Research interests

• Freshwater Fish Ecology
• Fish passage and migration
• Developing effective techniques for stocking
• Developing innovative methods for fish assessments
• Quantifying and mitigating human impacts on riverine ecosystems
• Floodplain management in the Lower Mekong Basin
• Mitigating human impacts on ecosystems

Background

Lee Baumgartner is a Freshwater Fish Ecologist based at the Narrandera Fisheries Centre who designs, supervises and undertakes into various aspects of the biology and ecology of freshwater fish in New South Wales.

Lee joined NSW Fisheries in 1997 and took up a scientific role at Narrandera in 1999 investigating innovative fish passage solutions for fish of the Murray-Darling Basin. He manages a suite of research projects which aim to improve the management of freshwater fish communities in NSW. A recent outcome of that research has been an invitation to contribute to resolving similar issues in the Lower Mekong Basin in South East Asia which has resulted in formal direct collaborations with the Mekong River Commission, National University of Laos, Living Aquatic Resources Research Centre (Laos) and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (USA).
His research has been in several broad areas, including fish passage and fish migration, dietary interactions among native fish species, the impact of human disturbance on aquatic ecosystems and the effectiveness of stocking native fish into rivers and impoundments. Lee’s work has also focused on developing innovative methods for assessment (such as the adaptation of sonar technology to studies of migrating fish) and improving existing fish collection techniques. A major current research focus is quantifying tolerances of fish to passage through mini hydro systems and irrigation infrastructure and also developing options to mitigate these impacts.  He also performs research to determining increases in native fish abundance following the delivery of environmental water allocations.
Lee is an adjunct researcher at Charles Sturt University, a member of the Association of Power Biologists, represents the department on the Murray-Darling Basin Authority's Fish Passage Task Force and Murray Cod Fishery Management group. He sits on six project steering committees and is a member of the Australian Society for Fish Biology and American Fisheries Society. He is also an associate editor of the international journal Marine and Freshwater Research.

*NSW Department of Primary Industries was formed on July 1, 2004 through an amalgamation of NSW Agriculture, NSW Fisheries, State Forests of NSW and the NSW Department of Mineral Resources.

Qualifications

• B.Sc. (Biological Science) – Deakin University, 1996 
• B.Sc (Aquatic Science with Honours) – Deakin University, 1997
• PhD Applied Ecology – University of Canberra, 2005

Current projects

• Murray River Fishway Assessment Project
• Quantification of Native Fish in Irrigation Offtakes
• Mortality of native fish during downstream migrations
• Improving freshwater recreational fishery management practices in NSW
• Development of fish passage criteria for fish in the Mekong River
• Determining benefits of environmental flows in the Murrumbidgee and Edward River system
• Assessment of Fish Migration and Environmental flows in the Nepean River
• Improvement of PIT tag technology for fisheries research
• Identifying design criteria for applications of mini hydro and  irrigation infrastructure

Recent Publications

• Baumgartner, L. (2005). The effects of weirs on fish movements in the Murray-Darling Basin. PhD Thesis, University of Canberra.

• Baumgartner LJ, Gilligan DM and Reynoldson N. (2006). Mortality of Murray cod (Maccullochella peelii peelii) and golden perch (Macquaria ambigua) associated with downstream passage through a low-level weir. Marine and Freshwater Research, 57: 187-191.

• Baumgartner, LJ (2006). An assessment of population estimation techniques to quantify temporal variation in fish accumulations downstream of a low-head weir. Fisheries Management and Ecology 13 (6): 355-364

• Baumgartner, LJ (2006). Diet and feeding habits of predatory fishes upstream and downstream of a low-level weir. Journal of Fish Biology. 70: 879-894.

• Baumgartner, L and Harris J (2007). Passage of non-salmonid fish through a Deelder lock in a large lowland River, Australia. River Research and Applications, 23: 1058-1069

• Baumgartner, LJ, Stuart, IG & Zampatti B. (2008). Using electrofishing to determine diel variation of fish assemblages in a regulated lowland river. Journal of Fish Biology, 72: 218-232.

• Stuart, IG, Baumgartner, LJ and Zampatti, BP. (2008). Lock gates improve passage of small-bodied fish and crustaceans in a low-gradient vertical slot fishway. Fisheries Management and Ecology 15: 241-248.
• Stuart, IG, Zampatti, BP and Baumgartner, LJ. (2008). Can a low gradient vertical-slot fishway provide passage for a lowland river fish assemblage? Marine and Freshwater Research, 59 (4): 332-346.

• Baumgartner LJ, Reynoldson NK, Cameron L and Stanger J. (2009). Effects of high and low-volume irrigation pumps on riverine fish. Ecology of Freshwater Fish 16: 429-437.

• Baumgartner LJ, Boys CA, Stuart IG, Zampatti BP. (2010). Evaluating migratory fish behaviour and fishway performance: testing a combined assessment methodology. Australian Journal of Zoology, 58: 154-164.

• Smith, JA, Baumgartner, LJ, Suthers, IM & Taylor, MD. (2011). Generalist niche, specialist strategy: the diet of an Australian percicthyid. Journal of Fish Biology, 78: 1183-1199.

• Smith JA, Baumgartner, LJ, Suthers IM, Taylor MD. (2011). The distribution and movement of a stocked freshwater fish, and the implications of a variable habitat volume for stocking programs. Marine and Freshwater Research, 62 (11): 1342-1353

• Cameron, LM, Baumgartner, LJ, Bucher, DJ, Robinson, W. (2012). Optimising chemical marking techniques for Australian bass, Macquaria novemaculeata, fry and fingerlings prior to restocking. Australian Journal of Zoology, 59, 242-248.

• Baumgartner LJ. Bettanin M, McPherson J, Jones M, Zampatti B, Beyer K. (2012). Influence of turbidity and passage rate on the efficiency of an infrared counter to enumerate and measure riverine fish. Target journal: Journal of Applied Ichthyology, 28: 531-536.

• Baumgartner, LJ, Marsden, T, Singhanouvong, D, Phonekhampeng, O, Stuart, I, Thorncraft, G (2012). Using an in-situ experimental fishway to inform key fishway design criteria: a case study from the Mekong River. River Research and Applications, 28 (8): 1217-1227

• Smith, J.A., Baumgartner, L.J., Suthers, I.M., Ives, M.C., Taylor, M.D. (2012). Estimating the stocking potential of fish in impoundments by modelling supply and steady-state demand. Freshwater Biology, 57, 1482-1499

• Baumgartner, LJ & Boys, C. (2012). Reducing the perversion of diversion: applying world standard screening practices to the Murray-Darling Basin. Ecological Management and Restoration, 13 (2), 135-143.

• Cameron, LM, Baumgartner, LJ, Bucher, DJ, Robinson, W. (2012). Critical Thermal Minima of age-0 Australian bass, Macquaria novemaculeata, fingerlings: implications for stocking programmes. Fisheries Management and Ecology, 19 (4): 344-351.

• Baumgartner, LJ, Boys, C and Barton R. (2012). Mini hydro development workshop: Sustainable solutions for native fish. Ecological Management and Restoration, 13: 1-2.

• Baumgartner, LJ, McLellan, M, Robinson, W, Forbes, J, McGuffie, P, Jess, L, Malcolm, B. (2013). The influence of saline concentration on the success of Calcein marking techniques for hatchery produced Murray cod (Maccullochella peelii). Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales, 145: 168-180.

• Baumgartner, LJ., Conallin, J., Wooden, I, Campbell, B, Gee, R and Robinson, W (2013). Linking biological needs with hydrology to develop environmental flow requirements for freshwater fish in riverine systems. Fish and Fisheries

• Smith, J, Baumgartner LJ, Fielder S, Suthers, I and Taylor, M. (2013). Density-dependent Energy Use Contributes to the Self-thinning Relationship of Cohorts. American Naturalist. 181 (3)

•  Boys, C. Baumgartner LJ. Lowry, M. (2013) Entrainment and impingement of juvenile silver perch, Bidyanus bidyanus, and golden perch, Macquaria ambigua, at a fish screen: effect of velocity and light. Fisheries Management and Ecology

Professional associations and activities

• Australian Society for Fish Biology
• American Fisheries Society
• Association of Power Biologists
• Fish Passage Task Force
• Murray cod fishery management group

Fields of Research

• 060204 Freshwater Ecology
• 070402 Aquatic Ecosystem Studies and Stock Assessment
• 050202 Conservation and Biodiversity
• 050211 Wildlife and Habitat Management
• 050205 Environmental Management 
• 050207 Environmental Rehabilitation (excl. Bioremediation)

Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification (ANZSRC)

Keyword/phrase list of research interests

• Fishway
• Migration
• Stocking
• Freshwater Ecology
• Fish Biology
• Riverine Ecology
• Human disturbance
• Sonar
• Fisheries Techniques