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Canning River
Nyungar: *Djarlgarra*
Canning River; Nyungar: Djarlgarra
	Canning River from southern shore looking north towards Mount Henry overlooking Aquinas Bay
Location
Country	Australia
State	Western Australia
City	Perth
Physical characteristics
Source
• location	Wandering
Mouth	Swan River
• location	Melville Water
• coordinates	32°00′11″S 115°51′02″E / 32.0031568°S 115.8506084°E
Length	110 km (68 mi)
Basin features
Tributaries
• left	Bull Creek, Bannister Creek, Lambertia Creek, Southern River, Churchmans Brook
• right	Yule Brook, Bickley Brook, Ellis Brook, Stoney Brook, Stinton Creek

32°00′S 115°51′E / 32.000°S 115.850°E / -32.000; 115.850

The Canning River (Nyungar: Djarlgarra^[2]^[3] or Nyungar: Dyarlgarro^[4]) is a major tributary of the Swan River in the South West Land Division of Western Australia. It is home to much wildlife including dolphins, pelicans, swans and many other bird species.

Source and route

With headwaters on the Darling Scarp, the Canning meanders through suburbs of Perth on the Swan Coastal Plain, including Cannington, Thornlie, Riverton, Shelley, Rossmoyne and Mount Pleasant, before joining the Swan at Melville Water just downstream of the Canning Bridge.^[5]

Bridges

Canning Bridge
Mount Henry Bridge
Shelley Bridge
Riverton Bridge
Kent Street Weir Bridge
Greenfield Street Bridge
Canning River Downstream Bridge
Canning River Upstream Bridge
Djarlgarra Bridge Easthbound
Djarlgarra Bridge Westbound
unnamed railway bridge
Royal Street Bridge
unnamed pedestrian bridge
Burslem Bridge
unnamed railway bridge
Jenna Biddi Footbridge
unnamed railway bridge
unnamed pedestrian bridge
Cargeeg Bridge
unnamed road bridge
Manning Road Footbridge

Points

Coffee Point (east of Point Heathcote on the Swan River)
Deepwater Point (on western shore in Mount Pleasant)
Salter Point (very narrow part of river between Salter Point suburb on north side, Rossmoyne/Shelley border on south)
Prisoner Point (south shore in Shelley suburb, east of Shelley Beach)
Wadjup Point (north west of Shelley Bridge)

History

The first European contact was in 1801^[6] when a French exploring party spotted the mouth. The crew subsequently named the mouth Entrée Moreau^[6] after Charles Moreau, a midshipman with the party.

The Canning River received its contemporary name in 1827 when Captain James Stirling aboard HMS Success following an examination of the region in March 1827 named the river after George Canning,^[6] an eminent British statesman who was Prime Minister of Great Britain at the time and whose government facilitated the funds for the expedition.

In November 1829, just five months after the founding of the Swan River Colony, an exploring party led by now Governor James Stirling chose a site for a new town named Kelmscott^[7] on the banks of the Canning River.

Convicts

Convicts partly constructed and maintained the Canning River Convict Fence.^[8]^[9]^[10]^[11]^[12] This structure is still a notable landmark to this day. It was built primarily for the use of barges carrying timber from Mason's Timber Mill in the Darling Ranges.

Algae bloom

Algal blooms occur naturally in the Canning River system; they are caused by a buildup of nutrients in the river. Human activities including farming, residential gardens and parklands are the major causes of increases in levels; the blooms are potentially toxic to both mammal and marine life. The Swan River Trust monitors the levels of nutrients and growth of the algae, issuing warnings and closing sections of the river to all activities. The Trust also operates cleanup programs to reduce the amount of nutrients reaching the river, as well phosphorus removal and oxygenation in areas were blooms have been identified.^[13]

The Trust is encouraged by the appearance of Azolla carpets on sections of the Canning River as this fern is known to reduce the amount of sunlight available to the algae as well as absorbing large amounts of phosphorus and other nutrients from the water. However, it is possible that Azolla carpets can cause deoxygenation and emit a strong sulphur smell.^[14]

References

^ "About the river system". Parks and Wildlife Service. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
^ Kinsella, John (2017). Polysituatedness: A Poetics of Displacement. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-1526113375.
^ Rivers of emotion : an emotional history of Derbarl Yerrigan and Djarlgarro Beelier : the Swan and Canning rivers. Broomhall, Susan., Pickering, Gina., Australian Research Council. Centre of Excellence. History of Emotions., National Trust of Australia (W.A.). [Crawley, W.A.]: ARC Centre of Excellence History of Emotions. 2012. ISBN 9781740522601. OCLC 820979809.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
^ "Discover the Swan and Canning rivers | Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions". www.dbca.wa.gov.au. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
^ "Canning Dam". About Australia. Archived from the original on 3 July 2009. Retrieved 6 June 2009.
^ ^a ^b ^c "History of river names – C". Western Australian Land Information Authority. Archived from the original on 19 April 2021. Retrieved 21 April 2013.
^ "European Settlement". Archived from the original on 8 June 2009. Retrieved 6 June 2009.
^ Carde, F.G. (1991) [1968]. Along the Canning: A History of the City of Canning, Western Australia, Covering its progress from Roads Board to Shire, to Town, to City (2nd ed.). City of Canning.
^ McQueen, Jeanette (1963). Pioneers of the Canning District (Thesis). Graylands Teachers' College. p. 13.
^ Detail from 'Municipal Heritage Inventory', City of Canning
^ Hutchison, D.; Davidson, Dianne (1979). "The Convict-Built 'Fence' in the Canning River" (PDF). Records of the Western Australian Museum. 8 (1): 147–159. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
^ LePage, J.S.H. (1986). Building A State: The Story of the Public Works Department of Western Australia 1829-1985. Leederville: Water Authority of Western Australia. p. 211. ISBN 978-0-7244-6862-1.
^ "Algal Bloom - Swan River Trust media statement" (PDF). 16 March 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 April 2008. Retrieved 5 April 2014.
^ "Native fern on Canning River - Swan River Trust media statement" (PDF). 6 March 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 April 2008. Retrieved 5 April 2014.