National Threatened Species Day is on 7 September, established to raise awareness and recognise the importance of conserving Australia’s unique biodiversity.
The Goulburn Broken catchment is home to numerous native species under threat, including one of the region’s most stunning raptors, the White-bellied Sea Eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster). This endangered bird is featured this month in the Goulburn Broken Catchment Management Authority’s 2026 Year of the Raptor community awareness campaign.
Goulburn Broken CMA project officer, Janice-Mentiplay-Smith said the White-bellied Sea Eagle was second only in size to its cousin, the Wedge-tailed Eagle.
“Despite its name, the White-bellied Sea Eagle will venture some distance from coastal areas to inhabit large inland water bodies,” Ms Mentiplay-Smith said.
White-bellied Sea Eagle by Jenny Younger
Bush-stone Curlew by Chris Tzaros
“For example, it’s a well-known resident of Winton Wetlands near Benalla on the north-eastern side of the Goulburn Broken catchment. It’s also found in South-east Asia and India and may travel widely within its range.”
As a top-order predator, the White-bellied Sea Eagle plays an important role in population management of birds and mammals in coastal and wetland ecosystems.
“Its varied diet consists of aquatic animals such as fish, turtles and even sea snakes, but it is also partial to a feed of small mammals such as rabbits and birds of all sizes, including Black Swans. Although they primarily snatch up prey from the water’s surface, they can also briefly submerge to catch their meal,” Ms Mentiplay-Smith said.
“As is the way in nature, not all meals result from the hunt. As an option, this resourceful raptor will harass smaller birds and force them to drop their own catch or will happily feed on any carrion (dead prey) they come across.”
Turquoise Parrot by Chris Tzaros
Swift Parrot by Richard Gregson
The White-bellied Sea-Eagle builds a large stick nest which can be 1.2 to 1.5 metres wide and grow to four metres deep, with repeated use and ‘topping up’. The nest is usually constructed atop a tree 15 metres or more from the ground.
At the start of the breeding season, the parents line the nest with fresh green eucalyptus leaves that provide cushioning, antiseptic properties and insect repellent. The female primarily incubates the eggs, with help from the male. Male and female birds remain together until one of them dies, whereupon the surviving eagle quickly seeks a new mate.
The White-bellied Sea Eagle produces a distinctive loud “goose-like” honk that is one of the loudest calls of Australian birds. It is particularly vocal during breeding season (June-December in southern Australia).
Habitat destruction due to development and deforestation is a major threat to the White-bellied Sea Eagle, along with pollution and human disturbance.
“As a top order predator, the White-bellied Sea Eagle is reliant on a healthy, functioning environment that supports all links in the food chain. If, for example, a water body becomes polluted, small insects will not survive. Without insects, fish and insect eating birds cannot persist, meaning food resources that the White-bellied Sea Eagle depend on are no longer available. This quickly progresses to breeding failure and local extinction.”
For a literal ‘bird’s eye view’ into the world of the White-bellied Sea Eagle, visit the Sea-EagleCAM: https://www.sea-eaglecam.org/video.html. This live feed operates out of the Discovery Centre at Sydney Olympic Park, close by the Parramatta River.
Other examples of local threatened birds the Goulburn Broken CMA has worked to protect include the critically endangered Swift Parrot and Bush Stone-curlew at various locations in the northern part of the catchment and the vulnerable Turquoise Parrot in the Glenrowan and Warby Ranges regions of the north-eastern part of the catchment.
The date of National Threatened Species Day was chosen to commemorate the death of the last Tasmanian Tiger at the Hobart Zoo on this date in 1936.
The Year of the Raptor is supported by the Victorian Government through the Our Catchments Our Communities stewardship program.