Spatial ecology of an endangered native Australian Percichthyid fish, the trout cod Maccullochella macquariensis

We used radiotelemetry and mark-recapture tagging to determine the spatial movements of adults and juveniles (>180 mm total length) of a federally endangered, native Percichthyid fish, the trout cod Maccullochella macquariensis, in the Murray River, south-eastern Australia, to assist in its management and conservation. Trout cod exhibited strong evidence for site fidelity and homing in this study, typically utilizing only a few locations in the river channel and undertaking limited movements. The home range estimate for radiotracked fish was 61 +/- 46 m (95% confidence interval). Movements of 1200 +/- 46 m (95% confidence interval) were recorded for mark-recapture fish over longer time frames. No movements were recorded for 50% of fish. Larger movements (>3 km) were observed in