#80 - OCTOBER 2023
Return Of The Macca: Turning The Tide In A Numbers Game For Endangered Native Species
The return of the Macquarie perch is gathering pace with volunteers relocating hundreds of trout in Central NSW to help the endangered native species avoid extinction. Hundreds of trout have been removed from Winburndale Dam in the Central Tablelands to the nearby Millpond fishery in Portland, which will help the Macquarie perch repopulate.
Pygmy mussels look strong again to fill up black bream in WA
Efforts to restore critical pygmy mussel habitat in the Swan-Canning River system in Western Australia have significantly helped to revitalise shellfish populations, relieving pressure on black bream, a species which relies on mussels as a vital food source.
World-first program repopulates and releases endangered stocky galaxias fish into natural habitat
A world-first innovative breeding program has brought the stocky galaxias fish population back from the brink of extinction, allowing them to be released back into their natural habitat. More than 130 stocky galaxias were released in the Snowy Mountains after they were threatened by bushfires and heavy rain.
Great Barrier Reef remains precariously placed
The Great Barrier Reef has withstood the threats posed by coral bleaching events, predatorial crown-of-thorns starfish and other hazards this year, but remains precariously placed, according to an annual survey of hard coral coverage. The annual long-term monitoring update observed a less than 1% decline in overall hard coral cover, with the southern part of the reef between Prosperine and Gladstone holding up best among three study regions. But while coral cover remains higher than record lows recorded in the past decade, and continues to improve in several individual reefs, more substantial coral loss in others contributed to the small decline across the entirety of Great Barrier Reef.
Barwon's fish habitat restoration a massive boost for anglers
A three-year project has delivered significant environmental benefits for the Barwon River, anglers, recreational users and the Geelong community. Restoring this habitat is vital to improving the fishery, the overall health of the river and the range of species that it supports.
How modern screening innovations can save hundreds of millions of native fish annually
Understanding the scale of the problem of unscreened pumps and diversions is only a recent phenomenon in Australia but new fish screening technology could be “the sleeping giant of river restoration”. By switching to modern fish screens, hundreds of millions of native fish can be saved every year and better yet farmers save money.
Photo:Keith Martin/Flinders University
How rainforest fish adapt to habitat in the tropics
The future of freshwater fish species in Australia’s tropical rainforest areas, including the Daintree and Mosman Gorge, will increasingly be subject to the vagaries of climatic and other changes Researchers have led an in-depth study of the colourful eastern rainbowfish for clues about how their populations have adapted to local conditions in the creeks and rivers of the wet tropical areas of Far North Queensland.
Rescue mission breathes life into Murray after floods
More than 1500 freshwater crayfish and hundreds of native fish are back in the swim of things in the Murray River after being rescued following the devastating floods. Several species were captured and relocated, or held in aquaculture facilities during the flooding period.
How climate and water management affect streamflow seasonality
New research has found that climate and river management have impacted both the amount of water and when it arrives. The researchers investigated the change in the occurrence of streamflow due to climate change (through a change in rainfall) and river operations (flow regulation and diversion) in the Victoria’s Goulburn-Broken River catchment. Native fish and other aquatic species rely on seasonal high flows to flourish.
A new approach for saving eastern freshwater cod
An innovative nesting box has reignited hope for the survival of one of Australia’s most iconic native fish species, the eastern freshwater cod, so that one day fishers may be able to legally catch them again. The endangered fish have used the box to breed in the wild and researchers hope it could help save the Murray cod and other freshwater native cod.
Biodegradable gear can reduce cost of ghost fishing
New research has found that the design of biodegradable fishing gear needs to improve if it is to help address the environmental and economic impacts of 'ghost fishing', the term for abandoned, lost, or otherwise discarded fishing gear. It is a significant source of plastic waste and can cause a variety of environmental problems as it remains relatively unchanged for a long time, perhaps for hundreds of years.
Photo:Matilda Biddulph, inews..co.uk
London ‘ditch’ transformed into thriving ecosystem
What was mistaken for a drain or a ditch has been rejuvenated into a thriving river. Turkey Brook's water is clearer, teeming with organisms and invertebrates, and is a sanctuary for biodiversity to thrive. Salmon and trout lay eggs and the banks are covered in greenery and daisies.
Alarm over mangrove areas in global decline
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has released an alarming report on the net decline in global mangrove area from 2000-2020. More than 284 thousand hectares have been lost over that timeframe with aquaculture development and natural retraction driven by climate change the main drivers in mangrove reduction.
Photo:Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Top fish predators could suffer substantial loss of suitable habitat by 2100 due to climate change
A study of 12 species of highly migratory fish predators, including sharks, tuna, marlin and swordfish, found most of them will encounter widespread losses of suitable habitat and redistribution from current habitats in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico by 2100. In some cases, these iconic, economically and ecologically important species could lose upwards of 70% of suitable habitat by the end of the century - these areas are among the fastest warming ocean regions and are projected to increase between 1–6°C.
Photo:Thomas O’Keefe, American Whitewater
Dam walls coming down in largest river restoration in history
After decades of determined advocacy, the four dams of the Klamath River Hydroelectric Project will be removed by 2024. For over a century, these dams have degraded water quality and blocked salmon, steelhead, and Pacific lamprey from migrating upstream in southern Oregon and northern California
Photo Chhut Chheana/USAID
World’s largest freshwater fish draws attention to delicate ecosystem in Lower Mekong Basin
Scientists are racing to gain insights into the Mekong River’s disappearing goliaths, particularly the endangered giant freshwater stingray, and how to save them. Dozens of hydropower dams in the Lower Mekong Basin have taken a toll, fragmenting habitat, reducing water quality, and crimping migrations.
Photo: www.mongabay.com
How scientists finally tracked European eels all the way to the Sargasso Sea
Where European eels start and end their lives was long a mystery, but a bold expedition has revealed the last details of their incredible migration. Their life cycle is fascinating and their final journey, the details of which have recently been discovered, is jaw-dropping.
Photo: Gerald Herbert/AP Photo
Tiny fish gets second chance to thrive ... 50 years after vanishing
A tiny fish that once flourished in a river running hundreds of miles from Mississippi into Louisiana is being reintroduced to the Pearl River after disappearing 50 years ago. Decades of reducing pollution means the waterway is now clean enough for pearl darters from a private hatchery to be released.
Restoration project creating healthy estuarine habitat to attract salmon in Seattle river
One year after opening the Duwamish River People’s Park and Shoreline Habitat restoration project, researchers found more than 7300 juvenile salmon and extensive, healthy marsh vegetation. The restoration creates valuable off-channel habitat in the saltwater-freshwater transition zone, enhancing a high-priority migratory corridor for Chinook salmon.
Photo: Alexander Turner/The Guardian
Unlocking a river: rare silver fish returns to its ancient spawning grounds
A program to remove navigational weirs built in the 19th century in the River Severn in the United Kingdom has allowed the once abundant twaite shad, with its forked tail and single dorsal fin, to return to its natural spawning grounds.
A fresh look at the Murray-Darling Basin's native fish
Associate Professor Mark Lintermans, a freshwater fisheries ecologist with over 40 years of experience has authored the second edition of Fishes of the Murray–Darling Basin, published by the Australian River Restoration Centre. It incorporates new ecological information on existing and additional species accounts. The number of freshwater fish now known to occur in the Basin has increased from 57 species in the first edition to 63 species in the second edition. Check it out
The Fish Habitat Network
The Fish Habitat Network is an initiative funded by the NSW Recreational Fishing Trusts and supported by NSW Government. Our mission is to harness the skills and experience of multiple organisations to promote and support the involvement of recreational fishers in all aspects of fish habitat management. Its objectives are to share knowledge, initiatives and activities related to improving fish abundance and biodiversity through habitat management, to share knowledge and support inter-jurisdictional collaboration and to make things happen on the ground. "Habitat Makes Fish Happen" - The Fish Habitat Network has created its social media channels and a website as a way to share information about fish habitat. Here you will find information and updates, plus images and videos that promote ecological understanding of fish habitat across Australia. Go in depth
Explore.org’s Shark Cam
What marine life is found 34 miles off the coast of North Carolina? Watch live and find out more about the sharks residing in these waters. Take a look
Habitat Action Grants
Angling clubs, individuals, community groups, local councils and organisations interested in rehabilitating fish habitats in freshwater and saltwater areas throughout NSW can apply for grants of up to $40,000. Check it out
The Life and Times of the Murray Cod
Charles Sturt University Associate Professor in Ecology, Paul Humphries, has written a book on the many roles the species has played throughout the history of the continent, from its place at the heart of the Aboriginal creation story of the Murray River, its role as a food source for explorers surveying inland Australia in the early 1800s, to it forming the basis of a commercial fishing industry up to the early 2000s. Read all about it
Fish Screens Australia
Fish Screens Australia is an information hub. It’s a collaboration between senior fisheries scientists, all types of water users, manufacturers, university researchers, engineers, anglers and conservation managers. See what it's all about
Newstreams is an email newsletter to keep people up to date about fish habitat activities and important developments in fish ecology and habitat. It is free by email subscription.
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You can send in your habitat news by emailing newstreams@ozfish.org.au
Back issues can be found at https://www.fishhabitatnetwork.com.au/newstreams
Newstreams is supported by funds from the NSW Recreational Fishing Trusts, raised from the NSW Recreational Fishing Licence fee. Newstreams is published electronically every three months by OzFish Unlimited on behalf of the NSW Department of Primary Industries - Fisheries on behalf of the Fish Habitat Network, a partnership of organisations working on fish habitat and a network of fishers engaged in fish habitat issues.
OzFish Unlimited, is partnering with the NSW Government and the NSW Recreational Fishing Trusts to deliver NEWSTREAMS four times a year.
