The water weed Salvinia invaded the waterways of the Byron Bay Wetlands, covering most of the free water areas, making them unusable for the waterbirds that normally visit. Salvinia is a very hard pest to get rid of and efforts to date have not been that successful.
A few weeks ago Cell I of the wetlands was sprayed with an approved weed killer. The results have been promising with the opening of a large area of free water. Even more encouraging has been the return of a limited number of water birds, including two Red-Kneed Dotterels, a bird that has not been seen in the wetlands for several years.
A pair of Red-kneed Dotterels return to the Byron Bay Wetlands after several years absence.
The view across Cell I after spraying to control the Savlinia weed that had totally covered it.
A Comb-crested Jacana comes out of the Melaleuca swamp to feed on top of the remaining Salvinia water week on Cell I.