I’ve already complained about ABC Online incorrectly reporting that water levels in the Murray River are at historic lows. The article, published on 17th August, confused low water inflows with low water levels, the journalist apparently unaware that the Murray River ran dry in 1914.
Instead of correcting the story, journalist Sarah Clark has now repeated the misinformation with some quotes from WWF activist Alison Colyer. In a piece entitled ‘Fish at risk as rivers run dry’ published on 7th September, it is suggested that the record low water levels are going to result in the extinction of Murray Cod.
I asked a farmer, Daryl McDonald, who lives near the river to take some photographs for me. He went back to the spot at Riversdale where the river ran dry in 1914 so we could see how the river looks today, relative to 1914 when water levels were really low. This is what he emailed just yesterday:
And he included the following note:
Hi Jen, Pics from Riversdale as near as we can figure to the site of the original photo of the buggy.
River is flowing nicely today at around 4120 ML/day @ 80 EC. Quite amazing considering we have had the lowest inflows on record. It should be noted that South Australia still expects its guaranteed 1850 GL/p.a., while N.S.W irrigators have a zero allocation, and the Vics are on ~50% of their average 160% Water Right. Cheers, Daryl McD.
Remember that 1914 photograph from Riversdale:
I’ve previously disputed claims that the Murray Cod is in trouble, including in my monograph ‘Myth and the Murray: Measuring the Real State of the River Environment’ published by the IPA in December 2003.
Jennifer Marohasy BSc PhD is a critical thinker with expertise in the scientific method.
Fish in rivers are interesting phenomena.
In 1989 when the Bow River Diamond mine east of the Argyle AK1 mine was being mined and sampled, many of our test costeans were dug into the old alluvial deposits. All of the costeans were well away from Lake Argyle and on the black soil plains.
After one wet season the costeans filled up with water and to our astonishment decent sized bream suddenly appeared in some of the costeans.
Conventional wisdom explained that a passing bird flying overhead the costean must have dropped some guana with fish eggs in it.
I also learnt from the water in the pit at the Ashmore kimberlite pipe near the King George River in the north eastern Kimberley in a sandstone bed, also had small fish in it after the wet season.
This suggests either a lot of fish eating birds pooing into new water holes, or the fish eggs are there in the sediment lying dormant.
The latter explanation seems more likely and suggests that even if the River Murray does dry up, the cod will reappear once the river flows again.
No Louis, it is the former. The fish eggs are very sticky and attach to the feet and legs of water birds. The same natural restocking takes place in every new farm dam. Many of them have only very minimal periods when water flows from them but the ducks will have done their bit for “connectivity” before the grass is fully grown on the waters edge.
Re the Murray flows, 4120Ml/day is 1500GL per annum. But don’t expect anything but pure BS from the WWF and don’t bother waiting for the MDB Commission to use a tiny fraction of their outrageous budget on correcting these fraudulent misrepresentations.
It is a pure “pond scum coalition” produced by an excess of nutrients to both.
Ian,
Water birds in the Kimberley region is an interesting idea, especially when the stark contrast between wet and dry seasons are considered.
Ducks? Never seen one up there.
This topic remains open 🙂
Incidentally I (and fanily and friends) swam in the River Murray in 1972 close to Dead Horse Gap (from Thredbo) and I lost 20 cents from the pocket of my pants.
Still looking for it. 🙂
Yes, I once gazed upon a small stream near Tumba-bloody-rumba that I was assured was the “mighty Murray”. I pissed in it, for the pure pleasure of knowing that the entire city of Adelaide would drink of my loins. It bestows a fleeting glimpse of the world in its rightful state. Awesome, sure beats butterflys in the Amazon for chaos theory.
Surely the Kimberley has regular visits from some sorts of water birds? If Pelicans get to Lake Eyre then something must do it. Brolgas perhaps? They have long legs, specifically for wetlands and pools, as do Magpie Geese.
Have to go now, I can feel a visit to the Wivenhoe catchment comming on.
Typical property rights crowd – pissing on public assets but not their own. I wondered why the tap water was strange of late.
Ian,
Brolgas are common – but I dont ‘recall seeing them at the Ashmore open cut and then who would have set up a watch to see if these birds did actually do what you suggest.
In any case to test the theory is impossible as I doubt anyone would get approval for such a ground disturbing activity from the Econazis running the EPA and what not.
Most SA Brolgas rely on stock watering troughs so an artificial hole with water would be no problem. In the north they would only come in the wet. Tim Low, in The New Nature, mentions this as a common occurrance.
Ian,
I am n ot entirely convinced that water-fowl carry fish eggs on their legs into newly formed water holes. It smacks of an explanation not derived from observation.
It could be tested by examing water bodies excavated in palaeoalluvials versus water bodies excavated in no-alluvial rocks.
Issue is open until I find time to check out th various billabongs etc in the Kimberleys.
I am hinting at the possibility that the fish eggs are in the alluvials rather than introduced by water fowl.
And it depends on how many ideas one thinks with of course. A previous poster here, Phil Done, a totally ficticious twit, was basically a Xerox machine, duplicating other people’s thoughts and ideas here. But hey, if you can’t find work in the market, try guvmint – the employer of last resort, or first resort if you believe in socialism/communism.
I understand your point, Louis. But how do you explain the arrival of fish within a year or two to farm dams, in non-alluvial soils and slopes that have had pasture for 50 years and having spent the previous time since the last ice age as forest?
I will gladly concede the possibility of a decade of dormancy in alluvium but 50 years on the side of a ridge, or a thousand years on a forest floor, is not on.
But be my guest and research all you want.
Did anyone notice that the 1914 photo clearly shows an open paddock behind the trees, most of which are not mature. The recent photos show no such open space but rather, a clutter of regrowth with a few large trees close to the bank.
Note as well, there are two distinct layers in 1914. The large trees have open spaced canopy while the under layer of emerging regrowth is thick and closed. Today this is a much denser canopy due to the more frequent flows and high water table.
SA wont be getting its 1850 gigs we are on 70%. Yes NSW is on Zero allocation on LOW security Water licence. We are all in the same boat!!
As to the fish turning up in odd places,
This has commonly been recorded in a large number of locations in the northern half of auatralia, A number of Native species (spangled perch,barred grunter,hardyheads,bonybream) are capable of incredible migrations overland during rain evens(i.e. after wet season), migrations of hundreds of kms in an ammount of 1-2 days in only cms of sheet surface water have been recorded.Some species are great at collonising new habitat.They still require good quality refuge habitat to do so. This ability does not pertain to all Native species. As for the murray cod if we do not allow natural flow events to allow reproduction, keep poluting there natural habitat and allowing it to become saline we could most definately lose australia’s wild population of our largest freshwater fish and probably alot of other biodiversity along with it. That would be a shame dont you think!?