| Macalister | |
| Name Native: | [1] [2] |
| Name Etymology: | Captain Lachlan Macalister |
| Pushpin Map: | Australia Victoria |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Mouth of the Macalister River in Victoria |
| Subdivision Type1: | Country |
| Subdivision Name1: | Australia |
| Subdivision Type2: | State |
| Subdivision Name2: | Victoria |
| Subdivision Type3: | Region |
| Subdivision Name3: | Victorian Alps (IBRA), South East Coastal Plain (IBRA), West Gippsland |
| Subdivision Type4: | Local government area |
| Subdivision Name4: | Shire of Wellington |
| Subdivision Type5: | Settlements |
| Length: | 177km (110miles) |
| Discharge1 Location: | mouth |
| Source1: | Great Dividing Range |
| Source1 Location: | below Mount Howitt |
| Source1 Coordinates: | -37.1717°N 146.6603°W |
| Source1 Elevation: | 1550m (5,090feet) |
| Mouth: | confluence with the Thomson River |
| Mouth Location: | south of |
| Mouth Coordinates: | -38.0383°N 146.9811°W |
| Mouth Elevation: | 14m (46feet) |
| River System: | West Gippsland catchment |
| Tributaries Left: | Caledonia River, Wellington River, Stony Creek 2 (Macalister River, Victoria), Main Northern Channel |
| Tributaries Right: | Peters Creek (Victoria), Coleman Creek (Victoria), Grimme Creek, Barkly River, Target Creek, Serpentine Creek, Mount Useful Creek, Cheyne Creek, Stony Creek 1 (Macalister River, Victoria), Glenmaggie Creek, Main Serpentine Drain |
| Custom Label: | National park |
| Custom Data: | Alpine NP, Avon Wilderness Park |
| Extra: | [3] |
The Macalister River, a perennial river of the West Gippsland catchment, is located in the Alpine and Gippsland regions of the Australian state of Victoria.
The Macalister River rises below Mount Howitt, part of the Great Dividing Range in the southern portion of the Alpine National Park; and flows generally south by east in a highly meandering course. The river is joined by fifteen tributaries including the Caledonia, Wellington, and Barkly rivers, impounded by the Glenmaggie Dam that creates Lake Glenmaggie, before reaching its confluence with the Thomson River, south of . The river descends over its 177km (110miles) course.[3] The fertile flats and valley floor of the Macalister River support agriculture around the town of Licola.
In the Aboriginal Braiakaulung language the river was named Wirnwirndook'yeerun, meaning the "song of some bird",[1] purportedly an emu wren.[2]
The river was later named the Macalister River by explorer Angus McMillan, after his employer, Captain Lachlan Macalister.[4] [5]