Macquarie Perch

Interesting Info

• The Macquarie Perch, often called “Macca” by anglers, is a medium-sized freshwater fish native to the Murray–Darling Basin and some coastal rivers of southeastern Australia.
• They are deep-bodied fish, usually dark grey to bluish-black, with lighter silver-grey bellies. Their scales have a faint purplish sheen in good light.
• Historically, they were abundant throughout the Murray–Darling system, supporting both Indigenous harvest and early European settlers. Today, their range is severely reduced.
• Macquarie Perch are omnivores, feeding mostly on aquatic insects, crustaceans, worms, and small molluscs. Larger fish occasionally take small fish and yabbies.
• They prefer cool, clear, flowing rivers with rocky or gravel bottoms, but are also found in some lakes and reservoirs where stocked.
• Juveniles grow slowly and rely heavily on healthy invertebrate populations. This makes them especially vulnerable to river degradation.
• Breeding occurs in late spring to early summer (November–December) when water temperatures reach about 16–19°C. Females migrate upstream into flowing water, laying 30,000–100,000 small eggs across gravel beds. Unlike some native fish, they require clean, flowing water for successful spawning..
• Today, their strongholds are in a few upland rivers of Victoria and New South Wales, with remnant populations also in the ACT (such as the Cotter River). They are locally extinct in many parts of their former range.
• Threats include overfishing (historically), habitat destruction, sedimentation of spawning beds, river regulation, predation by introduced trout and redfin, and diseases like Epizootic Haematopoietic Necrosis Virus (EHNV).
• They are listed as Endangered nationally under the EPBC Act. Fishing for them is banned in most areas, with very limited catch-and-release fisheries in some stocked lakes.
• Conservation programs are now underway, including captive breeding, restocking, and habitat restoration, to try to rebuild populations.
• Lifespan is relatively long for a freshwater species — up to 20 years, although most wild fish live 8–10 years.