Namoi River

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Namoi River
A sand bar and the banks of the Namoi River near Cuttabri
Origin	Great Dividing Range
Mouth	confluence with the Barwon River
Basin countries	Australia
Basin area	43,000 km² ^[1]

The Namoi River is a major river in inland New South Wales, Australia.

1 Overview
2 Fauna
3 See also
4 References

[edit] Overview

The headwaters of the Namoi, including the Macdonald River, the Peel River, the Cockburn River and the Manilla River, rise on the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range in northern New South Wales. Other smaller tributaries include Cobrabald River, Maules Creek and Bundock Creek.

Dungowan Creek is a tributary of Peel River, itself a tributary of the Namoi River

Flowing generally westward, they join to form the Namoi River near Gunnedah in the Liverpool Plains. The Namoi then flows westwards past Narrabri and Wee Waa and eventually joins the Barwon River, near the town of Walgett.

Keepit Dam near Gunnedah is an important dam for flood control and irrigation. The floodplains of the lower Namoi around Wee Waa are an important area for growing cotton which is irrigated using water from the dam.

[edit] Fauna

The Namoi supports a wide range of fish and crustaceans, which include Murray cod, yellowbelly, Silver Perch, catfish (Tandanus tandanus) as well as crawbobs (Cherax destructor). "Crawbob" is a regional name and may be called a "yabby" elsewhere in the state.

Murray cod in the Namoi grow to a very large size, with fish of forty kilograms or larger being not uncommon. European carp and extensive irrigation practices have had adverse impact on the native fish population over the last forty years, and restocking programs have been undertaken, mainly by volunteers, to ensure the survival of the native fish population.