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Archives For 30/11/1999

Meet Teviot flathead galaxias

Department of Conservation — 21/06/2014

Meet Teviot flathead galaxias, one of the five species of New Zealand native freshwater fish, whose threat of extinction has recently been listed as nationally critical—the highest threat category…

Gulp, gulp… I’m Teviot flathead galaxias, but you can call me Tev.

I live, with every other Teviot on the planet, in a small part of the Teviot River in Otago… gulp, gulp.

If you think that sounds crowded you’d be wrong. There aren’t that many of us. Probably less than 100. So, it’s actually kinda lonely.

Not just any Teviot flathead galaxias — it’s me!

I may not be as famous as Sirocco the kākāpō (…yet), but some of my family are quite well known. Unfortunately for them though, it’s for how they taste in a fritter… gulp, gulp.

I am every bit as threatened as my feathery friend though. We’re both classified in the New Zealand Threat Classification System as ‘nationally critical’—that’s just one step away from ‘extinct’… gulp, gulp.

It’s tough to be a small fish like me, as there are many threats to my home, including land use changes, gravel extraction, water abstraction, drain clearing and declining water quality… gulp, gulp.

On top of all this, introduced trout—who are a lot bigger than me—think I’m quite tasty… gulp, gulp—just like you humans with your whitebait fritters.

Gollum galaxias – classified as ‘nationally vulnerable’

I think there’s room for us all—native fish, trout and humans, but we fish rely on you humans to talk to each other and work together to come up with ways to keep our rivers and lakes clean and beautiful and, importantly, to keep me off the ‘extinct’ list… gulp, gulp.

Longfin eel – classified as ‘declining’

If you’d like to know more about the conservation status of New Zealand freshwater fish you can find our more information on the Waiology blog.

The Department of Conservation website has the official information on where our freshwater fish are rated on the New Zealand Threat Classification System

In Native animals fish, Flathead, freshwater, galaxias, galaxiid, Native, Tev, teviot

Koaro live to fight another day

Department of Conservation — 05/09/2013

By Rob Griffiths, Community Relations Ranger, Rotorua.

Just over a year ago, inspired by a Te Arawa Lakes Trust initiative, a small project team was formed with the ultimate goal of providing a sanctuary for koaro, a little native fish, in the upper reaches of Hamurana Springs near Rotorua.

The initial focus was on constructing a weir across the stream to help exclude trout, and then later to remove the trout from the upstream side of the spring.

Check out this little sucker

Projects that happen in streams, rivers or lakes around the Rotorua region are never simple! Generally you need resource consent from the regional council, approval from Te Arawa Lakes Trust (as they manage the beds), local iwi require consultation, and often approval is needed from Fish & Game and NIWA. Rather than going through the motions and pushing on alone, a working group that included all the associated organisations was formed and this collective expertise and commitment proved invaluable to the project.

Hamurana Spring trout barrier

DOC Ranger Kristina Thompson has been involved since the outset. She felt it was important to involve as many of the relevant organisations as possible as partners in the project. Their approval is one thing, but having them on board as partners in the project brought the added benefit of their skills and knowledge.

The weir is simple in design and construction, having a slightly sloped downstream side to allow koaro to climb, and a grate to repel trout from jumping over. A distinguishing feature of koaro is their ability to climb up very steep surfaces such as waterfalls, dams and even white-baiters’ buckets.

Iwi wader training

To date, Kristina has been both surprised and delighted with the results of the project. It is the first structure of its kind in the Bay of Plenty and so far the results have been positive. Recent monitoring of koaro above the weir shows that numbers of koaro have sky rocketed, and the waterways they are now found are much more dispersed than previously reported.

In Native animals fish, freshwater, Glaxiids, Hamurana Springs, Kaora, Rotorua, Sanctuary, trout

Jobs at DOC: Stella McQueen—Freshwater Ranger

Department of Conservation — 17/05/2013

Come behind the scenes and into the jobs, the challenges, the highlights, and the personalities of the people who work at the Department of Conservation (DOC).

Today we profile Stella McQueen, Freshwater Ranger/”native fish geek” in DOC’s Taranaki/Whanganui Area Offices.

At work

Me!

Some things I do in my job include… Fishing! Mostly spotlighting or electrofishing, surveying streams in order to update records, find out what is there and figure out how best to look after the special places that we find.

The best bit about my job is… Fishing! The astonishment and excitement each time my spotlight falls on a great big kōkopu or longfin eel. Sharing the knowledge and helping to look after these incredible animals.

The DOC (or previous DOC) employee that inspires or enthuses me most is…
Rosemary Miller. She was a friend of the family when I was an odd teenager obsessed with medieval history. She was a huge inspiration and mentor. I still aspire to be like her when I grow up…

The scariest DOC moment I’ve had so far is… Rolling a brand new ute down a 100 metre cliff into a stream and being rescued by a helicopter, three weeks into a three month contract. I remain utterly astonished that we survived.

The rolled ute at the bottom of a cliff.

Our ute at the bottom of the 100 metre cliff

On a personal note…

The song that always cheers me up is… The old theme tune from Thomas the Tank Engine!

If I could trade places with any other person for a week – famous or not famous, living or dead, real or fictional – it would be… A zombie apocalypse survivor, so long as dying during the week wasn’t permanent. Technically, I am not a fan of horror movies, but ever since I rolled the ute I have had zombie dreams and they are so much fun!

My best ever holiday was… Last year, spending eleven months living in my little campervan. I travelled the length of the country meeting fish geeks, looking for different species and writing a field guide to freshwater fish, which will be published this November. I have loved the mobile life so much that my van is ‘home’ for the foreseeable future.

My home, parked at the top of the highest alpine road in the country (1,347 m), on Molesworth Station

My secret indulgence is… Collecting clever and/or funny internet memes, webcomics and captioned images. Embarrassingly, I have over 4,000 in 52 folders, and I look at them when I need a chuckle.

If I wasn’t working at DOC, I’d like to… Be writing more books and exploring more of this amazing country, and finding more work with DOC!

Deep and meaningful…

My favourite quote is… Well, there are lots, but my current favourite is “Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway.” The next fishy book I want to write will be a very long and extremely challenging project, which is scary, but would be so good for me to do.

Feeding pieces of fresh roadkill to longfin eels, after we finished our work for the night. They had a good go at my fingers too

The best piece of advice I’ve ever been given is… “Don’t believe a word I say.” This piece of wisdom was pressed on my first-year Classical Studies class, by our amazing lecturer Norman Austin. He wanted us to check all ‘facts’ and make up our own minds, even if the information came from trusted experts.

In work and life I am motivated by… Obsessions. Life without interests and dreams and one’s weird personal geekiness would be boring. There is always something that I am utterly fascinating by and avidly researching.

My conservation advice to New Zealanders is… That it is not a choice between having a healthy economy and a healthy environment. We either have both, or we have nothing.

Our best fish of the season – a 32cm severely-battle-scarred giant kōkopu

Question of the week…

What is your biggest pet peeve? People who use text-speak out loud.

Me with a Tarndale bully – the most geographically restricted freshwater fish species in New Zealand

In Jobs at DOC Electrofishing, fish, freshwater, giant kokopu, Longfin Eel, Native, ranger

Spreading Galaxiid love in Otago

Department of Conservation — 10/04/2013

Lan Pham is a Freshwater Fish Ranger from DOC’s Coastal Otago Area Office, she writes about an exciting new project to spread the love of New Zealand’s freshwater fish species.

A Lowland longjaw galaxiid swimming in a stream.

A Lowland longjaw galaxiid – classified as critically endangered

For many our native freshwater fish species are most commonly encountered is in a whitebait fritter, but in Otago a new project aims to change the way local communities experience and relate to our unique freshwater species.

The Otago region is a biodiversity ‘hot-spot’ for a fascinating group of galaxiids—native freshwater fish, which unlike their whitebait counterparts, do not migrate to sea. Instead, these non-migratory galaxiids live out their lives in the stream or river where they hatched. Often these few remaining populations have passed under the radar of their human neighbours. However, as freshwater resources are coming under increasing pressure, the need to raise the profile of these galaxiids is of utmost importance, meaning the time for action and getting to know our galaxiids before we lose them for good is now!

Kids watching two DOC rangers electric fishing for galaxiid.

Electric fishing for the infamous Clutha flathead galaxiid in Boundary Creek

‘Growing Otago’s Galaxiid’s’ is an initiative that has sprung out of Otago’s Growth and Engagement Strategy. It’s a fresh start that aims to get local communities, irrigation groups and foresty companies excited and engaged with their local species, and to facilitate what measures/activities/events they want to drive to help conserve their galaxiid species.

The project is in its first month and there has already been some exciting successes. Several schools have signed up to partner with local fish-friendly landowners who are keen to host restoration sites on their properties. We had a fun visit to the Conservation Award-winning Waitahuna School and met their local galaxiids at Boundary creek and are working with Kids Conservation Club and City Forests on an exciting team project involving our nationally endangered Eldon’s galaxiid.

A DOC ranger shows attendees the creatures living in Oamaru Creek.

Discovering what fascinating creatures live in Oamaru creek!

Only time will tell whether we are on to a winning start with spreading galaxiid love throughout Otago. But we will sure be doing our darnedest to try new things, involve communities at every step of the process and let them take the reigns and run with the projects themselves into the future.

Our big vision is that communities will drive their own galaxiid conservation projects, landowners and forestry companies will actively protect galaxiids on their land and local businesses will support their local galaxiids through sponsorship. Our hope is that the galaxiid love we are seeding during this project is something that will continue to grow within communities, far beyond what DOC alone could ever hope to achieve!

A Clutha flathead

In Native animals Clutha, fish, Flathead, freshwater, galaxiid, oamaru, Otago, whitebait

Giant kokopu safari in Wellington

Department of Conservation — 04/04/2013

Brian Sheppard works for DOC at National Office in Wellington. He writes about his recent surprise at finding a giant kokopu living in the stream near his house in urban Wellington:

When I lived in the UK, I enjoyed the occasional bowl of whitebait but I couldn’t believe my eyes when I moved to New Zealand and found that our whitebait are the size of small matches rather than large pencils. I have eaten them, and even enjoyed them in a guilty way. Why guilty? I am used to eating eggs, whether from chicken or fish, but am more comfortable with the prospect of allowing the offspring to grow a bit before I devour them.

Our whitebait are the size of small matches.

Working in DOC, I follow the arguments about managing streams and their margins and, amongst other things, the impacts of riparian management on the breeding cycle of our native galaxiids, which, when harvested as babies, are our whitebait.

My interest took a new turn when I learned that a giant kokopu had set up home in our local stream in Wellington. I grabbed my camera and went on big game safari. When I saw this beautiful beast, which seems to be about 20 cm long, it was me rather than the fish that was hooked.

Giant kokopu discovered in a Wellington stream.

The beautiful beast

On a second visit, in brighter lighting conditions and from a better position, I was able to see it in its full splendour. It is coloured like the night sly, framed with reddish fins. After some frantic reading, I understand that the name galaxiid refers to its patterning that it reminiscent of a galaxy. I also read that it feeds on small koura and any insects that happen to fall into the stream. When I saw the size of its mouth and its fierce array of teeth, I realise that it must be a monster for unsuspecting invertebrates.

I have no pretence about being a ‘fishologist’ but its swelling belly made me wonder if it is a mum-to-be. Having shown the photos to others who are more familiar with these things, it seems to be likely, so the safaris will continue.

The giant kokopu appears to have a swelling belly.

A swelling belly, possibly more kokopu to come

I have lived in my house since the mid 1980s and been aware over the years of the great efforts that have been made in cleaning up the stream, reducing pollution, looking after its surrounding vegetation and protecting its banks from erosion. In this urban landscape, all of that hard work is paying off. ‘My’ giant kokopu has made its home under a gabion basket that reinforces the bank against erosion during the periods of intense flow that follow heavy rain. With so much asphalt and so many storm water drains that feed the stream, the water flow can quickly change from a trickle to a raging torrent, the back to a trickle as the water flows into the harbour. All of this, in some mysterious way, is an essential part of the life cycle of these beautiful fish, and it all happens in urban Wellington.

The stream where the giant kokopu was found.

Lots of work has gone in to cleaning up the stream

Is this really a mum-to-be? Is there a dad-to-be on hand to fertilise the eggs? Where will this happen, and will there be a happy ending? What’s more, will I ever find out? I think that a few more safaris are needed.

Is this really a mum-to-be?

In Native animals fish, freshwater, Galaxiiids, Giant kokpu, Stream, Urban, Wellington