River Guardians

Small Actions. Big Climate Impact 🫶


🌏 This World Environment Day, you don’t have to do something big to make a difference.
✔ Reduce chemicals in your garden
✔ Pick up litter and discarded fishing gear
✔ Plant natives to support local ecosystems
🌊 Healthy rivers are part of climate action.
UN Environment Programme
📸 Photo of Akuna and her new calf by Sue Harper

💨⛈️😊 Not even a storm could ruffle these feathers! 💨⛈️😊
A pelican riding out last weekend’s wild weather on the South Perth jetty — calm, resilient, and right at home on the Derbal Yerrigan.
Healthy waterways support incredible wildlife like this — and it’s something we can all help protect, even through small actions like keeping litter out of drains and being mindful of what washes into our river.
📸 Photo by

🥳 It's National Volunteer Week this week! 🥳
This year's 'Your Year to Volunteer' theme certainly hits the mark for River Guardians - we're sending all our volunteers, and volunteers with partner organisations, a massive squeezy heartfelt THANKYOU for everything you do!
You clearly demonstrate the love and care local communities feel for our precious river and estuary systems - giving countless hours to empty and maintain Reel It In fishing gear bins across the state, monitor dolphin populations in Perth, Mandurah, and Broome, remove litter from and revegetate our shorelines, look after injured wildlife, and educate others to care and act 💚

We see and are grateful for you all - you're the best!!

Western Australian Seabird Rescue Estuary Guardians Mandurah

🐬🍂 Wrapping Up the Autumn Monitoring Season in Derbal Yerrigan and Djarlgarra 🍂🐬

Our final survey of the autumn season was memorable, with sightings of most of the resident dolphins across the estuary under favourable conditions.

🐣 And just when we thought the season couldn’t get any better… a third calf has been confirmed!
This time to Click, who turned 10 years old in March and is now entering motherhood for the first time.
First-time mothers face an important learning period, and calf survival can be lower compared to experienced females. These early months are critical as maternal skills develop and both mother and calf adapt to the challenges of a dynamic estuarine environment.

Seeing three calves born over the autumn season is a very encouraging sign for the local dolphin community and highlights the importance of ongoing monitoring and conservation efforts in the Swan Canning Riverpark.

⚠️ As always, please remember to give dolphins plenty of space (at least 100 m away, as per regulations), especially for mothers with young calves during these early stages.

A rewarding end to the season, and we look forward to continuing observations into winter 👀🐬

All photos and observations were collected under permits.



Murdoch University Fremantle Ports Fremantle Sailing Club

𝗪𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗺𝘂𝗺𝘀 𝗮 𝙛𝙞𝙣-𝙩𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙘 𝗠𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿’𝘀 𝗗𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆! 💙🐬

Today we’re celebrating the mothers who go above and below the surface to nurture, guide and help their little ones find their true 𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘱𝘰𝘪𝘴𝘦 in the world.

And today we’ve got the sweetest news to share… 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗱𝗼𝗹𝗽𝗵𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝘃𝗲𝘀 have been spotted in the river, born to proud mums Akuna and Dunedoo!

These tiny splashers are already stealing hearts as they learn about dolphin life in the Swan Canning Riverpark from their mums.

But… 𝗯𝗼𝘁𝗵 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀!

If you have a 𝘧𝘪𝘯-𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘥 idea, enter our Dolphin Naming Competition on our website ➡️ www.riverguardians.com

While you’re there, you can also sign up to become a River Guardian yourself and stay up to date with river news.

Here’s to all the mums who nurture, guide and help their little ones make a splash in the world ✨

📸 Delphine Chabanne