‘Fishways’ or ‘fish ladders’ for native species built from Townsville to Tully

New “fishways” built from north of Townsville to Tully have opened up more than 100 kilometres of waterways to allow species such as barramundi and mangrove jack to breed.

Six newly built fishways, also known as fish ladders, are helping species such as barra and mangrove jack breed in North Queensland waterways between Townsville and Tully. Picture: Geoff Collins-OzFish

New “fishways” built from north of Townsville to Tully have opened up more than 100 kilometres of waterways to allow species such as barramundi and mangrove jack to breed.

Fishways, also known as fish ladders, are a series of underwater stairs to allow fish to access and breed in North Queensland’s creeks, rivers and estuaries.

Terrain NRM, an independent not-for-profit environmental management organisation, has been working with OzFish Unlimited, Catchment Solutions and Australasian Fish Passage Services on the ‘Fish Homes and Highways’ project.

Funded by the Australian government’s Reef Trust, the organisations have built six rock fishways between Crystal Creek and Tully to remove barriers for juvenile fish.

Terrain NRM said more than 1000 fish were recorded moving through the fishway at Insulator Creek north of Townsville in just one day, while more than 4500 fish were caught and released during a recent survey at four of the fish ladders.

“Sixteen native species, including juvenile barramundi, empire gudgeon, rainbow fish, tarpon and long-finned eels were recorded,” Terrain NRM’s Deb Bass said.

One of six new fishways or fish ladders built at Five Mile Creek between Ingham and Cardwell. Terrain NRM has been working with OzFish Unlimited, Catchment Solutions and Australasian Fish Passage Services on the ‘Fish Homes and Highways’ project, which is funded by the Australian Government’s Reef Trust. Picture: Supplied

She said that of the more than 80 native fish species in the Wet Tropics region, about half needed to move between salt and freshwater habitats to complete their life-cycles.

“Barriers like weirs, pipes, culvert crossings and weed chokes could stop these species from thriving,” she said.

“So we can see the fishways are providing access for these species, from barramundi and mangrove jack to shrimps.”

The ‘Fish Homes and Highways’ project began with extensive survey work in the Herbert and Murray River catchments between Crystal Creek near Paluma and Tully, where more than 3,500 potential fish barriers were identified, leading to on-ground inspections of over 300 sites. Picture: Geoff Collins-OzFish

Catchment Solutions fishery ecologist Matt Moore said rocks were placed strategically to achieve the right gradient to create a slower flow while also being able to withstand floods.

Oz Fish Unlimited’s Geoff Collins, an aquatic ecologist and Adjunct Research Fellow at James Cook University’s TropWATER, said the ladders would have a positive impact on the health of fish species and the waterways.

“We are opening up habitat that many juvenile fish haven’t been able to access, particularly in low-flow situations, for decades in some cases.”

He said the structures would allow tens of thousands of fish to migrate.

“The more habitat we can give fish access to, the more productive our fish stocks will be,” he said.

“Freshwater wetlands, creeks and rivers are important nursery grounds with abundant food resources that will help our native fish to grow fast, and to travel back downstream and breed in the tropical wet season.”

Originally published as ‘Fishways’ or ‘fish ladders’ for native species built from Townsville to Tully