Tambo River (Victoria)

Tambo River and Tambo Valley south of Ensay

Template: Infobox River / Obsolete

The Tambo River is a river in eastern Gippsland in the Australian state of Victoria, with a total length of more than 170 km. It is the longest river in the Tambo Nicholson Basin, which extends from the steep, wooded southern slopes of the Australian Alps through forests and farmland to the Gippsland Lakes.

• 2.1 Flora
• 2.2 Fauna
• 2.3 Pollution and Environmental Protection

Geography and Hydrology

River

The Tambo River rises in the Bowen Mountains in the southern Australian Alps, part of the Great Dividing Range, about 20 km east of Benambra. It flows south into Lake King, one of the Gippsland Lakes. At its run on the following Cities and Towns: Bindi, Tongio, Swifts Creek, Ensay, Tambo Crossing, Bruthen, Tambo Upper, Swan Reach and Johnsonville.

The river leaves the mountains where he near Bindi, north of Swift Creek, has its real source, and Bindi it flows through the Tambo Valley to Bruthen. The Great Alpine Road leads from Tongio along the river and followed him almost through the entire Tambo Valley to the south. The valley is used for farming relatively wide and flat and is from Bindi to south of Ensay. There it is again but close and the river is bordered by steep, wooded slopes. To the north of Bruthen the valley opens again and the river makes its way through a fertile valley to the Lake King. This level is characterized by grain farming, dairy farming and cattle breeding.

Riverbed

When Bindi the river bed is about 5 m wide. At Swifts Creek and Ensay the width is about 12 m at a water depth up to 1.4 m and the bed is made of crushed stone and gravel. In the narrow, wooded valley between Ensay and Bruthen the river is up to 20 m wide and the bed is made of rock, boulders, gravel, sand and mud. Between Bruthen and Tambo Upper occurs extensive sedimentation and the river bed is about 25 m wide, but in summer typically less than 0.5 m deep. It is in this area made ​​of sand. In Tambo Upper, the flow is again narrower and the bed is from there to the mouth mainly of mud.

Tributaries

The Tambo River has a number of important tributaries. The two largest are the Little River, which flows to the Tambo River at Ensay from the north and the River Timbarra coming south-east of Tambo Crossing from the east. The Tambo River South Branch, which rises on the Nunniong Plains in the hills east of Bindi, flows north and encounters the main river near its source. Some rivers that do not result in water throughout the year, also flow into the Tambo River, for example, the Swifts Creek, which comes at the place of the same name of the north, the Haunted Stream, which flows north of Tambo Crossing from the west, as well as some smaller streams, such as the Junction Creek and Deep Creek.

Ecology

In the middle reaches of the Tambo River at Swifts Creek Ensay and the average annual rainfall is 500-700 mm, at Bruthen on the lower reaches there are 700-1000 mm. The headwaters of the major tributary of River Timbarra usually gets more precipitation. Tambo River and River Timbarra lead relatively reliable water. In the catchment area of the River Tambo and Nicholson River is important wetlands.

Flora

At the headwaters of the rivers there are high eucalyptus forests, alpine and sub-alpine vegetation, while having the middle and lower reaches of the Tambo River lower mixed forests. The riparian vegetation in the area between Swifts Creek and Ensay consists mainly of grass and willows, where there is little bank erosion or sedimentation. The lowland forest on the steep slopes between Ensay and Bruthen is still original; it is made of acacia, eucalyptus and other native tree species, whereas the imported tree species near Bruthen have a larger share.

Fauna

The threatened extinction of Australian trout pike Ling ( Prototroctes maraena, Australian grayling ) from the family of New Zealand salmon is found in large numbers in the Tambo River. The river is also considered a good fish water for the sea bream Acanthopagrus butcheri ( southern black bream ). Especially at the lower reaches of these fish came in large numbers. The cod perch Macquaria colonorum ( estuary perch ) also occurs frequently in the Tambo River. Other typical local fish species of the river are the cod perch Macquaria novemaculeata (Australian bass), the short-finned eel (Anguilla australis, genus eels ), the snake eel Scolecenchelys breviceps (long -finned worm eel ), Schläfergrundeln ( gudgeons ) and the cod perch Gadopsis marmoratus ( river blackfish ). Imported species are the brook trout and carp.

Pollution and environmental protection

The natural state of the river has been affected in different sections on a large scale by foreign bodies in and entrained weeds, such as willows, blackberries and vinca. Through foreign bodies in causing algal blooms have been observed already in the lower reaches and in the Gippsland Lakes. Recreational boat traffic and fishing have led to bank erosion in the lower reaches.

The Lower Tambo Landcare Group was established in 1998 and covers an area of ​​10,965 ha along the lower reaches of the Tambo River. The group has set itself the goal of promoting the resettlement native flora along the river banks, in wetlands and along roadsides to persuade landowners to fence off areas for endangered native plant species and to control invasive species.

History

Due to its length flows through the Tambo River, the territory of at least two Aboriginesstämmen. The Jaimathang strain from the upper reaches of the Murray River captured the headwaters of the river and the Brabiralung strain of the Kurnai settled along the lower reaches to the south. According to Alfred Howitt the border was between the two tribal areas in Tongio, about 10 km north of the present-day village Swifts Creek.

The origin of the name Tambo is not known with certainty, but it is believed that there is an Aboriginal name from the language of Jaimathang whose meaning was lost. Presumably, the name means simply "fish". Reverend Friedrich Hagenauer wrote the name of this river as a Berrawan River.

The first immigrants from Europe who followed the course of the river, was probably a group under the leadership of Walter Mitchell, the Aborigines on a route from the north via the Tongio Gap south of Omeo the river valley down to Bruthen and the beginning of 1839 Gippsland lakes and were returned. Around the same time built the Buckley family in Tongio on a cattle station. End of 1839 Angus McMillan founded a station a little further south near the present-day Ensay and also took Aboriginal leaders for his explorations further down the valley, and later also in other parts of Gippsland. The early explorers noticed that the paths were often used the river and along the valley of Aborigines, but on routes such as the section between Tambo Crossing and Bruthen, where the river is not easily accessible, as today's main streets dodging the mountains.

Boat traffic and fishing

The lower reaches of the Tambo River in the vicinity of the estuary is popular with boaters, but the upper and middle reaches are unsuitable because of the nature of the shore and the shallow depth and width for these activities.

Some sections of the river, again particularly at the estuary are used by recreational fishermen, but the flow is considered to be unsuitable for long distances anglers as angelbare fish species are lacking. Some tributaries have stable brook trout populations, but the Tambo River itself offers today south of Bindi little trout, and the fish population to 1974 was considerable. Since there are no physical barriers for the propagation of fish, it is believed that natural chemicals from some sources of the river certain fish populations, such as the trout poison. Another reason may lie in the high water temperatures in the summer because it has been found in the cooler months a few trout in the Tambo River.

Management

The catchment area of ​​the Tambo River is managed by the East Gippsland Catchment Management Authority. The East Gippsland Region Water Authority cares about the use of the river for drinking water and the Gippsland & Southern Rural Water Authority and the irrigation of agricultural land abutting. A division of the Department of Primary Industries of the State Government of Victoria, the Fisheries Victoria, DPI is responsible for the fish stock and fisheries policy ..

The water supply of the city Swifts Creek is fed by the river. Also in Bruthen River water is used also by some private users along the river.