Floods and environmental flows a boon for south-east Australia’s waterbirds, survey shows

Pelicans breeding in the Coorong national park, South Australia. Photograph: Richard Kingsford

Widespread floods and environmental flows have been a boon for waterbirds, with annual surveys in eastern Australia recording more than half a million birds.

But researchers say long-term declines in populations persist and the effects of El Niño and drying across eastern Australia are showing, with the total area of surveyed wetland habitat decreasing over the past year.