Environmental works restore platypus habitat

A platypus spotted in Petrie Creek after bushland rehabilitation.

A heavily impacted section of Petrie Creek, Nambour has been rehabilitated to help stabilise the population of duck-billed platypuses.

Unitywater partnered with ECOllaboration to help ensure the Sunshine Coast’s healthy population of platypuses remained intact. 

The species is classified as near-threatened due to habitat destruction, pollution of riverbanks and waterways, and human activities such as yabbying.

Unitywater Environmental and Cultural Heritage Planning Specialist, Emma Newton, said restoration works had encouraged the duck-billed platypus to return to their natural habitat.

“The collaboration has seen almost 1km of bushland successfully restored through the management of invasive and restricted weeds, and removal of debris created by human activity in the highly populated area,” she said.

ECOllaboration Community Engagement Officer, Trevor Morrison, said the removal of category 3 restricted weed structures including the madeira vine and cat’s claw creeper created a more stable bank for platypus burrows.

“One of our volunteers recently spotted two platypuses behind Unitywater’s Wastewater Treatment Plant in Nambour only a week after restoration works were completed in October, which is really encouraging,” he said. “Platypuses are highly sensitive to water quality, so spotting a couple so soon after the completion of these restoration works is a strong indicator of the positive impact made on this section of the creek.”