Floods]]> Siltation]]> Riparian restoration]]> Fish stocking]]> Camping]]> Irrigation]]> Introduced fishes]]> Lure fishing]]> Bait fishing]]> Family life]]> Weeds]]> Billabongs]]> Fishes--Breeding]]> Tournament fishing]]> Fishes--Identification]]>
In the interview, Jason covers the changes in the river including silting, the declining frequency of floods, his work in land care and regeneration with the Catchment Management Authority (CMA), the fishing techniques he employs, occurrences of illegal fishing and the continually changing laws, issues with Carp, and the interesting prevalence of Cod over Yellowbelly. He also discusses: the impact of irrigation on water levels, fish migration and breeding; translocating Catfish into dams and the hardiness of the species; a 'red carp' and 'mirror carp' species, the latter with large scales.]]> CC-BY]]> Riparian restoration]]> Lure fishing]]>
Jason Simpson and his boss Doug Jamaeson have been rehabilitating the banks of the river, planting trees, grasses and shrubs where Doug’s farms have frontage.]]> CC-BY]]> Floods]]> Weirs]]> Dams]]> Cotton]]> Camping]]> Aboriginal spirituality]]> Water pollution]]> Introduced fishes]]> Storytelling]]>
Pearl and Joe Trindall are an Indigenous couple who have lived in the Namoi region for most their lives. Pearl was born in Boomi, while Joe was born in Narrabri and they both, along with their children, have spent a lot of time travelling around Australia droving.

Pearl and Joe talk at length about a number of topics including growing up on the river and how it was central to their lives - it was a source of food, meeting and socialising, as well as a means for passing on Indigenous knowledges by the Elders. The Elders told the younger generation that they were to practice sustainable fishing and were only to take what they needed. The Elders also taught language and spirituality, told stories and were respected members of their community.

Pearl and Joe also speak about the changes in the region they have witnessed. They both say that the pollution from cotton farming has had the greatest impact on the deteriorating health of the river, compared to when they were younger when the water was clean enough to drink. They also mention the impacts that the installation of weirs and dams have had.

Mentioned: carp impacts, and 1956 floods.

Animals mentioned: Worms, gudgeon, goanna (neebie), black snake.]]> CC BY-NC]]> Dams]]> Floods]]> Cotton]]> Water--Law and legislation]]> Fishing--Australia]]> Introduced fishes]]> Fishes--Migration]]> Taxidermy]]> Traditional ecological knowledge]]> Fishes--Monitoring]]> Aboriginal kinship systems]]>
Robert Horne is an Indigenous man who was born in Boggabri; a small country town through which the Namoi River runs, located in north-western New South Wales.

The interview takes place in Robert's Gunnedah office where he recalls his youth along the Namoi River. He speaks about taking on the responsibilities of an older child by being a provider and catching fish for his single mother and his family. He also shared his catches with other families and relatives; the act of which is common within Indigenous cultures that highlights the importance of family and kinship structures, while also promoting sustainability.

Robert also speaks of being taught how to catch fish and find yabbies in the most inconspicuous places. He also outlines the changes that he has noticed in the river regarding the cotton industry, the far reaching impacts of European carp, the history of the area, and fish tagging.

]]> CC-BY]]> Livestock]]> Grazing]]> Feral animals]]> Local history]]> Fishes--Identification]]> Remote communities]]> Aboriginal peoples]]> Aboriginal culture]]> Swimming]]> Introduced fishes]]> Bushfires]]>
Fay and Donald talk about: the impact of floods at Eulo prior to the bridge; a time before motorised transportation and telephone communications; the ‘flood truck’ which used to transport goods and people across flood waters; the river as a place of recreation for children and a stock route for graziers; swimming, playing, and yabbying with Aboriginal children; Donald’s father’s recollection of Aboriginal corroborees that took place at water holes at Caiwarro and Tilbaroo; the introduction of European Carp; how bore drains reduced the amount of stock along the river; bushfires in the 1950s; impact of feral cats on water rats and bird species; Paroo as the ‘last river going west that had the Murray cod’; being able to predict a flood’s size by the sound of frogs.]]> CC-BY]]> Plants--Identification]]> Beekeeping]]> Ecosystems]]> Pesticides]]> Genetically modified food]]> Bushfires]]> Birds--Identification]]> Aboriginal history]]>
Kevin grew up in western New South Wales, and has lived in Eulo since 1972. He is one of several beekeepers, or commercial apiarists, in the area. Kevin reflects extensively on the broader flora and fauna in the area, the impacts of chemicals, and the relationship between ecological balance and honey production.

Kevin talks about: plant species and their flowering cycles; dependence of plants on periodic flooding; role birds play in honey production (in pruning trees); challenge of finding areas free of agricultural chemicals and genetically modified crops; struggle to produce enough bees to pollinate fruit crops; impact of national parks on feral animal populations and bushfires; other threats to apiaries, such as pigs; camp sites and evidence of Aboriginal inhabitants.

Plant species mentioned: Napunyah, Bimble Box, Coolabah, Yarramothla, Lignum, Eucalypt, Black Box River Gum.]]> CC-BY]]> Plants--Identification]]> Beekeeping]]> Ecosystems]]> CC-BY]]> Local history]]> Family histories]]> Environmental flows]]> Livestock]]> Traditional ecological knowledge]]> Floods]]> Fishes--Breeding]]> Blackwater]]> Siltation]]> Fish stocking]]> Artesian basins--Australia]]> Introduced fishes]]> Plants--Identification]]> Fishes--Identification]]> Irrigation]]>
First interview with Ron Heinemann, in three parts.

Ron Heinemann was born in 1922, and grew up on a sheep property in Springvale, west of Eulo, on the Paroo River. Ron’s parents moved to the area in the 1920s. He was taught to fish by his mother and cousins’ family.

Ron Heinemann talks about: 1942 and 1964 floods; Aboriginal knowledge of vegetation and floods; a black flood in 1935 which killed fish in the local water holes; how fish spawn before they die (before a flood); kangaroo and emu shooting; the 'diaries of Caiwarro Currawinyahere', written 1860-1950s, from a sheep and cattle property; siltation in Warrego River; restocking Warrego River with Murray Cod fingerlings in 1985; artesian water and basin; introduction of European Carp 1950s (originally brought to clean irrigation channels); bird life.

Mentions 'grunter' fish, however species unspecified. Also mention of: Cane grass, Mitchell grass, Flinders grass, Yapunyah tree, Hyacinth, Duck weed, Didgee tree, Lucerne.]]>
Ron Gardiner, the cousin of Ron Heinemann, was born in 1918 in Cunnamulla. Ron learned to swim in the Paroo River. In 1980 Ron moved from Paroo to Clifton, on the Condamine River.

Ron Gardiner talks about: history of the Eulo bridge, built in 1928; history of families and people in the area; abundance of Yellowbelly fish at Caiwarro; black flood at Five Mile hole; abundance of crayfish yabby and shrimp post-flood; saving sheep stock; two times the Paroo River reached the Darling; how vegetation requires rain to survive after a flood to remove silt; salty and freshwater bores; mud springs in Eulo; introduction of European Carp; concerns about irrigation; the relationship between the Warrego and Paroo Rivers.]]> CC-BY]]> Local history]]> Family histories]]> Floods]]> Livestock]]>
Images were sourced by the Talking Fish project team from Ron Heinemann on the day of his oral history interview.]]> Fishes--Identification]]> Birds--Identification]]> Family life]]> Communities]]> Swimming]]> Floods]]> Water quality]]> Introduced fishes]]>
Colin and Beryl live on the Mooreland Downs sheep property, half way between Wanaaring and Hungerford, west of the Paroo River.

Colin talks about: family history at Moorland Downs; land ballots of the 1920s; growing up on the river picnicing, swimming, fishing, and yabbying with friends and family; variety of floods experienced; drinking water quality; water colours (milky, red, black); water and other bird species; changes in vegetation; recreational fishing methods; records of major flood events since 1941; first siting of European Carp in 1970s (after Paroo connected with Darling in 1974 flood).

Beryl talks about Paroo as a driving force, connecting communities; and her ‘love-hate relationship’ with the river.

Also mentioned are: flood events 1950s, 1970s, 1990s, 2010; dry periods 1958, 1960s, 1965, 2002, 2003.

Caiwarro, Cuttaburra, Eulo, Hungaton, Yandabulla, Wilcannia – mentioned in the context of flood patterns.]]> CC-BY]]>