Day 10, Narrabri to Sydney
Our task today is to complete Band 5 continuing eastward to Armidale, covering the Namoi River floodplain before heading up over the ranges and some dams and storages near Armidale.Â
Storage dam on the Namoi River floodplain
Survey details
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Date
Friday 10th October 2025
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Author
John Porter
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Project
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Observers
John Porter (NSW DCCEEW), Chris Sanderson
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Pilot
Thomas Clark
From here we will head southward to some reservoirs and water storages near Musswellbrook and then the highly modified Hunter River floodplain.
Narrabri storage
Our first wetlands today are some small irrigation storages on the Namoi River floodplain – there are very few waterbirds to be seen.
Heading south we count a section of Lake Liddell, a water storage that supplies the nearby coal fired Bayswater power station. The lake is full but we find only low numbers of waterbirds – mainly coot and Black Swans. The Lake has been closed to public access since 2016 after a high levels of a dangerous amoeba (Naegleria fowleri) were detected – it can cause serious infections in humans.
Lake Liddell
The Hunter River is our last site for the day – there is water in the main channel but there very few waterbirds evident.Â
Hunter River
With Survey Band 4 now complete we head back to Bankstown to prepare for the next section of the survey program.
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