Trout Cod
Scientific name
Maccullochella macquariensis
Status in NSW
Endangered.
Characteristics
Species similar in appearance
Murray Cod.
Size
Trout Cod can grow to 85cm and 16kg, but are more common to 50cm and 1.5kg.
Distribution
The Trout Cod is endemic to the southern Murray-Darling river system, including the Murrumbidgee and Murray Rivers, and the Macquarie River in central NSW. The species was once widespread and abundant in these areas but has undergone dramatic declines in its distribution and abundance over the past century. The last known reproducing population of Trout Cod is confined to the Murray River below Yarrawonga downstream to Tocumwal.
Habitat
Trout Cod are often found in faster flowing water with rocky and gravel bottoms, but can also be found in some slower flowing, lowland rivers. Large woody snags are very important for the species as they provide complex habitats for each stage of the species' life cycle.
Why is the Trout Cod threatened?
- Habitat modification and degradation
- Historic overfishing and current illegal fishing practices
- Competition with and predation of juveniles by introduced species
- Cold water pollution
More information
- Current projects on Trout Cod
- National Recovery Plan
- NSW Recovery Plan
- Review of the NSW Recovery Plan 2017
- Primefact: Trout Cod
- Priorities Action Statement - Actions for Trout Cod
- Protecting Trout Cod - a guide for fishers and land managers
- Trout Cod review 2022
