Yarra pygmy perch (YPP) Nannoperca obscura is a small-bodied native fish species, currently listed as vulnerable in Victoria under the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act and endangered nationally under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act. This species faces multiple threats including competition and predation from introduced species, habitat loss, and over-extraction of waterways. Only one naturally occurring population remains in the Melbourne Water management region, confined to Deep Creek, after being lost from the lower Yarra River and Dandenong Creek.
This project aimed to identify suitable habitats on private properties, such as farm dams, for translocating and establishing secure YPP source populations in the region. We identified 37 private dams within the catchment through desktop assessment as potentially suitable sites and conducted ground truthing surveys at seven properties to assess the suitability of these dams on site. Selection of potentially suitable dams for translocation considered a range of criteria such as water permanence, habitat characteristics, landholder cooperation, and pest fish presence. A final short list of suitable dams to support a translocated YPP population was selected for the next phase of the project, which will hopefully involve establishing one or more new YPP source populations.
One established YPP population in an offline dam in the Deep Creek catchment already exists, highlighting the potential for similar populations to be established. Projects like these demonstrate the important role that private landholders and waterway managers can play in securing the future of threatened small-bodied fish such as this species.