New ponds unveiled at Narrandera Fisheries Centre

23 Jul 2025

The NSW Department of Primary Industries & Regional Development (DPIRD) has launched eight new purpose-built aquaculture ponds for endangered Macquarie Perch breeding at Narrandera Fisheries Centre, funded by Snowy Hydro under the Snowy 2.0 Threatened Fish Management Plan.

Under the Plan, DPIRD Fisheries is set to expand captive breeding of Macquarie Perch to allow for the reintroduction of the species into protected habitats and to boost the genetic diversity of populations in the wild, including in the Murrumbidgee River below Tantangara Dam.

Senior Fisheries Manager Luke Pearce said the additional eight ponds have been designed to build the Department’s capacity for the expanded captive breeding program.

“Our goal is to build a more resilient Macquarie Perch population to help this endangered native fish recover and hopefully thrive into the future,” Mr Pearce said.

“In order to do that, the captive breeding program at Narrandera is critical so we can maintain and improve Macquarie Perch populations in the wild.

“These ponds will increase our production capacity by expanding our ability to house, maintain and grow Macquarie Perch in both indoor and outdoor ponds, in a controlled hatchery environment.

“There are very few Macquarie Perch populations persisting in the wild, so it’s important that we have the ability to improve and monitor the gene pool. These new ponds will increase our ability to do that."

Snowy Hydro CEO Dennis Barnes said Snowy Hydro was pleased to support the work to recover Macquarie Perch.

“We are pleased to work collaboratively with NSW DPIRD Fisheries to carry out the associated monitoring and research that will improve the resilience of Macquarie Perch in both the catchments where Snowy 2.0 will operate and also across the state,” Mr Barnes said.

“Beyond delivering positive environmental outcomes, Snowy 2.0, with a design life of 150 years, will underpin Australia’s clean energy future by storing excess wind and solar power and delivering it to homes and businesses across the grid when it’s needed most."

Macquarie Perch is listed as an endangered species so targeting them is illegal. If any Macquarie Perch are caught incidentally, they must be promptly returned to the water. Any incidental captures or sightings can be reported at the Threatened Species Reporting Form online, which will help DPIRD Fisheries to continue to manage the population.

To log a sighting go to https://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/fishing/threatened-species/report-it

Images are available here

Media contact: pi.media@dpird.nsw.gov.au