The Lake Machattie Area is a 909 km² tract of land comprising Lakes Machattie, Mipia and Koolivoo, with the surrounding Georgina River

Georgina River

The Georgina River is the north-westernmost of the three major rivers of the Channel Country in western Queensland that flow in extremely wet years into Lake Eyre.-Geography:...

 and Eyre Creek floodplain

Floodplain

A floodplain, or flood plain, is a flat or nearly flat land adjacent a stream or river that stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls and experiences flooding during periods of high discharge...

s, in the arid Channel Country

Channel Country

The Channel Country is region of outback Australia located mostly in the state of Queensland but also in portions of South Australia, Northern Territory and New South Wales. The name comes from the numerous intertwined rivulets that cross the region, which cover 150,000 km²...

 of western Queensland

Queensland

Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

. The area is important as a breeding site for waterbirds.

Description

The floodplains are seasonally flooded and contain several freshwater lakes which continue to hold water well after the floods have receded. Lakes Mipia and Koolivoo are inundated annually, with Mipia often retaining water until the following flood season, but Koolivoo usually dries up by early summer. Lake Machattie is flooded about once in three years. The three lakes are fresh when filled by floods but become increasingly saline as they dry out. The floodplains are characterised by anastomosing

Anastomosis

An anastomosis is the reconnection of two streams that previously branched out, such as blood vessels or leaf veins. The term is used in medicine, biology, mycology and geology....

 channels and waterholes lined with open Coolibah

Eucalyptus coolabah

Eucalyptus coolabah is a eucalypt of riparian zones and is found throughout Australia from arid inland to coastal regions. The plant is commonly called coolibah or coolabah, the name being a loanword from the Indigenous Australian Yuwaaliyaay word, gulabaa.Propagation is dependent on periods of...

 woodland, surrounded by grassland

Grassland

Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...

s, forb

Forb

A forb is a herbaceous flowering plant that is not a graminoid . The term is used in biology and in vegetation ecology, especially in relation to grasslands and understory.-Etymology:...

lands, samphire

Tecticornia

Tecticornia is a genus of succulent, salt tolerant plant largely endemic to Australia. In 2007, the genus Halosarcia, along with three other Australian genera was incorporated intothe genus....

 and lignum

Muehlenbeckia florulenta

Muehlenbeckia florulenta, commonly known as Tangled Lignum or often simply Lignum, is a plant native to inland Australia. It is associated with wetland habitats, especially those in arid and semiarid regions subject to cycles of intermittent flooding and drying out...

. Average annual rainfall is 168 mm.

Birds

The site has been identified by BirdLife International

BirdLife International

BirdLife International is a global Partnership of conservation organisations that strives to conserve birds, their habitats and global biodiversity, working with people towards sustainability in the use of natural resources...

 as an Important Bird Area

Important Bird Area

An Important Bird Area is an area recognized as being globally important habitat for the conservation of bird populations. Currently there are about 10,000 IBAs worldwide. The program was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife International...

 (IBA) because it has supported over 300,000 waterbirds, including over 1% of the world populations of Freckled

Freckled Duck

The Freckled Duck is a moderately large, broad-bodied duck native to southern Australia. The duck is protected by law...

 and Pink-eared Duck

Pink-eared Duck

The Pink-eared Duck is a species of duck found in Australia.It has a large spatulate bill like the Australasian Shoveler, but is smaller at 38–40 cm length. Its brown back and crown, black and white barred sides and black eye patches on its otherwise white face make this bird unmistakable...

s, Australian Pelican

Australian Pelican

The Australian Pelican is a large water bird, widespread on the inland and coastal waters of Australia and New Guinea, also in Fiji, parts of Indonesia and as a vagrant to New Zealand.-Taxonomy:...

s, Straw-necked Ibis

Straw-necked Ibis

The Straw-necked Ibis is a bird of the ibis and spoonbill family Threskiornithidae. It can be found throughout Australia, New Guinea, and parts of Indonesia. Adults have distinctive straw-like feathers on their neck....

es, Royal Spoonbill

Royal Spoonbill

The Royal Spoonbill, Platalea regia, also known as the Black-billed Spoonbill, occurs in intertidal flats and shallows of fresh and saltwater wetlands in Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands. It has also been recorded as a vagrant in New Caledonia...

s, Little Black Cormorant

Little Black Cormorant

The Little Black Cormorant is a member of the cormorant family of seabirds. It is common in smaller rivers and lakes throughout most areas of Australia and northern New Zealand. It is around sixty centimetres long, and is all black with blue-green eyes.-References: Database entry includes...

s, Red-necked Avocet

Red-necked Avocet

The Red-necked Avocet is a water bird found throughout Australia, except for the northern parts of the Northern Territory....

s and Sharp-tailed Sandpiper

Sharp-tailed Sandpiper

The Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Calidris acuminata is a small wader.- Taxonomy :More recently, a review of new data has indicated that this bird should perhaps better be placed into the genus Philomachus- as P...

s. It also supports Australian Bustard

Australian Bustard

The Australian Bustard, Ardeotis australis, is a large ground bird of grassland, woodland and open agricultural country across northern Australia and southern New Guinea. It is also commonly referred to in Central Australia as the Bush Turkey, particularly by Aboriginal people.The male is up to ...

s and Grey Grasswren

Grey Grasswren

The Grey Grasswren is a species of bird in the Maluridae family.It is endemic to Australia.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . Downloaded on 25 July 2007....

s. Large numbers of Australian Pratincole

Australian Pratincole

The Australian Pratincole is a species of bird in the Glareolidae family, found in Australia, Christmas Island, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Papua New Guinea....

s, Black-tailed Godwit

Black-tailed Godwit

The Black-tailed Godwit, Limosa limosa, is a large, long-legged, long-billed shorebird first described by Carolus Linnaeus in 1758. It is a member of the Limosa genus, the godwits...

s and Flock Bronzewing

Flock Bronzewing

The Flock Bronzewing , also known as the Flock Pigeon, is a species of pigeon in the Columbidae family. It is endemic to the drier parts of Australia.-References:...

s have been recorded.