MARRON in the Collie River have been plucked from certain death after workers braved scorching temperatures to rescue them from drying pools.
Create a free account to read this article
or signup to continue reading
Members of Recfishwest and the Department of Fisheries conducted the operation at eight locations along the Collie River system.
It's the second time, intervention has been needed for authorities to deal with drying pools.
Fisheries destocked Cardiff town pool recently, moving 200 marron to alternative locations.
Recfishwest principal policy officer Leyland Campbell said parts of the river drying up sooner than normal had prompted the action.
"We came to Collie to de-stock a couple of pools that are in danger of drying up over the summer," he said.
"The aim was to collect remaining marron at several water bodies and move them to more permanent water holes where they will be able to thrive."
Mr Campbell said it was concerning to see the water levels as low as they were.
He said decreasing rainfalls was an issue, but there ground water management and other competing users and stakeholders had also impacted the river system.
Marron were collected using a drag net and relocated to other areas in Collie where the water flow was expected to last the summer.
"Today is all about ensuring the sustainability of marron in the South Branch of the Collie River," he said.
"The marron will be moved to places like Wellington Dam, Chinaman's Pool."
He expected the marron to return to those areas when the river fills up again.
"The marron upstream should be able to restock this part of the river without the need for supplementation," he said.
"The pools drying earlier than expected caught us all a bit off guard and it's great to see Fisheries and Recwishwest working together to ensure the sustainability of marron."
Department of Fisheries' Aquatic Biodiversity Branch Team Leader Dr Shaun Meredith said the local community needed to help protect the marron.
"As much as we would like to have the resources to throw at these things every year and every time it happens, we're not going to be able to do that," he said.
"The long term picture of us is one where we really start to work closely with the local community here and also with Recfishwest to make sure issues like this are managed on the ground by the local community.
The Department of Fisheries has recent;y completed its annual marron survey and stocks were at normal levels.
"We've already sold about 12,000 marron licenses this year and the number is usually around the 12,000-15,000 and we expect the marron fishing to be as good this year as it has been for the last 10 years or so," Dr Meredith said.
"People who break the law need to remember that they are damaging the long term sustainability of the population.
"It's not just letting yourselves down, its letting the community down and we really hope from a local perspective that everyone does their bit to make sure the populations stay healthy for future generations."
