Volume 119 (3) 2002, pp. 85-148

Murray River  Special Issue
Part 1

This issue is dedicated to
Natalie Joanne Smith
(31 May 1974 – 22 July 2002)

Murray River Special Issue Part 1

National Parks and Reserves on the Murray River: an Historical Perspective

Daniel Catrice

Abstract
Attempts to establish national parks and reserves along the Murray River occurred late in the history of Victoria’s conservation movement. For much of its recent history the Murray has been made to serve industry and agriculture. The first timber reserves and State forests, which had been set aside from 1869, confirmed a pattern of exploitation which went largely unquestioned until well into the twentieth century. This article looks at settlement and land-use along the Murray and the efforts of conservation groups to protect the lands bordering the river from unregulated development. It concludes with a brief historical overview of the key parks and reserves along the river – Hattah-Kulkyne, Murray-Sunset and Alpine National Parks; Barmah State Park; and Murray Kulkyne Park.
(The Victorian Naturalist 119 (3), 2002, 88-94)

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Geomorphology of the Murray River Basin

Noel Schleiger

Abstract
The Murray River is an exotic stream. Since Cretaceous time it has been both a betrunked and, more recently in the Pliocene, an engrafted river system. Since the Pliocene, the direction of the course of the Murray has been influenced by upfaulting and jointing of the rocks over which it flows. Geomorphological features such as the valley-in-valley structure, sharpened spurs, valley scroll deposits, incised meanders and valleys, bahadas and prior streams are the direct consequences of uplift, where the river rejuvenates its valley to reach its former base level in its mountain, valley or plain tract. Features of the plain tract are sinuous meanders, because of low gradients, with levee banks, ox-bow lakes, lagoons, anabranches, effluents and distributaries. Saline ground water entering the Murray River has created problems for water management of the Murray. Part of this is due to irrigation of soils developed on a salty sea bed in late Miocene and in part due to salty aquifers being cut by the Murray bed. Aeolian features in the semi-arid areas of the Riverine Plain of the Mallee and Wimmera involve parna deposits, deflated playas, parabolic sand dunes on the Lowan Sand formation and lunettes on the eastern shores of drying lakes. These are the product of a more arid climate in the Pleistocene through to the present day.
(The Victorian Naturalist 119 (3), 2002, 95-101)

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Floodplain Wetlands: the Jewels of the Murray River

Rhonda Butcher and Michael Reid

Abstract
Wetlands and billabongs of the Murray River floodplain are intimately connected with the mainstream, and whilst this may imply a degree of similarity, work over the past 20 years has shown that this is not necessarily the case. While billabongs are formed by the river, the physical and chemical gradients of the river and floodplain wetlands are quite different and thus the biological communities are quite different. This paper briefly describes some of the ecological differences between the mainstream and the floodplain wetlands touching on the importance of connectivity, disturbance, and the variability of the floodplain communities.
(The Victorian Naturalist 119 (3), 2002, 102-107)

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Habitat Change in River Red Gum Floodplains: Depletion of Fallen Timber and Impacts on Biodiversity

Ralph Mac Nally, Andrea Ballinger and Gregory Horrocks

Abstract
Fallen timber, or coarse woody debris, is a major habitat structural element for animals and plants throughout forested areas worldwide. Fallen timber volumes have been massively manipulated both through direct means (fire-wood collection, fuel reduction) and through indirect activities (silvicultural management preventing trees reaching senescence). Work in our laboratory has focused on assessing the extent of fallen timber depletion in River Red Gum Eucalyptus camaldulensis floodplain forests of the southern Murray-Darling Basin. We estimate that contemporary fallen timber loads average about 16% (about 19 tonne/ha) of loads prior to European settlement. We also have been investigating relationships between fallen timber loads and biodiversity of both vertebrates and invertebrates. Our observational and experimental results indicate that loads at least twice current levels exert a positive influence on a number of ecologically critical species (e.g. Yellow-footed Antechinus Antechinus flavipes, Brown Treecreeper Climacteris picumnus). Therefore, restoration targets of 40–50 tonne/ha seem reasonable objectives for managing this critical element of habitat structure.
(The Victorian Naturalist 119 (3), 2002, 107-113)

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Vertebrate Fauna of Barmah Forest, a Large Forest of River Red Gum Eucalyptus camaldulensis
on the Floodplain of the Murray River

Richard H Loyn, Linda F Lumsden and Keith A Ward

Abstract
Barmah Forest is part of the largest River Red Gum forest in the world, and several studies have examined aspects of its vertebrate fauna in recent decades. This paper summarises this work and gives an overview of the forest fauna along with some historical information and comments on possible effects of management practices. Altogether 35 mammal, 205 bird, 20 reptile, 10 frog and 28 fish species have been recorded in or near Barmah Forest. Bats constitute a high proportion of the mammal species. Arboreal mammals are represented by several species in generally low numbers. The only native rodent is the aquatic Water Rat, and the only small native ground-dwelling mammal is partly arboreal (Yellow-footed Antechinus). The most numerous ground-dwelling birds are those that can also feed from other substrates during floods (e.g. Brown Treecreeper). Three bird species (White-plumed Honeyeater, Striated Pardalote and Brown Treecreeper) form a high proportion of individuals in the bird community (40%). Canopy feeding insectivores are patchily distributed and their numbers are negatively correlated with aggressive White-plumed Honeyeaters, which even dominate on box ridges. Hollow-nesting birds form a high proportion (34%) of individuals in the bird community. The forest is an important habitat for several threatened species, and for large numbers of waterbirds, fish and frogs that breed there during floods. Deep spring floods provide the best breeding conditions for many of these species. River regulation, grazing and logging have all contributed to a range of historical changes. Mostly anecdotal evidence suggests loss of some mammal and bird species and more recent declines in certain waterbirds, frogs and snakes. The fish fauna is now heavily dominated by introduced species.
(The Victorian Naturalist 119 (3), 2002, 114-132)

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The Distribution and Conservation Status of the Reptile Fauna of the Murray River Region in Victoria

Geoff Brown

Abstract
The lands surrounding the Murray River, from source to South Australia, support a remarkable diversity of terrestrial reptiles. At least ninety-four species, representing nine families, are known from the environs of the Murray River in Victoria, and this fauna consists of a blend of arid-adapted elements from the north-west with temperate elements from the east. Species richness and diversity of regional reptile assemblages tends to increase along the gradient from cool mesic (Eastern Highlands) to warm dry regions (Mallee). Skinks are the dominant component (44%) of the overall reptile fauna in terms of number of species. Skinks also exhibit a distinct decline in proportional species composition along the environmental gradient from the east to the north-west, in contrast with dragons, geckoes and legless lizards, reptile families that show a steady increase in their proportional representation. Twenty-four reptile species known from the Murray River area are considered threatened in a national or state (Victoria or New South Wales) context, and at least another 18 species are considered locally threatened. The majority of these threatened species are found in the north-west of the state, and most are classified as such because they are either at the limit of their distributional range in northern Victoria, and consequently occur only rarely, or because they are habitat specialists and considered to be disadvantaged by habitat change or loss. The major determinants of reptile occurrence (and decline) are briefly discussed.
(The Victorian Naturalist 119 (3), 2002, 133-143)

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