A small Carland Creek, that runs through coastal heathland or (Wallum) on the border of Cooloola National Park in South East Queensland Australia, home to Rhadinocentrus ornatus, Pseudomugil mellis, Melanotaenia duboulayi and other fishes.
Carland Creek is a small creek that runs through coastal heathland or (Wallum) on the border of Cooloola National Park in South East Queensland Australia, the creek starts off as swampland and continues for about 5kms to Tin Can Bay, the National park has several pristine creeks and most of the habitat are similar such as Searys Creek, Snapper Creek, Teewah Creek. The water in the creek can range from heavily tannin to crystal clear depending on the rainfall and the seasons there isn’t much in terms of aquatic plants other than sedges probably because these creeks are isolated from other major drainages and the water quality can be acidic with mainly rotting vegetation.
The substrate in these creeks consists of mainly fine white sand but as you go further inland there can be some rock mainly sandstone, as it flows through open swamps there is just rotting vegetation and sedges but as it passes though heathland there are fallen branches and tree roots.
List of fishes and invertebrates occurring in the nature biotope: Rhadinocentrus ornatus, Pseudomugil mellis, Tandanus tandanus, Anguilla reinhardtii, Nannoperca oxleyana, Gobiomorphus australis, Ambassis marianus, Ambassis agassizii, Melanotaenia duboulayi, Glossamia aprion, Philypnodon grandiceps, Hypseleotris galii, Tenuibranchiurus glypticus.
List of plants found in the nature biotope: Lepironia articulata, Baumea rubiginosa, Cyperus polystachyos, Azolla pinnata, Schoenoplectus mucronatus, Ludwigia peploides, Utricularia gibba, Baumea articulate, Baumea gunnii, Baumea juncea, Baumea rubiginosa, Carex pumila, Cyperus difformis, Fimbristylis dichotoma, Isolepis inundata.
Large areas of these species coastal habitat have been cleared for residential development, forestry and agriculture. It is also likely that the introduced mosquito fish Gambusia holbrooki could compete with them for resources. The mosquito fish is more likely to be found where the habitat has been disturbed, these fish are now segmented to small pockets of habitat and could be lost, Pseudomugil mellis is listed as venerable and is protected in Queensland and can’t be sold in the aquarium hobby in Queensland, they are kept by a few people and are given to each other to try and keep some populations in the hobby, mainly ANGFA members.
