Murray River Rainbowfish (Melanotaenia fluviatilis)

Conservation status

Victoria, Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988: Endangered.

Breeding season

The following pattern applies broadly across the reported range, but timing varies with water temperature and local flow conditions. The strongest direct evidence is for October to January breeding and recruitment activity during warmer periods.

Plan aquatic habitat disturbance outside the October to January breeding period where practicable, and check local water temperature, flow and fish records before finalising timing.

• Breeding: Spawning usually occurs from October to January as water temperatures rise. Peak activity is represented here from October to December, with January still within the reported breeding season.
• Eggs and larvae: Eggs hatch after about 5 to 9 days under reported conditions. Larvae begin feeding within 24 hours and absorb the yolk sac within 3 to 5 days.
• Juveniles and recruitment: Juvenile fish grow quickly and mature in the year following hatching. Macquarie River monitoring found Murray-Darling rainbowfish hatch-date peaks during receding flow tails or sustained increased flow, particularly with October to December environmental water releases.
• Seasonal movement: The supplied documents do not establish a defined migration season. Environmental flow monitoring indicates that flow conditions and connectivity can influence native fish recruitment and movement opportunities.
• Highest clearing risk: Clearing, dewatering and disturbance are most likely to harm the species from October to January, when adults may be spawning and eggs, larvae and young fish may be present in vegetated freshwater habitat.

Identification

Murray River Rainbowfish are small, laterally compressed fish that are best identified from live colour, body shape, fin form and locality together. Identification can be difficult where other crimson-spotted rainbowfish occur, so photographs or voucher specimens may be needed for confirmation.

The species is usually olive, brownish or slightly turquoise on the back and upper sides, grading to white below. A thin reddish stripe may occur between horizontal scale rows, especially in mature males. A blackish mid-lateral stripe may be present, and the fins range from clear to reddish, sometimes with faint spotting.

Maximum size: 10 cm

Usual size: Less than 8 cm

Weight: Not reported in the supplied documents

• Mature males are usually larger and deeper bodied than females.
• Males have elongated posterior rays in the second dorsal and anal fins and are more brightly coloured.
• During courtship and spawning, males may develop blackish fin margins, an emerald green body, an orange throat and a red tailfin.
• Females have smaller, rounded dorsal and anal fins.

Identification: Similar species

Murray River Rainbowfish is not easily distinguished from Murray River Rainbowfish relatives, particularly Melanotaenia duboulayi. Useful differences include body depth, fin counts, colour pattern, egg characteristics and larval development. Southern populations may have a broader head and blunter snout.

• Treat fish from the Warrego, Paroo, upper Darling and some intervening streams with caution, because specimens from those areas have been identified as Melanotaenia splendida tatei using unpublished genetic data.
• Record locality, body colour, fin shape and clear photographs of live fish where identification is uncertain.
• The Murray-Darling Basin monitoring guidance recommends voucher specimens or good quality live photographs for Melanotaenia fluviatilis where species confirmation is required.

Identification: Field detection

There are no useful tracks, scats, calls, nests, sloughs or eyeshine signs for this species. Detection depends on observing or capturing fish in suitable freshwater habitat.

• Search clear, slow-flowing or still water around grassy banks, dense aquatic vegetation, submerged branches and logs.
• During aquatic fauna surveys, retain locality and habitat information for each capture and photograph live fish before release where permitted.
• Use an experienced fish taxonomist or specialist confirmation when morphology is uncertain, particularly in areas where similar rainbowfish taxa may occur.

Distribution: National range

Murray River Rainbowfish occurs across the inland Murray-Darling River system in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia. The supplied documents describe local strongholds and records by river system, but do not provide a national population estimate.

The species has been recorded from the Murray, Murrumbidgee and Macquarie Rivers and from several Darling River tributaries. Records also extend into the Gwydir, Namoi, Dumaresq and Bogan River systems.

EPBC Act: Not listed

State listing supplied: Victoria: Endangered

National population estimate: Not reported

• Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia are within the reported range.
• The species is associated with the inland Murray-Darling drainage rather than coastal drainage systems.
• For project assessments, confirm the drainage connection and local fish records rather than relying only on broad state range maps.

Distribution: Strongholds and local records

The species is described as common and abundant in the Broken River and near Mildura in Victoria, around the Murray-Darling confluence, and in parts of the Goulburn River in Victoria. It has also been recorded in the middle and lower Murray, Murrumbidgee and Macquarie Rivers.

Reported strongholds: Broken River, near Mildura, the Murray-Darling confluence and parts of the Goulburn River

Reported trend: Numbers appear to be decreasing in Victoria and South Australia

Macquarie River monitoring record: 51, 134, 324, 56, 35, 113 and 14 individuals were recorded across reported sampling entries, with blank entries also shown in the table

• Additional records include the middle to upper Gwydir near Bingara, the Namoi around the Peel River, Caroll Gap to Somerton on the Dumaresq River, and the Bogan River near Bogan Gate.
• The species was reported in low numbers near Gin Gin on the Macquarie River and Gongologon on the Bogan River.
• Victorian and South Australian populations were reported as decreasing, although no rate or abundance estimate was supplied.

Habitat: Waterbody types

This rainbowfish uses a wide range of inland freshwater habitats, but is most strongly associated with clear, slow-flowing or still water containing dense aquatic vegetation. It can occupy both natural and modified waterbodies where suitable cover and water quality remain.

Recorded habitat includes rivers, streams, billabongs, drainage ditches, reservoirs, overflows, swamps and ponds. The species can occur in clear flowing rivers as well as slow-moving streams, wetlands and lakes.

• Prioritise perennial or seasonally persistent pools and connected waterways during site assessment.
• Include artificial or modified freshwater features in searches where aquatic vegetation and suitable water conditions are present.
• Assess isolated pools and off-channel habitats where drying or construction may remove local refuges.

Habitat: Structural habitat

Preferred sites have dense aquatic vegetation, grassy banks, submerged logs and branches. Subsurface vegetation and floating plant roots can provide cover and are also used during spawning.

• Map aquatic vegetation and woody cover within and immediately beside the proposed disturbance area.
• Record whether vegetation is dense, sparse or absent, and whether water is clear, turbid, flowing or still.
• Avoid treating drainage channels, farm ponds or reservoirs as low-value habitat without checking for fish presence.

Habitat: Climate and water conditions

The species is the most southerly ranging Australian rainbowfish and is adapted to relatively low winter temperatures. It prefers water temperatures of 18 to 28 degrees Celsius, although southern populations can survive for a few days at 7 degrees Celsius.

Preferred water temperature: 18 to 28 degrees Celsius

Low temperature tolerance: Southern populations can survive a few days at 7 degrees Celsius

Reported winter concern: Numbers may be seriously reduced below 10 degrees Celsius

• Water temperatures below 10 degrees Celsius are associated with reduced numbers and increased susceptibility to bacterial and protozoan infection in southern populations.
• Record water temperature and seasonal flow conditions during fish surveys, particularly where the project may alter shade, groundwater connection, discharge or pool persistence.

Foraging habitat: Diet

Murray River Rainbowfish feeds in and around weedy freshwater habitat. Its diet includes small aquatic prey and food falling onto the water surface, with some plant material also consumed.

The species is essentially carnivorous, feeding on aquatic invertebrates associated with aquatic vegetation and terrestrial arthropods that fall onto or land on the water surface. It also consumes algae and fallen plant pollen.

Aquatic prey: Aquatic invertebrates associated with weedy habitat

Terrestrial prey: Arthropods falling onto or landing on the water surface

Plant food: Algae and fallen plant pollen

• Inspect dense aquatic vegetation, floating plant roots and the water surface when assessing likely foraging habitat.
• Retain overhanging or emergent vegetation where it contributes terrestrial invertebrates or pollen to the water.
• Record visible changes to aquatic vegetation, surface cover, water clarity and flow that could alter prey availability.

Foraging habitat: Foraging area

The supplied documents do not provide a measured foraging range, home range or feeding territory. Observations indicate that feeding habitat is closely associated with local aquatic vegetation, grassy banks, submerged logs, branches and the water surface.

Foraging range: Not reported in the supplied documents

• Assess the whole connected edge habitat around a work area rather than only the proposed excavation footprint.
• Where vegetation removal is unavoidable, inspect retained upstream, downstream and off-channel vegetation for fish use and potential relocation or protection measures under the project approval.

Breeding habitat: Breeding biology

Breeding is associated with rising water temperatures and fine-leaved or floating vegetation. Females attach eggs to vegetation or floating plant roots, so removal of these features can directly affect spawning habitat.

Spawning usually occurs from October to January as water temperatures rise. Fish may spawn in the early morning or in the evening before dark, with females releasing several eggs per day over several days.

Breeding season: Usually October to January

Eggs per female: 100 to 150, released over several days

Egg diameter: 0.98 to 1.08 mm

Incubation: 5 to 9 days at 24 to 29 degrees Celsius; 7 to 9 days is reported for the species in the Macquarie River reference

Hatching length: 2.5 to 4.2 mm

Age at maturity: Generally the year following hatching

Maturity size: About 4 to 5 cm

Gestation and lifespan: Not applicable and not reported, respectively

• Eggs are spherical, colourless and adhesive, with several long, thin filaments attaching them to fine-leaved foliage or floating plant roots.
• Larvae begin feeding within 24 hours of hatching after the yolk sac is absorbed over the following 3 to 5 days.
• Juveniles grow quickly and generally reach maturity in the year following hatching.

Breeding habitat: Breeding habitat

Spawning habitat includes fine-leaved aquatic vegetation and the roots of floating plants in clear, slow-flowing or still water. Dense vegetation around grassy banks, submerged branches and logs may also provide cover for adults and young fish.

• Inspect aquatic vegetation and floating roots before clearing, slashing, dredging, dewatering or bank works between October and January.
• Where works cannot be avoided, obtain project-specific aquatic fauna advice about fish salvage, timing and protection of retained vegetation.
• Maintain suitable water depth, water quality and connectivity around retained spawning habitat where project design allows.

Sheltering habitat: Cover features

The supplied documents do not describe a specialised refuge, burrow, hollow or nest. Shelter is provided by aquatic and bank-side structure within freshwater habitats.

Murray River Rainbowfish is usually found around dense aquatic vegetation, grassy banks, submerged logs and branches, including vegetation below the water surface and floating plant roots.

Specialised shelter: No dens, burrows, hollows, roosts or other specialised structures are reported

Known cover: Dense aquatic vegetation, grassy banks, submerged logs, branches and floating plant roots

• Treat dense aquatic vegetation and floating roots as both shelter and potential egg attachment habitat.
• Retain submerged woody material where it can remain safely in the water and does not conflict with approved construction controls.
• Inspect shallow vegetated margins, billabongs, off-channel pools and still water before dewatering or isolating a work area.

Sheltering habitat: Cold-season refuge

Southern populations may experience reduced numbers during winter, particularly when water temperatures fall below 10 degrees Celsius. The supplied documents do not identify specific winter refuge sites or refuge dimensions.

Refuge size: Not reported in the supplied documents

• During cold-weather works, check persistent vegetated pools and connected slow-water areas rather than assuming fish have left the site.
• Record water temperature, pool persistence and aquatic cover when assessing whether a site may support fish through winter.

Threats: Clearing and construction

The supplied documents identify declining Victorian and South Australian populations and describe the Murray River as heavily used and affected. For development projects, the main practical risks are removal of aquatic structure, loss of water, interruption of connectivity and changes to flow or temperature.

Removal of aquatic vegetation, grassy banks, submerged branches or logs can reduce feeding, shelter and egg attachment habitat. Dewatering, excavation and isolation of pools can directly remove fish from occupied habitat.

• Survey rivers, billabongs, drainage channels, ponds and other connected freshwater habitat before clearing or dewatering.
• Set out no-go areas around retained aquatic vegetation and waterbody edges where practicable.
• Use aquatic fauna salvage and relocation procedures where authorised and required by the project approval.

Threats: Hydrology and connectivity

The species uses rivers, billabongs, overflows, swamps and other connected or semi-connected freshwater habitats. Flow alteration, drying and loss of connection between waterways can reduce access to feeding and breeding habitat.

• Assess changes to discharge, pool persistence, water level, water temperature and connection between the work area and nearby waterways.
• Avoid blocking fish passage or isolating pools during temporary works.
• Consider breeding timing when planning environmental water, temporary diversion or instream construction activities.

Threats: Water quality, temperature and disease

Southern populations are susceptible to bacterial and protozoan infection when water temperatures remain around 7 degrees Celsius. Sediment, pollution, sudden temperature change and poor water quality may add stress during construction, although project-specific impact thresholds are not supplied.

• Prevent uncontrolled sediment, contaminants and turbid runoff from entering occupied freshwater habitat.
• Avoid unnecessary removal of shade and aquatic vegetation that may increase local temperature extremes.
• Use clean equipment between waterways to reduce the risk of transferring aquatic pathogens or other organisms.

Threats: Predators, fire and roads

The supplied documents do not identify species-specific predator, fire or road mortality rates for Murray River Rainbowfish. Roads and fire can still affect habitat where they cause sediment runoff, bank damage, loss of riparian cover, altered drainage or contamination of connected waterways.

• Manage road crossings, stockpiles and access tracks to prevent sediment and polluted runoff entering waterways.
• Inspect culverts, temporary crossings and drainage controls for potential barriers to fish movement.
• Do not infer absence from a disturbed bank or roadside waterbody; survey suitable aquatic habitat before works.

Survey methodology: 1. Habitat assessment

Survey this species as a small freshwater fish associated with slow flowing or still water, dense aquatic vegetation, grassy banks, submerged wood and branches. The supplied documents do not provide a project survey guideline or prescribed effort, so the project ecologist must apply the relevant state or territory fish survey standard and document the method used.

Map all rivers, streams, billabongs, drainage channels, reservoirs, overflows, swamps, ponds and other connected freshwater habitats within and downstream of the project area.

Prioritise sites with clear, slow flowing or still water, dense aquatic vegetation, grassy banks, submerged logs or branches, and connection to other waterways.

Record water temperature, flow, water level, aquatic vegetation, available cover, barriers to movement and connections between retained and disturbed waterbodies.

Give additional attention to habitat in spring and summer, when the species usually spawns from October to January as water temperatures rise.

Survey methodology: 2. Fish capture and detection

Use the applicable state or territory freshwater fish survey standard, with methods suited to the depth, flow, vegetation and substrate at each site.

Use standardised fishing methods, such as the approved combination of electrofishing, seine or dip netting and baited or unbaited traps, only where authorised and safe for the site.

Set out the survey area, transect or reach length, number and type of fishing passes, trap locations, soak times, fishing time, water conditions and personnel on the field sheet.

Survey both open water and structural cover, including the margins of aquatic vegetation, grassy banks, submerged logs and branches.

Treat small fish as potential Murray River Rainbowfish because adults commonly grow to less than 8 centimetres and the maximum reported size is 10 centimetres.

Confirm uncertain fish identifications with suitable taxonomic expertise, photographs or voucher material in accordance with the applicable authority requirements.

Typical adult size: Less than 8 centimetres

Maximum reported size: 10 centimetres

Preferred water temperature: 18 to 28 degrees Celsius

Survey methodology: 3. Timing and survey conditions

Include surveys during the October to January spawning period where works may affect breeding habitat or recruitment.

Repeat surveys across suitable seasonal conditions where the project could affect permanent or intermittent habitat, because abundance may be reduced during winter when water temperatures fall below 10 degrees Celsius.

Record water temperature and flow for every survey, because the species is adapted to low winter temperatures but may be stressed by prolonged exposure below 10 degrees Celsius.

Where practical, survey during or after suitable flow and water level conditions, noting that monitoring in the Macquarie River found recruitment peaks during receding flow tails or sustained increased flow.

Do not treat a negative result from one survey as proof that the species is absent from connected habitat.

Usual spawning period: October to January

Reported egg incubation period: 7 to 9 days

Reported hatching period under aquarium conditions: 5 to 9 days at 24 to 29 degrees Celsius

Survey methodology: Minimum effort and reporting

• Use the legally applicable state or territory survey effort and permit conditions because no species specific effort, number of nights, trap nights, transect length or survey area is provided in the supplied documents.
• Record survey dates, start and finish times, personnel, qualifications, approvals, equipment, sites, coordinates, effort, weather, water temperature, flow, habitat condition, catch, photographs and release or retention details.
• Report the species under the accepted name Murray River Rainbowfish, Melanotaenia fluviatilis, and retain photographs or voucher material where identification is uncertain.
• Submit verified records to the relevant state or territory wildlife or biodiversity database, including the location accuracy, date, method and evidence supporting the record.
• Report any injury, mortality, disease sign, unusual concentration or suspected range extension to the relevant authority and project environmental manager.

Before habitat disturbance: Avoid and minimise

Plan works around the species' freshwater habitat and its October to January breeding period. Retain aquatic vegetation, bank cover, submerged structure and connections between occupied or suitable waterbodies wherever practicable.

• Redesign the works to avoid rivers, streams, billabongs, drainage channels, swamps, ponds, reservoirs and other connected freshwater habitat used by the species.
• Retain slow flowing or still clear water, dense aquatic vegetation, grassy banks, submerged logs, branches and other cover.
• Maintain aquatic and riparian connectivity between retained habitat patches and avoid creating barriers to movement.
• Avoid works in suitable breeding habitat from October to January where the program allows, and schedule unavoidable works with advice from the project aquatic ecologist and the relevant authority.
• Prevent sediment, concrete washout, hydrocarbons, chemicals, dewatering discharge and other pollutants from entering retained or downstream habitat.

Before habitat disturbance: Approvals and work planning

• Check the current Commonwealth and state or territory conservation listings before works begin, noting that the supplied listing identifies the species as not listed under the EPBC Act and Endangered in Victoria.
• Obtain any state or territory scientific, fish collection, handling, relocation, animal ethics, waterway or protected fauna approvals required for the survey and works.
• Prepare a fauna and aquatic habitat management plan that identifies exclusion zones, survey methods, dewatering controls, fish salvage arrangements, stop work triggers, competent personnel and reporting pathways.
• Stage clearing and construction so retained aquatic habitat remains connected and disturbance is limited to the approved footprint.
• Include a response for unexpected fish captures, low water, drying channels, pollution events, disease signs and unplanned flow changes.

Before habitat disturbance: Site preparation

• Complete the pre-clearance aquatic survey and confirm whether fish are present before disturbing water, aquatic vegetation, banks, logs or connected drainage lines.
• Mark no-go areas, retained aquatic vegetation, bank protection zones, submerged cover and access routes before machinery enters the site.
• Install exclusion fencing or other clearly visible controls where they can prevent machinery, stock, people, sediment or spoil from entering retained habitat.
• Keep spoil, mulch, fuels, concrete and chemicals outside drainage paths and away from retained water.
• Set up clean equipment and biosecurity procedures to reduce transfer of pathogens, invasive species, sediment and aquatic weeds between waterways.

During habitat disturbance: Daily controls and machinery interface

Keep machinery and contaminants out of retained water and habitat. The fauna spotter catcher must work within the approved aquatic fauna procedure and must have authority to stop work when an animal, occupied habitat or unsafe condition is encountered.

• Inspect exclusion fencing, sediment controls, diversion structures, dewatering equipment and access tracks at the start of each shift and after rain or flow changes.
• Conduct a daily pre-start briefing covering mapped habitat, exclusion zones, approved machinery movements, dewatering sequence, capture equipment, stop work triggers and emergency contacts.
• Keep an authorised fauna spotter catcher or aquatic fauna specialist present while machinery works near retained water, aquatic vegetation, banks, logs or other mapped habitat.
• Direct machinery from cleared areas towards already checked areas and keep buckets, tracks and loads out of retained water unless the approved method specifically permits entry.
• Stop work immediately for an animal in the work area, unexpected water connection, uncontrolled discharge, fish stranding, pollution, damaged exclusion fencing or a condition outside the approved method.

During habitat disturbance: Fish capture and handling

• Stop the relevant activity and establish a safe exclusion zone when a Murray River Rainbowfish is found in the disturbance footprint.
• Allow only trained and authorised personnel to capture, identify, handle or relocate the fish.
• Use clean, species-appropriate equipment and minimise air exposure, handling time, crowding, temperature change and damage to the protective mucus layer.
• Relocate healthy fish only where the approval and fauna management plan allow it, and place them in nearby retained, suitable and connected habitat with comparable water quality, temperature, depth, flow, vegetation and cover.
• Do not move fish across catchments or to a different waterbody unless specifically authorised by the relevant authority.
• Release fish as soon as practicable after identification and record the capture, location, condition, method, destination and personnel.

During habitat disturbance: Habitat features, injury and records

• Inspect aquatic vegetation, submerged logs, branches, grassy banks, shallow margins and connected drainage features before they are removed, filled, isolated or dewatered.
• Remove or relocate habitat features only under the approved aquatic fauna method and after checking them for fish, stranded animals and retained habitat functions.
• Use staged dewatering and fish salvage procedures where water must be removed, with the discharge treated and controlled so fish are not stranded or exposed to unsuitable water.
• Place injured, moribund or contaminated fish in an appropriate temporary container and contact the authorised wildlife carer, aquatic fauna specialist or veterinarian identified in the fauna management plan.
• Record every capture, mortality, relocation, injury, release, refusal of release, habitat feature removed and stop work event, with photographs and coordinates where safe.
• Escalate suspected disease, mass mortality, unusual behaviour, pollution or fish kills immediately to the project environmental manager and relevant authority.

After habitat disturbance: Post-clearance checks

Do not close out aquatic works until the disturbance footprint and connected habitat have been checked. Verify that retained habitat remains usable and that controls have prevented avoidable impacts.

• Complete a fauna spotter catcher inspection of the disturbed area, dewatered sections, sediment traps, diversion channels, access tracks and retained habitat before demobilising machinery.
• Check shallow margins, aquatic vegetation, logs, branches, banks and isolated pools for stranded or injured fish.
• Repair exclusion fencing, bank protection, sediment controls and waterway crossings before the next shift and keep them in place until the risk of re-entry or contamination has ended.
• Confirm that no spoil, concrete, fuel, sediment or contaminated water has entered retained or downstream habitat.
• Record the inspection date, area checked, water conditions, findings, captures, mortalities, corrective actions and photographs.

After habitat disturbance: Monitoring and reporting

• Monitor retained and rehabilitated habitat during the October to January breeding period where the project may have affected spawning, eggs, larvae, juveniles or aquatic vegetation.
• Repeat standardised fish surveys at the frequency and duration required by the approval, state or territory method or fauna management plan.
• Compare post-work observations with the pre-work habitat and fish records, including water temperature, flow, aquatic vegetation, cover, connectivity and evidence of recruitment.
• Report incidents, species records, mortalities, rehabilitation results and any failure of controls to the relevant authority and the project environmental manager.
• Update the risk assessment and work method if monitoring identifies continuing disturbance, habitat isolation, poor water quality, disease or loss of fish recruitment.

After habitat disturbance: Ongoing controls and offsets

• Maintain water quality, bank stability, aquatic vegetation, flow paths and connectivity for the period specified in the approval or management plan.
• Remove temporary barriers, spoil and redundant controls only after the environmental manager confirms that doing so will not reconnect contaminated water or expose fish to machinery.
• Apply an approved offset or conservation measure where residual impacts cannot be avoided or minimised and an approval requires it.
• Keep evidence of compliance, including permits, inductions, daily checklists, survey data, photographs, incident reports and database submission confirmations.

Rehabilitation actions: Restore aquatic and riparian habitat

Rehabilitation should restore connected freshwater habitat with cover and water conditions suitable for a small, vegetation associated rainbowfish. Base the design on the local reference waterway and use locally native species approved for the site.

• Reinstate stable banks, shallow margins, slow flowing or still water, connected flow paths and a range of depths appropriate to the local reference habitat.
• Replant locally native aquatic and riparian vegetation that provides dense cover along grassy banks and around shallow margins.
• Retain or reinstate suitable submerged logs, branches and other natural cover where they will not create a flood, safety or navigation hazard.
• Prevent colonisation by weeds and remove invasive aquatic plants using methods that do not harm fish or degrade water quality.
• Design drainage, wetlands and crossings to retain fish passage and avoid isolated pools, sudden drops, excessive velocities and blocked connections.

Rehabilitation actions: Water quality, predators and fire

• Control sediment, turbidity, nutrients, chemicals, temperature change and low dissolved oxygen during establishment and maintenance.
• Use locally approved weed, pest and predator control methods, and prevent domestic or feral animals from damaging banks and aquatic vegetation.
• Manage fire, slashing and mechanical access so riparian vegetation, banks, logs and shallow aquatic refuge are not repeatedly removed.
• Avoid releases of untreated water, ornamental fish, bait, aquarium material or non-local aquatic organisms into rehabilitation areas.
• Inspect rehabilitation after rain, drought, flooding, fire and maintenance works, and repair erosion, barriers and failed plantings.

Rehabilitation actions: Success monitoring

Breeding period to include in monitoring: October to January

Typical adult size to consider in detection records: Less than 8 centimetres

Maximum reported size: 10 centimetres

• Set measurable completion criteria for aquatic vegetation cover, bank stability, water quality, fish passage, retained structural cover, weed cover and connectivity with adjacent habitat.
• Survey rehabilitated habitat using the same method and comparable sites used for the pre-work assessment wherever practicable.
• Include surveys during October to January and record water temperature and flow so breeding season conditions and recruitment can be assessed.
• Record fish detections, size classes, juvenile presence, habitat condition, mortalities, disease signs and any changes in abundance over time.
• Continue monitoring for the period required by the approval or management plan, and apply corrective actions where habitat remains disconnected, unvegetated, polluted or unsuitable.

Sources

• [PDF] Short-term intervention monitoring of a fish community response to ..., Australian Government DCCEEW: https://www.agriculture.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/stim-fish-macquarie-2014-15.pdf
• Melanotaenia fluviatilis, rainbowfish.angfaqld.org.au: https://www.rainbowfish.angfaqld.org.au/Fluviatilis.htm