Fisheries stop haul of 304 undersized paua

File photo / APN

A Taranaki man may be fined thousands of dollars after only one of 305 paua he gathered over the weekend was found to be of legal size.

The man was nabbed by fisheries officers on a night patrol at New Plymouth's Kawaroa Reef on Sunday.

Most of the paua in his possession measured 50 to 60mm but the smallest of his illegal haul measured 45mm, just over half the legal size of 85mm for Taranaki paua, fishery officer Jeff Hall told the Taranaki Daily News.

The paua were seized, measured, photographed and returned to the sea.

The minimum measure for paua outside Taranaki is 125mm.

Mr Hall said the man may face prosecution under the Fisheries Act and was liable for a $100,000 fine on each count of exceeding the limit and gathering under-sized paua.

The daily paua limit is 10.

- NZPA