Papawai Stream - Fish Spotting


In late October 2010 a group of Mt Cookies, led by the knowledgeable Frances Forsyth, went on a 'fishing' trip following the length of Papawai Stream.  The nature of one of Frances's fishing trips is that of a stocktake of the numbers of fish, their age and condition, and the condition of their habitat.  The trip takes place when it is starts to get dark, and is aided by Frances's bright lights, and her two fishing nets.

 

The first place we checked was under the scruffy dome (the dome-shaped cover over the culvert near the Papawai Terrace end of the stream).  Lots of little banded kokopu were discovered which indicates that the juvenile fish are making their way upstream from Chaffers Marina, under Kent and Cambridge Terraces, all the way up to Papawai Stream.  You can see how small they are in this photo with a hand-sized comparison.  There were lots of juvenile fish in the stream.

 

As we moved up towards to lower Prince of Wales field, we saw a koura and a couple of adult banded kokopu.  We saw more adult banded kokopu up near the bridge.  The adults that we saw appeared to be in good condition, with none of the white mould spots that indicate a fish under stress or living in a polluted habitat.  It was an enchanting evening for us city slickers who are unused to seeing NZ native fish so close by in the city.  

 

If you are interested in finding out more about the Papawai fish, or coming along on a fish spotting trip you can email mtcookmobilised@gmail.com and we will let you know about any future fishing trips.

 

The pictures below are of a koura we saw, and a glimpse of one of the mature banded kokopu, who were pretty good at speeding away when we tried to photograph them. (The banded kokopu is the orangey coloured fish in the centre of the photo).