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Monitoring Australasian bitterns in south-western NSW

Technical report supporting NSW Basin Plan Matter 8 reporting 2019 to 2024

The NSW Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water monitors the health of wetlands in the Murray–Darling Basin, including outcomes from environmental water deliveries. The Australasian bittern (Botaurus poiciloptilus) is a nationally endangered waterbird species dependent on wetlands for feeding and breeding. Once common across south-eastern Australia, the number of these birds has declined across their range in response to changes to natural flow regimes.
Date:
Publisher: Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water
Cost: Free
Language: English
ISBN: 978-1-923436-19-0 / ID: EH20250085
File: PDF 5.33 MB / Pages 0
Name: monitoring-australian-bitterns-in-south-western-nsw-250085.pdf
 
Tags: Monitoring reportWater

The ecological objectives and targets for waterbird monitoring are outlined in the NSW long-term water plans and align with the expected ecological outcomes specified in the Murray–Darling Basin Authority’s Basin-wide environmental watering strategy. The long-term water plans have objectives and targets for maintaining waterbird species richness, which include threatened species.

Australasian bittern records were extracted from acoustic data collected in 6 wetland regions as part of the NSW Saving our Species southern bell frog conservation project. The results of this study have improved the understanding of the distribution of Australasian bitterns in the southern Murray–Darling Basin. They have also shown the value of acoustic monitoring for assessing Australasian bittern responses to inundation in remote floodplain wetlands.