Category

A hook a day keeps the doctor away – New survey finds fishing contributes to wellbeing

By Lucy Stuart September 26, 2023

We know that Australians love to fish - the types of recreational fishers are vastly diverse across Australia, with fishing meaning something different for everyone. In 2000, the first national scale recreational fishing survey was conducted, estimating that 19.5% of Australians aged five and older recreationally fish (Henry and Lyle 2003). This number was substantially

Maccas in the Macquarie River

By Lucy Stuart September 18, 2023

Macquarie perch were once abundant in their namesake, the Macquarie River, yet are now extremely threatened throughout the Murray-Darling Basin.  The species is considered extinct in SA and endangered in NSW, VIC and ACT. Extinction is looming for this little fish, with only four isolated wild populations left in NSW, spanning less than a combined

The plight of Southern Pygmy Perch and the local efforts for recovery

By Lucy Stuart August 31, 2023

Once used as a common bait fish across the Murray-Darling Basin, the now threatened Southern Pygmy Perch (SPP) has now disappeared from most historically known locations. In NSW there are only three broad locations remaining located nearby the towns of Dalton, Holbrook and Albury. The upper Lachlan drainage near Dalton is the most far-north population

Monitoring and managing fishways – what happens after construction?

By Lucy Stuart August 3, 2023

Some time ago, we published an article about the fishways at the Koondrook and Cohuna weirs that were constructed in late 2021. More recently, we pondered on the development of performance standards for fishways and what a good fishway looks like. Although still in development, the researchers at Arthur Rylah Institute (ARI) have been collecting

“People making fish happen” – what makes fish recovery actions successful?

By Lucy Stuart July 26, 2023

Here at Finterest, our work revolves around the recovery of our precious native fish, which are an invaluable cultural, ecological, social, and environmental resource. We do it because it’s important, and because we love it. And if you’re reading this, you probably love it too. At the Native Fish Forum in Dubbo this year, I

Redfin perch and the EHN virus

By Joy Becker and Lucy Stuart July 19, 2023

Epizootic haematopoietic necrosis virus (EHNV) is a lethal virus that infects fish through the body surface or gastrointestinal tract. Once in the host, it multiplies in the blood forming organs such as the spleen and kidney and destroys them in the process, ultimately killing the fish. EHNV is only present in Australia, endemic to catchments

Trout and trout stocking: acknowledging the harm, finding the balance

By Lucy Stuart June 26, 2023

A long time ago in a galaxy (not so) far, far away ... aliens infiltrated the ranks of many native fish populations and risked their very survival. Fish may not be an alien concept to us, however, for Australia’s native flora and fauna, alien species pose a real threat. Native fish declines are a big

Rare footage of small-bodied fish in the wild!

By Lucy Stuart May 26, 2023

Recently our attention was grabbed by this stunning footage of galaxiids in the Mornington Peninsula area. We absolutely needed to know more! Read on for a short interview with the young videographer. Lucy: How old are you and where are you from? Henry: I am currently 18 years old and completing year 12. I live

What have the recent floods meant for the Coorong, Lower Lakes and Murray Mouth?

By Kate McKenna April 5, 2023

Recent floods flowing down the Murray River have well and truly reached the Coorong, Lower Lakes and Mouth of the Murray. All 593 openings across 5 barrages, which for the last 80 years have controlled flows at the Mouth of the Murray, were fully open over the summer, with freshwater, saltwater, fish and other creatures

Hume Dam photographed from above on a bright sunny day, with a small flow visible.

Attraction flow supporting native fish migration

By Kate McKenna March 27, 2023

‘Flow hydrodynamics’, ‘turbulent kinetic energy’, ‘rheotactic behaviour’ - whilst these terms might not mean much to you, they are essential parts of native fish migration in the Murray-Darling Basin. The Murray-Darling Basin is one of the most regulated river systems in the world, home to over 10,000 barriers preventing fish from migrating. These barriers

An aerial photograph of Lake Eildon Spillway on an overcast day.

Does cold water pollution affect native fish differently?

By Kate McKenna March 20, 2023

Native fish in Australia are hardy, having adapted over millennia to live in one of the driest continents on Earth. However, research shows that even the hardiest of native fish species aren’t immune to the effects of human changes to natural environments. River regulation, in particular, alters aquatic ecosystems significantly, changing the natural environment and

The Menindee Main Weir is open in December 2022.

Making the Connection: Providing Temporary Fish Passage at the Menindee Lakes

By Iain Ellis February 3, 2023

Fish Movement Weirs and regulators in rivers and lakes can impede or block the movement of native fish, impacting their ability to migrate and move to suitable feeding or breeding areas. While all fish need to move around to some degree, ‘flow-specialists’ like Golden perch and Silver perch need to move along rivers as part