Native Fish of Victoria: Culture, Ecology, and Country
Victoria’s rivers, wetlands, and coastal waters once teemed with an extraordinary diversity of native fish. From the mighty Murray cod (Maccullochella peelii) to the slippery short-finned eel (Anguilla australis), these species nourished Aboriginal communities for tens of thousands of years and shaped the ecological health of rivers and floodplains (Cadwallader & Backhouse 1983).
For the Wadawurrung people, whose Country includes the Barwon River, Lake Connewarre, and the Bellarine Peninsula, native fish were far more than food—they were cultural beings tied to story, ceremony, and the responsibilities of care (Clark 1990; Wadawurrung TOAC 2023).
Key Native Fish Species in Victoria
Short-finned Eel (Anguilla australis)
Migratory journey: Travelling between freshwater rivers and the Coral Sea, these eels symbolise transformation and endurance (Cadwallader & Backhouse 1983).
Cultural aquaculture: Central to Aboriginal aquaculture systems, especially at Budj Bim, where the Gunditjmara people engineered eel traps—now UNESCO World Heritage-listed (Broome 2005).
Wadawurrung connection: Eels in the Barwon and Moorabool Rivers were a vital seasonal food, harvested with woven traps and spears (Clark 1990).
Murray Cod (Maccullochella peelii)
Largest freshwater fish in Australia, once abundant throughout the Murray-Darling Basin.
Creation stories: Featured in Dreaming narratives where a giant ancestral cod carved the river channels (Broome 2005).
Cultural and ecological icon: Symbolised abundance and resilience, embodying law and the health of Country.
Australian Grayling (Prototroctes maraena)
Migratory behaviour: Moves between salt and freshwater; an ecological indicator species whose presence reflected river health (Cadwallader & Backhouse 1983).
Cultural food: Once abundant in Victorian streams, the grayling was harvested seasonally using brush traps.
River Blackfish (Gadopsis marmoratus)
Habitat: Prefers cool, shaded waters with woody debris.
Aboriginal harvest: Fished with woven nets and spears; associated with highland streams of western Victoria.
Estuarine Species
Wadawurrung Country includes coastal estuaries where mullet, bream, and flounder were trapped with stone and tidal weirs (Presland 1994).
Oral traditions describe fish as gifts of ancestral beings, taken only within law and seasonal cycles.
Wadawurrung Fishing Practices
Fishing on Wadawurrung Country reflected both ecological knowledge and spiritual responsibility:
Stone and brush weirs: Built across creeks and estuaries to channel fish.
Spearing by torchlight: Practiced along the Barwon River during night harvests (Blake 1991).
Seasonal calendars: Fishing aligned with flowering cycles and bird migrations, such as when wattles bloomed or swans returned, signalling eel runs.
Ceremony and law: Certain fish species were linked to kinship roles, with elders overseeing sustainable harvest.
These practices represented a science of observation—a balance between taking and giving back to Country.
Impacts of Colonisation
The arrival of Europeans in the 1830s reshaped waterways and devastated both fish populations and cultural life:
River degradation: Deforestation, erosion, and cattle access caused silting of waterways (Reynolds 1987).
Overfishing: 19th-century commercial exploitation nearly wiped out Murray cod and eels in some catchments.
Introduced species: Carp, trout, and redfin competed with native fish and damaged habitat (Cadwallader & Backhouse 1983).
Dispossession: Aboriginal peoples, including the Wadawurrung, were barred from traditional fishing grounds and ceremonies, fracturing ecological and spiritual relationships (Broome 2005; Presland 1994).
By the early 20th century, once-living rivers had become polluted, channelled, and ecologically broken.
Case Study: The Barwon River and Lake Connewarre
The Barwon River system, running through Wadawurrung Country, once supported vast populations of eels, blackfish, and estuarine mullet.
Cultural significance: Wadawurrung oral traditions describe eel migrations as moments of ceremony and community gathering. Families camped near Lake Connewarre, constructing reed traps and sharing food in seasonal cycles (Blake 1991; Wadawurrung TOAC 2023).
Colonial change: By the 1850s, the river was dredged for navigation and polluted by tanneries and wool mills, cutting off eel passage and displacing Aboriginal families.
Ecological restoration: Modern programs led by the Wadawurrung Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation work to rehabilitate fishways, revegetate banks, and restore eel passage routes.
Cultural renewal: Eel fishing and river education days now reconnect youth with the knowledge of traps, tides, and stories of water law.
This case highlights how reviving fish populations also revives cultural sovereignty—a living restoration of story, science, and Country.
Conservation and Revival
Victoria’s modern fish recovery efforts are intertwined with Aboriginal ecological knowledge:
Habitat restoration: Projects reintroduce woody debris (“snags”) for blackfish and cod.
Fishways and weirs: Re-engineered to allow eel and grayling migration.
Cultural partnerships: Wadawurrung, Gunditjmara, and Taungurung organisations co-manage waterways with state agencies (Wadawurrung TOAC 2023).
Youth programs: Pass traditional fishing and waterway care knowledge to new generations.
This model integrates Western ecology and Aboriginal law, reinforcing that healing rivers means healing culture.
Symbolism and Cultural Knowledge
Eel cycles: Represent journeys between worlds—between saltwater and freshwater, life and spirit (Clarke 2008).
Murray cod: Embodies ancestral creation power, carving the waterways that sustain life (Broome 2005).
Fishing ceremonies: Reinforce reciprocity—taking only what is needed and offering thanks to the beings of water (Presland 1994).
These cultural meanings align with ecological science: sustainable harvest maintains biodiversity and river health.
Conclusion
Native fish in Victoria are not just biological species—they are cultural ancestors, ecological indicators, and spiritual teachers. For Aboriginal peoples like the Wadawurrung, fish linked rivers, wetlands, and coastlines into a living web of law, food, and identity.
Colonisation fractured those systems, but restoration efforts today weave them back together. Protecting fish is not merely conservation—it is a renewal of Country, reconnecting people, water, and story in one continuous flow.
References
Blake, B. (1991). Wathawurrung and the Colac Language of Southern Victoria. Canberra: Pacific Linguistics.
Broome, R. (2005). Aboriginal Victorians: A History Since 1800. Sydney: Allen & Unwin.
Cadwallader, P. & Backhouse, G. (1983). A Guide to the Freshwater Fish of Victoria. Melbourne: Victorian Government Printing Office.
Clark, I.D. (1990). Aboriginal Languages and Clans: An Historical Atlas of Western and Central Victoria, 1800–1900. Melbourne: Monash Publications in Geography.
Clarke, P.A. (2008). Aboriginal Healing Practices: Smoke, Fire and Plant Use in South-Eastern Australia. Canberra: Aboriginal Studies Press.
Presland, G. (1994). Aboriginal Melbourne: The Lost Land of the Kulin People. Melbourne: Harriland Press.
Reynolds, H. (1987). The Law of the Land. Ringwood: Penguin.
Wadawurrung Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation (TOAC). (2023). Language and Country Resources. Geelong.
Written, Researched and Directed by James Vegter 16/09/2025
Magic Lands Alliance
Sharing the truth of Indigenous and colonial history through film, education, land and community.
Copyright of MLA – 2025
Magic Lands Alliance acknowledge the Traditional Owners, Custodians, and First Nations communities across Australia and internationally. We honour their enduring connection to the sky, land, waters, language, and culture. We pay our respects to Elders past, present, and emerging, and to all First Peoples communities and language groups. This article draws only on publicly available information; many cultural practices remain the intellectual property of communities.