The Paroo River catchment is in the north‐western corner of the Murray‐Darling Basin. The river flows across the Queensland border into New South Wales, where it spreads out over floodplains. Beccause of this dispersal and the hotter, dryer climate, it now rarely flows into the Darling River and is known as an ephemeral river. It is the last unregulated river of the northern Murray Darling basin and sustains important wetlands and sub-artesian waters.

The region has been inhabited by Aboriginal peoples for around 20 000 years; the Maranganji, Kalali, Badjiri, Kunggari and the Parundji people, from whose name the river's name is derived.

(Source: Sarac, Z., Sewell, H., Baker, E . and Ringwood, G. 2011. "Paroo: Talking fish, making connections with the rivers of the Murray‐Darling Basin." Murray‐Darling Basin Authority, Canberra.")