Thriving, healthy aquatic environments are indispensable for life on our planet.

Manly Dam’s wetlands, creeks, aquifers and the dam itself support a rich diversity of species including fish, freshwater crustaceans and aquatic macroinvertebrates. A significant number of other plants and animals living in the Manly Dam catchment are dependent on the aquatic ecosystem during at least part of their lifecycle.

Fish, crayfish and macroinvertebrtates are good indicators of river and estuarine condition as they are often top predators and keystone species in the lower part of the food chain, which means that they are closely linked with the overall health of the larger ecosystem they are a part of. Monitoring these species regularly can provide valuable information relating to overall ecosystem health.