sure there are plenty of fish for the future," says Bright. "There are still issues with the health of the fishery. The rules are intended to support reproduction as well as an increase in numbers." Anyone seeing suspicious activity in Marlborough or anywhere else should call 0800 4 POACHER (0800 476 224).
SET NET BAN A KNEE-JERK REACTION
A total ban on set nets is needed throughout the current and historical range of Maui's dolphins to save the species, the World Wildlife Fund New Zealand said on January 31. The statement followed reports that a Maui's dolphin had been killed in a fishing net off the coast of Taranaki. "The death should serve as a wake-up call that current protection measures are insufficient," said the executive director, Chris Howe. He said the population was now down to only about 100 individuals and nets set within their feeding range posed an unacceptable risk.
There had been independent, verified sightings of Maui's dolphins off the Taranaki coast in recent years, and the fund urged for protection measures to be extended throughout the dolphin's historical range, including harbours, plus better monitoring and policing. Maui's dolphins, a subspecies of the South Island's Hector's dolphins, are found only off the western coast of the North Island.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries said the dolphin was "likely a Maui's dolphin". The death had occurred outside its current known range, as well as outside the current restrictions.
The New Zealand Seafood Industry Council said any
extension of the set net ban off the Taranaki coast was an extreme response.
The identity of the dolphin could not be categorically confirmed and more research was needed, said the chief executive, Peter Bodeker, "Unfortunately, the word 'likely' has been removed from the conservationists' arguments and that's a key omission, given how sensitive this issue is," Bodeker said. More research was needed, rather than knee-jerk reactions based on a lack of solid evidence.
JAPANESE SHRIMP INVADES SOUTH ISLAND PORTS
The Japanese skeleton shrimp Caprella mutica has invaded three South Island locations, raising fears it may have already spread to the North Island. says MAF Biosecurity. The shrimp, described as "the praying mantis of the sea" is a native of northern Asia but has also spread to Europe and North America since the 1970s. The locations are Lyttelton Harbour, Timaru Harbour and Pelorus Sound in the Marlborough Sounds. Significant populations of the caprellid have shown up on wharf pilings, vessel hulls (including around seawater intakes and discharge valves) and aquaculture structures, notably mussel ropes and finfish cages.
It also been observed hitching a ride on several New Zealand decorator crab species, a novel localized dispersal mechanism, says a Biosecurity spokesman. The shrimp's dispersal is highly likely to be associated with vessel movements whilst attached to hull fouling.
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