Distribution, Identification and Biology of Freshwater Fishes in South-Western Australia

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Distribution, Identification and Biology of Freshwater Fishes in South-Western Australia Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement No. 56 Distribution, identification and biology of freshwater fishes in south-western Australia David L. Morgan, Howard S. Gill and Ian C. Potter Western Australian Museum 1998 :;; - TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ................................................................................................................................ 1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 2 Materials and Methods ...................................................................................................... 9 Results and Discussion ...................................................................................................... 9 Identification, distribution and biology of the eight endemic freshwater fish species ., ............................................................................................. 9 Tandanus bostocld Whitley, 1944 (Plotosidae) ............................................................. 9 Lepidogalaxias salamandroides Mees, 1961 (Lepidogalaxiidae) ............................... 10 Galaxias occidentalis Ogilby, 1900 (Galaxiidae) ........................................................ 14 Galaxiella nigrostriata (Shipway, 1953) (Galaxiidae) ............................................... 16 Galaxiella munda McDowall, 1978 (Galaxiidae) ....................................................... 18 Bostockia porosa CasteInau, 1873 (Percichthyidae) .................................................. 20 Edelia vittata Castelnau, 1873 (Nannopercidae) ...................................................... 22 Nannatherina balstoni Regan, 1906 (Nannopercidae) .............................................. 24 Identification, distribution and biology of galaxiids found elsewhere in Australia ................................................................................................................ 26 Galaxias truttaceus Valenciennes, 1846 (Galaxiidae) ............................................... 26 Galaxias maculatus (Jenyns, 1842) (Galaxiidae) ........................................................ 30 Identification, distribution and biology of the lamprey ............................................. 32 Geotria australis Gray, 1851 (Geotriidae) ................................................................... 32 Identification, distribution and biology of species with marine affinities .............. 35 Leptatherina wallacei (Prince, Ivantsoff & Potter, 1981) (Atherinidae) ................. 35 Pseudogobius alarum (Sauvage, 1880) (Gobiidae) ..................................................... 37 Afurcagobius suppositus (Sauvage, 1880) (Gobiidae) ................................................ 39 Identification, distribution and biology of introduced fish species ......................... 39 Oncorhynchus mykiss (Walbaum), Salmo trulta Linnaeus (Salmonidae) .............. 39 Gambusia holbrooki (Girard) (Poeciliidae) ................................................................. 41 Perea fluviatilis Linneaus (Percidae) .......................................................................... 43 Summary and Recommendations .................................................................................. 43 Distribution, abundance and habitat requirements of fish in south-western Australia .......................................................................................... 43 Endemic freshwater fish species .......................................................................................... 43 Galaxiids that are also found in south-eastern Australia ................................................... 45 The anadromous lamprey Geotria australis ..................................................................... 45 .Fish species with marine affinities ...................................................................................... 45 Introduced freshwater fish species ....................................................................................... 46 Threats and conservation recommendations ............................................................... 46 Acknowledgements .......................................................................................................... 47 References .......................................................................................................................... 48 Appendix ........................................................................................................................... 52 Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement No. 56. Distribution, identification and biology of freshwater fishes in south-western Australia David L. Morgan, Howard S. Gill and Ian C. Potter School of Biological Sciences, Murdoch University, South Street, Murdoch, Western Australia 6150, Australia Abstract - A total of 410 sites in the major watersheds in the south-western corner of Australia, bounded by Bunbury in the north-west and just east of Albany in the south-east, were sampled for fish. Sampling of the different sites was carried out using one or more of the following methods, namely seine netting, scoop netting, trapping and electrofishing to catch juvenile and adult fish, and light trapping, scoop netting and haul netting to collect larval fish. The fish caught at each site were identified and the number of each species recorded. These data were then collated, both with those derived from the studies of Christensen (1982) and Jaensch (1992) and with the records of the Western Australian Museum (WAM), to elucidate the distributions of each of the fish species found in freshwater in south-western Australia. The eight species endemic to south-western Australia are Tandanus bostocki, Lepidogalaxias salamandroides, Galaxias occidentalis, Galaxiella nigrostriata, Galaxiella munda, Bostockia porosa, Edelia vittata and Nannatherina baIstoni. The other species found in this region include Galaxias truttaceus and Galaxias maculatus, which are also represented in south-eastern mainland Australia and Tasmania, the anadromous lamprey Geotria australis, and those teleosts which are commonly found in freshwater, but belong to predominantly marine families, i.e. Leptatherina wallacei, Pseudogobius olontm and AJurcagobius suppositus. Finally, there are those species that have been introduced into the region, i.e. Oncorhynchus mykiss, Salmo trutta, Gambusia holbrooki and Perca jluviatilis. The most common and widespread endemic freshwater species in south­ western Australia are G. occidentalis, B. porosa and E. vittata, which are found tn the majority of rivers and lakes and many of the pools in the region. Within the sampling region, the freshwater catfish Tandanus bostocki, was caught at only two sites during the present study (Alexander Bridge on the Blackwood River and at Lake Smith in the D'Entrecasteaux National Park), and was only recorded from Lake Wilson by Jaensch (1992) and from Pemberton and Nannup in the Western Australian Museum records. The other four endemic species, namely L. salamandroides, G. nigrostriata, G. munda and N. balstoni, are effectively restricted to the region bounded by Margaret River in the west and by Albany in the east. However, G. nigrostriata, G. munda and N. balstoni have disjunct distributions, each having an isolated population near Gingin, which is well to the north of the other populations of these species. Disjunct populations of G. nigrostriata and N. baIstoni have recently been found near Bunbury and Collie, respectively. Lepidogalaxias saIamandroides and G. nigrostrlata are generally restricted to the small ephemeral pools in the southern peat flats. Although N. baIstoni is likewise abundant in the pools of the peat fiats, it is also present in very low numbers in some rivers and lakes. GalaxielIa munda is also found in a number of pools in the peat flats, but is most common in the headwaters of the major rivers of this area. The two freshwater species, that are also found in south-eastern Australia, namely G. tntttaceus and G. maculatus, were only found in the catchments of the small nature reserve at Two People's Bay. However, G. maculatus is known to be most cornman eastwards of the sampling region, i.e. within the coastal streams and rivers between Albany and Esperance. Adult G. australis were recorded migrating up the Warren, Donnelly and Margaret Rivers during winter and spring. Although the precise locations at which they spawn are unknown, a number of maturing adults were caught in autumn and winter in both isolated pools and the main channel of the headwaters of the Warren River. The larvae (ammocoetes) of G, australis were collected from within shallow silty banks in the Capel, Margaret, Donnelly, Warren, Gardner, Shannon, Deep, Kent and Denmark Rivers, while the fully-metamorphosed young adults were typically found in the sandy substrates of these rivers. 2 D.I. Morgan, H.S. Gill, I.e. Potter Those fish species with marine affinities, that are abundant in freshwater in south-western Australia, namely L. wallacei, P. alarum and A. suppositus, are generally associated with coastal water bodies. However, these species were found considerable distances inland in, for example, the Blackwood River and a number of isolated lakes, such as Lake Jasper in the D'Entrecasteaux National Park. Gambusia holbrooki, a small introduced species, is extremely common and widespread in south-western Australia. Perea jluviatilis, a large introduced
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