Priorities Action Statement - Actions for Flathead Galaxias

Recovery Actions

Advice to consent and determining authorities

  • Provide information on the distribution of the Flathead Galaxias to local councils and determining authorities to ensure appropriate consideration during development assessment processes (High priority).

Collate and review existing information

  • Compile existing information on Flathead Galaxias and identify knowledge gaps for the purpose of targeting future research activities (High priority).
  • Collate data on the historical distribution of Flathead Galaxias including anecdotal and indigenous knowledge (Medium priority).

Community and stakeholder liaison, awareness and education

  • Encourage community reporting of Flathead Galaxias sightings via the NSW DPI Threatened and Pest Species Sightings Program online form (Low priority).
  • Implement education initiatives to improve awareness of the status of the Flathead Galaxias and ways to minimise impacts on the species by preparing and distributing appropriate advisory material (Low priority).
  • Install signs and/or interpretive displays at appropriate locations to assist with identification and awareness of Flathead Galaxias (Low priority).
  • Foster long-term, two-way knowledge transfer and capacity building to enhance the role of indigenous ecological knowledge in the recovery of Flathead Galaxias (Low priority).

Compliance / enforcement

  • Maximise compliance activities at identified important sites (Low priority).

Enhance, modify or implement NRM planning processes to minimize adverse impacts on threatened species

  • Negotiate with relevant authorities to encourage the identification, assessment, and modification of natural resource management plans and policies to minimise impacts on Flathead Galaxias habitats and water quality (High priority).
  • Implement relevant State policies and programs (e.g. the NSW Diffuse Source Water Pollution Strategy) in an effort to reduce water pollution (particularly chemical pollution from agricultural pesticides) impacts on Flathead Galaxias habitats in NSW (Medium priority).

Habitat protection

  • Review and assess the potential of artificial refuge areas for the protection of Flathead Galaxias (High priority).

Habitat rehabilitation

  • Undertake work to identify, restore and protect known and potential Flathead Galaxias habitats and address key threats such as habitat degradation (High priority).
  • Allocate and manage environmental water flows in regulated rivers to restore natural seasonal flow patterns, and to reduce the impact of cold water downstream of dams (High priority).
  • Actively seek funds through grant schemes or other sources to implement riparian vegetation and water quality improvement projects in priority areas (High priority).
  • Undertake priority rehabilitation, restoration and enhancement work (e.g. rehabilitating riparian vegetation, cold water pollution reduction measures, reinstating large woody debris, removal of barriers to fish passage, removal of willows from riverbanks, sediment and erosion control measures) at key sites known to support Flathead Galaxias populations (High priority).

Pest eradication and control

  • Investigate and implement integrated management of introduced species in and adjacent to identified Flathead Galaxias habitats and take action to prevent the spread of introduced species into these habitats (Medium priority).

Research / monitoring

  • Conduct research on the biology and ecology of Flathead Galaxias, particularly the species' ecological role, environmental tolerances, factors influencing population dynamics, age and growth, life cycle and diet (High priority).
  • Undertake research to identify, prioritise and improve understanding of the threatening processes and causes of decline of Flathead Galaxias (High priority).
  • Actively seek grants or investor partnerships to fund research and monitoring programs for Flathead Galaxias (High priority).
  • Monitor Flathead Galaxias population over time to assess trends in abundance and distribution and to identify emerging threatening processes (Medium priority).
  • Conduct targeted sampling at stocked sites to assess the status of stocked populations including growth and recruitment rates (Medium priority).
  • Collect habitat and environmental information at remnant extant populations in Victoria to determine habitat preferences to assist in identifying remnant NSW populations (Medium priority).
  • Actively encourage community involvement in aspects of Flathead Galaxias research and monitoring programs (Low priority).
  • Obtain and analyse genetic material from remnant populations of Flathead Galaxias to identify genetic units to inform conservation breeding or translocation (Low priority).
  • Conduct research to evaluate the effectiveness of translocation of adult fish compared to stocking of juveniles to inform future conservation actions (Low priority).

Stocking / translocation

  • Implement the NSW Freshwater Fish Stocking Fishery Management Strategy to prevent significant impacts from stocking on Flathead Galaxias populations (High priority).
  • Develop an emergency response policy to guide the collection and captive husbandry of Flathead Galaxias. The policy should address the circumstances in which wild individuals may be collected, held and re-released, and identify holding facilities, potential funding sources and legal requirements (Medium priority).
  • Identify potential candidate sites for possible future translocation of Flathead Galaxias (Medium priority).

Survey / mapping

  • Collect data on the presence/absence of Flathead Galaxias during incidental surveys (High priority).
  • Conduct targeted surveys to determine the current distribution and abundance of Flathead Galaxias (High priority).