Time to double the size of Yandina Creek Wetland

Red Fox at Yandina Creek Wetland

It has been close to 12 months since Unitywater reopened some floodgates connecting the Yandina Creek Wetland to the tidal of waters of Yandina Creek and the Maroochy River. The move has allowed half the once flourishing wetland on the Sunshine Coast to be restored.

Last weekend, BirdLife Australia surveys confirmed that birds are returning to the site in numbers. A pair of Black-necked Storks appears to have set up residence. Spotless Crakes are quite common in the reed beds. Small flocks of migratory Sharp-tailed Sandpipers were among species recorded along with some birds in the images in this blog post.

Black-necked Stork pair

This is an excellent development. Many thought the wetland was lost forever when it was drained by its former owners in 2015, but Unitywater's acquisition of the 200-hectare site in August 2016 for its nutrient offset program was a turning point.

Spotless Crake

However, only the northern-most gates along Yandina Creek are reopened, so only the northern half of the site is replenished. The southern half remains high and dry, almost four years after it was drained. Unitywater has been unsettled by a small number of residents along River Road who complain that  restoring the wetland means they will suffer from hordes of mosquitoes.

Yandina Creek Wetland - northern half nicely replenished 

Yandina Creek Wetland - southern half is high and dry

The residents' complaints ignore the fact that mosquitoes were there for many years before the wetland was drained, apparently without causing undue concern. The homes are several hundred metres away at least from the wetland and are already surrounded by tidal waterways with their attendant insects. As well, Unitywater has been undertaking environmentally friendly spraying at the wetland, which has seriously reduced mosquito numbers.

Royal Spoonbill, Australian Pelican & Pied Stilt

It would be a truly gratifying development if Unitywater was to reopen the remaining gates. The southern half  of the site was home to many of the uncommon waterbirds of the wetland and provided refuge to large numbers of Latham's Snipe and other migratory shorebirds. Instead, the area has become a desolate landscape of weeds and regrowth and importantly, a haven for the Red Fox.

Sharp-tailed Sandpiper

Foxes have become common at the wetland and BirdLife Australia volunteers have witnessed numerous bird victims of this introduced pest. Foxes have an ideal refuge in the dry southern half of the site; their habitat would be much more restricted if the entire wetland was restored. As well, restoring the whole wetland would give the birds a greater area in which to forage and roost.

Several pairs of Black Swan are back

My observations suggest that water levels in the replenished northern half of the wetland are significantly higher than they were prior to the 2015 draining, with reduced areas of exposed mod and other bird-friendly habitat. It seems likely that restoring the southern half will allow excess water to spread over the site more evenly.

Hopefully Unitywater, perhaps in conjunction with the Sunshine Coast Council, will embark on a much-needed fox eradication program in addition to restoring all the wetland to its former glory.

Sacred Kingfisher