The comeback of one of Victoria’s iconic native fish continues to gain momentum, with the Victorian Fisheries Authority (VFA) stocking more Macquarie perch into waterways in the State’s north-east.
Celebrating the milestone the Minister for Outdoor Recreation, Sonya Kilkenny said more than 185,000 fingerlings had been stocked since the start of 2022, including 40,000 in recent weeks.
Ms Kilkenny said $5 million in funding had gone towards the next major phase of work at the VFA’s Snobs Creek hatchery, which produced the fingerlings stocked last month.
“Staff at Snobs Creek and interstate fisheries agencies have worked for many years to identify ways to consistently produce Macquarie perch in the hatchery environment,” Ms Kilkenny said.
“The hatchery project will modernise ageing infrastructure, construct more breeding ponds and build a dedicated fish holding facility to assist producing large numbers of Macquarie perch and trout cod to re-establish wild populations,” she said.
“A separate new hatchery is also being built at Snobs Creek in partnership with the Commonwealth Government to focus on threatened native fish.”
Ms Kilkenny said further funding would triple the size of the new Arcadia native fish hatchery near Shepparton, which already produced golden perch and would produce more Murray cod – freeing up capacity for other species at Snobs Creek.
She said the 40,000 Macquarie perch fingerlings produced this year were stocked into the Ovens River (10,500), Buffalo River (10,500), Goulburn River between Yea and Trawool (8300), King River (4950), Cudgewa Creek (3000), Hughes Creek (2000) and Lake Dartmouth (1650).
“Stockings have been complemented by instream fish habitat and riverbank improvement works conducted by locals, the Department of Environment, Energy and Climate Action, Landcare volunteers, recreational fishers and traditional owner groups,” the Minister said.
