Finniss River (South Australia)

Finniss River
Finniss River
Etymology	Boyle Travers Finniss
Location
Country	Australia
State	South Australia
Physical characteristics
Source
• location	Mount Magnificent
• coordinates	35°18′39″S 138°38′21″E / 35.31083°S 138.63917°E
Mouth	Lake Alexandrina
• location	Clayton Bay
• coordinates	35°28′51″S 138°53′26″E / 35.4807°S 138.8905°ECoordinates: 35°28′51″S 138°53′26″E / 35.4807°S 138.8905°E
• elevation	0.7 m
Length	50.1 km
Basin features
River system	Murray–Darling basin

The Finniss River drains part of the east side of Fleurieu Peninsula into Lake Alexandrina in South Australia. It is part of the Murray–Darling basin.

The Finniss River starts east of and flows roughly east to its mouth in the Goolwa Channel of the lower Murray River, opposite Hindmarsh Island. It supports a wide range of flora (both natural and introduced weed species) and macroinvertebrates despite much of the catchment being cleared and grazed.^[1]

During the 2006–2010 drought, low water levels in Lake Alexandrina and the outflows of the Finniss River and Currency Creek exposed acid sulfate soils which would normally be submerged. Temporary flow regulators were installed in August–September 2009 across the Goolwa Channel to maintain the water level to keep these soils wet to prevent more acid being leached out. They were partially removed in September 2010 and completely by October 2012.^[2]

Watchalunga Nature Reserve, established in 2015, is in the lower reaches of the Finniss River, where it provides swampland habitat for the for the Mount Lofty Ranges Southern Emu-wren, an endangered species, and the southern bell frog, which is a threatened species.^[3]

References[]

^ "Finniss River, near Yundi 2015 Aquatic Ecosystem Condition Report". . 2015. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
^ "Goolwa Channel Flow Regulators". Natural Resources SA Murray-Darling Basin. Retrieved 3 January 2019.
^ Dayman, Isabel (18 March 2015). "Endangered species better protected as Watchalunga Nature Reserve established on SA Fleurieu Peninsula". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 11 January 2022.

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[1] "Finniss River, near Yundi 2015 Aquatic Ecosystem Condition Report". . 2015. Retrieved 3 January 2019.

[2] "Goolwa Channel Flow Regulators". Natural Resources SA Murray-Darling Basin. Retrieved 3 January 2019.

[dayman-3] Dayman, Isabel (18 March 2015). "Endangered species better protected as Watchalunga Nature Reserve established on SA Fleurieu Peninsula". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 11 January 2022.

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v t Rivers of South Australia
Rivers that flow towards the coast	Acraman Broughton Crystal Hill Hutt Rocky Bungala Christies Dry Field Panalatinga Gawler North Para Jacobs South Para Glenelg Hindmarsh Inman Light Gilbert Little Para Myponga Onkaparinga Patawalonga Glen Osmond/Keswick Brown Hill Sturt Pirie–Torrens corridor Port Tod Torrens Wakefield Eyre
Rivers of the Murray–Darling basin	Angas Bremer Burra Currency Finniss Marne Murray
Rivers of the Lake Eyre basin	Alberga Cooper Diamantina Finke Frome Neales Strzelecki Warburton Eyre Kallakoopah Officer Macumba
Rivers of Kangaroo Island	Cygnet De Mole Eleanor Harriet Middle Rocky Stun Sail Boom Willson
Rivers flowing into Lake Torrens	Willochra Creek Wirreanda Creek