Murrumbidgee raises aquatic habitat awareness

It's said that a man from the Murrumbidgee region once caught a Murray Cod and found golf balls in its stomach when he sliced it open. The fish had mistaken the balls for eggs that often fall from bird nests in the fringing River Red Gums along the Murrumbidgee River.

Murrumbidgee Catchment Management Authority (CMA) Catchment Coordinator, Michael Dunn, said this anecdote is a vivid example of how human impact has affected fish feeding habits.

Funding

The Murrumbidgee CMA has received $559,000 from the Australian Government to raise awareness of aquatic plants and animals and to improve the habitat of native fish species. The State Government has also provided assistance.

Activities and achievements

Murrumbidgee CMA Chairman, Lee O'Brien, said public awareness of issues affecting the future health of the Murrumbidgee is a high priority for the CMA.

“People often forget about fish in the river, so we are raising greater awareness by producing informative brochures,” Lee said. “They have been widely distributed to recreational fishing outlets and local government as well as at local field days.”

The CMA has produced three brochures. One highlights threatened species native to the Murrumbidgee, another describes introduced pest species and the third details ways to improve aquatic habitat.

As part of the project, a demonstration reach is being established along Old Man Creek, halfway between Wagga Wagga and Narrandera. The CMA has contracted the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries (Fisheries) for this work. It aims to highlight how rivers and river banks can be better managed to improve the plight of the native fish and vegetation.

Landholders have been engaged in the project in a number of ways including agreements which provide them with the means to clear willows, build fences and provide alternative water supplies for stock.

Assistance is also available to help landholders improve fish passageways. This work is being undertaken at Morleys Creek in Gundagai where infrastructure put in place some time ago isolates fish movement. The CMA is working with the community to allow native fish to move more freely again.

“We are also conducting a study to find out which weirs along the Murrumbidgee River require modification to allow greater fish movement,” Lee said. “At present the weirs act like brick walls, preventing fish from moving along the river for feeding and breeding. The addition of fish ladders to the weirs will help native fish to move more freely.”

More information

1. Michael Dunn, Murrumbidgee Catchment Management Authority: (02) 6932 3255 or michael.dunn@cma.nsw.gov.au
2. Murrumbidgee CMA 

Australian Government NRM Team
GPO Box 787
Canberra ACT 2601 Australia
1800 552 008 (toll-free)

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Caring for our Country is an Australian Government initiative jointly administered by the Australian Government departments of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry and the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts