Fishes--Identification]]> Floods]]> Salinity]]> Fishes--Migration]]> Aboriginal culture]]> Droughts]]> Marine ecology]]> Fishing nets]]>
Dean, born 1929, is from Victor Harbour, and lived through the 1956 flood. Married since 1960, Dean and Sally live at Mundoo Island near the mouth of the Murray River. Dean recalls memories fishing with his father, and spear fishing with mates at Victor Harbour in the ocean. They talk extensively about the changes in fish species and vegetation they have seen at Mundoo Island and other parts of the Coorong and Lakes systems.

Dean and Sally talk about: changes in vegetation at Mundoo Island due to salt (brackish) water; fishing methods and equipment used in the ocean and lakes (including a pitchfork to catch Flounder); seeing dead Murray cod from upstream in the 1956 flood; natural movement of Congolli species from fresh to saltwater; activities of cockling, floundering, and yabbying; local Aboriginal culture; the effects of wind power on the water system; marine species (e.g. shark, seal, stingray, turtle) in the Coorong; and the severity of recent droughts compared with earlier ones.

Other fish species mentioned: tcherie/turie/toukrie, salmon trout, sunfish, pyebrie, garfish, whiting. ]]>
CC BY-NC-ND]]> [was Mundoo Channel pre-barrage]]]> ]]> ]]>
Fishes--Identification]]> Weirs]]> Fish stocking]]> Fish kills]]> Droughts]]> Fishing--Australia]]>
Wally Cubbin and Ern Holloway are both fishers who reside in Nagambie, Victoria. Wally has been living in the area for more than 35 years, while Ern has lived in the area his entire life.

In the interview, Wally and Ern share their personal experiences of fishing from their younger years, to their adult lives where their fishing slowed down, to the present where more free time allows them to be more involved.

Wally, who is the Secretary of the Goulburn Valley Association of Angling Clubs and a member of the local Angling Club, addresses a number of topics including an audit on Goulburn Valley Water, poor management of the river, restocking initiatives (fingerlings), weirs and the changes in the fish population.

Mention of:
Worms, ribbon weed, cabomba.]]>
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Fishes--Identification]]> Fly fishing]]> Fishing--Australia]]> Floods]]> Water quality]]> Fisheries]]> Droughts]]> Fish stocking]]>
Mick Hall is a fly fisher living in Alexandra in Victoria. He learned how to fish when he was four years of age. After a break, he took up fishing again around the age of 14 and has been fishing ever since.

Mick speaks about how he came to be involved in fly fishing and the Red Tag Fly Fishing Club; the water quality and how fostering a relationship and ongoing communication with authorities helps to address river issues; restocking the river; floods and droughts; the environmental impacts of willows; and the change in attitudes amongst users of the river from that of neglect to one of protection and conservation.

Mention of:

Willow trees, Trout, maggots, platypus.

Australian Trout Foundation, Red Tag Fly Fishing Club
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Fishes--Identification]]> Birds--Identification]]> Reptiles--Identification]]> Weirs]]> Droughts]]> Floods]]> Wetland conservation]]> Wetlands]]> Farming]]> Revegetation]]> Water allocations]]>
Hayley Purbrick is a fifth generation member of the Purbrick Family who owns the Tahbilk Winery. She grew up on nearby Lake Nagambie and has interacted with the river since she was a child. She is involved in the conservation and revegetation of the wetlands in Tahbilk, Victoria.

In the interview, Hayley discusses the wetlands and the wildlife she encounters, the difficulties she experiences in her interactions with government, the Goulburn Weir and how she feels it is an asset to the wetlands and surrounds, and the future of farming that is experiencing a shift towards environmental awareness ushered in by the new generation of farmers.

Mention of:
Worms, Mexican Lily, swans, koalas, wallabies, turtles, platypus, wrens, brown snakes, red-belly black snakes, ibis, cranes, ducks, lizards.]]>
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Fishes--Identification]]> Weirs]]> Camping]]> Fishing--Australia]]> Lure fishing]]> Trawls and trawling]]> Taxidermy]]> Tournament fishing]]> Floods]]> Droughts]]>
Donnie Richter, who was born in 1948 and lives near the Goulburn River, has been fishing since he was a child. Fishing for him initially began as a social activity with his friends where they would camp, drink and fish along the riverbank. Fishing practices in those times, Donnie admits, were unconcerned about sustainability - this is in complete opposition to the sustainable practices that Donnie employs today.

Nowadays Donnie is equipped with his boat and fishing gear that he uses in the various competitions that he has entered, including the Barra Nationals, the Barra Classsic, the Barra Bonanza, the Barra Bash, and the exclusive Mulwala Classic. Donnie also speaks about lure fishing and lures, his taxidermy works, and the various plants and wildlife along the river.

Mentioned:
River Red Gum trees, turtles, platypuses, willows, bream, bardi grubs.]]>
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Fishing--Australia]]> Salinity]]> Indigenous medicine]]> Burial sites]]> Wetlands]]> Dredging]]> Introduced fishes]]> Droughts]]> Birds--Identification]]> Fishes--Identification]]> Fishes--effect of water levels on]]> Erosion]]> Spawning]]> Traditional ecological knowledge]]> Water quality]]>
Kingsley is from the Gerard Aboriginal community in South Australia. Born in 1971, he has always lived on the river; camping with family and extended family, a time for Elders to educate the younger generations about Country. Kingsley shares his knowledge of a changing and interconnected landscape.

Kingsley talks about: teaching family to swim and fish; yabbying methods; a period when Catfish species were rare; salinity (water and ground table) issues and low water levels; lack of ‘decent’ floods; Aboriginal grave sites and culture, native bushes, and native vegetables impacted by environmental degradation (e.g. traditional medicinal methods); the role of wetlands and back creeks (backwaters) as nurseries for all animals; the impact of Willow tree removal on Murray Cod and Callop; different types of soil in the area; changes observed in water colour; hybrid knowledge systems (incorporating Western into Aboriginal), and the desire to learn from each other. Also mentioned: snake species; water birds; vegetation; Crown Land.

Indigenous terms for fish species discussed:
Murray cod - Gadu, Pondi’s Gadu;
Yellowbelly - Thaigai; Pilaki
Catfish - Gaigai;
Bony bream: Thukeri
Silver Bream - Tookaree;
Silver Perch - Bungi.

One of the images in the collection includes a book called 'Tucker' by Ian Abdulla (1947-2011). It is a children's illustrated book about an Aboriginal boy who grows up along the Murray River, when bush tucker was plentiful.
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Fishes--Identification]]> Plants--Identification]]> Fishes--Breeding]]> Endangered species]]> Fish stocking]]> Droughts]]> Captive breeding]]> Environmental flows]]>
Todd, a landholder in the Murray Bridge area, breeds a variety of flatheaded gudgeon fish species in tanks in his garage, including the endangered Purple Spotted gudgeon. Todd’s broodstock facility includes twenty-five Southern Purple Spotted gudgeons, the last known population in the southern half of the Murray-Darling Basin – removed from a wetland during the 2007 drought. Similar facilities exist in Adelaide, and at a few Adelaide schools.

Todd talks about captive breeding programs; the types of stresses fish suffer; the lifecycle of fish kept at the facility; various methods to ensure fish survival in wild; theories behind their decline; water plant species.

Other fish species mentioned: Midgley's gudgeon.]]>
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Floods]]> Droughts]]> Siltation]]> Introduced fishes]]> Myxomatosis]]> Rabbits]]> Fishing--Australia]]>
Of the issues facing the Namoi, Darcy feels that silting is a major problem that is contributing to the drying of waterholes. After silting he believes that carp may have also contributed to the declining fish populations.

Mentioned:
Fig trees, clover hay, red river gums, crickets, platypuses, native water rats, ducks, swans, brolgas, red-belly black snakes.]]>

A section of this interview transcript and recording has been masked at the participants request. As part of our data access requirements, ATSIDA requires an applicant to sign an undertaking before access to the full transcript or recording can be approved. These undertakings may include a request for information about the intended use of the data. The depositor and/or participant may be informed of the application.

Preliminary applications may be made to atsida@lib.uts.edu.au. ]]>
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Soldier settlement]]> Fishes--Identification]]> Droughts]]> Floods]]> Bushfires]]> Siltation]]> Grazing]]> Environmental flows]]> Introduced fishes]]> Aboriginal culture]]> Depressions--1929--Australia]]>
Dougie talks about: the effects of drought and economic depression on communities; government property ballots,1951; soldier settlements; cycles of drought, floods, and bushfires; silt build up in water holes from grazier activities, changing river and creek flows; relationship between Warrego and Paroo; periods when water ran from Paroo into the Darling (1950, 1956); Aboriginal fishing methods, catching ‘sleepy cod’; siting carp in river branches connected to the Murray; gelignite used to erect power lines throughout Paroo. Drought events discussed: 1930, ending 1947, 1957. Flood events: 1942, 1947, 1950, 1956.

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Floods]]> Droughts]]> Silt]]> Hunting]]> Water quality]]> Social customs]]> Indigenous knowledge]]> Colonisation]]> Stock and station agents]]> Fishing--Australia]]> Aboriginal history]]> Aboriginal customs]]>
In the interview Tud describes the changes he has noticed in the Paroo River, mentioning that the river itself has not changed much, while the vegetation has. In spite of this, Tud remains rather upbeat about the condition of the river adding that silting is a natural and inevitable process. Tud also tells of his culture including the hunting techniques used to lure and catch native Australian animals and the friendships between the Aboriginal Nations of the Paroo and the Warrego Rivers.
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