2023-2024 Fish kills
1 July 2023 - 30 June 2024
Location and date kill observed | Cause and extent |
|---|---|
Murray-Darling catchments in NSW | |
| Pindari Dam (24 July) | Report of approximately 100 dead fish with a range of species affected including small Murray Cod, Golden Perch and threatened Freshwater Catfish and Silver Perch. The cause has been attributed to increased stress over winter caused by cold-water temperatures, which can impact native fish and water quality. |
| Murrumbidgee River, near Hay (10 July) | Report of approximately 40-50 dead Bony Herring. The cause has been attributed to increased stress over winter caused by cold-water temperatures, which can impact native fish especially Bony Herring who are particularly susceptible. |
| Farmers Creek, Lithgow (3 March) | Report of 10s of dead fish, predominantly Trout. Cause remains unknown. Testing conducted by NSW EPA did not show any elevated results in water quality for factors that may have led to the fish kill. |
| Peel River near the junction of the Peel and Namoi rivers (17 February) | Report of 1000s of dead fish including Murray Cod, Golden Perch, Freshwater Catfish, Bony Herring and Carp. Cause attributed to poor water quality and low Dissolved Oxygen (DO) following high rainfall and fresh event through nearby creeks. |
| Bogan River, Nyngan (12 February) | Report of 1000s of dead Carp. Cause attributed to poor water quality and low Dissolved Oxygen (DO) following breakdown of organic matter. |
| Weir 32 Weir Pool and Lower Darling-Baaka, Menindee (10 February) | A fish death event has been impacting Golden Perch within the Menindee Weir 32 weir pool since 10 February 2024. It is estimated more than 1,000 fish have died during the event. Daily mortalities appear to have peaked during the current incident at around 26 February, with numbers of dead and distressed fish steadily declining since, with minimal observations reported over recent weeks. There have also been reports of fish deaths affecting other species in the Lower Darling-Baaka River including in the Menindee Weir 32 weir pool over this period. Species impacted include Murray Cod, Bony Herring and Carp; however, these have been relatively smaller numbers of fish. Recently DPIRD has completed extensive analysis of affected fish to investigate potential causes of death with the outcomes available in summary here. |
| Murray River, below Hume (31 January) | Report of 10s of dead fish, including Golden Perch and Carp. Cause attributed to impacts from dam infrastructure. |
| Nungar Creek and Tantangara Dam, Murrumbidgee Valley (22 January) | Report of 10s of dead Rainbow Trout and Brown Trout. Cause has been attributed to the combination of algal blooms and extended high temperatures causing a drop in Dissolved Oxygen (DO). |
| Nyngan Town weir pool, Bogan River (15 December) | Report of approximately 200 dead Bony Bream. Cause has been attributed to the combination of algal blooms and extended high temperatures causing a drop in Dissolved Oxygen (DO). |
| Barwon River, downstream of Walgett (13 December) | Reports of dead Carp in the lagoon. Cause has been attributed to the lagoon drying up. |
| Spring Creek Reservoir, Macquarie River near Orange (30 November) | Report of less than a 100 dead Redfin Perch. The Reservoir had just experienced heavy rainfall and the dam was full and overflowing. |
| Lower Darling-Baaka River near Menindee (12 November) | Reports of small numbers of dead Murray Cod and Golden Perch (less than 20). Cause has been attributed to low DO. |
| Wilandra Creek, Murray River (6 November) | Report of hundreds of dead Carp. Cause has been attributed to poor water quality and stranding as water receded. |
| Darling-Baaka River at Menindee Town (3 November) | Report of small numbers (less than 5) dead Murray Cod and Golden Perch in the Menindee Town weir pool. Cause has been attributed to stratification in the town weir pool causing a drop in DO. |
| Darling-Baaka River at Menindee (15-19 October) | Reports of small numbers of dead Murray Cod and Golden Perch. Cause has been attributed to stratification in the town weir pool causing a drop in DO. |
| Darling-Baaka River, downstream of Pamamaroo outlet (25 July) | Report of 10 dead Murray Cod and 1 Golden perch. Cause has been attributed to winter stress due to critically low Dissolved Oxygen (DO) with an associated algal bloom affecting this reach of the river. |
Coastal catchments in NSW | |
| North Creek, Ballina (10 April) | Report received of less than 100 dead fish including Mullet and Bream. Fisheries Officers attended the site and attributed the cause of the event to a drop in Dissolved Oxygen (DO) due to a hypoxic blackwater event due to a breakdown in organic material from localised rainfall. |
| Rocky Mouth Creek, Woodburn (3 April) | Report received of more than 100 dead fish including Mullet, Carp and Herring. Cause has been attributed to a drop in Dissolved Oxygen (DO) due to a hypoxic blackwater event from a breakdown in organic material washed into the creek. |
| Little Lake, Tilba (17 March) | Report of thousands of fish including Bream, Mullet and Eels. Cause has been attributed to a drop in Dissolved Oxygen (DO) due to an algal bloom. |
| Ettalong Creek, Umina Beach (19 February) | Report of 2 dead eels. Cause unknown . |
| Dalhousie Creek, Hungry Head (15 February) | Report of hundreds of dead fish including Mangrove Jacks, Silverbiddy, Flathead and Whiting. Cause has been attributed to low Dissolved Oxygen (DO). |
| Woolgoolga Creek Road (14 February) | Report of less than 50 dead Mullet. Cause unknown. |
| Everlasting Swamp Weir (22 January) | Report of less than 100 dead fish. Cause unknown. |
| North of Yelgun Creek, between Bilinudgel Nature Reserve and South Golden Beach (20 January) | Report of hundreds of dead fish, primarily Bream and Mullet. Cause has been attributed to a drop in Dissolved Oxygen (DO) due to hypoxic blackwater event. |
| Burns Point, Richmond River, Ballina (13 January) | Report of thousands of dead Mullet. Suspect cause has been attributed to a drop in Dissolved Oxygen (DO) due to hypoxic blackwater event. |
| Pearl Beach Lagoon North, Hawkesbury River (26 October) | Report of approximately 50 dead fish. Investigation by local council indicated Dissolved Oxygen (DO) was critically low. Cause has been attributed to low DO. |
| Bunyip Swamp, Clarence River at Trenayr (25 October) | Report of 50 dead Longfin Eels. Cause has been attributed to drying conditions in Bunyip Swamp. |
| Hayes Creek, Sapphire Beach near Coffs Harbour (20 October) | Report of less than a hundred dead Mullet, cause has been attributed to low DO due to an algal bloom and drying conditions. |
| Parrabel Creek, Macleay River – Moparrabah (15 September) | Report of small scale fish kill affecting Catfish and Bass. The cause has been attributed to exacerbating drought conditions mixed with low Dissolved Oxygen (DO). |
| Swan Lake, Cudmirrah (11 September) | Report of dead Eels at the entrance tunnel. Cause unknown. |
| Crookhaven River, Shoalhaven (15 August) | Report of less than 100 dead Carp. Cause unknown. |
| Horsefalls, Hazelbrook Creek(23 August) | Report of hundreds of dead Crayfish. Cause unknown. |
| South Arm Creek, Bowraville (12 August) | Report of approximately 70 Eel-tailed Catfish. Cause unknown. |
