Geoff Crawford near where he found a marlin in a stream on his Hikurangi Swamp farm. The marlin can be seen floating, to the left of the picture. Photo / John Stone
Top spearfisher Geoff Crawford would love to encounter a marlin in the water.
But he probably hadn't thought it would be in a stream on his Hikurangi Swamp farm, in his undies.
Chest deep in brown floodwaters, in his underwear, Mr Crawford removed a dead marlin stuck in a floodgate yesterday morning.
He had gone to close the floodgate about 8am yesterday, after opening it on Monday evening to release floodwaters.
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Three more marlin were floating about 2km away, just off a bridge on Otaikarangi Rd in Hikurangi.
All four were whole apart from their bills, which had been cut off.
"These are prized fish and weigh 80 to 100 kilos. I am in the New Zealand Spearfishing team and I'd love to spear them in saltwater but you never expect to see them on your farm," Mr Crawford said.
He is certain the marlin have been dumped and is concerned they could get clogged in the floodgate at the nearby pumping station and prevent the flow of floodwaters. He was waiting for floodwaters to recede before deciding how to retrieve and dispose of the fish.
"We've had people dumping household rubbish, bamboos and sheep and pig carcasses on farm gates and the problem seems to be getting worse.
"It's just like a commercial waste dump. We have a council rubbish dump in Hikurangi and it'd be the same distance for people to drive there than to come and dump their rubbish
here."
Mr Crawford suspects someone interested in a fish-mounted cast kept the beaks and dumped the fish.
"The whole fish is wasted. It is just terrible. If someone had rung and requested me to dispose them off, I'd have obliged," he said.
Mr Crawford has contacted the Whangarei District Council and local councillor Greg Martin.
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