Recent research by the Murray–Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) has examined how populations of waterbirds are tracking across the Basin and has found signs that the historic steady decline may be halting.
MDBA Executive Director Environmental Management, Carl Binning, said the delivery of environmental water across the Basin, especially when used to extend the time that water stays in wetlands following natural events, was helping maintain some populations.
“The importance of water arriving into large wetlands at the right time in stimulating the aggregation and breeding of colonial-nesting waterbirds is well-known,” Mr Binning said.
“This research shows that using some water at the end of a natural high flow time keeps wetlands wet for longer and encourages birds to keep nesting and not abandon their chicks – something they do when things dry up.
“We’re seeing pelicans and ibis capitalising on large breeding events following on from the delivery of environmental water to important sites such as the Gwydir wetlands, Hattah lakes, Barmah—Millewa forest and mid-Murrumbidgee wetlands.
“However, we’re yet to see the same positive signs from shorebirds in the Coorong and Lower Lakes. Their numbers are at record lows.
“We have more work to do to halt the decline in waterbirds.
“In the coming years we want to continue to see environmental water used to ‘prime’ high quality wetlands – helping the plants and animals that waterbirds need for food and nesting materials, and the water quality.
“In this way, opportunities for future breeding success are optimised, potentially leading to incremental future gains in waterbird health and numbers.”
These results form part of the interim Basin Plan Evaluation, which looks at progress since the Plan was agreed in 2012. The Evaluation will also identify lessons learned to see how implementation can be improved.
Further findings from the interim Evaluation will be released over coming months.
For more information on the waterbird results, see https://www.mdba.gov.au/basin-plan-roll-out/monitoring-evaluation.