New Fish Sanctuary Established for Critically Endangered Yarra Pygmy Perch

6 Jan

A new sanctuary wetland at Chiton is giving the critically endangered Yarra Pygmy Perch a safe refuge, supporting recovery efforts in South Australia through habitat restoration and partnership.

This week marked an important milestone for Second Nature Conservancy’s Healthy Urban Waterways – Mount Barker and Fleurieu Coast project, with the successful release of several hundred nationally endangered Yarra Pygmy Perch, into a newly restored refuge wetland in Chiton.

The initiative is the result of a strong collaboration between Second Nature Conservancy and Nature Glenelg Trust, who have worked closely to restore habitat, prepare the site, and support the species’ ongoing recovery. Small-bodied freshwater fishes remain under significant threat across the region following the Millennium Drought and the continued decline of aquatic habitat. Once considered locally extinct, the Yarra Pygmy Perch, critically endangered in South Australia, is one of the species targeted in a dedicated recovery program led by Nature Glenelg Trust to establish a network of secure populations in surrogate wetlands.

At a dedicated pond in the Beyond Today wetland system at Chiton, the Second Nature team has been establishing fringing wetland vegetation and removing the aquatic weed Bacopa monnieri to create an ideal, species-specific sanctuary and surrogate breeding site - one free from introduced fish such as carp.

Developer and visionary of Beyond Today and its wetlands, Steve Wright is delighted that another threatened fish species will be conserved at the wetland system. Steve says “It’s wonderful to see the wetlands being adopted for the conservation of nationally threated fish. Keeping this species separate is vital and it’s terrific that the design of the wetlands allows for this”.

To enhance habitat diversity, the project team has installed a series of ‘fish hotels’, added rocks and logs, and established native aquatic vegetation including Vallisneria. These additions provide essential shelter, breeding structure, and foraging opportunities for the fish.

Senior Aquatic Ecologist with Nature Glenelg Trust, Dr Sylvia Zukowski, is optimistic about the new refuge. “The habitat, water quality, and food availability are ideal in the new sanctuary thanks to recent plantings, and we hope to see many juveniles early next year. We will continue to monitor the population closely with monthly fish and water-quality surveys.”

A highlight of the day was watching the newly released fish quickly make their way into their ‘hotel’, exploring and settling into their new environment.

The 2024/25 drought affected several established surrogate sites across the region, making this new sanctuary a vital component of ongoing conservation efforts. It is hoped the Chiton site will strengthen the long-term survival of the species in South Australia and support future reintroductions to former wild habitats.

This project is funded by the Australian Government’s Natural Heritage Trust under the Urban Rivers and Catchments Program, with the support of Second Nature Conservancy.