Lakkari Art: Fish

Fish and rivers have been intimately linked for millions of years, and fish and humans for thousands. River conditions are reflected in the health of fish populations and communities; with variations to such aspects having implications for river-depenent Aboriginal Nations pre-European settlement, and today. We collaborated with Gamilaroi Yuwaalaraay artist, Lakkari Pitt, to help us portray the fish that inhabit the rivers we study. We love the artwork and stories she produced.

Lakkari Art: Waterbirds

Birds that are dependent on aquatic ecosystems for some or all of their lifecycle are termed waterbirds. Measuring waterbird abundance and diversity helps to determine the health of the ecosystems they inhabit. We collaborated with Gamilaroi Yuwaalaraay artist, Lakkari Pitt, to help us portray the waterbirds that inhabit the aquatic ecosystems we study. We love the artwork and stories she produced.

Lakkari Art: Vegetation

Australia’s floodplains, wetlands and riverine ecosystems are characterised by unique, diverse and often iconic vegetation. We collaborated with Gamilaroi Yuwaalaraay artist, Lakkari Pitt, to help us portray the vegetation within the aquatic ecosystems we study. We love the artwork and stories she produced.

Lakkari Art: Food webs

Food webs show how food and energy resources such as microbes, algae and reeds are connected with consumers such as waterbugs, fish and waterbirds. We collaborated with Gamilaroi Yuwaalaraay artist, Lakkari Pitt, to help us portray the food webs within the wetlands we study. We love the artwork and stories she produced.

Lakkari Art: Hydrology

Hydrology is the science of Earth’s water, particularly its properties and movement in relation to the land. We collaborated with Gamilaroi Yuwaalaraay artist, Lakkari Pitt, to help us portray the hydrology of the rivers and landscapes we study. We love the artwork and stories she produced. 

Northern Basin 2019-20 Summary

The Commonwealth Environmental Water Office (CEWO) have now released the Northern Basin 2019-20 Summary. This publication includes a fact sheet highlighting the use of Commonwealth Environmental Water in the 2019-20 water year in the northern Murray-Darling Basin. Click the image above to take a look.

Issue 8 ‘Big dry’ survivors

The past five years have been challenging, to say the least, for many fish species within the Gwydir Valley, particularly regarding spawning and recruitment (aka. breeding). This has made the recent findings from the NSW Fisheries team all the more exciting. The team found that Murray cod and Freshwater catfish populations of the Gwydir Valley have had great breeding success in the past 12 months, demonstrating the resilience of both species during the ‘big dry’.

Issue 7 Dhagaay, Gagalin, Bidyin, Yellowbelly

Yellowbelly hold cultural values rooted in economics, social and environmental health, spirituality & as good old tasty tucker. These medium-sized native fish live throughout the Murray-Darling Basin and are known by different names in different regions. The names Golden perch, Callop and Murray perch might sound familiar to you. Did you know they are also known as “Dhagaay” in Gamillaraay/ Kamilaroi language and “Gagalin” or “Bidyin” in Wiradjuri language?