Link flow, nutrients and fish: an integrated approach to estuary management

Estuaries are important coastal ecosystems that support a diverse food web and are important nursery habitats for fish. However, estuaries are increasingly impacted by freshwater flow diversions for human use and nutrient inputs from agriculture and wastewater sources. This thesis investigates how these human impacts affect hydrological and biogeochemical processes controlling the estuarine food web and particularly the larvae of black bream, which are endemic to Australia. It also investigates how these affects can be mitigated through the use of an environmental flow release.