Birdlife
| Abundant waterbirds | |
| Common name | Scientific name |
|---|---|
| Grey teal | Anas gibberifrons |
| Pacific black duck | Anas superciliosa |
| Hardhead | Aythya australis |
| Pink-eared duck | Malacorhynchus membranaceus |
| Australian wood duck | Chenonetta jubata |
| Australasian shoveler | Anas rhynchotis |
| Eurasian coot | Fulica atra |
| Australian Pelican | Pelicanus conspicillatus |
| Little black cormorant | Phalacrocorax sulcirostris |
| Great egret | Ardea modesta |
| Australian white ibis | Threskiornis molucca |
| Straw-necked ibis | Threskiornis spinicollis |
| Royal spoonbill | Platalea regia |
| Brolga | Grus rubicunda |
| Sharp-tailed sandpiper | Calidris acuminata |
| Red-kneed dotterel | Erythrogonys cinctus |
Lake Galilee represents a rare type of lake in Australia and provides an important refuge and breeding site for waterbirds. Periodically, high numbers of waterbirds occur, ranging from small-bodied species such as Grey Teal, Freckled Duck and Pink-eared Duck, to large species such as Australian Pelican, Black Swan, waders and spoonbills. The bird populations fluctuate with changing water levels.
Birdlife Australia recognizes Lake Galilee as an Important bird areas (IBA) as it regularly supports more than 1% of the world population of freckled duck and grey teal and occasionally may support more than 1% of the world population of other waterbirds and shorebirds.
A 2008 Wetlands International/ ANU bird survey of Lake Galilee found that the two habitats which support the most breeding waterbirds, are the inundated groves of belalie Acacia stenophylla and dry islands. The inundated belalie groves supported three mixed-species colonies of spoonbills, egrets, ibises and cormorants, ranging from a few tens to several hundreds of active nests. The dry islands supported two colonies of Caspian terns and/or gulls with up to 40 nests, and colonies of breeding pelicans, the largest of which had 2,200 breeding pairs.
Read more about this topic: Lake Galilee (Queensland)