Species Diversity

This theme evaluates the contribution of Commonwealth environmental water to achieving biodiversity outcomes. It focuses on a range of species, including waterbirds, frogs and freshwater turtles, that are likely to have been protected or restored by Commonwealth environmental water.

Image: Sacred Kingfisher in the Gwydir. Photo credit: CEWH

introduction approach current activities team

Knowledge Catalogue

News

Murrumbidgee

Species Diversity

April 4, 2024

Rakali research in the Murrumbidgee

PhD student Emmalie Sanders studies rakali in the Murrumbidgee, uncovering their habits and habitats to aid conservation efforts for these unique water rats.

The water requirements of the endangered Australasian bittern

Scientists use audio recorders to track the elusive Australasian bittern, revealing how water management can boost breeding success in key wetlands.

Professor Skye Wassens

Dr Elizabeth Znidersic

Where have all the freshwater mussels gone?

It wasn’t that long ago that freshwater mussels numbered in their “hundreds of thousands” throughout the Murray-Darling Basin. Now, researchers use sonar to find them, aiming to restore these vital filter feeders to their former glory.

Higher diversity of turtle species observed at wetland sites which receive environmental water delivery

Environmental water delivery boosts turtle diversity in Murrumbidgee wetlands, aiding the survival of three unique freshwater species through targeted efforts.

A turtles go with no flow

Explore how turtles in the Gwydir Wetlands adapted to extreme drought, showcasing their resilience and the importance of environmental water flows.

Life on a tree – monitoring arboreal lizards in floodplain environments

Explore how artificial bark covers reveal the hidden lives of tree-dwelling lizards, frogs, and spiders in the Murrumbidgee wetlands.

Eva Moore

Associate Professor Damian Michael

Gaye Bourke

Professor Skye Wassens

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Webinars

Species conservation in the age of uncertainty

Globally, freshwater vertebrates are declining rapidly, four times faster than their terrestrial counterparts, due to threats like habitat loss and invasive species. This presentation will discuss the challenges faced by threatened species in managed floodplains and explore the potential of environmental water management in conservation efforts.

Watch Recording

Timing of environmental water delivery influences extinction risk for chytrid infected amphibian populations

This work demonstrates how stochastic population models can be successfully used to assist water management decisions by calculating the extinction risk for endangered species under different water management scenarios.

Watch Recording

Waterbirds on the wing

How satellite-tracking of waterbird movements from the Murray-Darling Basin is informing water and wetland management.

Watch Recording

Role of winter environmental watering in supporting declining freshwater turtle populations

Watch Recording

Satellite tracking ibis and spoonbill movements to inform wetland and water management

Watch Recording

Biodiversity in the Basin

Freshwater ecosystems are biodiversity hotspots. In the Murray-Darling Basin rivers and wetlands support numerous rare and threatened species and are vital habitats for many migratory waterbird species. We introduce the frogs, reptiles, waterbirds, mammals and monotremes in the Murray Darling Basin and discuss how managed environmental water deliveries can support biodiversity.

Watch Recording

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Why focus on Species Diversity?

Australia’s aquatic ecosystems support many nationally and internationally significant plant and animal species. The Biodiversity Theme will evaluate the importance of Commonwealth environmental watering actions for maintaining these ecosystems and the biodiversity that depends on them. We will use information gathered at a range of scales to assess which habitats and species are being supported by water for the environment.We will also investigate how we can support aquatic biodiversity with water for the environment into the future.

We are interested in finding out more about how water for the environment can be used to protect and restore aquatic habitats like wetlands and refuge pools. The threatened animal species that depend on these environments will also be studied, with waterbird tracking a key component of our research into how animals move throughout the Murray-Darling Basin. As we deepen our understanding and knowledge, we will share what we learn through a range of data visualisation techniques.

Two Eastern Long-necked Turtles basking on a log in a shallow wetland surrounded by reeds and still water

Eastern long-neck turtles (Chelodina longicollis). Photo credit: Commons Wikimedia

Close-up of a vibrant Southern Bell Frog with green and brown markings, sitting among plants on damp soil

Southern bell frog (Litoria raniformis). Photo credit: Science Learning Hub

Our approach

The Biodiversity Theme will combine research and monitoring data to explain how Commonwealth environmental water affects the presence, numbers and movements of animals and plants that live in aquatic habitats. We want to understand how these plants and animals respond to water for the environment and WHY we see the responses that we do.

Four approaches will be used:

Researcher in wetland fieldwork with birds flying overhead.

Image: Research team member Freya out in the field collecting waterbird data.
Photo credit: Heather McGinness

01: Conduct field sampling and measurements to collect on-ground data

Map showing bird migration tracking points and dates across southeastern Australia.

Image: Satellite tracking map from ‘Laurie’ a tagged Straw necked Ibis. Photo credit: Heather McGinness

02: Analyse data to interpret biological responses to flow

Two researchers analyzing ecological data on computer screens in an office.

Image: Flow-MER modelling team at work. Photo credit: Rebecca Lester

03: Undertake modelling to evaluate specific ecological outcomes

Presenter showing a migration tracking map to an audience during a seminar.

Image: Heather McGinness sharing findings at a Landcare meeting in Breadalbane, NSW. Photo credit: Richard Snashall

04. Share what we know with the broader community about project activities and outcomes

Current activities

Our team is working across three main activities:

Close-up of a bright yellow Stony Creek Frog sitting on a rock at night.

Stony creek frog (Ranoidea ‘Litoria’ wilcoxii) in the upper catchment of the Condamine river. Photo Danial Stratford

Species evaluation

This activity will draw together monitoring data about threatened species across the Selected Areas and Basin Themes to assess which animals are influenced by the delivery of water for the environment.

Project leader:

Skye Wassens

View of a calm river with steep muddy banks and scattered trees along the water's edge.

Waterhole in Northern New South Wales. Photo credit: Australian River Restoration Centre

Refugia research

Learning and understanding more about aquatic refugia habitats, their characteristics and the species they support will be the focus for this activity. The work will locate refugia and identify how refuge habitats change over time and which species use them.

Project leader:

Joanne Bennett

Two Royal Spoonbills standing among dense reeds at the edge of a wetland.

Royal Spoonbills. Photo credit: Heather McGinness

Waterbird research

Research in this activity will investigate waterbird movements and habitat use and the implications of these for environmental watering. Satellite tracking of bird movements using GPS transmitters will be an important part of this work. There is a dedicated website and social media pages where you can see updates on where waterbirds are travelling and other bird related information:

Project leader:

Heather McGinness.

Cherax swamp landscape with dense vegetation and shallow water under soft daylight

Straw-necked ibis in flight at the Macquarie Marshes NSW.
Photo credit: Heather McGinness

Our Team

CSIRO has been engaged by the CEWH to evaluate the contribution of Commonwealth environmental water to achieving species diversity outcomes.

Lead Contact:

Dr Heather McGinness
CSIRO

Heather.Mcginness@csiro.au

Partners

Charles Sturt University

Institute for Applied Ecology, University of Canberra

Brooks Ecology & Technology