Creek Connections Aug - Nov 2026

1 Welcome 2 Events & Activities 10 Short-Form Writing / Reflections 18 Spotlights / Profile 22 How to Get Involved 23 Acknowledgements / Contact Us

This design represents the transition through the Larrakia seasons of Gurrulwa (Big Wind Time), Dalirrgang (Build-up) and Balnba (Rainy Season). It draws inspiration from the animals, plants and colours that transform the landscape as each season unfolds.

During Gurrulwa, Deleynggwa (Turkey Bush) bursts into vibrant bloom, bringing colour across the Country. Beneath the earth, Banimadla (Long-necked Turtle) waits patiently for the arrival of the rains.

As Balnba begins, the first downpours soak the land, filling the waterways and swelling the ground with life as the wet season takes hold.

Image and text by Mikaela Lee. A Larrakia, Karrajarri and Wadaman multidisciplinary artist based on Larrakia Country in Darwin.

WELCOME This publication is an invitation – to walk slowly, to listen deeply, and to connect with the creeks that flow through our communities. These waterways hold stories far older than any of us, and their health is tied to the wellbeing of everything around them: people, plants, animals, and place.

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ow, in the middle of the Dry season, the landscape has shifted once again. Cooler mornings, smoky skies and carefully managed burn-offs and unplanned bushfires mark this time of year, creating the conditions for new growth to emerge and at other times for beautiful bush to be burnt to a crisp.

Fresh green shoots appear across the ground, while the bright orange flowers of grevilleas and the soft yellows of wattles and other acacias bring colour back into the bush.For many of us, this is also one of the busiest times of the year. As calendars fill and the pace of life picks up, it can be easy to move quickly through the places around us. Yet the Dry offers some of the best opportunities to slow down, spend time outside and reconnect with the natural world. The contrast with the Wet season is striking, reminding us just how dynamic these landscapes are and how much they change across the year.

Creek Connections is part of the Darwin Harbour Catchment Waterways Project, an initiative supported by the Australian Government and led by Landcare NT in collaboration with Larrakia people, Landcare groups, educators, scientists, artists and community members. Together, we’re working to care for Rapid Creek, Ludmilla Creek, Sandy Creek and Mitchell Creek—each with its own rhythm, history and community.

This work takes place on Larrakia Country, and we acknowledge the ongoing custodianship and deep knowledge of Larrakia people, whose connection to these lands and waters continues to guide us.

We are grateful for the relationships that ground this project and the conversations, care and commitments shared along the way.

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Inside these pages you’ll find upcoming events, reflections from contributors and ways to get involved. Whether you’ve lived near these creeks your whole life or are just getting to know them, we hope this publication offers moments to pause, notice the season around you, and find your own connection with the waterways that weave through our city.

EVENTS & ACTIVITIES

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OUR CREEKS, OUR STORIES – ARCHIVE Our Creeks, Our Stories is a growing community archive capturing memories, photos, drawings and stories connected to our local waterways. Together we are creating a shared record of how people experience, care for and connect with the creeks that shape our place.

Look out for the Creek Connections team at community events and gatherings where you can share your creek memories and contribute to the archive. In time, these stories will help shape a future exhibition celebrating the many ways people connect with our creeks.

You can also add your story anytime through our online Media Hub: www.creekconnections.org/media-hub

Or you can share your memories through our online portal here 3

Ants Survey Join local entomologists to survey ground dwelling ants and other ground-foraging invertebrate fauna surrounding Ludmilla Creek. Participants will go into the field to collect invertebrates captured in specialised pitfall traps that have been set up in grassland, savanna woodland and rainforest habitats around Ludmilla Creek.

Sunday, 9th August 2026 | 8.30am to 11:30am.

Meet at Allan Faulds Park (bottom of Bremer St, Ludmilla) at 8.00am for registration.

BOOK NOW HERE creekconnections.org/events

Birds and Butterflies This is a relaxed guided walk suitable for all ages and experience levels. We’ll be exploring the monsoon forest and woodland habitats around the creek while learning how to spot, identify, photograph and record birds, butterflies and other wildlife using the iNaturalist app.

EcoFair - Rapid Creek Tuck into some bush tucker, encounter native wildlife or browse a huge array of Top End native plants - including 2000 of them for FREE! Saturday 22nd August | 8:30am to 3:00pm Jingili Water Gardens

Mitchell Creek August 29, 2026 | 8:00am to 10:00am Ludmilla Creek October 31, 2026 | 8:00am to 10:00am Bush Block and Mangroves at Ludmilla

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Accessible Bird Outing Outing led by Mitch Rose, a local youth worker, birder and advocate for nature conservation trained in facilitating accessible bird outings. Slower-paced birdwatching suitable for folks of all abilities, including people living with disability, neurodivergent people, carers, support workers and anyone seeking a welcoming and accessible birding experience.

September 5 2026 | 8.00 to 10.00am Jingili Water Gardens

Ludmilla Landcare101 Join Landcare NT and local restoration champion Simon Love for a practical introduction to Landcare and environmental restoration in action.

September 13, 2026 | 08.30 - 11.30am

Blues by the Creek - Mitchell Creek

Ludmilla Reveg Site - Nemarluk Drive

Settle in for an afternoon of live Blues and Soul music beside Mitchell Creek with multi award winners Caiti Baker and Kuya James. Seasoned artists in their own rights, Caiti and James have been writing and performing together for 20 years.

In their comfort zone of nature and good company, Caiti and James will sink into a vibe perfect for all to get lost in the atmosphere of Mitchell Creek.

BOOK NOW HERE

To be announced

creekconnections.org/events

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Walks for Curious People - Creek Knowledge Walks Creek Knowledge Walks invite the community to slow down and learn more about the places, stories and ecosystems that shape our local waterways. Guided by local knowledge holders, scientists and community members, these relaxed walks explore different aspects of creek life — from plants and wildlife to water, culture and care.

November 28, 2026 | 3.00pm and 5.00pm

BOOK NOW HERE

Sandy Creek

creekconnections.org/events

Guided Bird Walk These walks are suitable for all ages and experience levels, whether you're picking up a pair of binoculars for the first time or have years of birdwatching experience. Along the way you'll learn how to identify local birds, understand their behaviour and habitats and contribute to citizen science that helps build knowledge of our local wildlife.

Sandy Creek September 19, 2026 | 8.00-10.00am Mangroves and Shorebirds at Sandy Creek

The 2026 Darwin-Garramilla Shorebird Festival is a community celebration of the remarkable migratory shorebirds that visit northern Australia each year.

September 20 to September 27, 2026

Rapid Creek

multiple locations across Darwin-Garramilla

November 21, 2026 | 4.30-6.30pm Gurumbai Trail at Rapid Creek

Shorebirds Festival Sandy Creek

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School Holidays Program Voices of the Water: Film Night As the sun goes down, join us under the stars for Voices of Water – an evening of stories celebrating the people, places and waterways that connect us.

To be announced

Mangrove walk for youth Monday 21st September | 4.00pm- 6.00pm Rapid Creek Drawn to the Creek- Mangrove walk and pen and ink nature journaling Tuesday 22nd September | 9.00am - 11.30am Sandy Creek Creekside Nature Illustration Wednesday 23rd September | 9.00am- 11.30am Rapid Creek Shore bird spotting for beginers - for youth and families Thursday 24th September | 4.30- 6.30pm Ludmilla Creek Botanical Explorers – A Creative Journey into Creekside Plants

BOOK NOW HERE

Friday 25th September | 4.30- 6.30pm Mitchel Creek Spotlighting for families Friday 25th September | 7 - 9pm Mitchel Creek

creekconnections.org/events

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Ro a d Lee P o i nt

SANDY CREEK Sandy Creek runs through the Casuarina Coastal Reserve which is home to a wide range of plants, insects, reptiles, mammals and birds, including many endangered species.

Longbum Snail Telescopium telescopium A species in the horn snail family Potamididae found in mangrove habitats. They are large snails that can grow up to 10 cm in length and are easily recognizable by their cone‑shaped shell.

Forest Kingfisher Todiramphus macleayii

Royal Darwin Hospital

Forest Kingfishers live across the north and north-east of Australia. They are found in open forest as well as around watercourses.

They feed on beetles, bugs and spiders, larvae and small lizards and frogs.

Casu

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Sea Grass

Buffalo Creek

Muirhead

Atlas Croton Croton habrophyllus Trow er

Ro a d

A small deciduous tree, endemic to Australia and found in coastal & riparian vine thickets throughout Darwin. Very important food source for the vulnerable Atlas Moth.

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SHORT-FORM WRITING & REFLECTIONS

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Listening to Our Waterways

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ver the past few months, two seemingly very different activities have been unfolding across our creeks on Larrakia Country. On some days, you’ll find the Larrakia Rangers alongside researchers from Charles Darwin University collecting water samples, measuring water quality and recording environmental data. On others, you’ll find community members sitting quietly beneath the trees during a Deep Listening gathering, noticing the movement of water, birds, insects and wind, and sharing stories of their own connections to these places.

At first glance they seem like very different activities. One involves scientific equipment and monitoring stations, the other asks people simply to slow down and pay attention.

Yet both begin with the same question: What can this creek teach us if we take the time to listen?

This year, the Larrakia Rangers have begun regular water quality monitoring across Rapid, Ludmilla, Sandy and Mitchell Creeks. Working alongside researchers from Charles Darwin University’s Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods, the Rangers are collecting water samples and environmental information from agreed monitoring sites to build a long-term picture of creek health.

The information collected provides an important baseline, helping us understand how our waterways change over time and how factors such as rainfall, tides and surrounding land use influence water quality. It will also help guide future restoration work, including weed management, erosion control and revegetation. Another milestone has been the installation of a permanent water quality monitoring station at Rapid Creek. The EXO3 Sonde, supplied and installed by Xylem, continuously records changing water conditions, providing valuable information about the creek throughout the year.

At the same time, our Deep Listening gatherings led by local musician and producer Kuya James have invited people to experience these same waterways in a different way. Participants have spent time simply being with the creek—observing, reflecting and noticing what often goes unseen in the rush of everyday life.

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Many people have commented that they left seeing their local creek differently. Some noticed birds they had never seen before. Others became aware of the changing tides, the sound of insects at dusk, or how water moves through the landscape after rain. Others simply spoke about feeling more connected to a place they had previously driven past without a second thought.

Neither experience tells the whole story of a creek.

Water quality data helps us understand what is happening beneath the surface and how conditions change over time.

Deep Listening reminds us that these waterways are also places of relationship, memory and everyday connection

and that the environment can also provide us with signs of change and distress if we look closely.

Together, they offer a richer understanding of our creeks—not only as ecosystems to be monitored, but as places to know, care for and spend time with. As the monitoring continues and more people join walks, gatherings and restoration activities throughout the year, we hope these different ways of paying attention continue to complement one another, helping build both knowledge and care for the waterways that weave through our city.

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GURAMBAI MOUTH

Casuarina Beach

Saltwater Crocodiles Crocodylus porosus Hundreds of the reptiles will make their way into Darwin Harbour in any given year.

Yellow Bridge

Gurambai is the Larrakia name for Rapid Creek and means ‘elbow’, referring to the shape of the creek at its mouth. Take this pleasant walk and enjoy a typical natural ‘Top End’ environment.

Tarpon Megalops cyprinoides Tarpon adults are generally found at sea, but young inhabit river mouths, inner bays, and mangrove lined estuaries.

Mangrove seeds

Mangrove "seeds" are unique because they are viviparous, meaning they germinate while still attached to the parent tree, developing into a long, cigar-shaped seedling called a propagule.

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Jingili Watergardens

R r e w o Tr

d a o

The Knowledge That Moves

T

here is a tendency to think that caring for nature begins with planting a tree, pulling a weed or picking up rubbish. These things matter. They make a difference. But before any of them comes something quieter.

Listening.

For thousands of generations, Larrakia people have cared for their waterways through careful observation, relationship and responsibility. The creeks have never simply been places to pass through. They are teachers, meeting places, food sources, story places and family. They carry memory. They shape identity. They continue to ask something of all of us.

This year, we were privileged to support one small part of that knowledge in motion.

Along Rapid Creek and other Larrakia waterways, a group of Larrakia women gathered with their 14

babies for several days of weaving, walking, storytelling and simply being together on Country. They traced ancient and ancestral pathways of pandanus collection and dreamt into a future where weaving practices and knowledge led

by Larrakia Traditional Owners is celebrated. They shared language and family histories, visited creeks and beaches, collected longbum and sat together through the changing rhythms of the season. Just as importantly, they created space for laughter, healing, reflection and relationships to deepen across generations.

Nothing about the gathering felt rushed. There were no neat outcomes waiting at the end. Instead, knowledge travelled in the way it often does — through hands making, children watching, conversations unfolding over food, and time spent together on Country.

Cultural knowledge is not something that can simply be recorded and stored away. It is kept alive through practice. Through returning. Through people gathering again and again, allowing relationships with place,

family and community to continue growing. As Creek Connections continues to evolve, we are committed to supporting Larrakia leadership in ways that honour this understanding. Rather than asking people to fit within pre-designed programs, we are creating opportunities for Larrakia people to lead projects grounded in their own priorities, knowledge and relationships with Country.

Images of hands/weaving from Larrakia Led Community Projects. Applications are now open for the Larrakia Community-led Projects.

This program supports Larrakia people to lead activities that strengthen culture, share knowledge, care for Country, and bring community together across Gurambai (Rapid Creek), Ludmilla Creek, Sandy Creek and Mitchell Creek.

another idea that connects people with place — we’d love to hear from you.

There is funding available for small and larger communityled activities, and we’re happy to help shape ideas or support applications.

Learn more and apply here: Larrakia Community-led Projects (https://www.creekconnections.org/larrakia-communityled-projects) If you’d like to have a yarn before applying, get in touch.

We’d love to hear your ideas. project@landcarent.org.au

Whether it’s a walk on Country, weaving, storytelling, cultural knowledge sharing, art, caring for waterways, or

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LUDMILLA CREEK Mud Crab Scylla serrata

Ludmilla

An ecologically important species of crab found in estuaries and mangroves. In their most common forms, their shell colours vary from a deep, mottled green to very dark brown.

Lake Alexander

Greater Black Whipsnake Demansia papuensis Has a constant light to dark brown or black colouration, and a tan coloured head with small dark spots. The species is able to reach up to 1.5 m 16

Dick wa r d D

Ludmilla Creek extends through much of urban Darwin, before it flows through the floodplains and mangroves of Ludmilla into Darwin Harbour.

r i ve

East Point Reserve

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SPOTLIGHTS Landcare groups across Darwin and Palmerston are getting their hands dirty to care for local creeks, bushland, and wildlife. Most hold regular working bees and welcome new faces — no experience needed. If you’re keen to connect with nature, meet great people, and help our natural environment thrive, reach out and join in.

Ludmilla Creek Landcare group

Casuarina Coastal Reserve Landcare Group Love long beach walks and shady trails? So do they – and they’re working hard to protect them. This group restores coastal forest and dunes, battling weeds and bringing back native plants. Join them for a working bee, spot a tree-rat, and help keep this wild coastline thriving.

Right in the heart of the suburbs, Ludmilla Creek is alive with birds, mangroves, and stories. This group has helped care for the creek through planting, weeding, and community events – but it’s currently in a pause phase. Through this project, we hope to revitalise the group. If you’re interested in getting involved, we’d love to hear from you.

We will be delivering a BioBlitz in April – watch this space!

Email | Website | Facebook

Email | Website | Facebook

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Rapid Creek Landcare Group

Palmerston Conservation Group

Rapid Creek – known as Gurambai in Larrakia – is Darwin’s most significant freshwater system.This long-standing group has spent decades restoring its banks, planting native species, and protecting this vital part of our community. Their hands-on care helps the creek stay healthy for all who rely on it – human and more-than human.

Wild bushland in the middle of a growing city? Yes, and this group is keeping it that way. They protect native plants and creeks across Palmerston, run fun events, and welcome anyone who wants to make a difference – no experience needed.

Email | Website | Facebook

Email | Website | Facebook

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Sanctuary Lakes Park

MITCHELL CREEK Mitchell Creek flows through the Palmerston region. It is now heavily impacted by new urban development in the region. A reserve was formed around the banks of the Mitchell Creek, thanks to lobbying by the Friends of Mitchell Creek Catchment. The reserve contains the last remnants of habitat around the Mitchell Creek, making it an important corridor for wildlife.

Eucalyptus atrovirens A small to medium tree with grey flaky bark over a greyish or orange trunk.

It produces small creamy white flowers. It has only been recently described as endemic to the NT and previously only known from low rocky hills east of Annaburroo.

Stu

art

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Frilled Neck Lizard Chlamydosaurus kingii A protected species in the NT. The frilled neck lizard belongs to the dragon family and can grow up to 1m in length. Males are a lot larger than females.

Typhonium praetermissum El

zab

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iz

Riv

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Recently described Ground herb found in the catchment.

It is a rare and endangered species and is currently assigned 1K status. 1" indicates that the plant is known only from the locality and K indicates that the status of the plant is poorly known but expected to be rare or restricted in occurrence.

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HOW TO GET INVOLVED There are lots of ways to connect with your local creeks and the communities who care for them

Follow our socials Stay updated on citizen science projects, creek stories, and volunteer opportunities.

Attend an event Walk, learn, plant, listen — our seasonal events are open to all and a great way to experience your local catchment.

Become a Landcare member Click here

Explore the Media Hub Dive into stories, soundscapes, and videos that will grow over time as the project unfolds.

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Join a Landcare group Get your hands dirty and meet like-minded people helping to restore native ecosystems.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS / CONTACT US With thanks to our community contributors, Landcare groups, and project partners.

This project received funding from the Australian Government’s Urban Rivers and Catchments Program.

This project is supported by the NT Government and Larrakia Nation, facilitated by Landcare NT. Email

Website

Facebook

Find us online here www.creekconnections.org

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www.creekconnections.org