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WetlandInfo   —   Department of the Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation

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Bioregions

Northwest Highlands (NWH) bioregion

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Name: Northwest Highlands (NWH)
Area type: Bioregion
Total area: 7,343,636 ha
% total Qld: 4.2%
Page table of contents
Catchment stories
Wetland observations
Wetland extents
Wetland extent changes
Australian Land Use and Management Classification (ALUMC)
Drainage divisions
Drainage basins
Drainage sub-basins
Regional natural resource management (NRM) bodies
Local government areas
100K map tiles
Climate zones
Biogeographic subregions
IBRA bioregions
IBRA subregions
Bioregional assessment areas
Marine meso-scale bioregions
Marine provincial bioregions
Regional plans
World Heritage areas
Ramsar internationally important wetlands
DIWA nationally important wetlands
National parks
Marine parks (Queensland)
Study areas
Report cards
Conservation parks
State forests
Forest reserves
Resources reserves
Timber reserves
Fish habitat areas
Coastal management district
Nature refuges
Freshwater biogeographic provinces
Aquatic Conservation Assessments (AquaBAMM) and others
Wetland (aquatic ecosystem) type—conceptual models
Wetland (aquatic ecosystem) type—management profiles
Groundwater dependent ecosystem type—conceptual models
Healthy Land and Water conceptual models
Water resource planning areas
Aquatic ecosystem monitoring programs
Point source monitoring
Wetland soil indicator case studies
Wetland management case studies
Wetland projects
Area specific conceptual model case studies
Paddock to Reef (P2R) report cards
Water Quality Improvement Plan catchments
EPP (Water) scheduled environmental values and water quality objectives
Shorebird zones
Biopassage structures
Related legislation/policies
Wildlife

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Catchment stories info

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Wetland observations

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Wetland extents info metadata

Based on wetland mapping version 6.0

Display areas in

Northwest Highlands (NWH) bioregion wetland area by system 2019
System Area (ha) % wetlands area % total area
Total 190,765 100.0% 2.6%
Artificial and highly modified 6,456 3.4% 0.1%
Intertidal (saltmarsh, saltflats, mangroves) (natural) 0 0.0% 0.0%
Intertidal (saltmarsh, saltflats, mangroves) (slightly modified) 0 0.0% 0.0%
Lacustrine (natural) 0 0.0% 0.0%
Lacustrine (slightly modified) 1,805 0.9% 0.0%
Palustrine (natural) 2,290 1.2% 0.0%
Palustrine (slightly modified) 0 0.0% 0.0%
Riverine 180,213 94.5% 2.5%

View wetland system extents for all bioregions

Northwest Highlands (NWH) bioregion wetland area by habitat 2019
Habitat Area (ha) % wetlands area % total area
Total 3,409 100.0% 0.0%
Mangroves - Casuarina 0 0.0% 0.0%
Mangroves - other 0 0.0% 0.0%
Salt marsh and salt flats 0 0.0% 0.0%
Arid and semi-arid saline lake 0 0.0% 0.0%
Arid and semi-arid floodplain lake 0 0.0% 0.0%
Arid and semi-arid other non-floodplain lake 0 0.0% 0.0%
Arid and semi-arid non-floodplain clay plan lake 0 0.0% 0.0%
Arid and semi-arid permanently inundated lake 1,118 32.8% 0.0%
Coastal and sub-coastal floodplain lake 0 0.0% 0.0%
Coastal and sub-coastal non-floodplain rock lake 0 0.0% 0.0%
Coastal and sub-coastal non-floodplain sand (window) lake 0 0.0% 0.0%
Coastal and sub-coastal non-floodplain sand (perched) lake 0 0.0% 0.0%
Coastal and sub-coastal non-floodplain soil lake 0 0.0% 0.0%
Arid and semi-arid saline swamp 0 0.0% 0.0%
Arid and semi-arid floodplain tree swamp 1,601 47.0% 0.0%
Arid and semi-arid floodplain shrub swamp 0 0.0% 0.0%
Arid and semi-arid floodplain grass, sedge and herb swamp 13 0.4% 0.0%
Arid and semi-arid non-floodplain tree swamp 570 16.7% 0.0%
Arid and semi-arid non-floodplain shrub swamp 27 0.8% 0.0%
Arid and semi-arid non-floodplain grass, sedge and herb swamp 0 0.0% 0.0%
Arid and semi-arid other non-floodplain swamp 0 0.0% 0.0%
Arid and semi-arid Great Artesian Basin fed spring swamp 0 0.0% 0.0%
Coastal and sub-coastal non-floodplain tree (Melaleuca and Eucalypt) swamp 0 0.0% 0.0%
Coastal and sub-coastal non-floodplain wet heath swamp 0 0.0% 0.0%
Coastal and sub-coastal non-floodplain grass, sedge, and herb swamp 0 0.0% 0.0%
Coastal and sub-coastal other non-floodplain swamp 0 0.0% 0.0%
Coastal and sub-coastal floodplain tree (Melaleuca and Eucalypt) swamp 65 1.9% 0.0%
Coastal and sub-coastal floodplain grass, sedge, and herb swamp 0 0.0% 0.0%
Coastal and sub-coastal floodplain wet heath swamp 0 0.0% 0.0%
Coastal and sub-coastal other floodplain swamp 0 0.0% 0.0%
Coastal and sub-coastal tree (palm) swamp 0 0.0% 0.0%
Unknown - Swamp - Arid and semi-arid 14 0.4% 0.0%
Unknown - Swamp - Coastal and sub-coastal 0 0.0% 0.0%

View wetland habitat area for all bioregions

Disclaimer

Areas do not include marine or estuarine waters but do include estuarine wetland vegetation
(e.g. mangroves and tidal flats).

All statistics are approximate and generated based on data transformed to a customised Albers equal-area projection, thus allowing wetland extent change for different regions of Queensland to be comparable.

Areas may change over time as mapping approaches improve.

Totals may not match the sum of individually displayed figures due to the rounding of displayed figures.

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Wetland extent changes

Northwest Highlands (NWH) bioregion wetland extent change by system
System 2019 area
(ha)		 2017 area
(ha)		 2013 area
(ha)		 2009 area
(ha)		 2005 area
(ha)		 2001 area
(ha)		 pre-clear area
(ha)		 2019/pre-clear
percentage
Total 190,765 190,754 190,643 190,373 190,213 190,055 184,110 * 100.1%
Artificial and highly modified 6,456 6,441 6,258 5,930 5,679 5,531 0 n/a
Intertidal (saltmarsh, saltflats, mangroves) (natural) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 n/a
Intertidal (saltmarsh, saltflats, mangroves) (slightly modified) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 n/a
Lacustrine (natural) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 n/a
Lacustrine (slightly modified) 1,805 1,805 1,805 1,807 1,859 1,847 0 n/a
Palustrine (natural) 2,290 2,290 2,290 2,290 2,290 2,290 2,290 100.0%
Palustrine (slightly modified) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 n/a
Riverine 180,213 180,218 180,289 180,346 180,385 180,387 181,820 99.1%

* Total 2019/pre-clear percentage excludes artificial and highly modified

metadata View 2019 wetland system extents for all bioregions

metadata View 2017 wetland system extents for all bioregions

metadata View 2013 wetland system extents for all bioregions

metadata View 2009 wetland system extents for all bioregions

metadata View 2005 wetland system extents for all bioregions

metadata View 2001 wetland system extents for all bioregions

metadata View pre-clear wetland system extents for all bioregions

metadata View 2019/pre-clear wetland system extent percentages for all bioregions

Northwest Highlands (NWH) bioregion wetland extent change by habitat
Habitat 2019 area
(ha)		 2017 area
(ha)		 2013 area
(ha)		 2009 area
(ha)		 2005 area
(ha)		 2001 area
(ha)
Total 3,409 2,290 2,290 2,290 2,290 2,290
Mangroves - Casuarina 0 0 0 0 0 0
Mangroves - other 0 0 0 0 0 0
Salt marsh and salt flats 0 0 0 0 0 0
Arid and semi-arid saline lake 0 0 0 0 0 0
Arid and semi-arid floodplain lake 0 0 0 0 0 0
Arid and semi-arid other non-floodplain lake 0 0 0 0 0 0
Arid and semi-arid non-floodplain clay plan lake 0 0 0 0 0 0
Arid and semi-arid permanently inundated lake 1,118 0 0 0 0 0
Coastal and sub-coastal floodplain lake 0 0 0 0 0 0
Coastal and sub-coastal non-floodplain rock lake 0 0 0 0 0 0
Coastal and sub-coastal non-floodplain sand (window) lake 0 0 0 0 0 0
Coastal and sub-coastal non-floodplain sand (perched) lake 0 0 0 0 0 0
Coastal and sub-coastal non-floodplain soil lake 0 0 0 0 0 0
Arid and semi-arid saline swamp 0 0 0 0 0 0
Arid and semi-arid floodplain tree swamp 1,601 1,601 1,601 1,601 1,601 1,601
Arid and semi-arid floodplain shrub swamp 0 0 0 0 0 0
Arid and semi-arid floodplain grass, sedge and herb swamp 13 13 13 13 13 13
Arid and semi-arid non-floodplain tree swamp 570 570 570 570 570 570
Arid and semi-arid non-floodplain shrub swamp 27 27 27 27 27 27
Arid and semi-arid non-floodplain grass, sedge and herb swamp 0 0 0 0 0 0
Arid and semi-arid other non-floodplain swamp 0 0 0 0 0 0
Arid and semi-arid Great Artesian Basin fed spring swamp 0 0 0 0 0 0
Coastal and sub-coastal non-floodplain tree (Melaleuca and Eucalypt) swamp 0 0 0 0 0 0
Coastal and sub-coastal non-floodplain wet heath swamp 0 0 0 0 0 0
Coastal and sub-coastal non-floodplain grass, sedge, and herb swamp 0 0 0 0 0 0
Coastal and sub-coastal other non-floodplain swamp 0 0 0 0 0 0
Coastal and sub-coastal floodplain tree (Melaleuca and Eucalypt) swamp 65 65 65 65 65 65
Coastal and sub-coastal floodplain grass, sedge, and herb swamp 0 0 0 0 0 0
Coastal and sub-coastal floodplain wet heath swamp 0 0 0 0 0 0
Coastal and sub-coastal other floodplain swamp 0 0 0 0 0 0
Coastal and sub-coastal tree (palm) swamp 0 0 0 0 0 0
Unknown - Swamp - Arid and semi-arid 14 14 14 14 14 14
Unknown - Swamp - Coastal and sub-coastal 0 0 0 0 0 0

metadata View 2019 wetland habitat area for all bioregions

metadata View 2017 wetland habitat area for all bioregions

metadata View 2013 wetland habitat area for all bioregions

metadata View 2009 wetland habitat area for all bioregions

metadata View 2005 wetland habitat area for all bioregions

metadata View 2001 wetland habitat area for all bioregions

Disclaimer

Areas do not include marine or estuarine waters but do include estuarine wetland vegetation
(e.g. mangroves and tidal flats).

All statistics are approximate and generated based on data transformed to a customised Albers equal-area projection, thus allowing wetland extent change for different regions of Queensland to be comparable.

Areas may change over time as mapping approaches improve.

Totals may not match the sum of individually displayed figures due to the rounding of displayed figures.

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Australian Land Use and Management Classification (ALUMC) metadata

Northwest Highlands (NWH) bioregion land use
ALUMC code and description
Area (ha)
% total area
Total 7,333,919 99.9%
2.1 Grazing native vegetation 6,805,345 92.7%
1.1 Nature conservation 288,507 3.9%
6.5 Marsh/wetland 104,296 1.4%
1.2 Managed resource protection 98,993 1.3%
5.8 Mining 8,473 0.1%
2.2 Production native forests 7,918 0.1%
1.3 Other minimal use 5,925 0.1%
6.1 Lake 3,955 0.1%
6.2 Reservoir/dam 2,716 0.0%
6.3 River 2,508 0.0%
5.4 Residential and farm infrastructure 1,981 0.0%
5.7 Transport and communication 1,186 0.0%
5.5 Services 1,166 0.0%
5.3 Manufacturing and industrial 618 0.0%
5.2 Intensive animal production 130 0.0%
5.9 Waste treatment and disposal 104 0.0%
3.6 Land in transition 64 0.0%
5.6 Utilities 26 0.0%
4.1 Irrigated plantation forests 7 0.0%
3.3 Cropping 2 0.0%

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Drainage divisions info metadata

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Drainage basins info metadata

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Drainage sub-basins info metadata

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Regional natural resource management (NRM) bodies info metadata

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Local government areas info metadata

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100K map tiles info metadata

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Climate zones info metadata

  • map Desert
  • map Grassland
  • map Tropical

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Biogeographic subregions info metadata

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IBRA bioregions info metadata

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IBRA subregions info metadata

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Bioregional assessment areas info metadata

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Marine meso-scale bioregions metadata

none

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Marine provincial bioregions metadata

none

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Regional plans info metadata

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World Heritage areas info metadata

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Ramsar internationally important wetlands info metadata

none

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DIWA nationally important wetlands info metadata

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National parks info metadata

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Marine parks (Queensland) info metadata

none

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Study areas metadata

none

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Report cards metadata

none

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Conservation parks info metadata

none

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State forests info metadata

none

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Forest reserves info metadata

none

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Resources reserves info metadata

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Timber reserves info metadata

  • map Royton Timber Reserve

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Fish habitat areas info metadata

none

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Coastal management district info metadata

none

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Nature refuges info metadata

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Freshwater biogeographic provinces info metadata

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Aquatic Conservation Assessments (AquaBAMM) and others info metadata

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Wetland (aquatic ecosystem) type—conceptual models info metadata

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Wetland (aquatic ecosystem) type—management profiles info metadata

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Groundwater dependent ecosystem type—conceptual models info metadata

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Healthy Land and Water conceptual models info metadata

none

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Water resource planning areas info metadata

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Aquatic ecosystem monitoring programs info metadata

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Point source monitoring info metadata

none

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Wetland soil indicator case studies info metadata

none

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Wetland management case studies info metadata

none

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Wetland projects info metadata

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Area specific conceptual model case studies info metadata

none

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Paddock to Reef (P2R) report cards info metadata

none

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Water Quality Improvement Plan catchments info metadata

none

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EPP (Water) scheduled environmental values and water quality objectives info metadata

none

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Shorebird zones info metadata

none

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Biopassage structures info metadata

Name Construction year Structure types Stream name
map Cloncurry Weir 2015 Rock Ramp Cloncurry River

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Wildlife

Kingdom
Class
 Native Introduced Wetland
indicator
species		 Rare or
threatened
species		 All
TOTAL 2,223 151 279 45 2,374
Animals 617 21 140 38 638
Mammals 65 13 1 4 78
Birds 318 6 79 26 324
Reptiles 141 1 9 8 142
Amphibians 26 1 8 0 27
Ray-finned fishes 35 0 35 0 35
Insects 29 0 8 0 29
Malacostracans 3 0 0 0 3
Fungi 9 0 0 0 9
Plants 1,597 130 139 7 1,727

Note: Wildlife statistics are based on information that has been submitted to the DETSI WildNet database and converted to a 10km² grid. The grid information has been intersected with the mapping polygons to determine the species lists. Click here to view the species grid metadata.

Information from WildNet can also be accessed via Wildlife Online and WetlandMaps.

Rare or threatened includes species listed as extinct, extinct in the wild, critically endangered, endangered, vulnerable or conservation dependent under either the Nature Conservation Act or Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act

Disclaimer: While every care is taken to ensure the accuracy of this product, the Queensland Government and Australian Government make no representations or warranties about its accuracy, reliability, completeness or suitability for any particular purpose and disclaim all responsibility and all liability (including without limitation, liability in negligence) for all expenses, losses, damages (including indirect or consequential damage) and costs which might be incurred as a consequence of reliance on the product, or as a result of the product being inaccurate or incomplete in any way and for any reason.

AreaType-bioregion

This page should be cited as:

Department of Environment, Science and Innovation, Queensland (2013) Northwest Highlands (NWH) bioregion — facts and maps, WetlandInfo website, accessed 17 April 2025. Available at: https://wetlandinfo.des.qld.gov.au/wetlands/facts-maps/bioregion-northwest-highlands-nwh/