scenic value of the lake was recognised, and both the lake plus a narrow band of 'shoreline' rainforest were formally proclaimed "scenic reserve". For almost 50 years (1888–1936) the Lake was managed, used and enjoyed as a scenic reserve, with, at times, boats and boating; a guest house; speed boats; and watersking. In 1934, the Queensland Government declared the lake and immediate surrounds be protected and managed as Lake Eacham National Park. In 1988, UNESCO declared the Wet Tropics of Queensland a World Heritage Site with 14 areas protected, two of which were at Lake Barrine and at Lake Eacham. In 1994, the Queensland Government merged Lake Barrine National Park and Lake Eacham National Park to form Crater Lakes National Park. A closed ecosystem and a near-extinction Lake Eacham (Yidyam) is isolated from any other watercourse (making it an enclosed catchment). How any fish arrived there to begin with is a mystery, but somehow, the Lake Eacham rainbowfish (Melanotaenia eachamensis) found its way into the volcanic lake. Unfortunately for the small species, other larger fish were introduced into this closed system and eventually, these larger fish ate the Lake Eacham rainbowfish into extinction - at least as far as the lake was concerned. Aquarists had been collecting the fish from the Lake Eacham National Park (illegally) and were very successful at breeding them. These private collections became the source stock to reintroduce the fish to the lake. However, the cause of the species' initial demise was still living in the lake and proceeded to deplete the entire population of reintroduced stock. Ichthyologists working in the rivers and streams of the Atherton Tableland have found the Lake Eacham rainbowfish in the Tully, Herbert and Johnstone Rivers and Dirran Creek. In addition to the rainbowfish, Lake Eacham has two native fish species: The gudgeon Mogurnda adspersa and the hardyhead Craterocephalus stercusmuscarum. Other fish in the lake are non-native human introductions. Protected area status Lake Eacham (Yidyam) is the main feature of the Crater Lakes National Park, with a dense rainforest and thousands of small animals. It is therefore a protected area under Queensland State legislation (Nature Conservation Act 1994), and, as such, the natural and cultural resources most closely associated with the lake are protected and managed by the Queensland National Parks and Wildlife Service. The lake has an average depth of with a maximum depth of and is considered by locals