Offspring from an Australian-first Glenelg Freshwater Mussel conservation program have been released into the Crawford River in southwest Victoria in world-first restocking of the species in its last remaining population today, January 29, 2025.

The release is the first ever undertaken for the critically endangered species only found in waterways in south-west Victoria and is a significant milestone in a recovery project being undertaken by Glenelg Hopkins CMA, Victorian Fisheries Authority (VFA), the Arthur Rylah Institute and Gunditj Mirring Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation.

The Building (Glenelg Freshwater) Mussels project is funded by the Australian Government’s Saving Native Species Program and is a two-year $490,000 project which is delivering on-ground works around habitat waterways and a captive breeding program in the VFA’s Snobs Creek Conservation Hatchery to reverse the decline of the species.

The release today of juvenile captive-bred mussels and adult mussels collected as part of the project from the Crawford River last year, was undertaken by Budj Bim Rangers from the Winda-Mara Aboriginal Corporation, VFA and Glenelg Hopkins CMA.

MEDIA RELEASE: World first for rare mussels

Find out more about the mussels on the project page

Releasing the baby Glenelg Freshwater Mussels in the Crawford River in a world-first for the critically endangered species (L-R) Lashay Blurton, Budj Bim Ranger from Winda-Mara Aboriginal Corporation; Sam Fawke, Senior Technical Officer at the VFA Snob’s Creek Conservation Hatchery; and Tim Covey, Senior Waterways Officer, Glenelg Hopkins CMA.