Smythe Creek VIC.

[Zebra]

Hello.

This week we took our dog on a family holiday down to the great ocean road, I figure any chance is a good one to go out looking for shrimp :)

So I went for a wander up Smythe creek, I started from the side road car park near beach where the Creek flowed out into saltwater.

The view of ocean from where I parked.

The veiw looking inland.

I had no equipment with me (not even gumboots, just an old pair of street shoes lol) the car said it was 9C haha.

I just took a few bottle traps on line that I'd make quickly to see what was in the Creek.

 

 

Though the Creek was totally inaccessible other then walking over large rocks or straight through water, I didn't have to walk far until typical rainforest vegetation became increasingly prevalent.

 

I set my 2 bottle traps up using a dry dog kibble as bait in one and a prawn head in ther other, I did this on the way up the creek to check on my way back down. 

I mostly just scanned through the water with my eyes and occasionally lifting over a rock or 2. But I didn't find any shrimp or even shells/ fish bones. Nothing. But it was still a lovely veiw.

The first signs of submersed vegetation, nothing was hiding in these.

Some of the spots I stopped to eat a muesli bar and just appreciate the veiw.

I did notice a large amount of brown slime with tiny oxygen bubbles covering most of the rocks in large part and of the creek, I also saw large populations of like dragonfly/ damselfly nymphs and other aquatic bugs, maybe this had something to do with the lack of aquatic fauna?

I did find a fish trapped in a small rock pool, on the way back I decided to move some rocks so it could get back to the main river (There was no eggs on the rocks or anywhere in the pool, I thought maybe it wanted to be there?)

But after I moved the first rock it swam away back into the main river happy as, I forgot to make a wish lol.

 

This is as far as I walked, about 2-3hours maybe a few km I wasn't moving fast lol.

Some beautiful native Bryophytes a metre or so from the creek.

Horwort,

Cyathophorum Bulbosum- (Quill moss)

Achrophyllum dentatum,

 

All in all I didn't find any shrimp or even aquatic ferns, but was a nice veiw. Good to be home though,

Edited June 25, 2017 by Zebra

[NoGi]

Some great photos there mate. A long exposure shot on the stream would have looked awesome.

[Zebra]

Cheers, I'd love to get a decent camera and learn a bit more about photography, I just use my iPhone 5.

 

[Baccus]

A nice little field trip and some great photos.

A couple of creeks around here that I have checked out had no vegetation and no obvious fish/ shrimp/ or snail life. I have always had the best luck looking of critter where there is at least bank or water vegetation. If in doubt I often take some bread with me and if I can find a back eddy in some flowing water, even if I have seen no signs of aquatic life I put some bread in this sheltered area. It is amazing how quickly creatures that you thought earlier where not present suddenly turn up for an easy meal. With bread as a bait I have had small eels, rainbow fish and macrobrachium shrimp appear out of no where. Failing finding a sheltered place to let the bread soften and release its tempting scent to the fish I manouver a fish net to stay suspended in the water flow and have the bread float in there.

I also have some luck in creeks with no vegetation checking out any piles of submerged leaf litter and twigs, often this is where the snails and shrimp will be hanging out when there is no other plant shelter around. 

[Zebra]

Yeah I was surprised nothing showed up around my bottle traps on the walk back, tbh I think something is preventing shrimp colonisation in this creek, 

i did find that decent sized fish so youd assume it's eating more then just bugs from the surface.

i wonder how far I would have had to walk upstream to find any signs of life.

I tried falls either side of this one last year like sheaoak falls and saw many shells and signs of aquatic fauna, might just be this one Creek.

[DemonCat]

Lovely write up. 

 

Who says a successful field trip needs to end in finding stuff? Sounds like you had a great time anyway.