OzFish Hunter River Chapter are working together with Lower Hunter Landcare to restore the riparian vegetation of 500m of Hunter River bank, removing the problematic Balloon Vine and replacing weeds with a corridor of native vegetation set to provide shade, insects and habitat for the fish in this reach.
OzFish Unlimited has partnered with Tregeagle Landcare and private landowners on Boggy Creek, tributary of Tucki Tucki Creek which flows into the far-famed Tuckean Swamp. OzFish are working on several ways to improve native fish habitat in the area, including planting trees on the creek bank.
The project site is about 9 kilometres upstream from Tuckean Swamp near Tregeagle. Weed removal and planting of 3000 native trees along the riverbank has restored Australian Bass and other fish habitat. Funding for the works were provided by BCF – Boating Camping, Fishing and Lismore City Council through their Rural Landholder Initiative.
This citizen science project aims to better understand the flow-on benefits of habitat restoration for fish and recreational fishers at Burrill Lake.
Wetland wonders
OzFish and Landcare Australia has given a leg up for a little-known endangered fish in Northern NSW, the Oxleyan Pygmy Perch (OPP), which had its home impacted by the catastrophic 2019/2020 Black Summer bushfires in Northern New South Wales.
Fishos helping fish
The Cudgewa Creek is home to many of our favorite freshwater native fish including the iconic Murray cod, the beautiful mountain galaxias and of course, the endangered trout cod which are also fondly known as bluenose cod.
Local fishers have been absolutely central to the recovery of the habitat and fish stocks in the Cudgewa Creek, near Tintaldra in the Upper Murray, following the devastating 2019-20 summer bushfires.
The Sunraysia region is set to receive significant support over the coming years with the setup of a locally based OzFish River Repair Bus.
The OzFish River Repair Bus concept has been tried and tested and is a truly unique, successful initiative developed by one of OzFish Unlimited Chapters – Inland Waterways based in Dubbo.
Coffs Harbour OzFish volunteers have been mapping the Bellinger River, where many of the local fishermen have caught their first bream near Bellingen NSW.
OzFish volunteers have spent hours undertaking mapping for a range of fish habitat types including snags, seagrass, shellfish reefs.
OzFish Eurobodalla Chapter with Eurobodalla Landcare and Eurobodalla Shire Council (ESC) have been collaborating to recover areas of Clayton’s Spiny Crayfish habitat degraded by bushfire in the Tuross River catchment.
Together, the groups have identified a property on the river and have undertaken three consecutive days of weed control; removing Tobacco bush, Winter senna, Turkey Rhubarb, Cape Ivy, Moth Vine and Honeysuckle.
The OzFish Eurobodalla Chapter are working with the landholder to install approximately 2.5 kilometres of fencing, which will retain approximately 70 hectares of river-front banks from livestock trampling and grazing, giving native vegetation a chance to recover from the fires. Where required, additional erosion and sedimentation control are also being implemented in gullies and where bank collapse has occurred to protect the important riffle habitat adjacent to the property from siltation.
The utter destruction of this habitat due to the fires has created new issues such as woody weeds, erosion in gullies, and the decimation of old-growth trees and riparian zone.
OzFish and Landcare Australia have joined together with landowners and recreational fishers to start the journey of restoring this vital Eastern cod habitat back to its once healthy and vibrant ecosystem.
The Rocky River is a perennial stream of the Clarence River catchment and is located in the northern rivers of NSW. During the bushfires of November 2019 this area was heavily impacted destroying the habitat of the threatened species Eastern freshwater cod (Maccullochella Ikei).
The utter destruction of this habitat due to the fires has created new issues such as woody weeds, erosion in gullies, and the decimation of old-growth trees and riparian zone.
The endangered Manning River helmeted turtle’s habitat was damaged in the Black Summer bushfires of 2019-2020.
The OzFish Manning Chapter partnered with MidCoast2Tops Landcare to complete noxious weed removal at five sites, totalling 5 kilometres of riverbank, in the upper reaches of the Manning River to protect remaining Manning River helmeted turtle habitat and assist native vegetation recovery.
Unfortunately, heavy rainfall and widespread flooding in the region following weeding has hindered efforts to reinstate native vegetation with community planting days postponed. Planting days are scheduled for late-July with MidCoast2Tops Landcare and OzFish volunteers taking part to reinstate the valuable riparian vegetation that has otherwise been lost which is critically important for Manning River helmeted turtle populations.
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