Most whitebait spawning areas hit hard by Cyclone Gabrielle

Whitebait fishers and DoC rangers are yet to see the full impact of Cyclone Gabrielle on the fishery in Wairoa, Nūhaka and Mohaka. Picture supplied

The full impact of Cyclone Gabrielle on the whitebait fishery may not be seen until next year.

Department of Conservation (DoC) Wairoa ranger David Mathias said the flooding was significant and quite severe on their habitat.

While some whitebait spawning areas like Mohaka suffered only minor damage, most other spawning sites were hit hard.

“We asked experienced whitebaiters a lot of questions at the start of the season and the consensus was that over the past 30 years there had been a steady decline in Wairoa, Mohaka and Nūhaka,” Mr Mathias said.

“They all said they had seen a significant decline in catches.

“It is the only unregulated fishery in this country other than the length of the season.”

During the season, which finished on November 1, he and Gisborne DoC compliance officer Zachary Penman patrolled the Wairoa rivers every

two weeks.

“We only pulled out one net all season. Everyone was very compliant and easy to talk to and there were no breaches of the law,” Mr Mathias said.

“From our perspective, this region was a dream.”

While the spawning season was lengthy, he said the true effects of flooding from Gabrielle may not be seen until next year.

An indication of the potential impact was seen in Tutaekuri River — which flows through Hawke’s Bay — where DoC did DNA testing of whitebait before the cyclone.

Mr Mathias said they identified 13 different species but post-Gabrielle they only found six different species after repeating the DNA test.

“About half of all the adult species in that river were absent.”