A kayaker who capsized in wild Northland weather last night was embarking on his usual 10-minute commute home from work.

The social media phenomenon known as the Beached Az whale has been killed off by its creators to highlight the plight of marine life ahead of World Oceans Day.

A long weekend away turned out to be better than expected for Andrea Hegan, who paddled alongside a number of orca whales near Kawau Island on Sunday.

An elderly man is in serious condition in hospital this morning after he was ambushed by a seal at a New Plymouth beach.

Danielle Wright's last words to her parents were "bye, see you in three months". But she would never see them again, and a year later mystery surrounds her final days.

The highly prized sport fish bonefish is found on shallow, clear flats in tropical waters including the islands throughout the Pacific Ocean.

The sole survivor of the Easy Rider fishing boat tragedy that killed eight people pleaded with a judge to be merciful during a company owner's sentencing today.

The last remaining 55 of world's rarest species of dolphins could disappear within three decades if New Zealand doesn't act now, wildlife advocates say.

The parents of the German teenagers presumed drowned in Foveaux Strait are returning home and say they know they are leaving their daughters behind.

It won't matter if you spill red wine on the shag-pile carpet and white sofas in this $2.65 million luxury launch — it just slides right off the specially made fabric.

Hollywood director James Cameron is among those lamenting the loss of a robotic research submarine which imploded in the Kermadec Trench.

Superyacht firms say their multi-millionaire customers will sail off to Australian shipyards for lucrative refit and service contracts if Auckland does not develop more deep-water facilities.

A monster kingfish surprised a party of snapper fishermen last weekend when it swallowed a bait meant for snapper. The 36kg king took the piece of pilchard on a flasher rig by the Noises and was eventually subdued on the light 10kg breaking strain line.

Snapper can still be found around Auckland, but they are only in patches and the best way to find them is to look for changes in the temperature of the water.

Alarming declines in patronage on Auckland ferries have been blamed on a double-counting blooper stretching back to 2011.

Rugby isn't the only thing that matters to former All Blacks coach Sir Graham Henry. The World Cup-winning coach has put out the call for people to help raise funds for training some of the emergency heroes of the sea.

No one had known just what kind of weapon lay hidden off the coast of the South Island. Behind the unlikely facade of a harmless sea sponge lurked a fearsome cocktail of chemicals that had evolved over billions of years.

The deputy headmaster, Kang Min-gyu, in charge of the 236 missing students was found dead.

Anglers looking for a dinner of fresh fish over the long weekend don't have to go past the harbours at the moment.

A new report says the missing Malaysia Airlines plane was 'thrown around like a fighter jet' - flying drastic manoeuvres in a bid to dodge radar.

After a week of optimism over four underwater signals believed to be coming from the missing Malaysian plane the sea has gone quiet.

A body seen floating in Auckland's Waitemata Harbour was ignored, joked about and photographed, but few people were willing to help.

There is a trout lure called a toby which has been around for generations, and like many top lures it originated in Scandinavia. But, as with most fishing experiences, one is often surprised at how the fish change the rules or do the unexpected.

Sharks have forced themselves back into the minds of Australians.

Fishing is fickle, the saying goes. And as summer departs and cold nights descend and leaves start turning, the snapper turn up. It has been a long wait, but the old Maori knew this was often the way. They called May tamure, in honour of the snapper.

Scientists have used an underwater camera to count large snapper in Hauraki Gulf marine reserves.

A mystery sunken yacht with links to New Zealand, discovered off the coast of Darwin, is unlikely to be the Nina.

Cuts to snapper limits come into force on Tuesday, with the increase in the minimum size from 27cm to 30cm. The new rules apply only to the Snapper 1 area, which runs from Cape Runaway to North Cape on the east coast, which is the main snapper fishery.