Native fish habitat will breathe new life into the Curdies Estuary thanks to the installation of thirty-two new fish hotels earlier this week under the Australian Government’s ‘Fisheries Habitat Restoration Program.
A dozen community members and local fishermen attended a launch event on Wednesday, August 3rd, to watch the fish hotels enter the Curdies River.
The new fish hotels will provide habitat for aquatic wildlife, including angling species such as Black Bream and Estuary Perch, frogs, water rats, insects and birds.
The fish hotels are built from locally sourced eucalyptus designed as shelter and feeding sources for fish species.
Corangamite Catchment Management Authority CEO John Riddiford said by implementing the fish habitat structures, the project seeks to improve environmental outcomes and increase the number of fish in the Curdies River.
“This project will deliver important outcomes for passionate recreational fishers because healthy habitat is vital to making fishing better and providing anglers with more fishing opportunities,” continued Mr Riddiford.
Corangamite Catchment Management Authority Project Officer Gene Gardiner said, “The success of the fish hotels was due to invaluable support and voluntary contributions made by members of the Curdie Vale Angling Club and other dedicated fishermen”.
“We are excited to conduct an electrofishing survey next summer to determine how many fish and what types are using the fish habitat structures”.
“We believe restoring fish habitat will have an immense long-term benefit for not only the health of the river but also recreational fishers and aquatic species like the threatened Australian Grayling,” Mr Gardiner continued.
The Curdies Estuary fish habitat restoration project is being delivered in partnership between the Corangamite Catchment Management Authority, OzFish Unlimited and VRFish. The project also includes riverbank protection and revegetation works and angler planting days.
This project is supported by Corangamite CMA and funded by the Australian Government
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