Capel River - Hutton Reserve

Basin : Busselton Coast

Catchment : Capel River

The condition of the Hutton Reserve site (site code: CR50CAPE2/6100323) was assessed on 29-30 January 2024.

The assessment was conducted using standard methods from the South West Index of River Condition. Measures chosen for this assessment included fish and crayfish, aquatic habitat, water quality (dissolved oxygen, temperature, electrical conductivity, and pH logged over 24h, and colour, alkalinity, turbidity and nutrients), fringing vegetation, channel morphology, erosion, connectivity, local land use and flow.

Water quality loggers were deployed for extended periods, as listed below. This enables assessment of water quality responses to changes in climate, streamflow and factors such as the intactness of vegetation within the river corridor. Longer term deployment allows detection of sub-optimal water quality conditions, which can be missed during the standard 24-hour assessment.

  • 12 December 2023 to 16 April 2024

Condition summary

Please contact the River Science Branch for site information.

Fish and crayfish

One fish and two crayfish species were found during the assessment:

  • Tandanus bostocki (Freshwater cobbler)
  • Cherax cainii (Smooth marron)
  • Cherax quinquecarinatus (Gilgie)

Only fish and crayfish are targeted by sampling methods. Other species that were caught and/or observed are listed below:

  • Palaemon australis (South-west glass shrimp)
  • Westralunio carteri (Carter’s freshwater mussel)

Species found in subcatchment

This includes all species found within the subcatchment of the assessment site, from this and previous studies in the area. The photos are linked to more information about each species, including maps of where they are expected across the south-west.

Explore other sites in the catchment