After this month's massive rainfall event in western Queensland, the Simpson Desert is flooded and set to become a land of plenty for plants and wildlife.
Bush Heritage ecologist Max Tischler spent a day flying over Bush Heritage's Ethabuka and Cravens Peak reserves.
'It's certainly going to be a fascinating next few months as we watch the desert come to life on these two Bush Heritage properties,' he said. 'This landscape operates on a boom-bust cycle.'
'We're almost certain that this sort of flooding and rainfall will induce a real increase in the vegetation and native animal numbers.'
The once-in-a-decade event has filled waterholes and claypans across the region, and the landscape – usually red sand dunes and arid plains as far as the eye can see – is now completely transformed, as these photos show.
Waterbirds are already beginning to move in, and the plants won't take long to respond either. Even the fish are expected to take advantage of the water wonderland.
Bush Heritage's freshwater ecologist, Adam Kerezsy, explains. 'The Mulligan River is dry for 99% of the time, but in a wet year it'll join up with the Georgina River system. What happens then is that up to 8 species of fish will colonise this usually dry river. In a really big year like this, we'll be really interested to see what goes up here.'
Species of fish are expected to come from up to 300 kilometres away – a remarkable feat considering that some are only 5 centimetres long.
Check back in a few weeks for photos taken from the ground.
Photos: Mulligan River floodout (top). Homestead on Ethabuka Reserve (centre). Georgina River in flood (bottom). All photos by Adam Kerezsy.
Page Last Updated: Wednesday 10 March 2010