Native Fish

Category

10-years on: the legacy of restoring the Ovens River for cod

By Scott Raymond July 18, 2022

The Ovens River in north-eastern Victoria is home to two large-bodied native freshwater predators: Murray cod and Trout cod. These iconic fish are top order piscivores (carnivorous animals that primarily feed on fish), helping to regulate the structure and functioning of their aquatic environments. While threatened Murray cod are highly sought after by anglers, the

Searching for the Ghost Fish

By Peter Rose, Tarmo Raadik and Dan Stoessel May 31, 2022

Flat-head galaxias (Galaxias rostratus) is one of the ‘magnificent six’ native threatened floodplain specialist fish. It’s in dire trouble in the Southern Murray-Darling Basin, having almost declined out of sight. The species were historically widespread and abundant throughout the Murray River Corridor but are now nowhere to be seen in NSW or South Australia, and

Fishy Villas: Fish Hotels Providing Habitat for Native Species

By Lucy Stuart May 24, 2022

Where do Australia’s native fish live? Perhaps in Murray Cod condos or, Flathead Galaxis flats, or even Murray Hardyhead houses? These cozy dwellings are also known as fish hotels which mimic the original habitat of the fish in instances of removal or intervention. They are dubbed fish hotels as most fish only stay a brief

What happens to people when the Baaka does not flow?

By Iain Ellis May 4, 2022

In the summer of 2018-19, after two years of low flows in the lower Darling Baaka River in western New South Wales, a series of three mass fish kills occurred near Menindee, resulting in the deaths of millions of native fish. The size of the fish kills was unprecedented, with millions of native Bony herring

Gaygay (Freshwater Catfish) Recovering in the Lower Gwydir

By Leo Cameron May 3, 2022

The native Gaygay (Freshwater catfish - Tandanus tandanus) was once common across the lower Gwydir, but in recent decades, numbers have declined significantly and the species is now considered ‘rare’ in most areas. In 2015, during the Gwydir Long Term Intervention Monitoring (LTIM) sampling, only one gaygay was captured, and no gaygay were detected subsequently

Koondrook fishways proving to be popular for our native fish

By Lucy Stuart April 19, 2022

The establishment of the Koondrook Weir, located in the mid-Murray River system, has limited the movement between Gunbower Creek and the Murray River for vulnerable and threatened fish species such as the Murray cod and the Golden perch. This lack of fish movement has also stunted potential developments in recreational fishing tourism for the area.

Why do we need long-term native fish recovery plans?

By Kate McKenna April 12, 2022

The Mid-Murray Floodplains along the New South Wales and Victorian border are home to some of the highest diversities of native fish species within the Murray-Darling Basin. Threatened and recreationally important species, like the Murray cod, golden perch, trout cod and silver perch, as well as wetland-specialist species, once thrived in the region’s interconnecting rivers,

The wildlife recovery dilemma: Which species do we choose for recovery projects?

By Kate McKenna April 4, 2022

Australia is facing a biodiversity crisis. Since 1788, according to the federal Environment and Biodiversity Protection Act, 39 of all mammal species (10%), 23 bird species, four frog species, one known fish species and 37 plant species are now extinct in Australia. Native fish, in particular, are silently bearing the brunt of increasing degradation of

Improving our ability to manage fish kills – John Koehn’s lessons from the Murray Darling Basin

By Kate McKenna March 21, 2022

The dramatic events of the summer of 2018-19, where a series of three mass fish kills resulted in the deaths of millions of native fish in the lower Darling-Baaka River, captured national and global attention. Feelings of sadness and horror at the scale of the fish kills had the media and general public, who for

‘Canary in the Condamine’ – How does the cold water specialist, River blackfish, survive in Queensland?

By Kate McKenna March 9, 2022

How does a cold water specialist fish survive in Queensland? And why is it known as a ‘Canary in the coalmine’? There is a special fish - the River blackfish - that calls the Condamine headwaters in southern Queensland its home. This region is unique in Queensland as it has stretches of cold water that

New handbook supporting the conservation of nine NSW threatened freshwater fish species

By Kate McKenna June 7, 2021

The ‘Conservation translocation handbook for New South Wales threatened freshwater fishes’ (April 2021, PDF) has…

From New Caledonia to the Barwon River: tracking migratory eels using satellites

By Kate McKenna May 4, 2021

Eels are an important part of Victoria’s biodiversity and Indigenous cultural heritage, yet globally and…