Declared Fish Habitat Area summary - Noosa River

Location

Parts of Noosa River, Weyba Creek and associated lake systems, adjacent to Tewantin and Noosa.

Plan number

FHA-051 (PDF, 1.6MB) (Revision 2)

Size

6,074 ha
5,974 ha management A
100 ha management B

Management level

A and B

Declaration dates

16 March 1974 (original declarations of Noosa and Weyba reserves)
19 November 1983 (original declaration Lake Doonella Reserve)
21 September 2001 (redeclared to combine Noosa, Weyba and Lake Doonella FHAs)
19 December 2003 (redeclared to address management issues)
28 March 2008 (redeclared to address management issues identified in the Noosa River Plan)

Local government

Noosa Shire Council

Management features

Fish and crustacean nursery; limited habitat modification (runnels) for mosquito control; intensive urban development of adjacent land.

Habitat values

Mangrove communities (dominated by Avicennia and Rhizophora species with Bruguiera also present along estuarine waterways); scattered saltmarshes; occasional claypans; extensive seagrass beds (Zostera and Halophila species); significant freshwater section; river system connecting wide shallow sandy lakes subject to limited tidal exchange.

Fisheries values

Protection and habitat management for estuarine commercial, recreational and Indigenous fisheries including a prawn fishery; Australian bass; bream; blue salmon; estuary cod; flathead; garfish; jewfish; luderick; mangrove jack; sea mullet; tailor; whiting; mud and sand crabs; school, greasyback, bay and eastern king prawns.

Unique features

Unique among Queensland estuaries with a transition from freshwater to hypersaline waters in the lakes; largest riverine seagrass beds in south-east Queensland; coastal lowlands of the Cooloola region provide habitat for endangered honey blue eye (Pseudomugil mellis) and oxleyan pygmy perch (Nannoperca oxleyana); southern limit of club mangrove (Aegialitis annulata).

Other values

Habitats support tourism, e.g. kayaking, canoeing and boat cruises.