It's Just A Dry Creek Bed.............?

It's Just A Dry Creek Bed.............?

The Western Rivers Carer invites you to look carefully at this photo (taken last week) of a dry creek bed which is located near Longreach, Queensland. It all appears at first glance, to be a lifeless and parched belly of a creek bed that would only support animal life when the waterhole has filled.

Think again.

This creek bed is currently home to a myriad of animals, and one of the most amazing creatures that can be found here comes in the form of a frog. In the deep, dark underground many frogs cocoon themselves into small burrows, and hibernate until rain falls. Once rain has fallen, they come out and make their fabulous croaking noises and quickly find themselves a mate. The tadpoles then quickly grow into frogs, and hopefully another cycle of breeding is completed before the temporary pool of water dries up, and the frog recedes back into the deep, dark underground again.

The hard luck story for these plucky survivors of the semi-arid zones is that they may become part of the food chain, as they are snapped up by plethora of other animals that are quickly drawn to this aquatic environment. The waterbirds that assemble can be a breathtaking sight to behold, and they too feed abundantly when waterholes and creeks are full.

All is not what it seems, and it behoves one to carefully consider the secrets of a dried waterhole or creek bed!

Western Rivers Carer Mixes it with the Landcare Larrikins and Legends

Western Rivers Carer Mixes It With the Landcare Larrikins and Legends

Last week, the Queensland State Landcare Conference was held in Longreach. What a wonderful three days of discussion, workshops, networking and sharing! The topics covered during the conference ranged from caring for our soils (cracked soil is so desirable); improving grasses and pastures (kiss my grass); the value of adding Charcoal-Carbon to our enhance our soil (nature helping nature, it’s only natural); how rural Australia is perceived (think totally forgotten about, as evidenced by a Qld Tourism advertisement) and how our traditional owners are undertaking some cutting edge landcare and sustainability initiatives throughout the state (fabulous stuff happening in all areas by many giving people).

It was also pleasing to note that Minister Robertson (Minister for Natural Resources, Mines and Energy and Minster for Trade) announced that the draft Cooper’s Creek water resource plan and any future proposal to declare a Wild River over Cooper’s Creek will be released together, in order to ensure that both protective water /river management documents are consistent with each other. Consultation will occur simultaneously, so stakeholder feedback can be sought in relation to both documents, and all the information will be available together. By coupling these together, it will also communicate strongly to other states what Queensland’s unique vision is for this magnificent part of the Lake Eyre Basin.